TV review: How The Campaign Was Won Julie McDowall, 2 October 2014 (complete) The BBC continues on its merry way, choosing to ignore many of us. Almost 45% of Scotland dont consider the indyref campaign to have been won at all. Some see it as lost and some see it as stamped down by fear. There are even some nutters who see it as fixed. But the BBC sees it as won and the use of that jubilant word immediately sets out to aggravate. Blair Jenkins even reminded the BBC that we thought of it as a movement not a campaign. But never mind what 45% of the population or the leader of the Yes movement says: it was indeed a campaign and it was indeed won. The state broadcaster says so. The programme began with looking back to the launch of Yes and the clips were shown in a gauzy light. Maybe theres a technical term for this amongst production staff but Id call it smearing a gob of Vaseline over the camera to make the scene look dreamy and soft. I believe my mum and dads wedding photographer did this. Through this hazy light we saw the Yes parties gather onstage where they clapped and sang and played guitars against Saltire blue. But were there no speeches at this event? Not according to this flashback: it was just a bunch of hippies singing Caledonia, then sniping about Thatcher. Yes was portrayed here as a bundle of kitsch and useless romance. Some of the Vaseline was smeared off the lens when we turned to the Better Together launch. Here it was all business: plain, blunt and sensible, with absolutely no guitars. Clips of speeches were played instead of clips of wistful songs. Even now the BBC are still portraying the Yes movement as bumbling dreamers. When the launches were over, the BBC said it became clear that currency was the most contentious argument in the entire campaign. Thats funny, I thought it was that we were being asked to continue under a concept of Britishness which is redundant now that we have no Empire, and poisonous now that we have illegal wars and foodbanks. But no, the BBC say it was currency. When George Osborne said there was no chance of sharing the pound, and that it would cost jobs, Iain MacWhirter said here was a clear threat: vote yes and well do what we can to wreck the Scottish economy. Ed Balls, Darling and a senior civil servants all leapt to agree with Osborne. Once everyone had insisted it wouldnt happen, Danny Alexander popped his head up like a gormless Whack-a-Mole and said the same thing. (The Lib Dems must be allowed their wee bit, after all). So Osborne, with his Darlings, Balls and moles, had managed to threaten us. But it wasnt all gloom for the Yes movement. The BBC offered a nod to the incredible activism it provoked, but the segment was introduced via strutting pipers, fluttering banners and people clambering over Calton Hill with flags on their shoulders. Twee, silly nonsense. Thankfully, they then brought Alan Bissett and Mike Small on to show the Yes movement was actually about thought and writing and debate, not people banging shortbread tins at the moon. Yet, the BBC just had to introduce it with cringey old clips of pipers and tartan, didnt they? Blair McDougall probably loved it when Yes was portrayed as such, and he sneered at the movements activism and energy. They had to continually manufacture a sense of momentum, he says. They were filling town halls with people who already agreed with them. Clearly, Better Together were awed by Yess activism and intellect which is why they dragged out their last-minute extra powers vow. It was shown here as a natural progression in the campaign rather than utter desperation and Johann Lamont whined that people thought we randomly produced this. Bloody people, eh? Democracy is nothing but hassle isnt it, Johann? If only people would stop thinking things. Much was made of the hideous love-bombing and Brian Cox said it was simply patronising. As a bleary-eyed Kate Moss and that baldy one from Eastenders made speeches to Scotland, Cox argued They dont know who we are! These celebs see Scotland as a bit distant and a bit rough and a place where we just do wacky things occasionally like invent the telephone. Id agree we probably seem trivial to the London media establishment but how could it be otherwise? Just before this very programme began, Reporting Scotland delivered the hard-hitting news that Aberdeen will get its Christmas lights. So we must forgive the rest of the UK if they find it hard to take us seriously when our own TV news - which is literally reporting Scotland - is reporting nonsense. heraldscotland/arts-ents/tv-radio/tv-review-how-the-campaign-was-won.1412204856
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 21:24:34 +0000
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