10 Downing Street "Senior communications aide" attempts to ban Journalists

[stockhausen]

Political journalists have boycotted a briefing at No 10 Downing Street after one of Boris Johnson’s aides banned selected reporters from attending.

The walkout took place after a confrontation inside No 10 in which Lee Cain, Johnson’s most senior communications adviser, tried to exclude reporters from the Mirror, i, HuffPost, PoliticsHome, Independent and others.

Reporters on the invited list were asked to stand on one side of a rug in the foyer of No 10, while those not allowed in were asked by security to stand on the other side.

After Cain told the banned journalists to leave, the rest of the journalists decided to walk out collectively rather than allow Downing Street to choose who scrutinises and reports on the government.

Among those who refused the briefing and walked out were the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, ITV’s Robert Peston and political journalists from Sky News, the Daily Mail, Telegraph, Sun, Financial Times and Guardian.
. . .
The tactics from No 10 mirror those of Donald Trump in the US, who has been known to try to exclude journalists from reporting on his activities, and represents an escalation of Johnson’s tensions with the media, which have been increasing in recent weeks. (LINK)

Is this what we are coming to in Great Britain, The Tories have a massive majority and they want to ensure that they are not open to scrutiny?

What next? Ban General Elections?

 

[[FnG]magnolia]

"After Cain told the banned journalists to leave, the rest of the journalists decided to walk out collectively rather than allow Downing Street to choose who scrutinises and reports on the government."

Good on them.

 

[Em3bbs]

It would be nice to see more context - but isn't the Mirror the only real media outlet there that weren't allowed in? The rest are just random websites.

 

[robfosters]

It would be nice to see more context - but isn't the Mirror the only real media outlet there that weren't allowed in? The rest are just random websites.

Independent is a major newspaper

 

[Em3bbs]

Independent is a major newspaper

Is it? It went defunct years ago I thought, and someone just has the website name, like when people use woolworths.com or zavvi.com.

 

[robfosters]

Is it? It went defunct years ago I thought, and someone just has the website name, like when people use woolworths.com or zavvi.com.

It’s still a major online newspaper

 

[Em3bbs]

It’s still a major online newspaper

You mean a website. Thanks for clarifying.

 

[robfosters]

Even so, I’m a Boris supporter, but banning certain journalists because they are more hostile to your politics is bang out out of order.

 

[[FnG]magnolia]

The more important thing is the solidarity shown.

But good attempt Em3bbs.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

Is it? It went defunct years ago I thought, and someone just has the website name, like when people use woolworths.com or zavvi.com.

WTF?

 

[memyselfandi]

I is certainly not just a website ... It's a print newspaper you can pick up along side others in the usual places (I don't read it but I know people who do)

 

[Moley]

It would be nice to see more context

The context is this:

A No 10 source said the briefing had been meant for a select group of reporters called the 'inner lobby' that has been operating since last summer, when Boris Johnson became Prime Minister.

They had been invited to the technical non-political briefing by the civil servant, but organisations including the Mirror, Independent, PA Media and the Huffington Post had not.

So one group of specific journos had been invited in for a meeting, another bunch tried to crash it and weren't allowed. Simples. This whole incident is a non-story of self-entitled journalists not getting their own way.

 

[englishpremier]

Aww poor journos getting upset they weren't invited. I bet the journalists that walked out won't be doing so for long. They love these meetings/briefing, it gives them something to write about rather than having to out and come up with something themselves.

 

[FortuitousFluke]

The context is this:



So one group of specific journos had been invited in for a meeting, another bunch tried to crash it and weren't allowed. Simples. This whole incident is a non-story of self-entitled journalists not getting their own way.

I wonder what reason the Government might have for creating a hand picked cadre of reporters who are given special access whilst other, coincidentally less pro-Tory, journalists are excluded? Nah, you're right, nothing to see here.

 

[Destination]

The context is this:



So one group of specific journos had been invited in for a meeting, another bunch tried to crash it and weren't allowed. Simples. This whole incident is a non-story of self-entitled journalists not getting their own way.

Utter rot, you dont crash into a number ten breifing.
You would be stopped outside the door if you were not expected to be there.

 

[Moley]

I wonder what reason the Government might have for creating a hand picked cadre of reporters who are given special access whilst other, coincidentally less pro-Tory, journalists are excluded? Nah, you're right, nothing to see here.

The government can give access to private briefings to whoever they want. Access is a privilege not a right.

 

[Steampunk]

Utter rot, you dont crash into a number ten breifing.
You would be stopped outside the door if you were not expected to be there.

Easy to exclude unfriendly journalists from No 10 if you move the briefings from Parliament to No 10.

There have also been signs that No 10 is trying to shake up its relations with political journalists, who are collectively known as the lobby. Political journalists have already complained about No 10 changing the location of its daily briefings with the prime minister’s official spokesman from a room in parliament to Downing Street, meaning they are now held on government territory.

 

[RDM]

The government can give access to private briefings to whoever they want. Access is a privilege not a right.

Access to the government by the press is pretty much required in a working democracy though and any attempt to limit access other than for national security should be seen with suspicion.

 

[Moley]

Utter rot, you dont crash into a number ten breifing.
You would be stopped outside the door if you were not expected to be there.

They were already there for a public briefing cleverclogs. They tried to crash the second, private briefing.

Don't have much imagination do you?

 

[muon]

The government can give access to private briefings to whoever they want. Access is a privilege not a right.

Lol. Is this Russia?

Amazed people are even defending this.