"Indie"scribably bad
Iain Dale does a great job of Fisking a dreadful article by the Independent's Mary Dejevsky.
Although this article is a particularly extreme example, it does show how far the Independent is sliding lately. Under Simon Kelner the paper has become a Daily Mail of the left, with sensationalist front pages about some crusade or other the Indie is currently on. For asylum seekers and house prices for the Mail, read Iraq and climate change for the Indie.
I will still buy the paper at uni (it's only 20p from student shops) otherwise I only buy it on Wednesday to read Mark Steel, my weekly dose of political eye candy. If Mark Steel were to stop writing his columns, I would stop buying the Indie altogether. It's easy enough to get my daily read of sport, humour and political comment from those whom I share views with from the daily blogs listed on the right.
Perhaps this is why the newspapers are all scared of blogging. If political commentators, academics, government ministers and old Joe Soap can start a blog, so people can read their stuff for free, who is going to buy a third rate piece of tosh with excruciating columnists when they can read so much great stuff for free? Which is why they take every opportunity they can to do it down.
For those who are unaware of the joys of Fisking, see here.
-posted by Roy
