Media turning

Written By: - Date published: 6:38 am, November 9th, 2010 - 26 comments
Categories: john key, newspapers - Tags: ,

One of my harmless little hobbies is looking out for the markers as the media gradually begin to tun on John Key and his government. I posted one example a while back, the first time (as far as I know) that Key was referred to as “the beleaguered PM”.

There was another such milestone yesterday. In the context of The Herald’s laudable “Two Drinks Max” campaign, the daily editorial was highly critical of Key, and it concluded:

Again justifying the need for research, Key said: “If we want New Zealanders to obey a new law, I think we’ve got to be able to go out and say ‘here’s the harm’.”

Here is the harm PM: More drivers are dying than necessary now. How much more blood do you want on your hands before the next election?

Got that campers? The Herald just accused Key of “blood on his hands” for failing to act on alcohol abuse. That’s an extraordinary rebuke. It far exceeds anything I can call from that pulpit directed at Helen Clark. John Key just lost another big chunk off his Teflon coating.

26 comments on “Media turning ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. ghostwhowalksnz 1
    9 November 2010 at 7:03 am

    Todays article is even better. Joyce is described as ‘dazed and confused’ when he provides new statistics that are the complete reverse of those from 3 years ago.
    Was it just after lunch time ?

  2. Cnr Joe 2
    9 November 2010 at 7:29 am

    come on my little turny worms……

  3. smhead 3
    9 November 2010 at 8:04 am

    I predict that the polls for the next three months will still show John Key fifty points ahead of Phil GOff as preferred PM, and National still twenty percent ahead of Labour.

    Dream on though fellas.

    Goff is doing an appalling job, but he is so irrelevant nobody’s even bothering to criticise him.

    • Dave 3.1
      9 November 2010 at 8:34 am

      So, what has Phil Goff got to do with John Key being broadsided by the countries largest newspaper? You are not adding much to any debate if the only refrain you have is: ‘But the Polls!!’ and ‘Phil Goff is doing an _______ job, blah blah blah. Try adding to the discussion dude.

      Speaking for myself here, I think the polls are somewhat skewed, most people I talk to have got no time whatsoever for John Key, I wonder when the polling company will ever ring me?

      • Carol 3.1.1
        9 November 2010 at 8:50 am

        Well, the polls put the National Party’s support somewhere just a bit above 50%. Considering that the MSM have been strongly cheerleading for Key and his government for a couple of years, there’s a large number of people who haven’t been convinced. But I guess enough go for the spin to give Key and his government the lead.

    • Armchair Critic 3.2
      9 November 2010 at 8:40 am

      The polls in three months aren’t particularly relevant, unless a very early election is called.
      Governments get voted out in NZ. Oppositions can become governments through the simple fact of their existence, and a little effort.
      With the media shining an increasingly critical light on Mr Key, and the dearth of talent in the rest of the National party, how difficult can it be to work out what the ongoing trend will be?

    • Irascible 3.3
      9 November 2010 at 3:45 pm

      Regardless of the appeal to the polls the important thing is that the media perception of the Key image and ability to be a leader has begun to focus on his readily apparent weaknesses – poor leadership, ignorance of policy, ignorance of history, ignorance of constitution, a reliance on his orthodontics rather than intellect and a team of incompetents muddling along behind and in front of him.
      The caustic criticism has been not just in the editorials but also in the representation of Key by the cartoonists whose caustic commentary usually precedes the criticism in the leader articles.
      Key’s competence is under question and the media are sensing the public swing against him… make no mistake the Dipton circle flies are buzzing around Key’s head.

    • bbfloyd 3.4
      9 November 2010 at 4:55 pm

      how many times do you have to be reminded Sillyhead? what you are doing is antisocial and unhygenic!

  4. Rich 4
    9 November 2010 at 8:12 am

    Interestingly it’s one area where Key is being quite sensible and restrained that the Herald can be guaranteed to line up in favour of more authoritarianism.

  5. tc 5
    9 November 2010 at 8:48 am

    The silly season started early at granny herald……give it a few months and they’ll be back to normal sycophantic govt adoration forgetting all the BS election promises, the cycleway, the financial hub, where’s our UFB ?, Whanau Ora, blindtrusts, warner sellout, tolley the trainwreck, wages gap to Oz, unemployment etc etc etc

  6. Adrian 6
    9 November 2010 at 9:33 am

    Over the weekend I read somewhere that Ipredict surprised some by calling the next election almost 50/50 Nats v Lab/ Green. Along with a few other things the Nats are having a bad week, watch for some nasty anti-left dog-whistling outrage real soon.

