My belated condolences. I always enjoyed reading his posts and will miss his insight and wide ranging views. May hew…
The scrotum of the legacy media shrivels even further.
It was with a certain amount of sadness that I noted this week the announcement by the Daily Telegraph of the closure of their blogs. Four or five years back, it was, mainly in the shape of the redoubtable James Delingpole, the only alternative conversation one could have in the mainstream media about the oh so nice things that had to be done to save the planet from us wicked human beings, whom as Gaia knows were out to destroy it.
Because it was the only platform where a dissenting voice could be heard, it was a pleasure to visit there and actually discuss, examine and be critical of policies which it was a mortal sin to question in the Church of Climatology and by association their toe-licking lap dogs in journalism. If you weren’t in the fray at the time, you’ll never understand what a pure relief and a bloody godsend that was.
The response by the big green killing machine was to flood it with renta trolls, so to protect the discussion, we went to war. I’m partial to a bit of precision-guided violence, so I have to admit to taking a certain amount of pleasure in the troll wars that ensued.
In a very real sense, such wars annealed James’ blog, forged a band of brothers and in passing drove his hit count through the ceiling. They’d never had anything like those numbers before and since he left for pastures anew, nothing like them since. It’s important to note that the band of brothers contained a lot of sisters too, who were just as informed, just as disgruntled and just as ready to kick troll ass into touch. Some of those friendships have lasted to this day.
About four years back, a new moderation regime was imposed and it became frighteningly obvious to all but the seriously retarded that it was all about shutting down the people commenting. I lasted a few weeks before I buggered off to start blogging myself. It bothered me because from a certain viewpoint it was an act of disloyalty to James but I simply couldn’t abide some work experience prat slashing to bits any comment I made which could in any way vaguely bruise someone’s tender sensibilities. Never play a game that’s stacked against you. If you can’t figure out a way to outcheat them, it’s time to walk away Renee.
James hung on in there for a number of years and all honour to him for doing so. For him, the Torygraph was anything but. I’m sure he and a few others took more than a few bullets for their commenters, though the latter at times appeared oblivious to that reality.
The writing on the wall for the blogs went to 68 point bold times new roman in a lurid yellow on black background when an anodyne consensus-think refugee from PBS was appointed editor. If you’re not familiar with PBS, think ABC, BBC, CBC et al (is there a DBC?) and all the other quasi state-funded television channels with a collar and leash about their bollocks when it comes to any attempt to present a politically incorrect viewpoint. Behave yourself Ruprecht.
He of course slowly recruited his similar talentally-challenged cronies and despite a few curmudgeonly honourable exceptions, the content has since spiralled down to an offering that appeals to nothing more than the Hampstead-based chatterati just gagging to give anyone Westminster-based a handjob for a few miserable crumbs of information. Of course, a politico left of centre gets the full service thingy. Think Willie Nelson, Keno girls and trailer hitches etc etc.
In a wider sense though, it’s another sign of the legacy MSM giving up. They put a lot of money into their offering but their consumer has lost interest and is moving off the paper and onto the screen, the tablet or the smart phone. If you’re reading this, you’re reading the shape of things to come. It may not be me, it may be someone totally different but that’s the crux of the matter, the kernel at the heart of the thing.
You’re getting a different viewpoint, whether you agree with it or not.
And that’s precisely why the Telegraph think it’s a good idea to give their blogs the chop. As their readership slowly evaporates away to the freedom of the blogosphere, they think it’s a smart move to take away their right of reply to an article because they can’t control what they’re saying. The media future is no longer about a uniformity of opinion, it’s about diversity. Everybody gets their pennyworth; you can no longer control that. Nobody can. Trying to stop that happening by ignoring it is called denial.
Anyway, requiescat in pace Telegraph blogs. Cheerio and thanks for all the fish.
©Pointman
Related articles by Pointman:
Immoderate moderation at the DT
Pointman's 
We have had the same development in media here in Norway.
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It appears the ongoing editorial bloodbath at the Telegraph has reached the point where there aren’t enough remaining journos to fill a Blogs section even if they wanted to. I still like reading Dan Hodges though: you can’t beat the level of vitriol that comes from being on the losing side of an internal power struggle and Dan gives the pathetic carcass of the Labour party both barrels. To the nape of the neck.
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James is now blogging at http://www.breitbart.com/Columnists/James-Delingpole
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Great post. I gave up buying the paper version of the Telegraph years ago for all the reasons you give. My wife insists on buying it 3 times a week, which only confirms that my decision was correct. I can’t bear to read any of Geoffrey Lean’s witterings. Some of the business coverage is quite good and Charles Moore is still worth reading. Since Delingpole left my blog reading was mainly confined to Norman Tebitt and Dan Hannan.
