Bonum Certa Men Certa

Bill Gates-Funded Guardian 'Writers' Are Again Whitewashing Gates and Attacking Microsoft Rivals

Microsoft Jack



Summary: The Microsoft/Gates-funded articles from the Guardian clearly begin to look like whitewash and The Guardian has turned into a PR front for hire if this trend is not stopped; Microsoft Jack (Schofield) from The Guardian is ridiculing ODF and those who support it

THE Guardian used to have many people's respect before it accepted a lot of money from Bill and Melinda Gates and then started glorifying them very shamelessly. That's the impression other people (e.g. in IRC) have been getting. We wrote about this subject in [1, 2, 3] and since it was made official it became easier to view The Guardian more like another PR front. If it sold its integrity away to Gates, the who else has it sold its integrity to? Well, The Guardian quit pretending that it reports fairly on some issues that matter a lot. Consider some of our more recent postings about Gates' relationship with Monsanto, e.g.:





This has nothing to do with so-called 'charity', it is merely an investment, it's all about business. And then comes the Gates-funded Guardian to help guard the Gates family's image, which this family already spends billions of dollars guarding and constantly embellishing (by hiring external PR agencies).

“Gates becomes richer over the past year (including this past year), despite his widely-publicised claims that he gives away his wealth (via his tax-exempt bank account).”This brings us to the The Guardian and its Gates-funded new section. What does it do right now? Whitewashing versus critics. They write about Gates' relationship with Monsanto and they don't mention anything that people do not already know (it's all over the Web); they pretend that it's an innocent mistake from Gates.

The Guardian makes no definitive statement. In a cowardly way the headline only asks the question, "Why is the Gates foundation investing in GM giant Monsanto?"

Quick answer: profit. Gates becomes richer over the past year (including this past year), despite his widely-publicised claims that he gives away his wealth (via his tax-exempt bank account). But that's not what the article can say. Here is what part of the Gates-funded article says (and that's one of the most daring parts):

The fact is that Cargill is a faceless agri-giant that controls most of the world's food commodities and Monsanto has been blundering around poor Asian countries for a decade giving itself and the US a lousy name for corporate bullying. Does Gates know it is in danger of being caught up in their reputations, or does the foundation actually share their corporate vision of farming and intend to work with them more in future?


Well, as expected, the Gates-funded Guardian and Gates-funded Monsanto get no bad reputation here. Almost nothing is said about the criminal nature of Monsanto's operations (the authorities have had to step in) and Gates is receiving just softball criticisms. They are being too gentle on him (it's almost like apologism) because they are funded by him to write those articles and detract from similar articles that address the same questions without being funded by Gates. That's just PR, dressed up as "news" by The Guardian. They pretend to cover this issue fairly, which is even more dangerous because they deliberately leave out a lot of the gory details and some context. It's like "controlled opposition", i.e. Gates pretending to be his own critic and phrasing the argument in particular ways. For instance, they are not showing how Gates insulted GMO critics (dismissing them as "environmentalists"). At The Guardian, people who are reading about it for the first time may leave the page believing that it was all just an accident from Gates. The comments fill some gaps, but even though the comments could make up for a poorly-researched/biased article, very few people would read comments and the editors are deleting comments they do not like (deletion is indicated clearly). Here are some of the negative comments that survived censorship:

Why is anybody surprised? Bill Gates and Microsoft pretty much wrote the book on modern corporate bullying, why would he be worried about it now?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft


Also:

Come on John - have the Gates $$ infected your judgement?


Or:

'Naïve', right. Not enough for Gates to take with one hand and give with the other. It seems taking comes so naturally to the guy that he's going to turn out to be ambidextrous at it.'


Another one among many:

Bill Gates has been very pro-GM for years, what are you talking about!?


Yes, none of this was accidental and the foundation has been asked many times before to withdraw support of GMO/Monsanto. It just won't listen because it has a notorious patronisation complex. The foundation already knows how it wants the world to be run and only very bad publicity that billions in PR budgets cannot challenge may ultimately alter this plan.

Over at Twitter/Identi.ca, Glyn Moody (occasional contributor to The Guardian) told me: "they certainly don't look good on this..."

“[T]hey certainly don't look good on this...”
      --Glyn Moody
Later on I wrote in Identi.ca that "The Guardian should be pressured to reveal just how many millions of pounds the Gates Foundation has just injected into its bank account" and "NPR should be pressured to reveal how many millions of dollars the Gates Foundation paid it. Taxpayers pay for bandwidth, Bill pays for the bias."

