desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 17/09/2026'Capitalism, media ownership and democracy' - come & listen to me and @rodneybenson.bsky.social discuss the issues and listen to you arguing with us. 5.30pm, Thursday 24 Sept at NYU in London's campus www.eventbrite.com/e/capitalism... 021
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 03/09/2026That is amazing news and the product of a lovely and militant campaign. Good luck in the ballot to keep the pressure on.. 010
Reposted by @desfreedman.bsky.socialDeclassified UK @declassifieduk.org · 02/09/2026👉NEW -- It’s OK to fight for a foreign army (as long as they’re our friends) by @desfreedman.bsky.social That’s the unwritten rule for Britain’s media www.declassifieduk.org/its-ok-to-fi...declassifieduk.orgIt’s OK to fight for a foreign army (as long as they’re our friends)That’s the unwritten rule for Britain’s media 34932
Reposted by @desfreedman.bsky.socialLondon Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 30/07/2026‘Ten days ago, Andy Burnham stood outside Number 10 and announced “the biggest changes in the last forty years”. One thing that won’t change is the use of British bases by American military aircraft bombing Iran.’ New from @desfreedman.bsky.social, on the blog: www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2026/ju...lrb.co.ukDes Freedman | Bombs AwayTen days ago, Andy Burnham stood outside Number 10 and announced a ‘circuit breaker for Britain, bringing forward the... 094
Reposted by @desfreedman.bsky.socialLondon Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 11/06/2026’On 20 June, two thousand activists from across Europe and beyond will gather at Westminster Central Hall for a conference to oppose the growing atmosphere of militarism. But don’t expect to see anything about it in the papers or on TV.` @desfreedman.bsky.social: www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2026/ju...lrb.co.ukDes Freedman | Wages Not WeaponsJohn Healey’s resignation as defence secretary is the latest skirmish in a wider campaign to secure an increase in... 065
Reposted by @desfreedman.bsky.socialLondon Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 16/05/2026‘Despite regular demonstrations of bigotry on the world’s streets, more than 99 per cent of stories that mention “hate marches” have been published since 7 October 2023 and have focused on anti-racist protesters.’ @desfreedman.bsky.social on ‘hate marches’. www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2026/ma...lrb.co.ukDes Freedman | ‘Hate Marches’Two marches will assemble in central London tomorrow. One is championing the rights of Palestinians and commemorating 78... 02419
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 09/03/2026It takes a lot of work to make it seem that the UK isn't at war www.counterfire.org/article/sell...counterfire.orgSelling a ‘defensive’ warDes Freedman examines the British Media’s failure to challenge Britain’s aggression on Iran Britain is, apparently, not at war with Iran. 000
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 04/02/2026New book out in May via @politybooks.bsky.social that puts capitalism centre stage for any understanding of media 054
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 30/01/2026In its report on Israel's accepting the number of people killed in Gaza, the BBC notes without irony, that "Israel has previously cast doubt on figures from the Hamas-run health ministry." How about NOT using this qualifier whose only purpose is to cast doubt on the figures? 000
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 06/01/2026The BBC make it sound like Maduro has had some kind of episode rather than being violently kidnapped by US special forces. Of course this is just obeying the memo from on high - do NOT call it what it is… 000
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 19/12/2025It turn out that @bbc was only saying - albeit with a lousy edit - what the Telegraph and Mail were saying about Trump inciting people on Jan 6: that he was 'encouraging' and 'inciting' the storming of the Capitol. And now the whole media is set to pay. www.counterfire.org/article/dona...counterfire.orgDonald Trump vs the BBCDespite the egregious failings of the BBC, Trump’s bullying must not be allowed to silence any and all critics in the media, argues Des Freedman Donald Trump has announced that he will definitely s... 010
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 07/12/2025Mainstream news devoted plenty of headlines & air time to the UK couple on hunger strike recently in Iran. Meanwhile pro-Palestine activists currently on hunger strike here in the UK are virtually ignored - not a peep out of the BBC edm.parliament.uk/early-day-mo... 000
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 04/12/2025Routine failures are usually more revealing than the exceptional ones...Some thoughts for @declassifieduk.org on why the BBC wants you to look away from atrocities carried out by Israeli forces www.declassifieduk.org/the-bbc-edit...declassifieduk.orgThe BBC edit no one will resign overFailure to air footage of Israeli soldiers executing unarmed Palestinians shows the corporation’s true bias 03822
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 26/11/2025A tale of two edits. The Panorama one saw the resignation of three senior figures while the removal of a sentence criticising Trump from @rcbregman’s Reith lecture has been filed under “culture” and caused minimal fuss www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukHistorian Rutger Bregman criticises BBC for removing Donald Trump line from Radio 4's Reith LectureRutger Bregman says he is 032
