Covering the BBC and the Economist on the riots
Last evening the BBCA news had 8 minutes of Joe Wilson commenting on Libby, and the business news, before they mentioned the seventh day of rioting in France. This morning they had 11 minutes of reporting on the Pakistan earthquake before mentioning the eighth day of spreading rioting in France.

Richard at EU Referendum compares the Beeb’s coverage to what it would be like if the rioting had taken place in the USA:

And here we go again. Just imagine the coverage if this level of rioting was happening in downtown Washington. Just think of the commentary little Claire Balderson would be enjoying if, after a full six days of escalating riots, the president had to take time out to appeal for calm, as indeed Chirac had to do yesterday.

The TV would be full of it and the “Washington riots” would be front page of every newspaper, with ponderous articles in The Guardian and Independent about the failure of race relations and the inadequacies of the US capitalist model.

But, of course, this isn’t downtown Washington, thousands of miles away. It is in Paris, only just over a hundred from our shores, a neighbour, ally and “partner” in the European Union – champion of the “social model” of which the Guardianistas and the Beebees so approve.

Last September I noticed how The Economist was imitating the cliché riddled BBC reporting style. I agreed with Val McQueen,

With an inexcusable lack of acquaintance with the political structure of the US, particularly the separation of powers between the states and the federal government, and Louisiana’s 200 years of institutional corruption, the British Broadcasting Corporation barreled into New Orleans with pre-fabricated opinions which it broadcast back to Britain standing against local backgrounds.

and I noted that one could safely exchange the words “British Broadcasting Corporation” for “Economist” and reach the same conclusion. My September 10 post examined The Economist’s exploitive “Shaming of America” cover and extensive coverage.

Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans on August 29. Three days later The Economist had already pronounced New Orleans is hardly the only example of America’s admirable hubris. Admirable hubris indeed, but from the London-based Economist, if one were to remember that London was built on riparian land constantly prone to flooding even with the protection of the Thames barrier and other gates. By September 8 the Economist had issued the “Shaming” cover.

Today marks eight continous days of rioting in France. Here’s yesterday cover of the Economist, Tired of Globalization. The Economist didn’t take the opportunity to declare The Shaming of France this time, just as it didn’t two years ago when 15,000 old people died of neglect during a heatwave. As Richard said, France is a neighbour, ally and “partner” in the European Union – champion of the “social model”. The article on line reads,

Parisian riots
Car-burning in the suburbs

A week of riots in Parisian suburbs followed an incident on October 27th, when two North African teenagers were electrocuted in Clichy-sous-Bois, apparently while fleeing the police. As unrest spread, the government held emergency talks to discuss “sensitive urban zones”. With 10% unemployment and a poor Muslim population largely confined to grim suburban housing estates, the ingredients for social explosion have long been brewing. In fact, vehicle-burning has become the suburban crime of choice. Last New Year’s Eve some 333 cars were burned, a figure the police celebrated as “stable”.

No, I didn’t cut the text; that is the whole text.

On September 8 the Economist’s editors’ sensitivities didn’t preclude them from bringing attention to Secretary of State Rice’s race. I wrote a letter to the editor, which I incorporated in my post,.

By bringing attention to Dr. Rice’s race (“Condoleezza Rice, the highest ranking black in the country, saw a Broadway show, “Spamalot”, while New Orleans’s poor looked out at the floodwaters.”) you demonstrate both your ignorance of the political structure of the American government, and your exploitation of another black woman’s grief on your cover while pretending to illustrate “The shaming of America”.

Yesterday’s Tired of Globalisation cover goes down the same road. Instead of a black woman, we have a dozing Mexican: serape, big sombrero, taking a siesta, “tired”*. Pure stereotyping of the worst kind.

But no “Shaming of France” covers.

Update Welcome, Instapundit readers.
Here are my related posts on days 8, 7, 6, 5, 1-4.

Update 2 *As it turns out, Mexican President Vicente Fox isn’t “Tired of Globalisation”:

Mexican President Vicente Fox, a Bush ally, countered Chavez by saying a trade accord in the Americas will boost growth and should go ahead even if some countries refuse to join. Only about four or five nations are against it, and their opposition is “ideological,” Fox told reporters.

(hat tip Gateway Pundit)

(technorati tags paris riots, Sarkozy)