There are few things that anyone waits 51 years for – apart perhaps from England winning the World Cup. I have waited 51 years for the article that Owen Jones has written “The Britsh Media Is A Closed Shop.” Clearly, I won’t live long enough to see England triumph again.
Scoop
The reason for my relative joy at what is a very sad article is that it explains why I will also never be employed as a journalist in a mainstream publication. Presumably, this would be the case even if I scoop the next 10 FTSE 100 takeovers using a combination of a crystal ball and a time machine. Hence, zakmir.com – a blog surrounded by tumbleweed. But that ship has sailed, no worries.
Young Guns
It is the younger generations who have to carry the baton of having to be twice as good to get half the result, or no result at all. They have to struggle through no fault of their own. But at least after the Owen Jones article they will know the score.
Me And Mr Jones
The real breakthrough offered by Mr Jones, is that it gives the game away: if British Media is a closed shop, then everything else is. This includes business, commerce, Public Life, socially, the lot, it remains as closed as it was when I can first remember it in the early 1970s. Anything of importance, value, status, you have to cross a moat filled with piranha.
A Pair Of Hands
Indeed, I wonder how many people like my parents would have migrated to the UK in the 1950s and 1960s if they had known they were to be second class citizens here as a pair of hands? And that they would always be, not only in the workplace, but in the eyes of the law and everyday life?
The Mirror
The Media is a mirror of society and one of the great gateposts to the Establishment. It indicates that for all the institutions that matter, and all the places that matter, the “Apartheid” goes on.
HRH
Of course, there will be many who point to the allegedly rich tapestry we have. After all, we have just a few weeks before Megan Markle joins the Royal Family. But really Her Royal Highness (nearly) only serves to prove the point. She is exceptional, with star quality.
The White Ceiling
You will find that anyone who gets through the “White Ceiling” is either very talented or very determined, or perhaps just very lucky / rich. The other 99% are nowhere to be seen. If you are a BAME, you have to be better. Much better.
