Ofcom treats people as idiots by censoring the Covid-19 conspiracy theorists
Media regulator Ofcom has ruled that London Live TV broke broadcasting rules and posed “significant harm to viewers in London during the pandemic” by broadcasting a long interview with David Icke. Ofcom also issued guidance to ITV over Eamonn Holmes’ comments.
Icke is the know-all who says the world is run by reptiles, the royal family are lizards, there’s a “link between 5G and this health crisis” and that making us take vaccinations to combat the Covid-19 bug is an act of fascism that gives the State the chance to pump us full of microchips. Holmes is the daytime telly presenter who cast doubt on media reports refuting the myth that 5G causes the virus “when they don’t know it’s not true”.
What harm you think these people do is dependent on your view of the people who might hear them speak. Ofcom thinks you’re all fools who hear Icke and Holmes and nod along in agreement. If the former BBC sports reporter and Hereford United FC goalie (Icke) says Her Majesty can lick her own eyeballs, it must be true. If between segments on this season’s must-have toaster and dating apps for dogs Holmes can give us a word to the wise about Covid-19 and telecommunications, we’ll be burning down phone masts quicker than he whip out his diploma on things from the Dublin College of Business Studies.
Don’t censor them. It makes it look as though we take them seriously. We don’t. They are mildly entertaining distractions who you’d take the stairs to avoid meeting in a lift.
Posted: 20th, April 2020 | In: TV & Radio Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
