Ken Loach denies that he is a "socialist realist". He is right. There is not an iota of realism in his support for George Galloway's Respect movement. - Tim Luckhurst

Elvis was what Americans call trailer trash, in our terms a "chav", before the term was invented. Instead of aspiring through education he made a career out of sullen, posturing ignorance. His fans have often made the same mistake. Small wonder they appreciate the lyrics, which are the literary equivalent of tumbler-dryer instructions.
Affection for Elvis is a workable predictor of anti-intellectual attitude. As one academic paper demonstrated in the 1970s, Beatles fans are much more likely to have experienced university education. They are also less likely to be psychologically insecure.

Riefenstahl did not fully understand the evil cause to which her work contributed. Ken Loach does not deserve such indulgence. He knows precisely what he is doing.

[Alexander] Lebedev may not require profits. He may be willing to subsidise quality newspapers in return for the voice in national affairs they offer. If that is his ambition, he will be embracing a tradition that has endured throughout the democratic era. 19th- and early 20th-century examples of subsidy by political parties and departments of state suggest that subsidy by wealthy individuals may harm democracy less than subsidy by the state.
A durable alternative to market distortion by oligarchs could only be achieved through restrictive laws on media ownership. Such laws rarely protect freedom and, even at this time of unprecedented chaos and despondency in the news industry, such legislation should not be conceived in haste.