Will the riots of 2024 be a moment of transformation for the UK popular press, when it saw the need to dial down its tone and become more responsible for the potential impact of its headlines? This might be wishful thinking and run counter to the essential attention-grabbing qualities of tabloid journalism. But there is a commercial imperative to these news outlets moving to a higher moral ground and their publishers appear to have realised that. In a notable editorial last week, The Sun attempted to draw a clear line in the sand as it blamed social media platforms for provoking the violence.
“It’s time to finally clean up the social media sewer,” it demanded. It pointed to the “dangerous disinformation” and “peddling of hate” on socials, and piously noted that “traditional media remains heavily regulated, rightly abiding by strict legal rules around the reporting of crime and disorder”. Read Next Inflation set to rise back above 2% Bank of England target this week The Murdoch tabloid has been unambiguous in its disgust for the far-right rioters who attacked hotels housing asylum seekers and threw bricks at police.
“Day of shame” was one splash headline. “Nailed & jailed” was its unsympathetic view of those convicted. But some who participated in the protests might have felt let down, given The Sun’ s history of provocative immigration stories, including reporting that “ migrants storm Kent beaches”.
Meanwhile, far-right activist Tommy Robinson.
