(no subject)

[dreamer_easy]

The new iteration of the Paterson Joseph rumour is that the Beeb deliberately leaked false information to catch whoever was passing it on to the Intersplat. I suppose that's possible, but I can't help being sceptical about how convenient it seems - it allows disgruntled fans to continue hating on the showmakers for their supposed racism, it allows the folks who started the rumour to retain some sort of credibility, and it allows everyone who uncritically swallowed the story to feel less foolish.

(I've now done a lot of searching - including misspellings of Joseph's first name! - and I haven't been able to find any mention of the rumour prior to the "Lying in the Gutters" entry of 13 October.)

Comments

[angriest.livejournal.com]

I was pretty certain the rumour started with Lying in the Gutters.

[murasaki-1966.livejournal.com]

This is off the topic, but it has some great stuff about archeological discoveries in 2008

http://www.salon.com/tech/htww/?last_story=/tech/htww/2009/01/06/polynesian_chickens_in_peru/

[jblum.livejournal.com]

How on Earth can a disgruntled fan find *that* racist? What, is it insensitive now to use a black guy as a red herring?

[seangaffney.livejournal.com]

I am totally offended that John Bennett was not cast. Racist against Chinese! And against dead people!

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

To be fair, dodgy claims about BBC racism are to my mind overshadowed by the breathtaking stupid displayed by some fans at the thought of a Black Doctor. (The only good thing about which is that it drags peoples' ignorance and assumptions out into the light, where they can be challenged.)

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

To be fair, yes, it would be - building up fans' hopes for the first Black Doctor, especially fen of colour's hopes.

[jblum.livejournal.com]

...Nope. I still can't make the leap from "How dare you TOY WITH MY FEELINGS LIKE THAT" to any kind of racial discrimination...

[barrington.livejournal.com]

Well, I bought it - it was passed to me via a variety of routes, at least a couple of them with 100% hit rates for other rumours and spoilers (Tennant's departure etc.). If this was a deliberate misinformation campaign, it worked remarkably well - and presumably it must include some people who actually work on the show, too.

I wonder if we'll ever find out...

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

Yah, in DWM, in 20 years' time. :)

[pbristow.livejournal.com]

God bless DWM. [HUGS SHELF-FULL OF MAGAZINES]

[almostwitty]

To ask a silly question, where is this Lying In The Gutters entry?

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

Oh here - you want my previous entry on the subject. Lotsa links.

[almostwitty]

Thanks :D