Fans of the BBC's terrific political comedy The Thick of It will know that the relationship between Downing Street and Fleet Street tends to be, well, adversarial...
The BBCs Jeremy Paxman - like Tim Russert but with, you know, teeth - asks himself before every interview "Why is this lying bastard lying to me?" and that cheery cynicism tends to dominate almost all coverage of British politics. (For better and for worse.)
New Prime Ministers can sometimes count upon a brief honeymoon period before normal service resumes. But they all get their kicking in the end and it's best not to worry too much about these things.
That was one of John Major's initial mistakes: he cared too much about his press coverage. Thus Major foolishly telephoned Kelvin MacKenzie, editor of The Sun, to ask him how the paper planned to cover the Black Wednesday debacle that forced Britain out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism and ruined the Tories' reputation for sound economic management.
"Well," began MacKenzie, "I've got a bucket of shit on my desk, here."
"Oh yes ..." said the Prime Minister
"And I intend to pour the whole lot over you."
Which, of course, he duly did.
It works both ways, mind you. Gordon Brown will not enjoy much of a honeymoon and not just because he's been a central, brooding figure on the national stage for 15 years already. His latest press watchdog, Damian McBride is known to Blairites as "Damian McPoison" and favours a press relations style that even Alastair Campbell might find a trifle excessive.
In the course of a characteristically persuasive piece on the new Brown era The Spectator's Political Editor Fraser Nelson reveals this charming anecdote about press management UK-style:
"...Mr McBride is known for being a little too enthusiastic in his
pursuit of enemies, real or perceived. While tales of Alastair
Campbell’s bullying were common coin in Fleet Street, tales of Mr
McBride’s work tend to be less widely circulated. But one was made
public on Tuesday night at the leaving party for Anthony Browne, who
has just stepped down as chief political correspondent of the Times to
run the Policy Exchange think tank. It is a useful glimpse of the
Chancellor’s tactics.
Mr Browne had asked for a Treasury comment
on his paper’s scoop that the Chancellor had been warned in advance by
officials about the damage his 1997 pensions fund raid would do. The
reply came by text message from Mr McBride, and instantly presupposed a
vendetta on Mr Browne’s part: ‘I suppose your, er, “new” Tory employers
will be delighted so I can see why you personally are trying to turn it
into something. Disgusting, really, for someone being paid by a
so-called paper of record.’
A second text message followed. ‘I
just wish for once you’d try to get past your cynical, Tory, halfwit
Harold Lloyd schtick to try and be a genuine journalist. It’s
presumably cos of your inability to do so that you’re off to earn a
crust at some Tory think tank instead. Pathetic.’ As the bespectacled
Mr Browne read all this out during his leaving speech there were
intakes of breath, even among the journalists present. The era of
hardball and spin is to outlive Mr Blair."
Beat that Malcolm Tucker...
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