Republican News · Thursday 28 February 2002

Independent's propaganda war

BY ROBBIE MacGABHANN

Polls and propaganda - it's just another week in the life of Independent News and Media. In case you didn't know it, Sinn Féin have lost the next Leinster House elections. Yes, one poll conducted in a unique rural constituency has empowered the scribes in the Independent News and Media to begin to write political obituaries for Sinn Féin. 'A mortal blow for Sinn Féin?' was the editorial headline in the Evening Herald yesterday. They wish.

Last week, the Irish Independent told us that "Ahern was off to a flying start" and that an opinion poll commissioned by them and RTE in Dublin South East would "add to the worries of Fine Gael leader Michael Noonan and take some shine off a good ard fheis performance at the weekend".

This week, the Irish Independent told us that a new poll conducted in North Kerry "provides a post ard fheis boost for Fine Gael leader Michael Noonan".

This week's Independent poll in North Kerry prompted the headline "Setback for Sinn Féin" as the IMS poll showed a 16.8% poll showing for Sinn Féin's Martin Ferris.

MRBI poll conducted for TG4 had put Ferris at 23% and it is this new poll finding that has the Irish Independent pronouncing that Sinn Féin will not take a seat. They neglected to mention that a recent Kerryman poll had Sinn Féin at 19%.

other interesting interpretation of the poll is that Sinn Féin is within striking distance of taking this seat despite the Independent News and Media's campaign of disinformation about the party and despite the ongoing attempts by Fianna Fáil to buy the electorate in the constituency.

Sinn Féin is holding a conference on Education in Dublin this weekend. Ógra Shinn Fein is holding a conference in Galway. Assembly Education minister Martin McGuinness will address the Dublin Conference, which will see the launch of a new discussion document on education policy from the party. I wonder how many Independent News and Media journalists from any of its papers, the Star, Evening Herald, Sunday World, Sunday Independent, Sunday Tribune or Irish Independent, will find time to send just one journalist to come and attend the conference and report on Sinn Féin policy.

We won't be holding our breaths. The papers in the Independent stable, like many other outlets in the establishment media, have a problem writing about Sinn Féin policy. They don't have a problem writing about conjecture and anti-republican propaganda. They don't have a problem with endless coverage about a Sinn Féin threat.

The Herald editorial claimed voters now realise that "the party's economic and social policies are simply of another era", but the reality is that it is they who are living in the past.