Bryce Edwards needs to find a clue

Written By: - Date published: 1:04 pm, September 13th, 2013 - 22 comments
Categories: blogs, leadership - Tags: , ,

Of all the self-hating “Lefties” who comment on politics, Bryce Edwards has got to be one of the worst. Here’s a gem from his latest NZ Politics Daily:

Blogs have, of course, weighed in heavily on Labour’s contest. Traditionally The Standard has been the main leftwing site to watch, and it now strongly favours Cunliffe. Until recently the main blogger on the site was Anthony Robins, who pushed a resolutely pro-Shearer/ABC line. Robins, who happens to be the brother of Labour’s chief media spindoctor Julian Robins, departed the site after Shearer was pushed out of the leadership, leaving the ‘Cunliffistas’ in control of The Standard.

I just sent Bryce the following email:

Honestly Bryce – you are so full of crap it’s unbelievable!

My comments on Labour leadership have been few and muted (for obvious reasons), and I am certainly not ABC:
/2c-on-the-leadership/

I request that you publish a retraction.

Cheers
Anthony

My break from The Standard is for health and work reasons. As you can see, I’m not “departed”, and I have every expectation of being back to writing next year to help Labour’s new leader to victory in 2014. Honestly Bryce – please find a clue.

Update: Bryce Edwards has kindly agreed to delete from The Herald version of the relevant post the sentences describing me as “ABC”. For the record once again, I am not, and if anyone has any doubts on that matter could they please read my post on the previous Labour leadership battle linked in the email above, where I came down in the Cunliffe camp. I now regard this matter as closed, and I’m switching off comments on this post. Thanks Bryce for the correction, and thanks all for your support. Now – back to work…

22 comments on “Bryce Edwards needs to find a clue ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. just saying 1
    13 September 2013 at 1:12 pm

    Bryce – what utter bollocks.

    If you want to use the search engine, you can read threads of commentary from the Standard community on your repeated errors of both fact and interpretation regarding this site.

    Ever heard of the confirmation bias? Not a good look for an academic.

  2. Bryce Edwards 2
    13 September 2013 at 1:17 pm

    Here’s the full column, if anyone’s interested:

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11124244

    [r0b: Releasing this from moderation. No response to my email yet Bryce…]

    • Sable 2.1
      13 September 2013 at 2:12 pm

      Given you write for the NZ Herald I wouldn’t trust anything you have to say chum.

    • beGone Craven Spy Bill leopard 2.2
      13 September 2013 at 2:18 pm

      @Bryce Edward,
      It is bizarre that you seem to think sharing the link to your article is an appropriate answer to what R0b writes here. The section of your article that R0b has pointed out re his stance seems plain wrong to me from having read many of R0b’s articles.

      ??

      Were you simply after hits to the herald website? Do you get bonuses per hit or something?

      One only usually has to spend a few minutes doing a search on this site to see the persuasion of a writer. How could you get it so wrong?

    • the pigman 2.3
      13 September 2013 at 2:19 pm

      Thanks for the link, Bryce. I thought your column was ill-founded rubbish but it did have a link to an interesting article by Chris Trotter.

      Still claiming the LP leadership is a stitch up with DC for leader and GR for deputy? Let’s hope so.

  3. BLiP 3
    13 September 2013 at 1:19 pm

    . . . Until recently the main blogger on the site was Anthony Robins, who pushed a resolutely pro-Shearer/ABC line . . .

    You know, if you’re a political analyst AND you comment about the political blogosphere, wouldn’t it be a good idea to actually, you know, read the blog you are commenting about? Just askin’.

  4. mickysavage 4
    13 September 2013 at 1:38 pm

    Wow.

    I always thought your views were considered and carefully expressed. And there is no way that you could be described as being pro ABC.

    Edwards description is overhyped. The leadership tour has been a positive uniting experience and my perception is that the morale of the party has lifted considerably. This hyping up of a supposed civil war is just silly.

    Stand by though as the right wing blogs Edwards’ comments up …

    • David H 4.1
      13 September 2013 at 1:45 pm

      With all this ABC crap Cant the Lec’s say Thanks but No thanks to them,or do they have to get voted out?

    • r0b 4.2
      13 September 2013 at 1:48 pm

      I have always been respectful and supportive of the Labour leader – Clark, Goff, Shearer – I’ll be respectful and supportive of the next one too. That’s what I do.

