Before the financial apocalypse at Rangers came to fruition, it was a very different time. The press, in particular, was beholden to David Murray as the levels of unprecedented success at Ibrox kept getting higher. And in turn, this sold newspapers with fans eager to read about the latest marquee signing and success on the park.
Television and radio were always a little bit different. Giants of the small screen like Arthur Montford and Archie Macpherson were professional enough to only hint at where their personal allegiances could lie. Radio was much the same but slightly less ambiguous. Richard Park was unequivocal in his standing and in the opposite corner; much the same could be said about Paul Cooney, who even left Radio Clyde to go and work for Celtic itself. But, on balance, these were times where most forms of media were there to entertain. And there weren’t really many other choices. Channel 4 had only just become properly UK-wide by the late 1980s, and Sky Television was merely a twinkle in Rupert Murdoch’s eyes.
Gus Macdonald had rebuilt STV into a content powerhouse, supplying TV shows all over the UK and the wider world. This success paved the way for the money to later buy Virgin Radio, where Gazza even regularly visited Chris Evans for his pre-match benders in London. What a time it was.
Today things are clearly much different. Every newspaper not only fights for each paper sold but also the number of online clicks they get. Success is measured this way. Every radio station is counting each unique stream that’s requested to its servers. And how long people are listening for. Television is split between various paywalls that not every fan can justify forking out for. And naturally, the competitions and fixtures are spread in the least favourable way for viewers.
But now back to 2012.
Scotland has always been slightly parochial. But the events of that Valentine’s Day ensured that any veil that had existed to report on matters in even a vaguely impartial way was ripped away. With venomous reportage and frothing at the mouth, the true colours of the next wave of reporters, presenters and entertainers came to the fore. Social media only amplified the lack of professionalism.
At one point, it was deemed acceptable to portray Ally McCoist jumping out a window at Ibrox to commit suicide in a graphical introduction to a cup game with Motherwell by BBC Sport Scotland. Unbelievable at the time. Unbelievable now.
The pundits used by BBC Scotland’s sport output became more lo-fi and ineloquent … hired only for the three-second nonsensical soundbite that would inevitably find itself picked up by the red top back pages. Even reporters got in on the act, forgetting that as the BBC they actually have a duty to be impartial, report the facts … and do it in such a way that informs all licence-fee payers.
One particular reporter made a virtue of this, to the point that he was excluded from Ibrox. It wasn’t once he did this. It was done again and again and again. Even polite words were exchanged behind the scenes. He ignored them and carried on. It is no surprise that he ignited the ire of sections of the support.
And so a stand-off ensued between Rangers and BBC Scotland. It should be stressed that the dispute is only with BBC Scotland. It isn’t with the actual grown-up BBC elsewhere in the UK. Indeed, the self-styled head of public policy at Pacific Quay has been taken to task by BBC Sport in Manchester and the BBC HQ in London many times. In fact, an agreement was reached that if the dispute hadn’t been sorted by the end of 2018, the other parts of the corporation would be free to approach Rangers for content, leaving Pacific Quay to carry on reporting from the roundabout on Edmiston Drive. However, in a typically BBC way, things drifted throughout 2019 (likely because Rangers’ season stumbled), and then COVID knackered 2020. We all know the rest of the story.
And here we are in 2021. Champions. Title number 55. It’s only just gone mid-March. And who does everyone want to speak to? Rangers, of course.
Except for viewers in Scotland.
Folks, we need your support. Did you know this article appeared first on our Patreon page days back? We need you to help save The 4th Official! Due to the unprecedented situation as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic, the digital media space has been completely devastated. There has been a massive shortfall in revenue (even while viewership is up) as we scramble how to make sure that we go on with our daily job. We are proud to put up exclusive stuff as well as an early release of our podcast interviews with relevant personalities of the game (recent guests have been David Martindale, Matt Polster, Greg Docherty, Daniel Stendel & a lot more) on our Patreon account and hope you would support us in these tough times. We have supporters from atleast 8 countries, and you can be too by chipping in just £2.99/month. Become a proud Patron of The 4th Official!
