18 Doughty Street : Politics for Adults | TALK TV

Link: 18 Doughty Street : Politics for Adults | TALK TV.

I am delighted to report that I have access to 18 Doughty Street Talk TV again. I don't know what their techies have done, but all is well. I have been watching back episodes of Blogger TV with great pleasure, including one in which Devil's Kitchen, Dizzy, Croydonian, Mars Hill and Recess Monkey discussed the blogs of the Labour Deputy Leadership candidates.

They were unduly harsh about Harriet Harman's blog, with Iain Dale accusing her of not writing it herself. Actually it's so tedious that I fear he may be wrong. The fact is she simply doesn't "get" blogging. Notably she doesn't get the social dimension and she wants (or perhaps the people running it for her want) it to be a propaganda platform. For example, she posted to ask how Labour Party members could have more access to Ministers. I posted a comment as "Yates of the Yard," suggesting that better facilities for visiting prisoners might help. Perhaps not the best joke ever, but it was topical. It was moderated out. Given the limited number of comments, often grovellingly supportive, I imagine many more comments are accepted than rejected. That is not the way of the blogger.

She, or her minions, have accepted one comment from me despite it being highly critical of Labour's education policy. Generally, though, it's a thought-graveyard over there and I would be surprised if her traffic justifies the effort.

I have never deleted a comment, except for spam. The only reason I would ever do so would be legal (e.g. if a comment were defamatory and I could not be party to publishing it). The spirit of the blogosphere is knockabout, and politicians who don't want to engage in debate should stick to a conventional website.