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It’s PCC gone mad!

If a school had banned Santa - BANNED SANTA - that would be great, wouldn't it? What an example of political correctness gone bonkers!

Obviously, you'd want to check your facts first, and...

Oh.

Complaint:
Ms Sarah James, Press Officer at the Brighton Steiner School, complained that an article had inaccurately claimed that the school had banned Santa. Although it had quickly been amended, the complainant was particularly concerned that the report had led to the publication of inaccurate articles elsewhere.

Resolution:
The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published the following letter from the complainant:
‘You reported we banned Santa from visiting our Christmas grotto in case his red outfit reminded pupils of Coca Cola. In fact, we had no such ban and it was never discussed at school which has no policy on this matter. The fact we have never had Santa at our Christmas Bazaar for no other reason than we try to offer something a bit different does not amount to a ban.’

That 'resolution' against the Brighton Argus comes from the Press Complaints Commission, a milksop of a self-regulatory body that sometimes gives newspapers a stern telling-off and tells them not to do it again when they've been naughty and ruined someone's life. Needless to say, this bollocks non-story didn't ruin anyone's life, but it's pisspoor journalism in the extreme, utter bullshit in the constant churnalistic quest to seek out 'PC gone mad someone's banned Xmas!' stories in the run-up to Winterval.

Unsurprisingly, the Mail was also hauled over the warm marshmallows at the PCC:

Publication: Daily Mail
Complaint:
Ms Sarah James, Press Officer at the Brighton Steiner School, complained that coverage in a number of newspapers had made the inaccurate claim that the school had banned Santa. In fact, the school had no policy on the matter, and did not have Santa at its Christmas bazaar as it tried to offer something different.

Resolution:
The newspaper emphasised that the article had not expressly claimed that the school had banned Santa. Nonetheless, it offered to annotate its records to the effect that the complainant’s comments on Coca-Cola and Santa reflected her own personal views. The complainant accepted this measure as a resolution to her complaint.

Let's see. The article's still online, albeit with a bit of hasty editing to make it nonsensical in parts:

Father Christmas has been given a makeover - after one school decided his red suit was a symbol of "modern commercialism".

The outfit would remind pupils of Coca-Cola adverts, according to the parents' committee at the Steiner School in Brighton.

So instead youngsters will be visited by a green-clad St Nicholas.

Where are these 'annotated records' about the Coca-Cola and Santa then? It's still saying the school's committee said that it was about Coca-Cola. And is 'Santa' really 'Saint Nicholas' - really? The real St Nicholas is coming to a school bazaar, is he? The real one?

The next bit's been changed - even the font size is different. And it makes no sense.

The school has also decided to [font changes here] an Eastern European version of the festive season, which it believes will be more "inclusive" - even though most pupils are British.

Oh here we go. It's the evil East Europeans, is it! The pesky bastards, coming over here and guzzling our swans! How dare they?! Did the school ever say it was 'inclusive' - was that the reason? No evidence. Wow, the PCC have really acted tough to get this article's utter bollocks changed, haven't they?

School spokesman Sarah James said: "The red-suited Santa was created as a marketing tool by Coca-Cola, it is a symbol of commercialism."

Which is, well, not entirely true, but let's not get all Snopes here; you can delve for yourself and dig it out if you like. But anyway, there we are, she said that, which is a point of view, and now it's clear she wasn't speaking for the school policy. Except look at the intro again:

Father Christmas has been given a makeover - after one school decided his red suit was a symbol of "modern commercialism".

Remember this?

Nonetheless, it offered to annotate its records to the effect that the complainant’s comments on Coca-Cola and Santa reflected her own personal views.

That hasn't been done at all. They're still the views of the school in the intro.

Textbook stuff next. Remember the Mail has cleverly never said Santa's been banned; they just get a prole to do it for them:

But the move has upset some parents, who would prefer the red-suited Santa. Cheryl Williams, 24, said: "What are they going to ban next - snow? Once again the PC brigade have clamped down on everyone's fun."

Now. Do you really think she said: "Once again the PC brigade have clamped down on everyone's fun"? Maybe she did. Maybe that's exactly what's in the reporter's notebook. Maybe. Or maybe the reporter said: "So do you think it's the PC brigade clamping down on everyone's fun?" and the parent said: "Yes, I suppose".

Of course, another reason why the PCC is slow and toothless is that while the story gets a couple of minor edits, the comments stay the same, reflecting the original story. None of that changes. I wonder if they'd stay the same if a really serious error of fact had been made in a story? I have a fair idea.

So you get:

Why not ban Christmas altogether in case it offends other ethnic groups or doesn't fit in with teachers' trends?
- Steve, Birmingham

and

I notice though, that with all the various plans for a Christmas event there is not a mention of the nativity of Christ. Surely that should be the main theme of any Christmas bazaar?
- Rose, Co Cork, Ireland

but

Actually, 'Father Christmas' was always dressed in green. That is the traditional colour, not the commercial Coca Cola red which only came into being in the early 20th century in order to promote the fizzy drink.
And 'Santa Claus' came to us from abroad as well, incidentally.
If we want to celebrate a traditional British Christmas we should dress the jolly gift-bearer in green, call him Father Christmas and eat roast Goose on Christmas day, after Christmas Mass.
- Cgw, Huyton, Liverpool

but then again

What a load of rubbish! I have never in my life heard anything so stupid. Santa Claus or Father Christmas or whatever people want to call him has always worn red, if people want to go green and embrace European values, get themselves enrolled in a European school, but do not change what is loved and adored by millions of children around the world.
I am so glad we left the UK when we did. I used to love our small country and what it stood for, now I am sad and disappointed.
- N.S, Phoenix, Arizona

Certainly you are sad.

Its popular among leftist to ban American items, it not up to them to tell us a western country what is right.
- Linda, Eastbourne

Thanks Linda. (What the fuck?)

Crazy woman - who came first Santa or Cola? Another luny PC jobsworth - sack the lot of them - bet she supports NU Labour!
- Monique, Worcester

Oh, yuck. No wonder the poor woman went to the PCC - presumably hoping for a bit of redress after a total and utter slagging-off in the comments of this story, and the same story in other newspapers. But no, it's still all there, and there's nothing she can do about it, because the PCC's power is about as real as Santa Claus, as real as the nativity...

And yet they have the cojones to claim that it's all 'resolved'. Another brilliant job well done.

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Related posts:

1. Our boys at Xmas
2. The gifts that Santa forgot