The internet’s alive – 160 articles of varying quality based on the same news release and counting – to the Twitter of Bristol East MP Kerry McCarthy being appointed ‘Twitter Tsar’ for the Labour Party’s doomed general election campaign next year.
The real job title is apparently New Media Campaigns Spokesperson although here at the Blogger we’re quite keen on Minister Tumblr after “the bona fide cult hero” from Cbeebies.
Ms McCarthy has spent the day taking to the airwaves and the blogosphere making various extraordinary claims about the Labour Party and new media. My favourite, however, appears on local news site Bristol 24-7 where she seems to think politicians talking bollocks on Twitter presages nothing less than the end of spin.
Off the top of my head, I think that’s at least the third time that New Labour have announced the end of spin. Once when Alistair Campbell left Downing Street in 2003; again when Gordon Brown ascended to the leadership in 2007 and now today …
Interestingly, one of the things Ms McCarthy did today at the dawn of this latest post-spin era was visit the Counts Louse to discuss finance with the Chief Exec. I wonder if she will be blogging about what was said there?
Will we get an explanation for this mysterious new £30m deficit and the 1,000 odd jobs at stake? Or is that a secret between important people only?
So you are declaring Kerry as a “Cult Hero”
So you are declaring Kerry to be a “Cult Hero” does Mrs Blogger know?
oops problems of blogging on railways – sorry for double post
Isn’t CBBies a little to high brow for you BB 🙂
Interesting to see if this subject is picked up by the “Digital Inclusion” Tzar – Martha Lane Fox.
Its true that MPs are using social media more and more.
Is it just me or are there more Tzars in the Westminster than Moscow?
Matt
Old Holborn has a cunning plan to take down Kerry, but:
“I will need the services of a resident of her constituency, Bristol East for my plan to work.”
Any takers?
Instead of twittering about in cyberspace Ms McCarthy should be addressing how her new seat in the Fishponds area (where she seems not to want to show herself) is going down the pan as far as Labour is concerned. While she arrogantly struts about her support base and standing is nose diving and the T0ries are busy cleaning up by operating in the REAL world.
Weren’t the Tsars an opressive bunch of pre-Bolshevik Russian rulers ? Is that New Labour’s plan then, to Twitter us all back into serfdom?
“Politicians must engage with people on social networking sites ”
How about in Fishponds?
O/T: You’ve upset someone BB. Check the comment on this story at 17:48 on 19/8/09
If someone is that pissed off, you must be worth reading so I’ve added you to my RSS. 😉
“Hope this ruling puts an end to the anonymous Bristol Blogger, who calls people far worse things. Anonymous bloggers are spiteful, malicious cowards.” – Concerned, Bristol, 19/8/2009 17:48
And anonymous commenters too?
Chris Hutt
If bristol blogger wasn’t anonymous we wouldnt have the fun of speculation and rumour about who he is
I’ve always seen anonymity more as a bit of a marketing ploy and as a matter of straightforward convenience and choice for me personally – I don’t wish to be a small town celeb, a newspaper rent-a-quote or have any other public profile away from this blog.
Anonymity is one way to achieve that. However as a ruse for dodging the law and defamation it is singularly useless and I’ve never thought otherwise.
I publish my email address and have never had any kind of communication with anyone regarding legal matters.
My anonymity is in the tradition of newspaper diaries and Private Eye – Lunchtime O’Booze is not a real person y’know – neither of whom are immune from legal complications.
In fact a personal inspiration is the Dumpster’s old ‘Grovel’ column from the golden age of Private Eye.
https://thebristolblogger.wordpress.com/2007/07/24/so-farewell-then-dumpster/
Like with the current MP for Bristol West you mean?
Problem with the MP for Bristol West? You can sign up to get his regular email newsletter, and go meet him if you want. You can email him and expect a response if what you write is relevant.
(And my anonymity is also for convenience, but WordPress has my email address.)
BB
Anonymity is a right. I decide who knows me.
The nice thing about the elusive BB being anonymous is that everyone who has something to fear, fears that everyone is the BB. When Chris and I were out grabbing photos during the council elections, we were accused of being the BB, when were really just field minions for the great power. Next time, though, we need some BB approved T-shirts, “I am the Bristol Blogger” with the strip at the top -clifton wood?- on it.
@Old Holborn: earlier this week I was listening to a person from Ministry of Justice (sounds like a band, but its a govt Ministry), who said that they cannot see that citizens can have any theological objections to personal data collected by one govt dept being shared with every other govt dept. The response was that theological isn’t relevant, might be philosophical objections, but its really personal objections in a Common Law country – we are citizens now, not subjects, so we can be heard. Look of puzzlement was the response. The MoJ person went away, we broke for coffee, it was decided that we would not take any notice. But they are trying by way of function creep to build an ad hoc civil law structure, and later discussion showed that there is growing evidence (by way of properly constructed studies currently under way) that lots of us do strongly object to our personal data being used for purposes that we have not specifically authorised.