Scottish Media Tries To Silence Fans As Clamour For Inquiry Grows

Scotland’s “journalistic class” has come together tonight in an effort to silence the many, many supporters, of all clubs, who want to see the game cleaned up.

The enormity of the crisis facing Scottish football at the moment can’t be underestimated.

That it all emanates from one place – Ibrox – has allowed the press to turn this into a “Celtic – Rangers” issue, but fans of clubs across the country are furious, not only about the EBT use but about the greater scandals that have engulfed us since.

Those scandals were allowed to fester by a media that ceased caring years ago.

Tonight, on Clyde, they opened the show by saying they weren’t taking calls on the subject of the tax case.

So, “all about opinions” is no longer the mantra of a show that now allows only those “opinions” with which its panel agrees, and discussions which it can easily control.

This one has escaped the lab.

This one is “out there” and has considerable weight behind it.

That they think we should “move on” has already been made clear.

Now, when we, the fans, make it clear that’s not on they’re trying to move on for us.

They have no right to do it.

Over on Radio Scotland, they are in lock step on the issue that “Rangers have suffered enough”, now that one of the more courageous voices on the show, that of Jim Spence, is no longer being heard on the airwaves.

Amongst those making excuses is notorious Sevco flatterer Richard Wilson, who’s long since passed the point of even pretending to be impartial, and Graham Spiers.

I was once a huge admirer of Spiers. He was almost alone, for years, in calling out Rangers on the sectarian singing of their supporters.

He was once a voice of reason and intelligence on SFA reform and the need for strong leadership in our sport.

All that is over with.

The Romans had a saying for this; corruptio optimi pessima.

The corruption of the best is the worst.

Earlier this evening he published an astonishing, and offensive, piece which decried the “poisonous atmosphere” surrounding Scottish football at the moment.

The article pointed the finger for all the ills of our game at one group; the supporters.

In short, Graham Spiers blames us for the disgraceful state our national sport is in.

Nothing ought to make us angrier.

If the atmosphere is poisonous that’s because the media has refused to take its role seriously and help us fix the game.

Everything rotten has been stuck in a cupboard or slipped under the bed or swept under the carpet or stashed in a corner.

And as a consequence, the reek is overpowering.

This is a new low for the hacks, and a place I never expected someone like Spiers to go.

Having not convinced us to sit down and shut up, the new “angle” here is to try and convince us that the toxic smell from these scandals is a bigger problem than the scandals themselves. His solution is to hold our noses and ignore the smell.

Ours is to scoop it up, and throw the rancid lot of it in the bin.

It’s a good thing these people no longer set the agenda isn’t it?