NZ Herald: National Party spin-sheet

The NZ Herald today locked in its growing reputation as a National Party spin-sheet. The persistent editorial bias in favour of the National Party simply can't be explained away any more.

In this blue-soaked edition Granny Herald was outraged ("Dirty tricks benefit no one") comments made by senior National MPs were recorded and then used in serious media.

Whereas, the Herald's coverage of a recent immigration conference flustered some in immigration circles because many of the things reported in the story had been delivered under "Chatham house rules". Those passing them to the media were explicitly breaking confidence. No ethical problems for the Herald there.

The Herald dismisses as irrelevant the reality the National Party has dressing in sheeps' clothing for electoral advantage while their private policy tastes and objectives are explicitly for wolf. The Herald skips over that as though it doesn't matter at all and disingenuously pretends everyone already knows it.

We didn't know it for certain. Now we do.

Contrary to the Herald's blue-tinged view, voters are the winners in this. If they are paying attention at all, they now know National isn't what it claims to be. As a voter, I'm very happy to have this deception confirmed.

For good measure, the Herald again echoes the National Party line and accuses Labour of doing the deed, despite there being no evidence to support that conclusion. Parroting the National Party response to the incident seemed to be more important than sticking to what is known and what is not known.

Granny takes a swipe at Bill English, saying he might have done it on purpose to undercut John Key. I suppose this is what passes for balance at the Herald.

Lest there be any doubt about the Herald's policy preferences, the editorial makes that very clear:

"The Labour Party appears convinced Mr Key has more drastic economic policies in mind than he will admit before the election. Would that it were so."

Would that it were so.

I hear ya, Granny.

You don't have to tell the editor what to write if you hire the right editor. Looks like APN owner, Irishman Tony O'Reilly, is making full use of the "Overseas Media Baron Billionaire" exemption in the EFA. National couldn't buy the sort of luvin' Granny Herald is bestowing upon them for free.

Based on writing over the past several months, Garth George, Fran O'Sullivan, Liam Dann, John Drinnan, and whoever wrote today's leader, are clearly the 'Right' staff to get the job done. Not much in the way of balance to be found anywhere among that lot. Even the usually measured John Armstrong had to toe the line on this one, outraged by the recording while not much fussed about National's 'sheep in wolves clothing' approach to policy (misre)presentation.

Looks like time to review the laws allowing media outlets to be controlled by foreign owners with political agendas that can only be advanced by deceit.

No wonder the Herald is also backing National's call for a referendum on MMP. Democracy is the only thing that can check the sort of extreme policies the Herald clearly yearns to see implemented, so democracy must be done away with.....in the name of democracy (of course).

...and you thought "up is down" Orwellian nonsense only lived in Bush's America. Nope. It's come to NZ.

Thanks, Granny. Top o' the marnin' to ye.