Paxman vs Brand

Fretwired

Car crash TV ... :-)

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/10/23/russell-brand-v-jeremy-paxman_n_4151743.html

I wonder what mags would think?

stickyfiddle

Paxman's standard technique of asking the same question over and over again is being mistaken for proper journalism as usual. 

Brand comes across very well imo. I don't agree with him entirely, but you can't argue with his thoughts on voting. 

maltingsaudio

Just recived that via facebook and was going to post it ! Had to listen to it twice, Brand is right on the money with what he says and I think Mr Paxman agreed with most of it he certainly couldn't come back with any convincing arguments as to why Brand was wrong. 

randomhandclaps

stickyfiddle said:

Paxman's standard technique of asking the same question over and over again is being mistaken for proper journalism as usual. 

Brand comes across very well imo. I don't agree with him entirely, but you can't argue with his thoughts on voting. 

Are you saying he is overrated?  Are you?  Is that what you are saying?  Are you saying Paxman is overrated?  Well, are you?  It's a fairly simple question.  Do you feel he is overrated?  C'mon, yes or no?  Is Paxman overrated?  Do you feel people overrate Paxman?  In your opinion, is Paxman overrated?  Are you saying he is overrated?  Are you?  Is that what you are saying?  Are you saying Paxman is overrated?  Well, are you?  It's a fairly simple question.  Do you feel he is overrated?  C'mon, yes or no?  Is Paxman overrated?  Do you feel people overrate Paxman?  In your opinion, is Paxman overrated?Are you saying he is overrated?  Are you?  Is that what you are saying?  Are you saying Paxman is overrated?  Well, are you?  It's a fairly simple question.  Do you feel he is overrated?  C'mon, yes or no?  Is Paxman overrated?  Do you feel people overrate Paxman?  In your opinion, is Paxman overrated?Are you saying he is overrated?  Are you?  Is that what you are saying?  Are you saying Paxman is overrated?  Well, are you?  It's a fairly simple question.  Do you feel he is overrated?  C'mon, yes or no?  Is Paxman overrated?  Do you feel people overrate Paxman?  In your opinion, is Paxman overrated?

Sporky

stickyfiddle said:

Paxman's standard technique of asking the same question over and over again is being mistaken for proper journalism as usual. 

It may not be proper journalism, but I think it's useful. Too many interviewers let people get away with answering the question they wanted to be asked rather than the one they were actually asked.

frankus

Paxman is too old to find a new style, so he should stick to the soul-less hypocrites of the public school system (AKA easy pickings) that he's always abused (ie politicians)... I think he understood that, so all he could try (and in my opinion fail) to do was discredit someone who is clearly passionate about society and absolutely stone-cold indifferent to the machinations of the political system.

I think Brand is a disturbing mix of emotions, reason and empathy - he's basically got a formless form of debate which all these rigid politicians will utterly fail to best - but he is one man and he needs an army just like him... at which point he might liberate the UK, but NATO would agree to nuke the UK to stem the infection.

viz

randomhandclaps said:

stickyfiddle said:

Paxman's standard technique of asking the same question over and over again is being mistaken for proper journalism as usual. 

Brand comes across very well imo. I don't agree with him entirely, but you can't argue with his thoughts on voting. 

Are you saying he is overrated?  Are you?  Is that what you are saying?  Are you saying Paxman is overrated?  Well, are you?  It's a fairly simple question.  Do you feel he is overrated?  C'mon, yes or no?  Is Paxman overrated?  Do you feel people overrate Paxman?  In your opinion, is Paxman overrated?  Are you saying he is overrated?  Are you?  Is that what you are saying?  Are you saying Paxman is overrated?  Well, are you?  It's a fairly simple question.  Do you feel he is overrated?  C'mon, yes or no?  Is Paxman overrated?  Do you feel people overrate Paxman?  In your opinion, is Paxman overrated?Are you saying he is overrated?  Are you?  Is that what you are saying?  Are you saying Paxman is overrated?  Well, are you?  It's a fairly simple question.  Do you feel he is overrated?  C'mon, yes or no?  Is Paxman overrated?  Do you feel people overrate Paxman?  In your opinion, is Paxman overrated?Are you saying he is overrated?  Are you?  Is that what you are saying?  Are you saying Paxman is overrated?  Well, are you?  It's a fairly simple question.  Do you feel he is overrated?  C'mon, yes or no?  Is Paxman overrated?  Do you feel people overrate Paxman?  In your opinion, is Paxman overrated?

Sorry what was the question again?

stickyfiddle

Sporky said:

stickyfiddle said:

Paxman's standard technique of asking the same question over and over again is being mistaken for proper journalism as usual. 

It may not be proper journalism, but I think it's useful. Too many interviewers let people get away with answering the question they wanted to be asked rather than the one they were actually asked.

