For the third time in the space of a few months The National has investigated the contrasting ways in which the BBC handles political stories involving the Conservative Government in Westminster compared with its coverage of political stories concerning the SNP-led Scottish Government at Holyrood.
READ MORE: Research finds BBC’s lack of Tory scrutiny is ‘failing’ viewers
This is now the third time that in a randomly selected study period the BBC has been shown to be eager to air criticisms of the Scottish Government while taking great pains to ensure that its coverage of the Westminster Conservatives is scrupulously neutral and even-handed.
This is proof of a consistent pattern of behaviour which it is reasonable to suspect is due to editorial decisions taken by a BBC management which sees the Corporation as a bastion of Britishness with a duty to defend the British state against what it perceives to be the threat of Scottish independence. If this reasonable suspicion is indeed true then the BBC has ceased to be an impartial reporter and instead become an active participant in the Scottish constitutional debate.
This perception has now become entrenched and widespread among that large segment of the Scottish population which is in favour of independence. Simply denying the perception of our own eyes and ears is not going to restore public trust in the BBC. The only way that the BBC can restore public trust is to demonstrate that it has changed.
This piece is an excerpt from today's REAL Scottish Politics newsletter, which is emailed out at 7pm every weekday with a round-up of the day's top stories and exclusive analysis from the Wee Ginger Dug.
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