New post on 'Society From the Top Down' in which I revisit work by Marxist economist Paul Sweezy on corporate interest groups, comparing his results to those of a community detection algorithm.
tamills1981.github.io/society-from...

New post on 'Society From the Top Down' in which I revisit work by Marxist economist Paul Sweezy on corporate interest groups, comparing his results to those of a community detection algorithm.
tamills1981.github.io/society-from...

The relevant question is not: How good or bad is the 'content' the BBC produces? It is: How amendable to change are the structures of the BBC which lead to the bad outputs?

The BBC isn't a person we should judge morally on their conduct or trustworthiness. It's an organisation. So the question is political/sociological, not moral. What are the social structures that to lead to particular practices in journalistic & cultural production?

A lot of people feel profoundly disillusioned & angry with the BBC over its awful reporting on Gaza - & a myriad of other things. They are simply switching off & couldn't care less about the BBC's fate.

I totally get it. But this is bad politics.🧵

Still remember first time I heard the word 'woke' on the Today programme. Immediately knew it signalled the beginning of years of unabated horseshit from our media class.

The death of a class warrior: Margaret Thatcher (1925-2013) Thatcher did not seek to win over 'hearts and minds'. Rather she attacked the social bases of collective thought and action, making building any alternative unimaginable. Throughout the long span of h...

Happy Thatcher Death Day to all who celebrate www.opendemocracy.net/en/opendemoc...

The BBC The BBC is one of the most important institutions in Britain; it is also one of the most misunderstood. Despite its claim to be independent and impartial, and the constant accusations of a liberal bia...

This excellent book, by @tommills.bsky.social should be required reading in schools: www.versobooks.com/en-gb/produc...

New post on 'Society from the Top Down' comparing media use amongst the public & MPs. tamills1981.github.io/society-from...

New post on 'Society from the Top Down' comparing media use amongst the public & MPs. tamills1981.github.io/society-from...

Britain not ruling out future strikes on Iran missile sites, officials indicate ‘We just don’t know what will happen,’ western officials say, as UK bases prepare for arrival of US heavy bombers

'US heavy bombers are expected to reach UK bases at Diego Garcia in the Chagos Islands and Fairford in Gloucestershire in the next few days' www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...

Eskandar Sadeghi-Boroujerdi | The dry and the wet burn together The war launched against Iran by the United States and Israel is a war of choice and of hubris. There is scarcely even...

The dry and the wet burn together www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2026/ma...

Media Reform Coalition Media Reform coordinates the work of advocacy groups campaigning to protect the public interest in light of the Leveson Inquiry and Communications Review.

Today @mediareformuk.bsky.social launches its Alternative Green Paper; a compilation of proposals for radical BBC reform from civil society, campaign groups, media experts & members of the public. www.mediareform.org.uk/bbc-alternat...

Just Nick Robinson casually asking a guest on BBC Today if protests against the war 'should be allowed to go ahead' or 'ought to be banned in this country'.

The question any sane media system would be posing rn is what can be done to restrain the US & Israel.

Not seen this before. Thanks!

Not going to say it, but a lot of academics & left commentators now realising they shouldn't have been so dismissive of analyses of elite agency & networks.

I don't think the BBC should be funded by a flat tax, or thought of in consumerist terms, but if you subscribe to streaming services you are already paying a flat rate to fund programmes you don't watch.

The £546m (and growing) question BBC bosses believe getting more people to pay a smaller licence fee can save its future finances - do the numbers add up?

Excellent detailed analysis on the future of BBC funding from Tom Chivers:
whosebeeb.substack.com/p/the-546m-q...

Labour Together’s Donor Network tamills1981.github.io/society-from...

Pat McFadden complained to Laura Kuenssberg on the BBC that none of the media had raised the issue of Mandelson's relationship with Epstein after he was appointed. So why was it being so harsh on Sir Keir?

So, is that true? Well, for the most part, yes.

I identified 19 BBC reports & 185 national press articles mentioning Peter Mandelson in the month after his appointment was announced.

Of these 204 reports, only 13 (that’s 6.4%) mentioned Epstein.

New post on my website: Society From the Top Down: tamills1981.github.io/society-from...

Pat McFadden complained to Laura Kuenssberg on the BBC that none of the media had raised the issue of Mandelson's relationship with Epstein after he was appointed. So why was it being so harsh on Sir Keir?

So, is that true? Well, for the most part, yes.

Finally got my copy at an event this evening.

This is exactly it. People presented Mandelson a certain way because they saw it in their interests to do so.

Wrote about the insularity of media & politics along these lines in my BBC book in fact.

There’s a similar sort of dynamic in the world of UK media & politics, in which Mandelson has of course been a key player.

They all knew who Mandelson is.

Don't think powerful people are feigning shock at the nature & extent of sexual abuse, but the casual corruption & the overlapping of economic & professional interests with personal/social lives is very much the norm for them.

Before I was an academic I did quite a lot of investigative research on the super-rich. Arms dealers, freewheeling financiers, power brokers etc. The world of the Epstein files is very familiar.

More likely a new piece of erotic fiction.