Absolutely. It just doesn't work on someone like Brand, and often modern politicians either ignore it and continue their own planned speech-dressed-up-like-an-interview or get completely deer-in-headlights like that out of depth & under-prepped transport woman a couple of years ago.

maltingsaudio

Its interesting and probably relevant that there have been more comments about Paxman than the content of the the interview .. does this show our apathy to the basic issue?

bertie

hugely admirable sentiment put forward, but I wonder if Mr Brand will re-allocate some of his unbalanced wealth to help the multi-millions

viz

Basically Brand is amazing and has it spot on, it's disgraceful about the lack of equality on our planet, and he's right. Looking after the people and the planet itself is all we as a race really need to do, and there's enough manpower in the world for everyone to be OK, but some people own far too much, and billions of others owe far too much. Britons are born 17K "in debt" - why should they be indebted to anyone, they've only just been born ffs - and they're amongst the best off! It's just not right. The system doesn't work.

bertie

viz said:

Basically Brand is amazing and has it spot on, it's disgraceful about the lack of equality on our planet, and he's right. Looking after the people and the planet itself is all we as a race really need to do, and there's enough manpower in the world for everyone to be OK, but some people own far too much, and billions of others owe far too much. Britons are born 17K "in debt" - why should they be indebted to anyone, they've only just been born ffs - and they're amongst the best off! It's just not right. The system doesn't work.

he is absolutely, and lots of famous/wealthy people have shouted it loudly from the roof tops before,  but I dont see him or them  giving up their "unfair share" 

frankus

bertie said:

hugely admirable sentiment put forward, but I wonder if Mr Brand will re-allocate some of his unbalanced wealth to help the multi-millions

have half a wisdom for that

Fretwired

viz said:

Basically Brand is amazing and has it spot on, it's disgraceful about the lack of equality on our planet, and he's right. Looking after the people and the planet itself is all we as a race really need to do, and there's enough manpower in the world for everyone to be OK, but some people own far too much, and billions of others owe far too much. Britons are born 17K "in debt" - why should they be indebted to anyone, they've only just been born ffs - and they're amongst the best off! It's just not right. The system doesn't work.

Brand was just full of soundbites - you can bang on about inequality until the end of time. He didn't offer an alternative system to the one we have. We can take all the wealth from the rich and distribute it and then what? Let's protect the planet - great idea. What's the biggest threat to the planet? The growing world population. What's Brand's solution? Genocide? A war? Sterilisation?

And after the interview no doubt he returned to his million pond pad in London and hit a club where he quaffed champagne until 3.00 am.

And to those who say the system doesn't work think of this. In the UK:

Infant mortality is low thanks to advances in medical care
There's a state education system
Power on tap
Shops full of fresh food
A benefits system
NHS
Entertainment
A viable economic system
Shelter
Transport
We're safe - most of us are unlikely to be murdered
And so on.

By in large the system does work.

frankus

Brands wealth comes from work and time he puts in... it's not like he's earning masses for money that gets moved around by hired minions.

Brand's wealth may be in the Millions but if you're going to contest his right to it, you're getting into the whole artist distribution schtick

I think there's a bigger issue of debtors, usury and corporations exploiting government funding or connections to get preferential treatment that is totally against the interests of society..

saying he's got to give up his "wealth" before he has a point is fucking stupid - he's not Ghandi.

bertie

frankus said:

saying he's got to give up his "wealth" before he has a point is fucking stupid - he's not Ghandi.

does make him somewhat of a hypocrite tho  

fatherjack

I've seen Paxo cock it up before.  He was interviewing Ann Coulter (American right wing person) and fell back on the usual way they try and embarrass such people, i.e. 'Did you REALLY say [insert moronic comment}?'.  However, when she just said 'Yes, it's in my new book,' he had no fall-back position from which to put her assertions to any sort of test.

digitalscream

OK, I got about 1:50 in, and Brand just seems to be using big words for the sake of it. Then he comes up with this gem: "It's not that I'm not voting out of apathy, I am not voting out of absolute indifference..."

Erm.

frankus

bertie said:

frankus said:

saying he's got to give up his "wealth" before he has a point is fucking stupid - he's not Ghandi.

does make him somewhat of a hypocrite tho  

in your eyes.

frankus

digitalscream said:

OK, I got about 1:50 in, and Brand just seems to be using big words for the sake of it. Then he comes up with this gem: "It's not that I'm not voting out of apathy, I am not voting out of absolute indifference..."

Erm.

If something is irrelevant to you, it doesn't make you apathetic.

Do you care what I had for breakfast? No? Do I have a right to call you apathetic?

Phil_aka_Pip

I'm tempted to agree with @Fretwired that there will always be poor people. I remember being told in recent years that if you give money to poor people in the Philippines you don't get better fed/clothed people all you get is poor people with mobile phones. I'm sure Mags would echo that: in this country you get skint people with large plasma screen telly on the wall and they're no better fed or clothed.