Thanks to Quentin Letts, I suddenly have rather more money in my pocket...

I used to be a Guardian reader which, given that I'm a Liberal Democrat, might not surprise that many people. And yes, there were annoying aspects to it - Polly Toynbee, for the most part, but I could put up with that. But, about six years ago, I switched to The Times, newspaper of record and all that. Their sports coverage was quite good, and whilst I didn't necessarily feel comfortable with either their editorial line or, to be honest, their ownership, I took the view that I'm enough of a sceptic to consciously filter out their right-wing bias.

One of the features that I follow particularly closely is the parliamentary sketch, and I'd grown used to Patrick Kidd's style but then, a few months back, I noticed that he had gone, replaced by... Quentin Letts. I loathe his writing, his rather snide, sneering approach to people who, for all of their failings, are mostly trying to do a job of work, and their best of society. They're also paid considerably less than he is, I suspect, part of which comes from my wallet.

I put up with it for a while but my sense was that the paper was drifting towards the knee-jerk right, and so, this morning, I rang the subscriptions department to cancel (interestingly, they don't appear to offer an option to do so online - at least, I couldn't find it). After pressing a few option buttons, I was put through to a very polite young (I thought) man, sitting in an office in Colchester.

"I'd like to cancel my subscription.", I said, politely. "Really,", he replied, "may I ask why that is? I see that you've been a subscriber for six years.". "Quentin Letts,", I said, "I really don't like his attitude or style.". (I paraphrase here...).

The young man tried to convince me to change my mind. "We do have some other excellent columnists - Melanie Phillips and Rachel Sylvester were the two names he used to persuade me to stay. He was unfortunate in his choice, in that I can't bring myself to read much of Melanie's diatribes, and Rachel Sylvester has not really drawn my attention.

No, I insisted, I'd like to terminate my subscription. He hesitated. "Let me talk to my manager for a moment. I'll put you on hold and get back to you.". I waited, patiently. After all, I'm a polite soul, and he was simply doing his job.

He returned. "I've spoken to my manager, and would a half-price subscription for three months change your mind?". No, I said, it's not about the money, it's about a principle. I don't like Quentin Letts and his works, you've employed him, and this is the consequence.". "Would six months at half price change that?". "No, as I said, it's not about the money.".

"It's sorry that you're leaving, you'll miss our excellent sports reporting and range of columnists. I'm sure that, in a few months, you'll be back.". "I'm afraid not,", I replied, "and as I think about it, adding Rod Liddle to the list, I'm almost surprised that I've lasted this long.".

Eventually, he gave in to the inevitable. I wasn't going to change my mind, and it was agreed that my subscription would lapse on 19 January. A reference number was generated, so that I could monitor whether or not they try to continue taking my money, and we brought our conversation to an end.

It dawns on me that many people in this country don't read a daily newspaper any more, for a range of reasons. And I don't have to either. There are plenty of free news sources online, there are more reputable options, and I can now explore those. And, best of all, I don't have to read the parliamentary sketches by Quentin Letts any more. 

Frankly, John Crace is much better...

Why journalists are not exactly the best people to report news...

Pog the pig - was her behaviour
a touch rash(er)?

Here in Suffolk, we do like our pork. The pig industry is a key part of our agricultural sector, especially in the sandy heathlands both to the east of the county near the coast, and in the west of the county, in the Brecks. And, because pigs are kind of cute, we've had a Suffolk version of the Cow Parade, called "Pigs Gone Wild", thirty-nine decorated pigs dotted around Ipswich, throughout the summer.

They've been popular too, with children taking a particular interest in such pigs as "The Great Piggish Bake Off" (a pig painted to look like a Victoria Sandwich), and "Sir Bradley Piggins", in cycling gear with sideburns. Even Abellio Greater Anglia, our local Train Operating Company, has sponsored "Hamlet".

And so, when a pet pig called Pog escaped from her home in the town this week, it was a great hook for a story. The Sun's headline was;

ROAD HOG! Giant 300kg pig goes on the rampage through housing estate after escaping from nearby farm

Scary, eh? That's forty-seven stones worth of bacon prowling the mean streets of Ipswich, attacking small children, damaging vehicles, causing traffic accidents. For, after all, rampage is defined as;

violent or excited behavior that is reckless, uncontrolled, or destructive.

The Daily Mail was slightly less apocalyptic;

Pig weighing 47 STONE causes havoc when she escapes from her home and runs wild around village

which does go to show that Daily Mail reporters don't get out much - Ipswich is a 'village' of over 130,000 people. But the havoc thing is pretty scary, you'd certainly want to keep your kids off of the street, wouldn't you?

The Daily Telegraph clearly doesn't want to alarm the retired colonels who make up its readership, leading with;

Police called after massive pig goes on the run in Suffolk

which just about covered the level of local concern. You do need a police officer to keep an eye on things just in case.

Luckily, we can rely on the Ipswich Star's coverage, which got it just about right;

Surprise over actual pig gone wild in Newbury Road, Ipswich

The actual story was that Pog had escaped from her owner's home (not a farm, for the benefit of The Sun) and gone for a gentle stroll. Her owner had come out to make sure that nothing stupid happened and, as an observer noted, “She was very happy, she wasn't going home any time soon. But she was under control, the owner was very very good.”. And then she went home.

Now, I accept that, in the generality of news reporting in this country, a humorous little 'local interest' story isn't terribly important. But we rely on journalists to bring us information, and millions of people absorb what they read and often assume that what they read in their newspapers is accurate. And this story reminds us that, increasingly, newspapers don't supply news, they supply entertainment, plus opinion, propaganda and untruths designed to promote their own agendas.

That's important, especially in the context of political reporting, which colours how we, the voters, make our choices. It certainly affected the result of the EU referendum, and it continues to shape the debate about what sort of Brexit we end up with. After all, what does motivate the collection of foreigners and tax exiles that own much of our national Press? Is it our best interests, or theirs?

And the drift towards opinion masquerading as reporting is a problem for us too. Often merely reflecting the personal prejudice of the author, there is seldom any opportunity to challenge such arguments, and little effort on the part of editors to remove egregious lies. That may be down to the cutting of editorial staff, sub-editors and fact checkers as surplus to profit-making requirements, but it again impacts on our body politic.

I'm a great believer in an informed democracy, where voters make choices based on a range of choices, armed with facts. The media have a critical role in that, but if you can't trust them, and their agenda is pursued covertly, we have a problem. Journalists risk becoming lobbyists, as opposed to reporters. 

The story of Pog the pig demonstrates another weakness of our media - an increasing lack of accuracy. How often do you hear people at the centre of stories remark that the reporting gives a wholly misleading view of an incident? Has the need to sell newspapers become more important than relaying the facts?

I am a pessimist about the British media. In truth, I'd probably be a pessimist about the media in most of the Western democracies. Of course, even our media are better than that which exists in too many countries where censorship or repression of journalists is commonplace, but in a society where freedom of expression is justly placed on a pedestal, it would be nice if the profession showed just a little bit more respect for the ethics and responsibilities of their trade...