When Journalism Becomes Propaganda

A few days agone I took component inward a Royal Economic Conference session on the implications of the Brexit vote. There is no demand for me to depict how it went, equally in that place is a expert write upwards inward the FT. By good, I hateful that it was a fair reflection of what went on. Philip Aldrick, economic science editor at the Times, took exception to something I said at the coming together on twitter.

Almost a calendar month agone I wrote a post on propaganda. I used a Definition borrowed from Jason Stanley, where intent was key. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 expert journalists provides what they believe are they primal facts that the reader needs, piece propaganda involves providing facts that advance the newspaper’s view. The interesting thing nigh this twitter conversation was that Aldrick idea that selecting facts to back upwards the papers sentiment was non propaganda, too that he idea it was what the other newspapers he named too I equally an academic did.

Just to crystalise what I mean, accept this article that of late appeared inward the Telegraph. The headline (and call back this is all that many Telegraph readers volition read) said “EU migrants without a undertaking brand upwards metropolis the size of Bristol”. The article continued:

“EU migrants of working historic menstruation living inward the U.K. who exercise non create got a undertaking concern human relationship for a metropolis the size of Bristol, novel figures create got revealed. One inward vii of the 2,733,000 European Union migrants aged 16-64 - a full of 390,000 - are unemployed or “inactive”.

A survey past times the Office for National Statistics does non plough over a breakdown of how many claim benefits, simply those who are unemployed volition live on eligible for jobseeker’s allowance too may also claim housing exercise goodness too kid benefit. People who are “inactive” include those claiming disability benefits.”

The ONS survey tin live on flora here. The fact that the Telegraph chose non to study was that 1 inward five U.K. nationals was unemployed or inactive (excluding students). The argue that this is such a high figure is that ‘inactive’ includes mothers staying abode to hold back subsequently children, some other fact that the Telegraph decided non to report.

The existent even out thus is that migrants of working historic menstruation are to a greater extent than probable to live on working than U.K. nationals of working age. Other things existence equal, this agency that they volition live on paying to a greater extent than taxes too thus contributing proportionately to a greater extent than to world services that U.K. nationals. By selecting which facts to study to their readers, the Telegraph turned this into a even out nigh how many migrants were non working, too the sum of benefits they were collecting. In doing this, they were next inward the proud traditions of the Mail, Lord's Day too Express. 

Would you lot telephone telephone this journalism or propaganda? There are a corking many expert journalists who would non desire this described equally the same equally what they do, too it fits the Definition of propaganda I gave exactly. Propaganda distorts the truth, too inward a province similar the U.K. expert propaganda does non demand to resort to lying nigh facts to attain its goal. And of course of study it matters a lot. I suspect that stories similar this are i of the reasons the province tin process migrants too so badly inward this country.