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 21/11/2025Looks like someone is missing from the bottom right-hand corner. That would be Shumeet Banerji who's just resigned from the BBC Board after being "cut out" of recent top-level discussions that led the DG & head of news to quit. Yet we're told there was no coup - just a healthy difference of opinion 121
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 17/11/2025Actual number of murders in London have halved in last 20 years while stories in the media have multiplied by four. You tell me what’s going on… 0105
Reposted by @desfreedman.bsky.socialLondon Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 14/11/2025‘The BBC could never do enough to satisfy its enemies on the right, who are as exercised by what the BBC represents – a “public service” model in an increasingly commercial media landscape – as they are by what it says or does.’ @desfreedman.bsky.social on the blog. www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2025/no...lrb.co.ukDes Freedman | Whose BBC?From the revelations about Jimmy Savile in 2012 to the gender pay gap debacle in 2017, the BBC was for many years its... 0166
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 13/11/2025Don't miss @markcurtis30.bsky.social, co-founder of the brilliant investigative news site @declassifieduk.org, speak on "How the UK News Cover Up Foreign Policy". 5pm Wednesday 19 November at Goldsmiths in SE London @mediacomgold.bsky.social www.gold.ac.uk/calendar/?id...gold.ac.ukHow the UK News Media Cover Up Foreign PolicyA talk by Mark Curtis, founder of Declassified UK and Visiting Fellow in Goldsmiths' School of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies (MCCS). 021
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 12/11/2025This really isn't the first dodgy @BBC edit but it's certainly the one that counts because delegitimising striking miners in 1984 or undermining Corbyn in 2019 apparently don't matter. Some thoughts for @LRB blog www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2025/no...lrb.co.ukDes Freedman | Whose BBC?From the revelations about Jimmy Savile in 2012 to the gender pay gap debacle in 2017, the BBC was for many years its... 06334
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 05/11/2025Did The Times call it for Cuomo or did ChatGPT get it right this time? 000
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 22/10/2025Wearing a Black Lives Matter T-shirt in the newsroom will totally undermine the BBC's commitment to anti-racism (in a way that its appalling coverage of Gaza will presumably not). Some thoughts on "Our BBC" www.counterfire.org/article/our-...counterfire.orgOur BBC – hardly…The BBC’s impartiality means that it marches in lockstep with establishment opinion rather than challenging it, failing the cardinal journalistic ethic, argues Des Freedman The BBC's position on im... 021
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 27/05/2025The UK media have suddenly woken up to the fact that Israel is not a paragon of virtue. My thoughts for @declassifieduk.org www.declassifieduk.org/the-uk-media...declassifieduk.orgThe UK media discover Israel is off the leashBritain’s national press finally realise that Israel might be a problem but still fail to recognise their own role in legitimising atrocities in Gaza. 012
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 01/05/2025Wrote this about the manufactured & hypocritical outrage concerning the pro Palestine hip hop outfit Kneecap www.counterfire.org/article/knee...counterfire.orgKneecap: pilloried for supporting PalestiniansThe controversy over the band Kneecap is a blatant example of double standards when it comes to free speech and Palestine, explains Des Freedman The Irish hip-hop band Kneecap are facing calls to b... 001
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 03/03/2025Nothing like a boom in defence industry shares to keep us safe and nothing like an independent media to ask tough questions www.declassifieduk.org/the-mainstre...declassifieduk.orgThe mainstream media are beating the drums of warWhen did you last see someone interviewed on the BBC who opposed spending more money on the military? 011
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 26/02/2025Me and @sydneyforde.bsky.social find evidence of “systematic failures in public service media coverage of Gaza and highlight its use as an instrument perpetuating state power and control” doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...doi.orgArm’s length or joined at the hip? Public service media’s coverage of GazaAbstract. Critiquing normative articulations of a public versus commercial media binary, we explore the contradictory juxtaposition of democratic expectati 010
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 23/02/2025This is a very significant and welcome development in the context of the still ongoing “independent” antisemitism inquiry at Goldsmiths. You’d think that if there was anything to find, they’d have found it by now www.middleeasteye.net/news/uk-lond...middleeasteye.netLondon university apologises to lecturer wrongly accused of antisemitismGoldsmiths also pays damages to Ray Campbell after dismissing complaint against him over social media posts 010
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 04/02/2025Please come to this meeting at Goldsmiths on the huge grass roots protest movement in Serbia that’s shaking the government. It's been going on for 3 months & the media have finally started to wake up to the fact there's a mass popular revolt in the heart of Europe www.eventbrite.com/e/revolution...eventbrite.comRevolution Won't be Reported: Student Protests in SerbiaPanel discussion about the current, anti-government, student-led protest in Serbia and why the UK media are not reporting the event 002