      To paint me as ABC is just part of Edwards’ dishonest narrative building style, and it is most inconsiderate to my brother (who has only been in that role for a few months) to boot.

      • karol 4.2.1
        13 September 2013 at 1:51 pm

        Also, why does Edwards assume that you are your brother’s keeper?

        I respect my brother who is a very kind individual, but our politics are very different.

      • lprent 4.2.2
        13 September 2013 at 3:59 pm

        I have always been respectful and supportive of the Labour leader…

        You sure have. Unfortunately I don’t have your patience….

        Ummm interesting that I can still leave comments.

  5. stever 5
    13 September 2013 at 1:44 pm

    I think Edwards is a good example of what happens when academics forget their role in society and start thinking like (NZ) journalists. Cherry-pick, sensationalise and use hyperbole.

    Admittedly NZ academia is going that way too under pressure from govt and the funding bodies, but it’s sad to see someone give in so easily.

  6. bad12 6
    13 September 2013 at 1:45 pm

    Bryce Edwards left wing??? that deserves to have us all giggling, it’s pretty obvious that any left wing tendencies that that particular individual might have once possessed have been jettisoned quick smart by Edwards, i would assume at the behest of His pay-masters over at the Herald,

    Like a running dog Bryce will bark long and loud as He chases the bone that is the job currently occupied by John Armstrong, comparing both their writing in that rag i can barely spot the difference…

    • Greywarbler 6.1
      13 September 2013 at 2:04 pm

      Spot the Running Dog – a new chapter in the Edwards juvenile oeuvre. 😆

      Is there any connection between Bryce Edwards and Brian Edwards?
      Of all the surnames in all the towns of the world, why do two political journos have to have the same surname!

    • Bearded Git 6.2
      13 September 2013 at 2:04 pm

      You beat me to it bad12. I think BE likes his status as the Herald’s political commentator and may well have been “given the nod” when old-man Armstrong finally calls it a day (anybody able to find out how old he is? Judges have to retire at 70) but the “nod” will come with subtle (or not so subtle) pressure from the editor to toe-the-line….show so-called balance……reflect the Herald’s view of the world.

  7. gobsmacked 7
    13 September 2013 at 1:57 pm

    “who happens to be the brother of Labour’s chief media spindoctor Julian Robins”

    If Bryce is going to go down that path, then there’s a long list of relationships in Wellington that readers would need to be told about, every time he blogs. Blood or bed.

    I’m not going to list them here, I think there’s there’s a clear line between disclosure and innuendo. Bryce might want to think a little about which side of the line he stands.

  8. Anne 8
    13 September 2013 at 2:04 pm

    Edwards description is overhyped.

    I’ve had enough of these political commentators and journos who have consistently over-hyped every mortal action or word that comes out of Labour. It seems to me it has become a gladiator sport where nearly every Tom, Dick and Harry journo/commentator is getting in on the act because they think it’s the *right* thing to do. I was reading Colin Espiner’s latest diatribe and he totally misconstrued the Clare Curran nonsense. He chose to portray Curran as the injured party, and blatantly claimed Jenny Michie was the one who was dog-whistling… and that the Cunliffe camp was behind it. No attempt by him to properly investigate (eg. listen to the Rachel Smalley interview) the circumstances around Jenny’s comment, and the fact it happened before the contest even began and the actual contestants were not known.

    And r0b’s choice to have a break from blogging was fully revealed by him on this site in a clear and honest way. We look forward to him returning when his health issues have been sorted.

  9. Stephen 9
    13 September 2013 at 2:24 pm

    I think a big issue here is that “ABC” is not the same as preferring Grant. I myself am an “ABJ” and will happily work hard for either of the other two.

  10. Blue 10
    13 September 2013 at 2:27 pm

    Like most online jonolism the column was likely written in haste and not edited or fact-checked in any way. It also uses the time-honoured jonolist technique of presenting opinions as facts and not taking much care when forming said opinions.

    How anyone who reads the Standard regularly could think Anthony is pro-ABC is impossible to credit. In fact, it’s only really possible if the person is a) a bit thick and b) is so lazy they automatically lump anyone who didn’t totally dismiss Shearer into the ‘pro-ABC’ movement.

    This entire leadership contest has been characterised by a lazy media who can’t be bothered finding out the facts when an ill-informed opinion will do.

  11. r0b 11
    13 September 2013 at 2:29 pm

    Folks – I’m closing comments on this thread, as noted in the post update above.

    Thanks all…

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