"Journalism" for illiterate morons

So, the backlash has at last started against the Sun, for its coverage of grieving mother Jacqui Janes and her letter from the Prime Minister.

Mrs Janes' soldier son, Jamie, was killed in Afghanistan. She feels angry and she is speaking out against the government, who she blames for Jamie's death. Anger and blame are natural parts of the grieving process. Her argument against Gordon Brown's hand-written letter is not really logical - surely a personal, hand-written letter of condolence is always more respectful than a typewritten, mass-produced note? But I can understand that in her obvious distress, Mrs Janes may not be at her most logical.

No, I don't blame Mrs Janes for any of this. But the vile Sun "newspaper" has surely sunk to new depths of gutter journalism this week.

First of all in publishing the letter and Mrs Jane's complaint. Yes, Mr Brown's handwriting is difficult to read. Yes, he may have made a spelling error (although I'm not convinced of that either - looking at the rest of the letter, including his signature, the letters "n" and "m" are virtually indistinguishable.) And the Sun's readers wrote their support of Mrs Janes in various forums, mostly in the form of practically incomprehensible attacks on Gordon Brown's literacy skills. Presumably these illiterate morons didn't see the irony.

Then the Sun published the whole transcript of a telephone conversation between Mr Brown and Mrs Janes. The whole transcript. EVERY WORD. My sympathy for Mrs Janes is beginning to wear a bit thinner, now, but I'm still trying to see her side. (What kind of person has the wherewithall, and the equipment, to record an entire telephone conversation with the prime minister when he calls?) And now, the comments on the forums etc are largely against the Sun. Good.

What we've seen in the Sun this week isn't journalism. It amounts to taking advantage of a vulnerable woman and bullying a man because he is partially-sighted - all to further its own political ends. Whatever political party you support, whatever you think of the government's stance on Afghanistan, the Sun's behaviour has been disgusting.

RIP Jamie Janes