The Metropolis

What the media are saying about "media blackout" victim Siobhan Benita

Mike Pollitt | Thursday 19 April, 2012 10:51

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Here are some excerpts from that media blackout.

“Finally she arrived and, while I won’t say that the media swooned, she certainly had an impact. Tall, glossy-haired, elegant in a pencil dress with scarlet jacket, and a diamond wedding ring that would make an American rapper envious, she’d stand out in any room. She spoke to the TV crews with confidence and panache. “She’s camera-ready!” said an admiring woman reporter, which made her sound like an oven-ready chicken. Her posters show her gazing inspirationally into the distance, a cross between a fashion model and Che Guevara.”

Simon Hoggart – Siobhan Benita: a star is born? in The Guardian.

“She would like to give young people a bigger role in the way London is governed and says that, if elected, she would give up a chunk of the £143,000 salary (“£100,000 is enough for anyone to earn”) and use it to pay a young mayor, aged between 18 and 25, to work alongside her.”

Joanna Moorhead – Siobhan Benita: The mum who would be mayor in The Guardian.

“Benita is used to success. The 40-year-old mother of two cites her first ever driving test as an example of when she last failed, and she didn’t have many setbacks in her high flying career in the civil service. So why, then, has she given it all up to to run as an independent candidate for the Mayor of London? It’s all about “trying to provide something different.”

Dina Rickman – Siobhan Benita – A London Mayoral Candidate Who’s Making Waves at Huff Post UK.

“Ms Benita, 40, now has a support staff of 20 full-time volunteers, and is getting noticed and written about by the political commentariat. In the ultimate accolade some are even beginning to attack her.”

Oliver Wright – No money, no staff, no chance – but independent mayoral candidate Siobhan Benita is getting London excited in the Independent

…Siobhan Benita, has many attractive qualities, but I read her pitch and am suspicious. She writes on her website: “I am not a party politician and won’t waste my time – or yours – fighting tired political battles….What does she mean by “tired political battles”? Democratic politics depend on the resolution of differences through political battles rather than the military alternative. It is too easy to claim that they can be transcended with the wave of a charming wand.”

Steve Richards – The false allure of mavericks like Siobhan Benita and George Galloway in the Independent

“I object to the note of entitlement which runs through her candidacy. Whatever Benita may think, you are not entitled to broadcast airtime and space in national newspapers simply by hiring a PR and printing glossy leaflets. You need either a track record, or genuinely distinctive ideas. Benita has neither.”

Andrew Gilligan – Siobhan Benita: Whitehall’s candidate for mayor

“Siobhan is …the dark horse coming up on the rails at a time when anything is possible. She has been described as the Borgen candidate, after the Danish TV series in which a little-known outsider takes on the political establishment and wins.
The choice is ours on May 3: a romantic insurgency or a return of the retreads? I know which has my vote.”

Martin Bell – New Mayors? It’s like the return of the living dead: Martin Bell on the political ghosts who want to run YOUR city in the Mail

And here’s a link to her BBC London interview, which is streaming online.

I quite like Siobhan Benita as a candidate. Her support for the 3rd runway at Heathrow, to take one issue, is brave, distinctive and correct. But as Adam has written, her coverage so far has been generous in both extent and tone. Some of the above is critical, most is fawning. But you can’t deny that there’s enough there for you to make up your minds.

She and her team should keep campaigning, but stop complaining. She’s getting a fair hearing, it’s time to make the most of it.

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