BBC Red Nose Day Snub

[gunslinger]

I have been a biker all my adult life and have met some real nice people, including a number of disabled bikers,members of the NABD,

Their rally is one of the best of the season because despite any disabilities they know how to live life to the full.
So I was shocked to read about the BBCs attitude towards disabled bikers.

http://www.motorcyclenews.com/MCN/N...5/mar0909-comic-relief-snubs-disabled-bikers/

If anyone feels like myself strongly about this and you post on other forums please pass this on.

I know there are quite a few bikers on here,but if this post is considered inappropriate can a mod let me know and I will delete it.

GS

 

[BigShot]

For other reasons I've not given a penny to Comic Relief for years now. Certain things they do I just don't agree with.

Can't say that kind of thing makes me any more likely to donate either.

Thanks for the link - I'll be passing it on to the bikers I know (I occasionally drink with a bunch down at my local Real Ale dispensary and know one or two others outside that too)

 

[firecrest]

‘Comic Relief is proud to have been a long-time supporter of disabled people in their fight for equal rights and over a 10 year period committed £17.5million to support disability projects throughout the UK. We have always tried to portray disabled people positively.

Treating disabled people with equal rights means respecting their decisions in life, not patronising them with images of the nice disabled person doing jigsaws in a day centre and editing out any images that might portray disabled people as doing something non-mainstream. It is further discriminating agaisnt disability by portraying those who are bikers as somehow `unfit` for tv. When the bikers had their meet next to the last middlewood meet they were no trouble at all.

 

[gzornenplat]

This happened *years* ago, the film was cut because the Beeb always shoot more than
they need and have to make editorial decisions, Emma Freud is, wasn't, and never has
been on the editorial team, and ***, the film was made in the first place to demonstrate
that Comic Relief gave money to the NADB.

And now it's spreading virally, unchecked (in more senses than one).

"It must be true, I read it on the internet."

 

[wanderingblade]

Sad fact but the thinking is probably along the lines of giving the viewers more films of sick / starving kids to loosen the wallets. Basic marketing.

Anyway, isn't Emma Freud rhyming slang for Hemorrhoid?

 

[helixpteron]

The article in the link lost all credibility when it published insults against Emma Freud, and her father, Sir Clement Freud.

That this group resorts to publishing insults hardly portrays them in a positive light.

 

[harryhaller]

The article in the link lost all credibility when it published insults against Emma Freud, and her father, Sir Clement Freud.

That this group resorts to publishing insults hardly portrays them in a positive light.

They were robustly defending themselves against the very person, Emma Freud, who had blocked the clip. The difference being that their attack on her is open and allows her to defend herself, whereas the attack against the bikers was made behind closed doors, cowardly and did not allow the bikers to defend themselves.

The "attack" against Clement Freud was tongue is cheek and amusing as evryone who remembers those adverts must admit. Nevertheless, should have been left out.

However to claim that "The article in the link lost all credibility" is not true. Anyone reading the article would understand why they were saying what they were saying - a single person with her objection has cut out a section of disabled people from being shown.

It in these incidents that we see how the high and mighty can use the BBC for their own purposes - even though the BBC is paid for by licence fee payers and the charity is run on our money, a few unaccountable people make the big decisions.

The attack btw is quite upto BBC standards of attack - which is why I don't watch tv anymore.

No, it was a robust attack, but understandable - and in a good cause!

 

[Atesca]

I normally stay out of this sort of thing but this time I'm gonna bite:

They were robustly defending themselves against the very person, Emma Freud, who had blocked the clip

Emma Freud did not block the clip. She has never been on the editorial staff and never been in the running order meetings. She has been a staunch supporter of Comic Relief for many years but never in an editorial capacity.

Incidentally, I used to work for Comic Relief. I did, amongst many other things, data analysis of public response to film segments and used that information to advise on the effectiveness of the TV spots in various demographic and geographic regions. I was at that meeting, she wasn't. It was cut due to being ineffective, over long and, for the available time slots with their attendant audiences, inappropriate.

Being as all of this was years ago I would be more interested in knowing what the NADB's current grant status with Comic Relief is. I find it hard to believe that this organisation would be saying this if they were currently receiving money from Comic Relief. Comic Relief does not give out grants as a single lump sum but prefers to fund over time, releasing money to an organisation on a regular basis over a period of months or years depending on the project. It also checks on a regular basis how the money is being used before releasing the next chunk of funding. I would be interested to know when the NADB's grant from Comic Relief finished and under what conditions it did so and how long this was before the NADB Chairman started slating the organisation that had just given him money.

Comic Relief remains the only major charity in this country to have never taken a percentage of a charitable donation towards administration or running costs and has actually given more to good causes than it has received in donations. I'm proud to have worked for them.

 

[harryhaller]

Emma Freud did not block the clip. She has never been on the editorial staff and never been in the running order meetings.

The plot thickens.. then what is this all about? Why was she mentioned at all?

Gawd - what a waste of time

 

[BigShot]

Comic Relief remains the only major charity in this country to have never taken a percentage of a charitable donation towards administration or running costs and has actually given more to good causes than it has received in donations. I'm proud to have worked for them.

