Cybernattering

I should not be amazed at what can constitute news, but was still surprised to see an innocuous get-together that I partook in with fellow SNP bloggers in April being presented as some sort of conspiracy.

This high powered meeting featuring a "close confidante of First Minister Alex Salmond", was so much part of the SNP grand plan that one of the people at the blogger's breakfast was Labour's Yapping Yousuf! More on the meeting with the organiser SNP Tactical Voting

The internet is a nasty place. I know this possibly better than most. You need a thick skin in public life so am sure Jim Murphy didn't take too much umbrage to being called a c*** by the blogger formerly known as Wardog and didn't need the matter escalated to national attention.

It seems from this affair though, and the fate that has befallen Mark MacLachlan, that if you go after senior enough politicians and journalists, there will be comeback. 

As I've indicated above, this isn't just an SNP issue. I think the level of interest on this is because the 'cybernats' are so at odds with the SNP hierarchy (a phenomenon I think indicated in Annabel Goldie's comment in this article). My experience in seeing how the SNP press operation work is that they don't get anywhere near as personal and nasty as I've experienced from the sharp end of Labour HQ briefings. I'm not saying the SNP are perfect, just much better.

The unionist commentators taking so much exception to cybernat activity find them odd since they don't see nationalist views expressed commonly elsewhere. The SNP won in 2007 not just with no support from a single newspaper, but against the open hostility of a number. This has continued, and has led to the phenomenon you see at the bottom of online newspaper articles.

That said, unacceptable comments are unacceptable comments. I'm not a fan of anonymous blogging, and certainly you shouldn't say anything you don't want attributed to you later if you get exposed. Frankly, I don't really see any value in newspaper comments sections. Rarely is there ever a nugget in there, and the facility exists I suspect to keep online hit rates up. More on this with Joan McAlpine.

Overall, I'm not sure what to make of the Wardog and Montague Burton development given the kinds of things people say about me under the cover of anonymity on the internet. I suppose since they can be found out, they better watch out. Given the level of lunacy, obsession and incitement apparent in some of them, if they are in employment somewhere, they should probably be careful too.

And to the chap or chaps moving off the net to phoning people and organisations that know me warning them about my dangers - hello.

Comments

[Joan McAlpine]

Good post Osama and thanks for the link. Whole thing has gone completely over the top. An extensive piece remains to be written about the whole cybernat vs mainstream media phenomenon. May do it myself this Sunday

[Grant Morton]

"The SNP won in 2007 not just with no support from a single newspaper, but against the open hostility of a number."

Only to a point, as the correction in this Guardian article makes clear -
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/apr/30/mondaymediasection.scottishparliament

[Jeff]

Nice one Osama,

It was certainly a surreal moment seeing that piece this morning. Although I'll openly put my hand up and take the vast majority of the blame square on the chin for my naivety not to mention apologise for you getting your name in the paper for unwanted reasons (once again) but I don't think it's too unreasonable to have assumed it wouldn't have been close to a newsworthy comment.

A proper debate on the dynamic of blogs and how they fit into healthy debate (if they even do) would be very welcome, certainly more welcome than this tabloid hit-and-run nonsense.

My 'right to reply' will hopefully be in the letters page tomorrow, not that I want to drag such stories out, but I felt I had to say somethng.

[joe90 kane]

"The SNP won in 2007 not just with no support from a single newspaper, but against the open hostility of a number."

Only to a point, as the correction in this Guardian article makes clear -
- These aren't examples of support for the SNP but examples of opportunism and have nothing to do with the SNP or its policies.

The SNP would be off their head to put their trust in any of these foreign-owned corporate news media, who maybe be quite happy to say they support the SNP one day, but stab them in the back the next day and all years following (not to mention all previous history).

The timing of this synthetic corporate media furore is obviously to try and keep the SNP-minority government St Andrews Day 'Homecoming' annoucenments out of the headlines, or at least, not give it all the air-time. Pure unionist spin.

The estimable Go Lassie Go blog is a good read. I've only just discovered it myself.

all the best

ps
The internet is a nasty place. I know this possibly better than most.
- Too true OS.
You're the best because if you weren't then you wouldn't be attracting so much 'flak' as Prof Chomsky refers to it.

Keep up the great work.

[Niall Robertson]

I'm a Scot, living in London. I'm new to the Blogosphere, and am shocked at how seriously Bloggers are taken! The word Cybernat took me on the broadside! I support what the SNP is doing, and I have an online Blog to express my support. Does that make me a cybernat? Ridiculous .. Nice Blog though. Drop by mine sometime, www.thejacobite.blogspot.com
Cheers, Niall

[Osama Saeed]

You are indeed a fellow cybernat Niall, welcome!