Getting answers from the PM
Persuading Tony Blair to come into TV Centre and do a major ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳1 interview, live, with no restrictions or caveats on the question areas is an achievement. Getting the PM to say something new on one of the key issues of the day is another matter altogether.
Jon Sopel, battled valiantly last month trying to get the prime minister to say when he was leaving office, who would succeed him and how much his closing months were being overshadowed by the Cash for Honours enquiry. Very pertinent questions received pretty un-illuminating responses. So, how to get some answers that would leave viewers wiser about government policy, the PM's intentions or his legacy?
First, we decided to limit the area of questions to a small number of the topics that would - in an ideal world - be raised. Getting answers on inequality in society after ten years of a Labour government, the Iraq war, climate change and the PM’s legacy - leaving out other great swathes of domestic and foreign policy. Giving Andrew Marr time to question the PM closely on those issues that were raised.
Secondly, we tried to stick with it when the interviewee was gently veering off in another direction, and answering a question that was subtly different to one he'd just been asked.
Thirdly, we aimed to curb Andrew's natural inclination to intervene while the PM was talking. We were hoping to avoid the tetchy exchanges that might still fail to produce that elusive illumination.
So, what success this Sunday? That's more for the viewer to assess than the producers (you can watch the interview here). However, the PM did talk animatedly about inequality in society, denying David Cameron's assessment. He did admit that he was "devastated" by the killings in Iraq, and did indicate that he expected the British plans for troop withdrawal to continue even if the Americans were busy pouring in more troops. And he did map out his commitment to climate control indicating that this would be a focus of attention post-Downing Street.
And was it too sugary at the end? Both Art Garfunkel and the PM both had reservations in advance about sitting down and chatting - on camera - with the other. In the event, after an interview that was a bit scratchy at times, it seemed right to end with a minute of warm exchanges. And you could argue that finding out that the PM still plays guitar "most days" adds something to the sum total of human knowledge. Well, just a bit.
Comments
Why shouldn't Prime Minister Blair have been reluctant to be interviewed by ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳? ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ isn't interested in genuine inteviews with people it disagrees with trying to get them to illuminate their views and explain the thinking behind them. Its real objective is hostile confrontational debate with them. For that interviewee, it's a no win arrangement. By contrast, those whose views are in agreement with ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ are given a friendly soapbox to orate from where they are rarely if ever challenged in what they say. ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ is no longer journalism by any reasonable definition, it is political advocacy.
Tony Blair should be given the respect he desrves. His influence may be waning but he is determined to attend to the affairs of state without being side-lined.He does not want to be shunted out of office as a lame-duck PM. Rather he would like the British electorate to remember his positive deeds and build on the proposals he is trying to craft at the eleventh hour. Time is most certainly not on his side but assuming he stays on till September, he could still clip the wings of the Tory leadership by bold leadership paving the way for the anointed leader, Gordon Brown,to take over from him.
To try and pretend that 'Mogadon Marr' sheds more light in an interview than the far superior Jon Sopel is, I'm afraid, living in dreamtime.
Why don't you give the Sunday morning gig to someone who can shake things up a bit ? Like Carolyn Quinn ?
Tony Blair gets the respect he deseves.
Plays the guitar every day? Fiddling while Baghdad burns, one assumes.
It's been very noticeable over the last few weeks in discussions on ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ radio and tv that the Government has been unwilling to provide anyone to appear in discussions, despite being invited, on key issues. It's not just the Prime Minister who is keeping a low profile when it suits.
Is it ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ policy to interview war criminals? How anyone can take anything seirously that falls out of this man's mouth is beyond me.
WMD! Freedom! Democracy! Iraqi oil in a UN trust! Invading Iraq is not about regime change!
Bang him up and throw away the key.
Tony Blair has reached a point where he should resign from office tomorrow. Nobody trusts him, nobody respects him.
Although it'll be interesting to see whether Gordon Brown could win over the British public (especially with the thrust against Scottish MPs in the "English" parliament).
Tony has failed on two worldwide items; 1) Iraq and 2) Afghanistan. How many of us see him a Bush's lap-dog.
Tony has failed on two local issues; 1) road pricing 2) identity cards. His reply to those two petitions simply shows that the Government isn't interested in democracy, they're interested in being seen to do democracy. Those petitions will have little or no effect on the £100 ID card and the hair-brained over-engineered road pricing policy.
His Government have failed on education, NHS, taxation, etc. Look at the 30 year mortgages we've been saddled with for the PFI hospital deals.
The sooner we have a general election, the better it will be for all of us.
Mark #1
Yes and your point is? Just how many of your American commercial new outlets are not exactly the same only with extreme right wing bias?
Why do you not equally complain about right wing bias at fox or cnn?
Your not english you don't pay a license fee, so what the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ does when interviewing the british prime minister is none of your business.