A British journalist has once again accused the UK newspapers of pressurizing their journalists to spread the government’s anti-Muslim propaganda.
Richard Peppiatt, former journalist at the Daily Star, said that editors at several papers forced their reporters to create stories that suggested Muslims and immigrants living in Britain have been threatening the society.
He stressed that the fabricated stories became more common after the London bombings on June 7, 2005 and the US September 11 attacks.
“Especially since 7/7 and, to a degree, since 9/11, Muslims have certainly been painted as the ‘cartoon baddy.’ Definitely in the tabloids. Someone always has to be blamed, you can’t just leave it up in the air when something happens; somebody always needs to take the blame. Sadly it’s the Muslims that have been chosen to be portrayed as the ‘baddies’,” he said.
Peppiatt declared that the derogatory articles published in the papers had direct effect on the people’s lives, and led to violence on the streets. He also insisted that the figures over the immigrants living in the country were changed to show that they had imposed negative effects on the society.
He noted while working at the Daily Star, there were cases with a net drop in immigration statistics, but “that was never mentioned as it did not fit the narrative of painting immigrants in a bad light. There was no fair perspective and no consideration that immigrants are trying to get a better life. This was done on purpose, as the editors wanted to present a negative perspective on immigration.”
Peppiatt first raised the issue last November while giving evidence at the Leveson inquiry, launched by UK Prime Minister to investigate following the News of the World phone hacking scandal. The inquiry is also assessing the ethics and culture of the British media.
——Agencies