Frederic Michel and  Cameron: PR people both

Once the details of the emails released at the Leveson Inquiry had been poured over there were some who said the PR guy for News Corp had ‘oversold’ his case. Simon Hoggart, writing in the Guardian had this view. “Frédéric Michel, the man employed by News Corp to link with Hunt's office, sounded like so many of the PR people I've met. Everything is wildly exaggerated. "X is really on board with us on this" means "I have spoken at a party to X and he didn't reply with a screed of abuse." 

"We're going to do a media blitz, starting with Newsnight and The One Show" means "I have phoned a junior researcher on both those programmes."

"We've lined up all the key players on this decision" implies "We have emailed several of them."

You get the idea. Listening to Cameron’s faux outrage today, at being dragged back to the Commons to explain his peculiar inactivity was frustrating until it was remembered that Cameron had cut his teeth as a self-same PR man. Hunt is his shield. He will say anything and go to any lengths to deflect heat from his shield. The Tories relationship with the Murdoch empire is even more toxic than that ‘enjoyed’ by New Labour. PR Cameron will face many more challenges yet before he is safe. Our PR PM takes us for fools. 

To see just how far away we are from a decent society we can apply the Professor Michael Sandel test. He is the American professor of Philosophy who shines a light in a murky world. He said in a Reith Lecture in 2009: “The virtues in democratic life  - community, solidarity, trust, civic friendship - these virtues are not like commodities that are depleted with use. They are, rather, like muscles that develop and grow stronger with exercise.”

Read the words again and appreciate just how distant our society is from these virtues. PR Cameron and his crooked cronies willfully abuse these virtues on a daily basis.