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 01/02/2025Really looking forward to speaking at this next weekend along with @andrewfeinstein.bsky.social & many more. Protest is the most effective way of organising solidarity with Gaza and holding our own government to account for the fact they’re still arming Israel 033
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 01/02/2025Up to 10,000 jobs to go in a sector with over £5 billion surplus since 21/22 acc to HESA. Where did all this money go? Not on staff pay for sure. How many shiny buildings and perks for vice-chancellors? A national scandal that @ucu.org.uk & NUS have to fight www.theguardian.com/education/20...theguardian.comQuarter of leading UK universities cutting staff due to budget shortfallsUp to 10,000 redundancies or job losses feared as institutes undergo restructuring 020
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 26/01/2025“Take in Palestinians from Gaza”?? This is a truly shocking headline from the BBC in that it doesn’t highlight Trump’s explicit call for ethnic cleansing on a massive scale. Imagine the reaction if he called for another country to “take in Israelis” www.bbc.com/news/article...bbc.comGaza war: Trump wants Egypt and Jordan to take in PalestiniansThe comments will outrage Palestinians in Gaza, who see the territory as their ancestral home. 010
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 18/01/2025The BBC are twitchy about being challenged on their coverage of #Gaza. They should be. And it’s clear they have supporters in high places given the ridiculous restrictions being placed on democratic protest by the police 164
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 15/01/2025Just had a very interesting meeting with Al-Jazeera journalists in Doha and came across this on the wall next to the main studio which demonstrates a much better take on how to report #Gaza than anything in the UK 010
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 08/01/2025Astonishing that the BBC is still carrying headlines like this that reduce climate change events to Hollywood spectacles www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukWhat it's like inside LA's real-life apocalypse movieBBC reporter David Willis says he has never witnessed a disaster in Los Angeles so widespread and so unpredictable. 000
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 31/12/2024This is an image you won't find in any mainstream media outlet. Hind Rajab is one of the approximately 15,000 children killed by Israeli forces in Gaza in 2024. See you all on the streets in 2025 to fight for justice for Hind and everyone in #Gaza. 010
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 22/12/2024To say that the UK media have failed to convey the sheer relentless daily almost “routine” massacre of Palestinians in #Gaza is an understatement worthy of a headline that will never come www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblo...aljazeera.comWorld ignores us as Israeli shelling, blasts rock Gaza hospital: DirectorDozens killed in across Gaza as Kamal Adwan Hospital heads warns medical staff are ‘slaughtered before eyes of world’. 020
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 11/12/2024“At a time when the far right is trying to whip up anti-immigrant sentiment and action – currently checked by anti-racist mobilisations and the weakness of far-right movements – the impact of GB News shouldn’t be exaggerated but neither should it be ignored”. www.counterfire.org/article/call...counterfire.orgCalling out GB News’ IslamophobiaThe Islamophobic bile spewed out by GB News is an extension of the vitriol unleashed by other more mainstream media, but must be held to account, argues Des Freedman That GB News is obsessed with M... 000
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 10/12/2024GB News’ response to the CfMM report showing that the channel is obsessed with Muslims singularly fails to rebut the evidence & instead calls it an affront to free speech. This,3 days after its latest attack on fighting Islamophobia. Over to you @ofcom.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/media/2024/d... 000
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 27/11/2024No mainstream UK news outlet reported on the visit this week of IDF chief Herzi Halevi, days after the ICC issued a warrant for Netanhayu & Gallant for 'crimes against humanity'. The Israeli press covered it noting how 'unusual' it was to come at this time www.declassifieduk.org/israeli-army...declassifieduk.orgIsraeli army chief visited Britain this week, UK confirmsExclusive: Days after the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli leaders, its top general flew to London. 010
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 22/11/2024Very sad to hear about the death of Jim McGuigan who in my opinion wrote one of the very best book reviews ever journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...journals.sagepub.comSage Journals: Discover world-class researchSubscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher. 002
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 21/11/2024Coming your way on 4 February 2025 www.fulcrum.org/concern/mono... 082
desfreedman.bsky.social @desfreedman.bsky.social · 17/11/2024British news media are all over the fact that police paid a visit to Allison Pearson’s home in which she wasn’t arrested nor her tech seized. On the other hand the seizures & arrests of pro-Palestinian journalists remains unreported by mainstream news www.declassifieduk.org/journalism-i...declassifieduk.orgJournalism is not a crime – Tell that to the British stateWhy are no national news outlets covering the crackdown on pro-Palestinian journalists in Britain? 060
