More 'dategate' duplicity from the Mail

There can surely be no doubt in the newsroom of the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday that its claims about a BBC-wide ban on the use of 'BC' and 'AD' with historical dates is simply not true.

But still they persist.

The Mail on Sunday's initial story, last Sunday, actually carried a quote from the BBC confirming that no such guidelines have been issued. And even columnist Melanie Phillips - no stranger to a ludicrous distortion if it helps enforce one of the Mail's well-established prejudices - as good as admitted the story wasn't true.

The Mail has since been reported to the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) for the way in which it continued to peddle a story that was clearly wrong.

Then on Friday, the BBC's head of religion & ethics further clarified:

"We have issued no editorial guidelines or instructions to suggest that anyone in the BBC should change the terms they use. The BBC, like most people, use BC and AD as standard terminology. But we recognise that it is possible to use different terminology, and that some people do: that is what is reflected on our Religion website. Even though we told the newspaper this, they ran the story anyway."

Yet today we read this from the Mail on Sunday:

"The Government last night moved to safeguard BC and AD after The Mail on Sunday revealed they were under threat because they were considered offensive to non-Christians. Last week this newspaper reported that the BBC had replaced Anno Domini (the Year of our Lord) and Before Christ with the obscure terms Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE)..."

It seems the Mail has absolutely no interest in reporting the truth regarding this story and no shame about its willingness to continue encouraging readers to believe a story which it knows to be untrue.

Having fooled London Mayor Boris Johnson (which probably ranks in difficulty alongside fooling a dog by pretending to throw a stick) the Mail is clearly aware the story doesn't have to be true in order for people to believe it.

Comments

[A]

Glad you spotted this. I saw it too. The cheek!

[Biffy Dunderdale]

While I carry no torch at all for the Daily Mail or this story, there is little more boring than middle-class liberals working themselves into a self-righteous froth about the Dail Mail. Twitter is full of it and it is little more than preening.

[Mac]

Next week The Sunday Mail will be claiming in massive headlines that they've forced the BBC to change their guidelines back to BC & AD and that everyone should bow down and kiss the sweaty arse of the DM's owner for his bravery in fighting the Muslim loving BBC beast.

[Steand]

Last week this newspaper reported that the BBC had replaced...

They always forget to put the word "newspaper" in quotes.

[Christof]

@A - 'middle class liberals working themselves into a self-righteous froth' - sounds like something Glen Beck would pronounce. Just saying

[web design London]

The Sunday Mail will be claiming in massive headlines that they've forced the BBC to change their guidelines back to BC & AD and that everyone should bow down ..