  7. OleOlebiscuitBarrell 7
    9 November 2010 at 9:47 am

    Maybe. But, in fairness, the Standard’s track record of picking that people have noticed that John Key is no good is not great. An early example:

    http://thestandard.org.nz/the-panel-on-john-key/

    • r0b 7.1
      9 November 2010 at 10:06 am

      Takes quite a few pebbles to make an avalanche Ole, but they’re piling up.

      • OleOlebiscuitBarrell 7.1.1
        9 November 2010 at 12:59 pm

        So your heading should be: “Media Turning very fucking slowly”.

        • felix 7.1.1.1
          9 November 2010 at 1:12 pm

          Fair enough. I won’t ever mention any negative comments about the govt, as taken individually they don’t mean much.

          edit: hang on, that’s fucking moronic. I withdraw.

          • OleOlebiscuitBarrell 7.1.1.1.1
            9 November 2010 at 2:33 pm

            I know you have a reputation to maintain and all of that and that this requires you to tirelessly attack the very few people who come to this site to disagree with the posts but I do not think you will find that I asked anyone not to ever mention any negative comments about the govt.

            All I was saying was that authors at the Standard have been saying for years that “people are waking up”, yet the government remains unprecedentedly popular.

            • felix 7.1.1.1.1.1
              9 November 2010 at 3:00 pm

              Ok you keep telling yourself that and I’ll keep mocking you for ignoring the slow but inevitable ebb and flow.

            • Bunji 7.1.1.1.1.2
              9 November 2010 at 3:22 pm

              “yet the government remains unprecedentedly popular.”

              Actually, no. Their current popularity is below that of Labour’s in 2002. With that (& with the collapse of the Alliance) they decided to take advantage and call a slightly early election. They still didn’t get a majority and had to govern with the support of UnitedFuture. Take from that what you will (particularly if Nationals support parties don’t look so hot).

              • Colonial Viper …
                9 November 2010 at 3:26 pm

                Actually, no. Their current popularity is below that of Labour’s in 2002.

                I think when OOBB uses the word “unprecedentedly” he means it hasn’t happened since lunch time yesterday.

  8. ianmac 8
    9 November 2010 at 10:33 am

    Remember Phillip Temple 27 September Herald on MMP. Not exactly fawning was he?
    “Mr Key is also being disingenuous in not admitting that MMP is not an electoral system cast in stone, a ….”
    and: “So we should be wary we are not being sold another pup by Mr Key and the National Party in presenting us with a “yes” or “no” on the present form of MMP, while offering a choice of other systems which are inflexible, less proportional and fundamentally less democratic.”
    and: “This is hypocrisy at the highest level. Mr Key and the National Party colluded actively with…..
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10676263

  9. M 9
    9 November 2010 at 11:33 am

    Key doesn’t want the law changed because he’ll have to curb his ration when he’s out supping and a lot of drinkers hang out with birds of the same feather so they do not seem to have a problem.

    I hope this milestone in the media becomes a millstone round this SOB’s neck real soon.

  10. Zanzibar 10
    12 November 2010 at 10:58 pm

    “Key doesn’t want the law changed because he’ll have to curb his ration when he’s out supping …I hope this milestone in the media becomes a millstone round this SOB’s neck real soon.”

    That’ll be so much more funny when the Heralds disinformation and blatant lies about 0.05
    are publicly exposed very soon – which will show that Keys stance, about needing more research .. because it became obvious his Officials clearly did not properly report all evidence about 0.05, isn’t of base.
    It is responsible to dig deeper – one mustn’t rush to implement policies with a high risk of unintended consequences. That defines blood on hands. For now NZ’s 20-30 year olds are protected from the lethal impacts of 0.05 suffered by Victorians & some other Ozzies. No thanks to the Herald (which determinedly gags and even misrepresents dissenting drink drive victim lobby groups, who all submitted against 0.05… but they wouldn’t report that now).

    Examples of Herald disinfo, and I could write a book on this as the big H (humbug) has snowed NZ with fantasy;
    “the AA supports 0.05” (Nope) “the UK has 0.05” (Nope) “Australia has better road safety due to 0,05” – wow weee that one’s a crack up given 0.05 doubled deaths in Victorians aged 20-30 and took the portion of fatals involving alcohol from 45% under 0.08 to 76% under 0.05 say NT Police.

    It’s really sad to see Labour trying to use this issue as leverage, instead it should be looking to a policy that does reduce drunk driving harm, in consultation with NGOs and foreign experts from succeeding places like NYC, Utah, Sweden. Window dressing placebos that add revenue like 0.05 tickets that hit you for $300 & demerits as per Official recommendations just aren’t needed.

Links to post

The server will be getting hardware changes this evening starting at 10pm NZDT.
The site will be off line for some hours.