How does that work?

 

[rik_uk3]

This chap is well worth watching, the man speaks common sense; it may upset some, but I believe he has hit the nail on the head

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/andrew_mwenda_takes_a_new_look_at_africa.html

 

[BigShot]

Thanks for the link Rik.

The synopsis next to the video sums up quite well one of the number of reasons I don't support Comic Relief.

Listening to his speech now.



EDIT
"The International Cartel of Good Intentions"
Brilliant phrase.
This guy's a great speaker. Some people just have a way of making their point heard. He's one of them.

 

[Atesca]

How does that work?

Combination of two things:

1 Gift Aid - they can claim back the tax you have paid on money you gave them, so every time you give a pound, if you are a tax payer and you tick the box on the donation form, they get about £1.20 ish

2 Back in the day banks made a profit (now thats a soon to be distant memory, huh?) Because Comic Relief don't give away the money all in one go but will split it up into quarterly payments like I mentioned before they tend to have a shed load of money sat around, allocated but not actually given yet. One of the major accountancy firms (KPMG and Ernst and Young in recent years to name just two) would look after this money for Comic Relief free of charge and they would pay interest on it (and also give all sorts of guarantees not to risk it and not to lose money).

Because of Comic Relief's "Golden Pound promise" none of this money can be used for admin charges etc but instead all goes to the good causes. Comic Relief the company is funded by donations made specifically for that purpose and also by having some innovative staff who can make a lot out of very little.

Gift Aid came in in the late 90's as I remember and Comic Relief has been around for a lot longer than that but they're overall average since they started is that for every pound they have been given they have passed on about £1.17* to the good causes they fund, and since the introduction of gift aid that average has been steadily rising. However, the recent banking snafu has probably put paid to some of that extra money that came in in the form of interest so I would imagine that this year, through no fault of their own, that rise may stall or even reverse slightly but it will always remain well over £1.

*All figures are approximate as they have passed through my brain - a dangerous process capable of returning a percentage error equal to the percentage alcohol content of whatever I drank last night - today we are 14%

 

[harryhaller]

The media is telling the truth about Africa, and nothing but the truth, however, the media is not telling us the whole truth

So much propaganda is achieved with this simple technique.

A very interesting talk, rik, thanks for the link.

 

[BigShot]

Atesca - thanks for that.
Hadn't considered Gift Aid - the point about cash sitting in banks is a new one to me though.
Nice line about 14% error too.

I still have my reasons and still won't be donating money to Comic Relief - but that was an interesting explanation - cheers.



Harryhaller
It's an effective technique eh?

 

[Atesca]

This chap is well worth watching, the man speaks common sense

Great link and a very interesting talk. I think it is important to note that he is talking abut international aid though, and not the efforts of charities like Comic Relief that try to support the small and successful initiatives that he mentioned that large aid initiatives try to replicate with poor results.

Big Shot - as far as you not giving to Comic Relief, whatever your reasons, more power to you, I am fully behind your right to choose what to do with your money and I am not that far off your own opinion. I have never actually given money to Comic Relief myself, and have no intention of doing so. I was proud to work for them and did so at a substantial discount but when it comes to taking money from my own pocket I prefer to support causes closer to home.

I have worked for multiple charities that have national and international remits, always at a discounted rate, but still for a salary nonetheless. The only charities I actually donate to, be it in terms of money or voluteering my time in some *completely* unrecompensed fashion, are local ones though.

 

[harryhaller]

Yes! Everything is grey. If you want it to be black - leave out the white, if you want it to be white - leave out the black

 

[BigShot]

Atesca - just think how the folk who try to get me to give to charities in the street feel.
Not the bucket rattlers, the ones with the clip boards looking for standing orders.

I had a good ol' chinwag with one from Friends of the Earth a couple of weeks ago. I don't think she knew what she was getting into when she said "do you mind if I ask why not?" after I said "I'd be happy to talk to you if it was just a chat, but you'll ask me for money and I'm not giving you any." (with a big smile on my face - I'm not a nasty sort).

 

[SimonM]

A couple of points: (OK 3 points!)

• The article is incredibly biased an based upon the "evidence" of one man...

  A Comic Relief film about disabled bikers was axed because programme makers did not want to be linked with motorcyclists, the head of a disabled bikers’ charity has claimed.
  
  [*]

  At no stage does anybody substantiate his side of things.....
  
• To pick up on

  I prefer to support causes closer to home

  Comic Relief does support many charities in this country too. One of the agencies that I deal with through school, a domestic violence counselling group that works closely with use and social services, is almost entirely funded by Comic Relief and does sterling work to support local families.

Finally, we are all getting worked up ove something that happened years ago...

Hulse told MCN the episode happened around 10 years ago but he chose now to publicise it because he is often asked during the run-up to Comic Relief why the NABD is not featured.

MOVE ALONG....NOTHING TO SEE HERE!

Simon

 

[wanderingblade]

Not the bucket rattlers, the ones with the clip boards looking for standing orders.

Otherwise known as 'Chuggers' (Charity Muggers)