For those of you not familiar with the British tabloids this time of year is what is known as "silly season". During the parliamentary recess there's often a dearth of real news (other than the usual stories about immigrants bringing down our house prices, intrepid reporters sneaking replica guns onto planes, "soaring" crime rates, the general hideousness of the youth today and wild, completely unfounded speculation about kidnapping cases) which often leads to some rather fun filler pieces.
This year it's sharks.
Great White sharks to be exact. In Cornwall. I'll give you a second to either ponder that or look up exactly where Cornwall is.
The Sun (my favourite of the red-tops) has been literally going mental over the story.
Sharks!!!
No, really - we're serious: Sharks!
Honestly, an expert said so.
Human interest angles are vital to the journalistic cause and not merely cynical marketing ploys.
Add in some stories about how Cornwall's economy is now booming and how some "cheeky bakers" have been cashing in by making Cornish pasties in the shape of shark fins (so triangular, then) and you have the makings of an international sensation. I say "international" as several news networks from outside the UK also chose to run the story.
Which makes this article from today's Guardian even more tasty.
"I didn't expect anyone to be daft enough to take it seriously."
Quite.
1 comments:
Ha! Oh, I needed that laugh. I soon as I spotted the word 'Cornwall' I knew this was going to be good.
Post a Comment