Speaking on Thursday in the Alternative MacTaggart lecture, Mr Corbyn said the British press is "the least trusted press in Europe".
He said he wants greater investment in investigative, public interest journalism. Existing not-for-profit news organisations, like the Bureau for Investigative Journalism, could be given charitable status, he said.
This "public interest media fund" could be paid for either through a content sharing and advertising revenue agreement with Google, similar to that agreed in France or Belgium in 2013.
Or, if it is not possible, he said a Labour government would be prepared to explore a one-off tax on the profits of the market-leading search engine and other platforms.
As ever this sinister waffle seems to display Mr Corbyn's profound distrust of anything not sanctioned by a totalitarian government. But that is my private view and no doubt Mr Corbyn would like to see such views cast into the memory hole.
3 comments:
The state would have to decide which investigative journalists were to be supported with the proceeds of taxation. And according to the principle of "He who pays the piper...", wouldn't that mean that such journalists effectively became state employees?
What could possibly go wrong with that?
The British may trust their press/media that others because they are more sophisticated or cynical than the people of Europe. When around Europe and reading their press in the past, if anything their stuff was even less reliable and biased than anything the British media could manage. Possibly because the politicals had less of a grip on the sources and the owners.
Sam - yes Corbyn seems to think journalists should be state employees.
Demetrius - I think we are fairly cynical, but our cynicism is manipulated and many people do not seem to be cynical enough to see it.
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