Journalists have been supplanted by current and former politicians, political aides and lobbyists. Tony Blair’s henchman Alistair Campbell has guest hosted Good Morning Britain twice. Nigel Farage has worked for LBC. He’s just been signed by GB News.
LBC has given radio shows to Jacob Rees-Mogg, Rachel Johnson and David Lammy. Iain Dale has tried and failed several times to win a seat for the Tories. He’s written several gushing tributes to his heroine Margaret Thatcher. Dale has a daily show on LBC. He’s not a journalist and he’s a wretched presenter. It matters not. He’s establishment to the bone.
I don’t know if anyone has ever complained to Ofcom, the UK’s broadcasting regulatory authority. It probably wouldn’t make any difference.
UK radio stations have been embedded by the establishment. It began with the broadcasting act of 1990. A year earlier, the EU issued a directive to member states that they should deregulate their broadcasting industries to promote competition.
The directive wasn’t issued to promote competition. Its aim was to destroy it. That might seem counterintuitive. After all, then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher claimed that the act would lead to the opening of many new regional and commercial stations, ultimately leading to more choice and a greater diversity of opinion.
But the opposite happened. Inevitably, local radio stations which had
been providing a vital public service for years, began to flounder. The
creation of so many new radio stations led to a sharp decline in
advertising revenues. The end was nigh for local radio and local news....<<<Read More...>>>...