New blog to be developed. This blog will be used for discussion of contemporary issues raised in our latest publications. 

 

Bad News for Labour cover

There has been an extraordinary media output on the issue of Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour Party and antisemitism. Accusations about the Labour party make headlines on a daily basis. Claims that it is ‘institutionally racist’ under Corbyn’s leadership are now common place. In the three years after he became Labour leader there were over five thousand news stories and articles in the national press alone. 

 

The book examines the impact of this coverage on public beliefs about the Labour Party. A poll especially commissioned from Survation shows that on average the public believes that 34% of Labour members have been reported for antisemitism. A key question for the authors is how could so many people come to believe this when the actual figure was far less than one per cent. Shrouded in confusion, hyped by the media, the cool analysis of evidence has been lost.

 

This new study analyses the reality of antisemitism, how it has come to be misunderstood in public debate and the best way to fight all forms of racism.

 

 Reviews

 

'The essays in this book provide evidence and arguments that are deeply troubling for all concerned, and demand careful attention.'

Peter Golding, Emeritus Professor, Northumbria University

 

'At last! Here is a book that rigorously examines the facts behind the allegations of antisemitism in the Labour Party. The reality is more shocking, and more surprising, than the headlines in the press would have you believe. Here is the evidence - read it. Then learn the lessons suggested here.'

Ken Loach

 

‘What the careful research reported in this book reveals is a successful disinformation campaign. Anyone who cares for facts needs to read it.’

Colin Leys, honorary professor at Goldsmiths University of London

 

‘Reading this timely book convinces me that the media campaign against antisemitism in the Labour Party is similar to the media onslaught on the ‘loony left’ in the 1980s. Both campaigns connected to some disturbing truths: and both inflated and weaponised these truths for political purposes.’

Professor James Curran, Goldsmiths, University of London

 

'This compelling, thoughtful text is essential reading for everyone on the left wanting to confront antisemitism. It provides a benchmark for future research and strategy when tackling this explosive issue of our time.'

Lynne Segal, Birkbeck University of London

 

The book is available on this link from 20 September 2019. 

 

Race

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Category: Media Group Topics
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From Message Received (GUMG ed. Greg Philo, Longman, 1999)
 
Race, Advertising and the Public Face of Television (Liza Beattie, Furzana Khan and Greg Philo)

This chapter summarises the results of two studies by the Media Group on the profile of ethnic minority groups on television. It examines the presentation of TV programmes according to who is employed as the 'public face' of television, as well as the roles of ethnic minorities in television advertising.

Race, Migration and Media (Liza Beattie and Greg Philo)

What is absent from these television reports is any consideration of migration from the point of view of the migrant, legal or illegal. Many such people work under conditions of exploitation, with long hours, often doing jobs which the indigenous workforce shuns. Without them the cost of many products would increase. Neither does the news develop the issue of what conditions cause migrants to leave their homes and families to move to foreign lands. The news could ask if such movement is temporary, for economic reasons, and how migrants contribute to the economies that they have joined. If they move for economic reasons, what could be done to alleviate this situation at source by stimulating national development in order to prevent poverty? These reports do not consider the role of Western trade and Western economies in producing the global imbalance in development. The issues prioritised on the news are debate over the 'threat' which illegal migrants pose, and how they can be kept out.