Monday 14 January 2008

Oh, Mrs Porter, What Shall We Do?

So. Janet Street-Porter, the highly-paid doyen of Fleet Street, rails against the humble blog? Donchajustknowit? The much-made-over hackette seems to think blogs are nothing more than self-indulgent mediocrity (Just blog off. And take your self-promotion and cat-flap with you, Independent on Sunday, 6 January 2008).

Perhaps she thinks Joe and Josephine Blogger would be better off punting up £1.80 of their precious cash to read her whining, self-obsessed ramblings in the IoS every week? Keen to see what she was up to these days, I did just that. Her musings about Marks & Spencer, Big Brother and a plug for her latest publication Life’s Too F***ing Short (for which we are invited to punt a further £12.99) are hardly the most scintillating of reads.

She confesses to being ‘a bit nervous’ that M&S might branch out into online food delivery – worse still, that they are considering expanding their range of food to include more basic ingredients with which meals can be cooked. Well, I think JS-P needs to toughen up a bit. It takes more than a shift in retailing strategy by a high street chain to make Bill Blunt even the least bit nervy.

Janet is clearly no stranger to irony. After slagging off the lowly blogger for self-promotion, should we be surprised that her angle on Big Brother is that ‘I was allowed to hijack the programme last Friday’, or that a quarter of her column is devoted to advertorial for her own (just-published) book?

At least no one can accuse her of being a hypocrite. ‘Start each day … by telling yourself you are great. No one else is going to, believe me,’ she says. How true, Janet. Now – where’s that cat-flap? Mee-owww!


7 comments:

sylvie d said...

Bill I cannot stand the woman! everything about her makes me cringe ;-)

Chaffee Street Cafe` said...

Bloggers are worth their weight in gold and you Mr. Blunt are so wonderful.

Jackie said...

As an American I do not know this woman. Perhaps from what I read that is a good thing.

But, she might as well face facts. We bloggers are here to stay.:)

jafabrit said...

I hear that opinion of blogs, but when challenged people haven't really a concept of what blogs are besides the one or two they visited. Like tv, literature, internet, there is the good, the bad and the ugly. To dismiss a whole genre because of a few is very narrow minded and ignorant.

I have had three people (artists) tell me they don't visit blogs when I mentioned the arts council blog because they are under the mistaken belief they are what you just mentioned. ARG!!!!!!!! So I explain that it is a portal to the local arts, it highlights info and links and about THEM and their art as well. Frustration!!!!!!!!

Chaffee Street Cafe` said...

I am looking forward to reading you daily posts! Have a fantastic weekend!

"Sleeping Kitten - Dancing Dog!"

Anonymous said...

Yes, I fear Ms JS-P is out on a limb with her critique, here - fuelled, no doubt, by the worry that her salary may reduce as fewer people turn to newspapers for their news...

Daddy Papersurfer said...

A lone voice in the wilderness - I find her quite funny - for many reasons.