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And Dan Hannan has left too – http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/danielhannan/100290162/goodbye-and-thanks-for-all-the-clicks/
And Norman Tebbit has said that he can no longer respond to comments
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/11271275/Devolving-England-into-regions-would-weaken-us-against-Brussels.html
“• I am sorry that because of some problems I am unable to reply (or even read easily) your comments. I hope normal service will be resumed before long.” perhaps it is because of the problem with his eyesight, though…
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Ah, G. Lean. They try to increase his click rate by not showing his name on the intro to his posts. I was caught out once. But fool me twice – no chance.
Working at Telegraph must be like being in the court of Caligula. Or the Red Queen.
Regardless, you and Dellers and a good few others have an appreciative following.
A most sincere thanks.
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Cancelled my last remaining MSM sub couple of weeks back (The Australian)
All the war mongering and lying was making me feel dirty.
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Unfortunately, the decline of the printed MSM could spell the end of functioning democracy as we know it because Gen Y have about zero knowledge about the functioning of the political system or understanding of the policies being pushed by political parties. All Gen Y are getting is populist drivel written by left wing pin headed dates on facebook and twitter.
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Some things, you just gotta share. A humanitarian crisis. Heart breaking.
*******************************
Crisis in Canada After U. S. Election
From the Manitoba Herald:
The flood of American liberals sneaking across the border into Canada has intensified in the past week, sparking calls for increased patrols to stop the illegal immigration. The Republicans winning the Senate is prompting an exodus among left-leaning citizens who fear they’ll soon be required to hunt, pray, and live according to the Constitution.
Canadian border farmers say it’s not uncommon to see dozens of sociology professors, global warming activists, and “green” energy proponents crossing their fields at night.
“I went out to milk the cows the other day, and there was a Hollywood producer huddled in the barn,” said Southern Manitoba farmer Red Greenfield, whose acreage borders North Dakota . “The producer was cold, exhausted and hungry. He asked me if I could spare a latte and some free-range chicken. When I said I didn’t have any, he left before I even got a chance to show him my screenplay, eh?”
In an effort to stop the illegal aliens, Greenfield erected higher fences, but the liberals scaled them. He then installed loudspeakers that blared Rush Limbaugh across the fields, but they just keep coming.
Officials are particularly concerned about smugglers who meet liberals near the Canadian border, pack them into electric cars and drive them across the border where they are simply left to fend for themselves after the battery dies.
“A lot of these people are not prepared for our rugged conditions,” an Ontario border patrolman said. “I found one carload without a single bottle of Perrier drinking water. They did have a nice little Napa Valley cabernet, though, and some kale chips.”
When liberals are caught, they’re sent back across the border, often wailing loudly that they fear retribution from conservatives. Rumors have been circulating about plans being made to build re-education camps where liberals will be forced to drink domestic beer and study the Constitution.
In recent days, liberals have turned to ingenious ways of crossing the border. Some have been disguised as senior citizens taking a bus trip to buy cheap Canadian prescription drugs. After catching a half- dozen young vegans in blue-hair wig disguises, Canadian immigration authorities began stopping buses and quizzing the supposed senior citizens about Perry Como and Rosemary Clooney to prove that they were alive in the ’50s. “If they can’t identify the accordion player on The Lawrence Welk Show, we become very suspicious about their age,” an official said.
Canadian citizens have complained that the illegal immigrants are creating an organic-broccoli shortage, buying up all the Barbara Streisand c.d.’s, and renting all the Michael Moore movies. “I really feel sorry for American liberals, but the Canadian economy just can’t support them,” an Ottawa resident said. “How many art-history majors does one country need?”
Trying to reassure his liberal base and get them to return to the U.S., President Obama reiterated what he said in his press conference following the beating the democrats took in the last election: “I heard from the 1/3 of the electorate that voted, but I also heard from the 2/3 that did not vote.” Who knew the president was clairvoyant?
He also said the reason the democrats got their asses whipped wasn’t because of HIS policies, but rather because the dems did not get his message out to the people. Ya gotta love a guy that takes responsibility when something goes wrong.
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Pointman,
That Crisis in Canada piece is really very funny and I enjoyed it immensely, however …
There really is a Crisis in Australia – the likes of which we’ve never seen in our young history.
In discussing the new age of social media in the 21st century, nothing epitomises more the essence of blogging than the following blog post. It’s the most powerful and confronting Open Letter to the Australian People that I’ve ever read.
I commend it to you – with pride in the people of our heartland, and abject shame in our state and federal governments as well as bureaucratic administrations that are participating in nothing short of the gang rape of a nation …….
http://pickeringpost.com/story/bastard-banks/4237
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Sadly there is a crisis in Canada, Trudeau HAS opened the borders to tens of thousands Syrian refugees. He is overspending billions of dollars on new “Obama” type programs and is still a watermelon. Polling after only 18 months in Ottawa he has already lost the glitter and the economy is taking a beating. With our fixed election system we sadly see another 3.5 years of this because he has a “super” majority until next time around. There is some hope on the horizon if the conservatives do the right thing with their leadership convention and elect the one guy that can be very “Trump” like and is a businessman and a very successful one. Kevin O’Leary
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