Llanelli Online has been alerted to a blog, admittedly with only 42 followers but, which has the audacity to claim to be in possession of the facts regarding the Thompson v James case and asserts that somehow Llanelli Online is the purveyor of fake news and has been feeding such news to the satirical magazine Private Eye. We said ‘possession’ of the facts, lightly. What appears to be a Nationalist rant against this news site is in danger of becoming ‘conspiracy theorist blog of the year’ if there were such an award.
Despite the author not being in court they report what they believe was said and they go on to claim that the leader of the council Emlyn Dole would have been surprised and dismayed at ‘an insensitive off-the-cuff remark’ made on the spur of the moment by James’s counsel Mr Spackman. How the blogger knows this is open to debate. Emlyn Dole was not in court. Despite this Mr Dole we are told claims that the CEO’s barrister had made an off-the-cuff remark about what Mr James was going to do with the cash.
It is evident from Jacqui Thompson’s response latterly that she is extremely unhappy over these assertions and rightly so. The blogger goes on to claim that it would have been picked up by the local press, the story being of more than passing local interest. To have been picked up by the press they would have had to be in court. Why they chose not to be there is only answerable by them. The blogger then focuses their theory on Llanelli Online claiming
“To describe this rabidly pro-Labour website as a news outlet would be pushing things a little too far, as much of its output rather obviously comes straight from Labour’s campaign team.”
More assertions which appear to come from a catalogue of make believe material, which has to fit a story. They ask who is funding Llanelli Online and assert that whoever it is has diddly squat in advertising and no subscription income, plus start-up costs.
Last time we checked we had not broadcast our finances nor the contents of our food cupboards, however this person or persons say, “it is hard to see how Alan Evans, the editor (and everything else) is managing to put food on his table.”
They then go on to say that “Alan, a fervent admirer of Saint Tegwen and her daughter, Sharen Davies, was until recently employed by the Herald group, and it is an understatement to say that he is not a fan of Emlyn Dole.”
Yet another assertion based on what is fast entering the realms of obsessive, deluded and malicious penmanship.
The blogger goes on to assert that Llanelli Online was the author of fake news published by Private Eye. It related to the burning of a mobile home at the farm occupied by council leader Emlyn Dole. We would refer the blogger to the fire service and the County Council, both of whom responded by email to our request for information regarding the fire. We are then linked to another article in Private Eye on Llangennech school. The only article the editor has written regarding Llangennech School was when the story first broke.
Llanelli Online understands that several people have contacted the blogger to protest and to offer an alternative view of the facts. Each of the contributors in turn have claimed that their comments have not been published and that they have been blocked by the author of the blog. Some have taken to Twitter to express their disgust at the content of the blog.
We do not expect an apology from a source, which publishes such defamatory and one sided claims without even having the decency to contact us before launching a rant, which appears to be fuelled by party politics and a Nationalist agenda.
To claim that Llanelli Online is somehow politically biased is something, which smacks of hypocrisy.
Llanelli Online makes no excuse for including the following interview with Nia Griffith MP (yes Labour) who happens to represent Llanelli despite the best efforts of the other parties at the last election. Should Plaid Cymru win the seat, we will of course endeavour to interview their MP.
Interview: (Apr 9) 2017
Cash In The Gutter from Llanelli Online on Vimeo.
