The UK’s best person doing a journalism, the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, has found herself at the centre of her own press feeding frenzy. Of course, her stenographer pals in the corporate media have painted her as making a mistake. Meanwhile, the rest of us aren’t buying it for a second.
CUE THE GIFS!
Laura Kuenssberg: I’m doing a journalism!
The Canary previously reported on the news that Laura Kuenssberg was interviewing former PM, and convicted criminal, Boris Johnson. As the Conservative’s barrel-scraping leadership rigamarole enters its final stretch, the one thing that no-one is thinking is “if only Boris Johnson were back”.
Well, as Hannah Sharland previously wrote:
Unless, you’re the lying charlatan’s nauseatingly fawning lickspittle Laura Kuenssberg that is. If you don’t currently have plans for Thursday 3 October at 7.30pm, now you do.
Except you don’t. Because Kuenssberg allegedly made a boo-boo.
As around three million people saw on their X timelines, Laura had something to fess up:
While prepping to interview Boris Johnson tomorrow, by mistake I sent our briefing notes to him in a message meant for my team. That obviously means it’s not right for the interview to go ahead. It’s very frustrating, and there’s no point pretending it’s anything other than…
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) October 2, 2024
That’s right. As the BBC News Press Office confirmed:
Tomorrow’s interview with Boris Johnson won’t be going ahead. As Laura has explained, interview briefing notes meant for colleagues were inadvertently shared with him. This makes an interview tomorrow untenable. Under the circumstances, both the BBC and Mr Johnson’s team have agreed this is the best way forward.
So, to cut the doublespeak: Laura Kuenssberg ‘accidently’ sent her questions and interview notes through to Boris Johnson.
Get us our fainting couch, QUICK:
Stenographers, assemble
The corporate media dutifully picked up on Laura Kuenssberg’s alleged mistake. For example, the allegedly left-wing Guardian wrote:
BBC cancels Boris Johnson interview after Laura Kuenssberg message gaffe
A gafffe.
A GAFFE?
Yes, a “gaffe” if you’re the Guardian – and if you’re the Independent, too (except it failed to mention Kuenssberg in its headline):
Boris Johnson interview axed in BBC gaffe
Now, this gif would be appropriate if Kuenssberg had made a ‘gaffe’:
Come on, though. Really? Does anyone outside of the stenographing profession really believe Kuenssberg accidently sent her ‘briefing notes’ (questions) to Johnson?
Smelling the BS a mile off
No one in the real world does:
She got caught slipping him the questions, didn't she. https://t.co/EerH0MRD2P
— Chris Brookmyre (@cbrookmyre) October 3, 2024
Millennials were having a giftastic field day on X:
https://t.co/3KxrIm0rhZ pic.twitter.com/f3iIbzX4j7
— @hughkeogh (@hughkeogh) October 2, 2024
A few people pulled out this classic image in response:
Oh dear, what a terrible mistake.
Completely unrelated, here's Laura at a Boris Johnson press conference. https://t.co/8OCCmj80Up pic.twitter.com/6jdXRWaX5e— Kate 🕊 (@affleckquine) October 3, 2024
As predictable as night followed day:
“As an impartial journalist I once inadvertently sent a former Prime Minister the briefing notes of my really weak questions to the phone number of the former Prime Minister I was meant to be holding to account” https://t.co/ctwVp8fTvX pic.twitter.com/BIv0B4ojRj
— David (@Zero_4) October 2, 2024
Of course, the problems here are several.
Aside from the fact that NO ONE believes Laura Kuenssberg, people also pointed out the implications for past interviews:
Hang on, I'm confused. Are you saying you didn't brief him when you interviewed him in the past?🧐 https://t.co/pXj8tiseY9 pic.twitter.com/Iy4mp4rMQr
— HENRY MORRIS (@mrhenrymorris) October 3, 2024
Also, all this may be a ruse:
Well, that's one way for you and the BBC to get out of an ill-advised obligation that would have shamed you. It would have been more honest for you to admit that Johnson is toxic and the BBC is scared of damaging its reputation. Nice try, Laura, but no one is buying this excuse. https://t.co/4xSAPgCOnx
— Simon Scarrow (@SimonScarrow) October 3, 2024
We doubt it though.
What clearly happened was that Kuenssberg did send the ‘briefing notes’ to Johnson – except someone found out, and she then had to pull it before it was leaked.
Laura Kuenssberg: Boris on speed dial
Of course, none of the corporate media would dare say this. However, what’s odd in all this is actually why there’s such a fuss. Given Johnson is not a politician any more, and the interview was clearly about his nonsense book, it’s actually fairly standard for interviewees to be sent questions in advance when they’re plugging something.
But the problem is, this is Laura Kuenssberg.
Her bias towards the government, particularly the Tories, has been plain to see for many years. Who can forget ‘postal vote-gate’? So, this ‘gotcha’ moment (while actually fairly ordinary procedure) is the straw that broke the camel’s back.
However, it also throws into question every other interview she has done. Has Kuenssberg been sending through info to interviewees in advance before this? Because if she did when Johnson was a politician, then that is a serious problem.
Clearly, someone at the BBC has it in for her. But the real story is the detail of Laura’s claim:
I sent our briefing notes to him in a message meant for my team
The very fact Kuenssberg has his number (“message”, not “email”) right up the top of her messaging list says it all about the state of the corporate media in the UK and the zero degrees of separation from politicians. This was no mistake from Kuenssberg – but that’s not really the problem. It’s what it represents, that is.
Featured image via the Canary
