c4countdown

From the Daily Wail: Countdown conundrum - what is C4 to do about its one million missing viewers?

If this story were about a BBC show, you'd expect Auntie to issue an automatic apology to the Mail for any distress caused, followed by commanding the Director General to commit seppuku live on Points Of View. Channel 4 don't get pushed around that easily; their head of daytime happily tweeted a point-by-point rebuttal: 1 2 3 4 5 and confirmed that Countdown "isn't going anywhere".

Anyway, at first I thought someone new at the Mail might have written this article not realising the paper had already excreted a near-identical one a couple of years ago, but it turns out it's the same journalist...

"Fans say the programme is simply not the same without Whiteley, and that axing Carol Vorderman was another nail in the coffin."

Classy choice of metaphor there.

Graeme Cole wrote: Countdown "isn't going anywhere".

True.

I like how she kept mentioning the wrong Countdown. That dude's probably picked up a load of traffic and has no sweet idea what is going on.

This is why I don't read newspapers. I hope all of them go the way of the news of the world.

Speaking of "recycling waste", does anyone have any they'd be willing to send over to this journalist's office

Mark James wrote:This is why I don't read newspapers. I hope all of them go the way of the news of the world.

What non-newspaper news sources do you use?

I don't get why people buy newspapers either. Apart from the broadsheets it's like paying for someone to form your own opinion for you. It's like a generic halfwit buys a paper to reinforce what they think even though what they think has largely been dictated to them by the same newspaper in the first place. It's a bizarre circle of idiocy which perpetuates complete morons in their journalistic career and general public halfwits in thinking their ill-informed, narrow-minded rubbish.

I don't get why people buy newspapers either. Apart from the broadsheets it's like paying for someone to form your own opinion for you. It's like a generic halfwit buys a paper to reinforce what they think even though what they think has largely been dictated to them by the same newspaper in the first place. It's a bizarre circle of idiocy which perpetuates complete morons in their journalistic career and general public halfwits in thinking their ill-informed, narrow-minded rubbish.

Two posts with exactly the same wording, except the name of the poster, which changes the tone completely. Weird.

From the comments in response to the DM article:

"Trouble is it is dominated by the 'Nerdy boy' graduates these days."

Brian Moore wrote:From the comments in response to the DM article:

"Trouble is it is dominated by the 'Nerdy boy' graduates these days."

Haha, I noticed that comment too. I'm going to call them NBGs from now on.

Jon Corby wrote:I'm going to call them NBGs from now on.

Haha, excellent.

Michael Wallace wrote:

Mark James wrote:This is why I don't read newspapers. I hope all of them go the way of the news of the world.

What non-newspaper news sources do you use?

Overhearing conversations in pubs. Seriously though, I don't find the need to know the so called news. Most of it has no bearing on my life. Two people were shot in a pub down the road from my house. It was all over the news and I had no idea. I only found out when a friend asked me about it. And I'm glad. Why would I have needed to know that? I do read sky teletext from time to time but mainly for the strange news on page 105 to hear about the guy who had his penis chopped off, or the lion that can't walk and is being helped by internet donations or the guy who went over a cliff on a segway.

Mark James wrote:

Michael Wallace wrote:

Mark James wrote:This is why I don't read newspapers. I hope all of them go the way of the news of the world.

What non-newspaper news sources do you use?

Overhearing conversations in pubs. Seriously though, I don't find the need to know the so called news. Most of it has no bearing on my life. Two people were shot in a pub down the road from my house. It was all over the news and I had no idea. I only found out when a friend asked me about it. And I'm glad. Why would I have needed to know that? I do read sky teletext from time to time but mainly for the strange news on page 105 to hear about the guy who had his penis chopped off, or the lion that can't walk and is being helped by internet donations or the guy who went over a cliff on a segway.

I don't buy a newspaper any more but I think the news is pretty important to everyday life and important to 99% of people who live in the society that we do. I can't imagine not switching on the news channel or just having a look at the headlines on a news website at least once a day. I think you might have wanted to know what was going on in your community though since two people being shot close by is pretty important. Like when there is an increase in burglaries in your neighbourhood you like to know so that you are extra vigilant.

I don't buy papers, but not because I avoid the news. Normally I use the internet and sometimes watch it. But today I put the BBC news channel on and in over half an hour they literally didn't mention anything other than Rebekah Brooks' resignation. Pathetic. That's the advantage of the internet - you can spend as long or as little as you want looking into individual stories.

Ryan Taylor wrote: I don't buy a newspaper any more but I think the news is pretty important to everyday life and important to 99% of people who live in the society that we do. I can't imagine not switching on the news channel or just having a look at the headlines on a news website at least once a day. I think you might have wanted to know what was going on in your community though since two people being shot close by is pretty important. Like when there is an increase in burglaries in your neighbourhood you like to know so that you are extra vigilant.

It's really not that important to me. If I had been in the pub at the time it might have been but then I wouldn't have needed to read the news to know about it. I don't know how extra vigilant I can be either. I really don't wanna spend my life being suspicious of everyone for something that's still not really likely to happen. I think Bill Hicks may have been right that the news' job is just to make everyone more afraid. Since I've avoided news and radio phone in shows my life is so much better. Like yourself I like quizzes so knowing current affairs can be good for that but even avoiding news I seem to still overhear enough to know and get by.

I have to say that buying a newspaper works better for me than any online source.............you ever tried swatting a fly with your laptop/ipad etc.

I have to say that online sources work better for me than buying any newspaper.................you ever tried watching porn on a newspaper?

Matt Morrison wrote:I have to say that online sources work better for me than buying any newspaper.................you ever tried watching porn on a newspaper?

Yep, makes the clean-up much easier.

Charlie Reams wrote:

Matt Morrison wrote:I have to say that online sources work better for me than buying any newspaper.................you ever tried watching porn on a newspaper?

Yep, makes the clean-up much easier.

But it's a single-view only then. Either the ink runs (if you're in time) or the paper rips from being glued. Internet ftw.

Edit: I'm really pleased to have posted that with a fat Ryan as my avatar. Sorry Ryan

In further correspondence over the issue, John Clarke (winner of series 11) wrote in pointing out that we are in the 65th series (64th normal series) and that he wrote to Countdown suggesting a supreme-style championship at the end of the current series, in order to boost ratings (obviously after having agreed Ms Thomas's propaganda). He got no reply and if he had read these forums, he wouldn't have bothered.

PS: I don't read the Daily Mail. Someone gave my dad a cutting thinking that it would be of interest to me.

There is a young student missing here in Cork city. It's a rather big issue at the moment in this small old town. He disappeared after a night out last Wednesday. On Saturday the sub aqua team were out, eerily combing the river. The irish daily fail seemed to think this meant that he had been found dead in the river and ran the story. Sick.