Bird's Eye View - by Big Issue founder A. John Bird
DIRTY! Name calling politics
"Whingeing moralizing political commentary lacks analysis, does not look below the surface and is never a guide to action"
Reading about Brown and Cameron, and the acres of wiseacre comments, I am reminded that few journalists want to break the mould. Politics may be askew but the journalistic reporting system is not working either.
It seems that few commentators thirst for social change and action. They thirst instead for showing once again the feet of clay of politicians. That virtually all people who pick up a pen and talk about politicians, especially the leaders, point score.
The growth of what you might call whingeing moralizing political commentary has been going on for decades. It is often dressed up as a Leftish contempt for power politics.
Unfortunately, because it lacks analysis, does not look below the surface, it is never a guide to action. After you hear what a fool, fraud, or freak the political leader is, you – the reader – don't know what to do about it. Why? Because of course the other leader(s) are like that also.
So you chase your own tail. Cynicism is bred deep into you. Smartarsedness rules OK. Another generation of journalists have triumphed in giving you an opinion to run with that takes you nowhere.
It stinks. For instance, not only do Mps' expenses stink, but the people who are paid to inform you stink. They stink of moralizing and whingeing. They never give you analysis. They never give you a fresh set of views that you can then do something with.
I read last week an interview with Cameron that did exactly what all interviews seem determined to do. And that is prove his incompetence and his insincerity. Not a jot of analysis. Not a jot of originality.
If all Cameronian interviews set out to prove the same thing why would you read it? Why would you not throw up your hands in despair and say for F's sake, I know this already! Give me something fresh to play with here!
That is why we need to develop a new school of what I would call committed journalism. A journalism that looks beneath the surface, not just to show the shallowness of such-and-such a political leader. But to show what this represents. Where the shallowness comes from.
I think we all need to expect more from our journalism. We need answers rather than to continuously carp on about the corruption. We need to explain where the corruptions of political and social life come from.
We need to arm our readers with an understanding so that they themselves can get involved in politics. Rather than wall them off by saying again and again, it's all rotten. The political leaders are human failures, etc.
Our biggest deficit in a political sense is that we leave others to do it for us. If anything is a sign of the ugliness of political delivery it is how little we get involved. We reap what we sow. We leave the political life to the political types. And then we dislike what they are.
Most political journalists never get involved in politics themselves. Most of them stand outside politics and just comment. And it shows in their often snide comments, defining themselves by the failure of others.
A healthy press would not simply point out the way things are, but would also offer some guidance as to how it can be changed. A healthy press would be made up of journalists who broke free of their bubble of daily news-gathering, and get involved in solutions. Would combine social practice with political practice, and commentary.
The tired, inept, name-calling, self-defeating telling-off or our current brand of journalism will not help us in developing a democracy that can face the challenges of today. An involving, participatory journalism for an involving participatory democracy.
Out there are thousands of solutions to the collapse of social justice that goes on apace in our midst. We need to find them. We need our journalists to get bright. And find them for us. Get their antennas up. And stop getting off on the fact that they have just written a piece that tries to show once again that Brown is a clot and Cameron is a pillock.
Give us what we don't know. We thirst!
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