There are many other examples of media outlets which Bill Gates simply 'bought' so that they cover issues the way which makes him happy.

"Richard Stallman does not pay NPR and The Guardian millions of dollars to glorify himself," I wrote, "so on Gates' budget they help vilify his types."

The likes of Gates are even resorting to propaganda films right now, as we covered just days ago. To quote one of our regulars on a similar subject last night (titled "The anti-social billionaire's network"):

Without actually mentioning Zuckerberg's ethical model, Gates, the review evokes him in several ways:

— The mention of Michael Corleone. Gates updated the Mafia playbook to build tech's most personally lucrative criminal organisation;

— The smug, Teflon court appearances. You can see Gates' sociopathic agenda in his insolent Albuquerque mug shot: "You arrested me today, but I am going to beat your system."

— The reference to Rovian "if you don't like the rules, ignore them". That's the key to Gates' (and Rove's) successes: The chutzpah of hacking immunity from the rules.

— Zuckerberg's ambition is the same as Gates': To corrupt the open, free web and put his paywall in front of it. Gates failed to achieve this, and Zuckerberg will also eventually fail. But, as in the case of the impossible global American Empire dreamed of by Rove and his clients, it's important to recognise the dangerous megalomania and hubris in believing it possible, let alone right.

Some hero.


One of Gates' whitewashers, Microsoft Jack (Schofield), is still loyal to the company which had him widely recognised as "Microsoft Jack" (the name is not our invention).

“[Microsoft] Jack, if you feel like making a coherent argument yourself, rather than just name calling, I'll link you.”
      --Rob Weir, IBM
IBM's Rob Weir was having a rough time on Monday. He ended up arguing with Microsoft Jack from The Guardian (he is hardly there anymore and sometimes he is seen in ZDNet UK) after Glyn Moody had dented Weir's new post about ODF. Microsoft Jack decided to insult Weir's intelligence and he then responded to me too (all I said was: "It looks like Jack Schofield (aka "Microsoft Jack") is cursing ODF/IBM's Weir for not being nice to OOXML").

To quote Weir: "@jackschofield Sorry you missed the postscript with the OOXML data. ODF still smaller by 18%. Calling names is boorish and unprofessional." Source

Weir: "@jackschofield Jack, if you feel like making a coherent argument yourself, rather than just name calling, I'll link you. #ODF " Source

Weir: "@jackschofield @glynmoody ODF docs were 18% smaller than the equivalent OOXML ones. I focused on the better format not the 2nd best." Source

Microsoft Jack: "@rcweir Well, the "argument" was about the incompetence of your article, not the result. That's why you're so confused..." Source

Microsoft Jack: "rcweir Sorry. As I said to Glynn: not including docx in the comparison is either incompetent, stupid or biased. #ODF" Source

Microsoft Jack: "@rcweir I assume you are not a journalist. If you were, it would look to me either like an incompetent job or silly ODF-promoting bias." Source

Microsoft Jack: "@glynmoody If the article compared docx and ODF that might be useful. As it is, the only debate is how stupid or deceptive the original is." Source

Microsoft Jack: "@glynmoody Or confirmation of the view that ODF supporters are very partial in their choice of facts. Should you really puff this crap?" Source

Weir: "@jackschofield Nothing wrong with leaving out data that supports your argument. Leaving out data that contradicts it is something else." Source

Weir: "@jackschofield OK. I suspected that you did not have an argument, but I did not want to presume. Thanks for the confirmation." Source

Microsoft Jack makes The Guardian look a lot less trustworthy and about an hour ago I messages him back: "a year ago you said Windows 7 "looks like Vista. Which I think is…uh…the thing I’m not supposed to say." Still true? ... when you are "not supposed" to say the truth, what does that tell about your journalistic integrity?" I am still waiting for his reply.

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

Gemini Links 03/11/2024: Fantasy Life Day and Worship
Links for the day
[Meme] Write Us Drivers and GTFO!
When you realise sanctioning BRICS devs goes against the community
GNU/Linux "Market Share" in Lebanon More Than Doubled in a Few Months
Maybe it's a reaction to something? Assassination in Haret Hreik was in July.
Wall Street Has Demoted Intel, Seeing There May be No Future to Intel
Intel's loss isn't a loss to us
Free Software Licence Compliance is About Security Too
Linux as de facto proprietary off-the-shelf platform
The "Luddite" Complex
Sometimes simplest is best and sometimes "modern" is designed not with the buyers' interest in mind
SCO's Darl McBride Dead at Age 64
There's hardly any information about it, except we know he reached bankruptcy and 3 years later he died at a relatively young age
[Meme] Python Knows Its Bosses
Microsoft strings attached
[Meme] Debt of About $20 Per Active User
Facebook isn't laying off tens of thousands for "efficiency" but for survival
 
