The “phone-hacking scandal” needs a good name. “Hackgate” or “Phonegate” just won’t cut it — that nomenclature is for little controversies that one wryly compares to Watergate in a tongue-in-cheek fashion. This one actually is like Watergate, and its consequences could be no less far-reaching.
The one thing the scandal isn’t really about — not [...]

Filed under: conservatives, culture, davidcameron, jonathanbirch, journalism, media, ukpolitics on July 18th, 2011 | No Comments »

I’ve spent the last few days squirming on behalf of India, a country I fell in love with during the four months I spent there in 2008. There have been many stories of India’s apparently imminent failure to deliver a successful Commonwealth Games, stories that I know will provoke utter mortification in that intensely patriotic [...]

Filed under: davidcameron, davidmiliband, foreignpolicy, india, media, sport on September 24th, 2010 | 1 Comment »

Over the last six weeks in the United States, we have seen gradually unfold the true scale of two parallel catastrophes. Both involve industries stuck in a seemingly intractable rut; both have long-term roots, occurring amid a climate of irresponsibility and recklessness.
The first scarcely needs detailing. Perhaps as many as 4.2 million gallons a day [...]

Filed under: barackobama, environment, media on June 11th, 2010 | No Comments »