All over the UK on June 8, many citizens did a fine and noble act. In addition to voting, they chucked thousands of copies of The Daily Mail and The Sun into the bin – the best place for both these comics. In the weeks leading up to the campaign the gutter press screamed hysterical headlines that Corbyn is some Jihadi-loving monster and that Britain is on the verge of being taken over by “hard-left nutters”.
Fortunately, their character assassinations, lies and attempts at manipulating voters were widely ignored. The tabloids were raging into a vacuum, like that drunk, angry, empty-headed and spittle-covered bloke you avoid down the pub. Fingers crossed, they’ll continue this slide into irrelevancy. Their vicious attacks came across as simply unhinged, and voters, particularly smart young voters easily saw through the deceit and bully-boy tactics.
The right wing press has been ganging up on Corbyn since he was first elected leader of the Labour Party. He was vilified before he even started to set out his stall. To his credit, he ignored the abuse and just got down to the task at hand.
One of the most interesting aspects of the election campaign was that voters could hear Corbyn for himself without the deceptive filter of certain sections of the media. And many liked what they heard. Although I don’t think he’s a particularly good speaker, he does come across as genuine and principled, a conviction politician.
The Sun and the Mail tried to crush Corbyn and failed as spectacularly as the prime minister. I bet she rues the day she changed her mind and called a snap election. Still, despite squandering her majority, losing every ounce of credibility and weakening her Brexit negotiating hand with a well-aimed gun at her foot, May did at least manage to stick firm to her strong and stable mantra. Although it’s the opposition that she’s now made strong and stable. That’s what hubris does for you.