[Video] Richard Stallman's Talk in Spanish (in Peru Last Week)
Alternative URLs too
The Media Focuses on the Wrong Scandal
The real scandal at MIT was Gates
Decommissioning Copper Lines Makes Us Less Safe
We've essentially degraded the robustness or reliability of critical systems
Life of an Addicted Lolicon Who Can Also Code
Personal blog as an open diary
[Meme] Reporting Crime is Not a Crime
Obviously!
Manchester Party for Techrights
If you choose to come, of course we'll cover the cost of the food and treats (but not travel)
Privacy is Not a Crime (in Places Where It is a Crime the Regime is Typically Very Rogue)
Also, criminals lack "privacy rights" to hide their crimes from the public
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, November 02, 2024
IRC logs for Saturday, November 02, 2024
Nearly 40 Years Without Security Incidents
People who use Windows have come to sort of "accept" that security incidents are part of life or "normal"
[Meme] The Streisand Effect
Simon says, don't bother trying to suppress facts
Streisand Effect at IBM?
Trying to silence your workers isn't the best approach. It only makes colleagues even more curious.
Microsoft is a Gift That Keeps Giving (Future Stories to Techrights)
Microsoft has been trying to silence me using dirty tricks for nearly 20 years
Elon Musk Has Trashed Twitter for Ideological Reasons (and Propping Up Trump in Exchange for Financial and Political Favours Once in Public Office)
In case you didn't leave Twitter already, consider the fact that Twitter's (or "X"... whatever!) future is uncertain
Links 02/11/2024: Many Fakes in Social Control Media
Links for the day
GNU/Linux Usage Surveys: Up to 6.8% (With ChromeOS, Based on StatCounter) in Desktops/Laptops and Above 2% in Steam
Today StatCounter starts releasing graphs based on data for November
Gemini Links 02/11/2024: Petscop, Jokes, and RetroChallenge
Links for the day
Links 02/11/2024: Temu EU Probe and Shorts Trademark
Links for the day
The 'Turning-Free-Code-Proprietary Foundation' (Linux/Microsoft Foundation)
LF will basically become just as sinister as its corporate sponsors
Python Software Foundation is 'Cancel Culture' Rehomed
Python isn't grassroots and it doesn't really tolerate grassroots
DeVault "Closes Down His Mailing Lists Every Time There's a Scandal" and Also Censors Messages
Censorious code hosting platform
What Social Control Media Really Is
Social Control Media, in a nutshell, isn't just bad if its controller is some foreign or hostile nation
Taking Ethics Lectures From Drew
Projection tactics
Links 02/11/2024: Facebook Stock Falls (Soaring Debt), Apple’s Quarterly Profit Down
Links for the day
Gemini Links 02/11/2024: Burnout, Emacs Bookmarks, and Smooth Migration
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, November 01, 2024
IRC logs for Friday, November 01, 2024
Facebook's Debt Has Soared to All-Time High of Nearly 50 Billion Dollars
But the corporate media pretends all is well (while mass layoffs continue and slop takes over the social control media)
Geminispace Makes It Past 4,200 Capsules on November 1st
At last!
Links 01/11/2024: Election Interferences by X/Twitter/Musk, Strava as Espionage Tool
Links for the day
The October 2024 Web Server Survey Shows a Further Collapse for Microsoft in the Servers Market
Microsoft experienced the next largest loss of 699,464 sites (-3.45%)
Gemini Links 01/11/2024: TLS Sucks, twytere.com Announced
Links for the day
Links 01/11/2024: Few Things Are Cheaper Than This Antenna and "Nothing Lasts Forever"
Links for the day
Technology: rights or responsibilities? - Part V
By Dr. Andy Farnell
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, October 31, 2024
IRC logs for Thursday, October 31, 2024
R.T.O. is Another Name (or Acronym) for Voluntary Layoffs
Amazon is trying to get many workers to leave on their own
Microsoft's Acquisition of Activision (to Fake Revenue Growth by Buying Revenue) Was a Failure
Of course the mass layoffs at Microsoft aren't just a Microsoft thing
Stagnant, Shrinking Businesses and "IBM's Corporate Culture Since the Late 1980s... Over 35 Years."
Recently, IBM was using share price as a talking point, insisting the company was doing OK while tens of thousands were being laid off
Links 01/11/2024: World News, Political Catchup
Links for the day