Saturday 10 October 2009

TaxPayers' Alliance: the media's friend

Hat-tip to Jamie for highlighting the Guardian's coverage of the TaxPayers' Alliance.

They point out that one TPA director, Alexander Heath, lives in France, spends only two weeks a year in the UK and doesn't pay tax in Britain. Oops.

Clifford at The Other TaxPayers Alliance, who has long campaigned to have the TPA reveal who funds it, has more.

But one stat from the Guardian is worth repeating:

In the last year the Daily Mail quoted the TPA in 517 articles. The Sun obliged 307 times, once bizarrely on page 3 when a topless Keeley parroted the TPA's line against energy taxes. The Guardian mentioned the group 29 times.

That certainly fits with the (very short) 'audit' this blog did in August. But for one paper to use one source 517 times in a year is lazy beyond belief.

Clearly, the Mail have taken Clifford's guidelines on Reporting the TaxPayers' Alliance to heart.

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