Balls Ashworth interview exposes media nepotism at large

  • Post last modified:August 9, 2024
  • Reading time:10 mins read


At this rate, the Canary might as well begin a regular column on the absolute farce that is Ed Balls as a presenter on Good Morning Britain (GMB). If we did, we might call it the ‘week in Good Morning Balls-up’, because that glib excuse for a journalist – which he’s categorically not anyway – will invariably start people’s day with extra right-wing-pandering drivel and probably plenty more dross besides. Except, why give the racist, misogynistic ass-hat more oxygen?

Plus, here’s the thing: Balls, two-faced red rosette Tory that he is, is only part of the problem. That’s because he’s just the latest most prominent example of a long line of electoral cast-outs clamouring for relevance. That corporate media-parliamentary revolving door has been spinning more times than Keir Starmer in a general election run. And the trouble is, most of the establishment media are doing it.

GMB gifts another galling Ed Balls-up

Firstly, speaking of self-serving politicians wallowing in their own insignificance, it was president of the sore loser self-pity parade Jonathan Ashworth whinging (yes, again) about his election loss to the GMB panel.

Still banging on about those “scary” Muslim uncles that “chased” him down the street? Absolutely.

If his shameless playing the victim sketch hasn’t made your skin crawl already, it should now. Because, reading the fucking room Ashworth. The past week, far-right fascist lynch mobs have been literally hunting down, and attacking Muslim people, and trying to burn migrants alive in hotels. But do go on about your Muslim former constituents trying to get answers out of your mealy mouth after you ducked local hustings.

Naturally, Balls didn’t suddenly grow a pair, or a shred of journalistic integrity at this moment either. Instead, he and co-host Kate Garraway sympathetically recycled Ashworth’s vapid victim narrative. To these establishment lapdogs, the idea that a brown, independent candidate standing on an anti-Zionist, pro-Palestine platform could turf the insufferable tosser out, was unthinkable. No, it was those “nasty” members of the public against genocide who were to blame:

For some people on X, it was utterly galling to see him at it again after his recent shitstorms. You mean the LARPing journalist who disgracefully attacked socialist MP Zarah Sultana, and interviewed his own wife – the home secretary – didn’t get the boot? Well, I never!

What we had then, was a former Labour shadow chancellor of the exchequer interviewing another former Labour shadow minister. But as Guardian columnist Owen Jones stressed, this wasn’t the only link:

In summary:

Crony client media at large

However, as the Canary has previously pointed out, this lack of media impartiality on GMB is hardly anything new.

This week alone, we’ve spotlighted GB News’s outrageous media nepotism. Its presenters interviewed Reform MP ’30p Lee’ Anderson – who also happens to be a GB News commentator himself. Previously in October 2023, media regulator Ofcom let then Tory MP Anderson off the hook for another incident like this. He was interviewing fellow Tory MP and then home secretary Suella Braverman. Of course, it wasn’t GB News first time doing this either.

However, the Canary already highlighted that it’s what we can expect from a half-baked, corporate-captured, billionaire mouthpiece like the GB News: 

Centrists (and the left) are quick to call out GB News for its complete lack of broadcasting impartiality – where Tory MPs interview Tory MPs. But in fact, GMB may be worse.

Allowing Balls, who is NOT a journalist, to interview his own wife after trashing a brown woman in a rampant display of misogyny and racism – just because she is politically and ethically the polar opposite of his nasty white ass – should be a matter for Ofcom.

But this is GMB. So, it is unlikely to be.

Then, that a centrist morning-time talk-show is also at it just demonstrates how rotten the whole corporate media landscape is at large.

But this is the face of crony client journalism, and there’s a lot of that going around, as we’ve routinely reported. Notably, the Canary’s Steve Topple has explained before how this works in practice. In particular, he has highlighted former corporate journalist Peter Oborne’s description, which detailed how outlets:

yearn for privileged access… And they are prepared to pay a price to get it.

This price involves becoming a subsidiary part of the government machine. It means turning their readers and viewers into dupes.

This client journalism allows Downing Street to frame the story as it wants. Some allow themselves to be used as tools to smear the government’s opponents. They say goodbye to the truth. Social media has provided new ways of breaking the boundaries of decent, honest journalism.

Of course, this sucking up to the political establishment also manifests in a myriad of different ways. Part of it is the corporate press’s penchant for both sides-ism to maintain a veneer of impartiality. In these instances, they regularly platform vested corporate interests, dark money think tank employees, and bought politicians without acknowledging their agendas.

Obviously, this skewed power dynamic doesn’t provide ‘balance’ on an issue. It’s just another way the corporate media punches down.

Political media nepotism is rife

At the end of the day then, an incestuous client media will never hold the tossers in government to account. Least of all little Ed Ball-boy batting for the Labour right and his home sec honey. But the Balls saga is just underscoring the larger issue at play here.

When it comes down to it, this is the corporate press writ large. Keeping the capitalist stooges in power is always the endgame. In five years time, it’ll be washed up Wes whining what’s left of his privatised little heart out to GMB’s newest political sleazebag rehabilitation project, Jonathan Ashworth. Needless to say, it wouldn’t look out of place:

Though regardless, I say good riddance from parliament to the lot of them. Don’t let the revolving door hit you on the way out – lest we’re all stuck with more of the ‘Gobshite Morning Balls’ show. I think that one is going to stick.

Feature image via the Canary





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