Okay - so I get angry at The Guardian. I get irritated at it because, for the want of anything better, it’s my paper of choice. There are others you expect only (and this is in no way too strong a word) EVIL from.
Despite this lowly opinion of them, they occasionally still manage to behave in a manner so low that it very nearly takes you by surprise.
See below, with thanks from Liberal Conspiracy and The Enemies of Reason for the info and links.
Diana Appleyard - I hope your parents are very proud.
PUBLICATION: Daily Mail (Request for personal case study)
JOURNALIST: Diana Appleyard (staff)
DEADLINE: 14-February-2008 16:00
QUERY: I am urgently looking for anonymous horror stories of people who have employed Eastern European staff, only for them to steal from them, disappear, or have lied about their resident status. We can pay you £100 for taking part, and I promise it will be anonymous, just a quick phone call. Could you email me asap? Many thanks, Diana
HOW TO REPLY:
Email: mailto:dianaappleyard@aol.com
Liberal Conspiracy tells us that her website says she is a contributor to Women’s Hour and a member of the NUJ. Will they have a problem with this?
I believe the LabourHome was the first to publish this. Well done to the whistle blower. No doubt they were pretty close to the journalist in order to receive the mail.
Congratulations to them for doing the right thing and forwarding it to someone who could bring wider attention to this horrific behaviour.
7 comments
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February 20, 2008 at 1:50 pm
Pete
That’s amazingly bad. Thanks for pointing it out; this is the sort of stuff that people need to know about ‘right-wing’ journalism.
February 20, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Sujatin
What more could one expect from the paper that isn’t fit to be put at the bottom of the cat litter tray.
February 20, 2008 at 3:00 pm
ourmanwhere
Seems like a no-brainer that this is shocking behaviour but chase the links around and there appear to be a few people willing to defend it.
On one of the blogs I made the tongue in cheek suggestion that we should all have a whip round and when enough money is collected we could offer it to anyone with dirt to dish on Mrs Appleyard.
I am not (quite) serious but then again it would only cause her, and her family, a similar level of embarrasment as her poposed victims. And I am guessing that, in terms of her own wealth, she’d be in a much better position to withstand it.
I hope she is well and truly shamed by the coverage that is growing on the web and the fact that Googling her name will forever come up with these accusations of racism. Anyone want to drop her an email and see if you get a response.
February 21, 2008 at 4:23 pm
Mosh
I used to work with a bunch of Poles. What bastards. They came over here, took jobs that could have gone to hard-working, qualified British people… only we couldn’t find any.
How unfair is it for them to bring their skills and talents in project management and software design into our company, pass skills onto our workers, actually work for 50+ hours a week and then spend all their income in British shops?
*POP* as tongue is removed from cheek.
February 22, 2008 at 9:13 am
ourmanwhere
Mosh, I keep reading how they are a drain on the health service - completely forgetting of course that they actually pay tax and, as such, fund the health service.
There can’t be many quick fixes available to immediately improve any country - but I can’t help but feel that if you closed the Daily Mail, then the UK would be a much much better place to live.
February 22, 2008 at 4:08 pm
Mosh
I can’t help feel that if you kicked virtually every minister, bureaucrat and politician-type out of their job and put people in who knew what they were doing, the UK would be a much better place to live.
Oh, and behead all members of the BNP.
March 7, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Diana Appleyard race row simmers
[...] Perhaps inevitably, the Response Source email soon fell into the hands of Labour bloggers, where it was published to illustrate the Daily Mail’s racist political agenda. Allegations of racism failed to surprise a former Diana Appleyard colleague and the story has been slowly spreading across the internet. [...]