I've always been sceptical of mass displays of emotion. A mob is a mob, whatever particular form of mass hysteria they're experiencing at a particular time. Still, the whole Hillsborough thing has reminded me of the flip-side of that, the way the whole ceremonial, feel your pain, let's all hold hands side of things can become a displacement activity to deflect from having to deal with the real issues.
Just as the more 9-11 memorials there were, the more it seemed the Twin Towers must have been struck by a meteor, so there's been a strangely passive quality to the MSM's Hillsborough coverage. True, I understand that for several second during the BBC's ten hour Hillsborough marathon, it was possible to hear Sports Minister Andy Burnham being heckled by people chanting 'Justice for Hillsborough' but what form that justice would take, and why they didn't think they had had it already, who could tell? No one dependent on the MSM, that's for sure.
That's why I bit down on the urge to write an obscene comment to this post. Given the MSM's coverage, DV's reaction is fair enough - the only thing I'd say to him is this: given what a bang up job the MSM has done on reporting the grievances of Ulster Protestants, why exactly would you trust them to report fairly on what motivates Hillsborough protesters?
No, that's not a demand that broadcasters get deep into the details of the Gate Tape and the 3.15 cut-off every time they cover Hillsborough, but there's something utterly repellent in this determination to bury serious issues under a ten foot layer of psychobabble.
Just as the more 9-11 memorials there were, the more it seemed the Twin Towers must have been struck by a meteor, so there's been a strangely passive quality to the MSM's Hillsborough coverage. True, I understand that for several second during the BBC's ten hour Hillsborough marathon, it was possible to hear Sports Minister Andy Burnham being heckled by people chanting 'Justice for Hillsborough' but what form that justice would take, and why they didn't think they had had it already, who could tell? No one dependent on the MSM, that's for sure.
That's why I bit down on the urge to write an obscene comment to this post. Given the MSM's coverage, DV's reaction is fair enough - the only thing I'd say to him is this: given what a bang up job the MSM has done on reporting the grievances of Ulster Protestants, why exactly would you trust them to report fairly on what motivates Hillsborough protesters?
No, that's not a demand that broadcasters get deep into the details of the Gate Tape and the 3.15 cut-off every time they cover Hillsborough, but there's something utterly repellent in this determination to bury serious issues under a ten foot layer of psychobabble.
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