Paul Smith
paulysmith.bsky.social
Paul Smith
@paulysmith.bsky.social
Doctor of Political Science at RGU Aberdeen UK. Interested in political communication/media pluralism. #NUFC season ticket holder. Living with MS. Shoegazer ♿️
Reposted by Paul Smith
Starmer’s anti-asylum policies show how utterly clueless he is about the right-wing media’s role in politics.

He’s trying to fix a “problem” contrived by Farage, GB News and The Telegraph. He’ll never win, because ultimately he’s fighting a ghost – he’s fighting something that doesn’t really exist
November 17, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
You have to treat the posts of someone as toxic as Yaxley-Lennon with the same cynicism whether they fit into your preferred narrative or not. The reason for his most recent post is plainly not praise. It is to exploit the cracks among progressives and divide us further. Why are you boosting him?
November 16, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Another case of Reform saying one thing then doing the other:

A Reform-led council is planning to double council tax on second homes six months after party leader Nigel Farage denounced such policies as “madness” and “extortion”

By me, for Politics Home www.politicshome.com/news/article...
Reform Council To Double Tax On Second Homes Despite Nigel Farage Calling The Idea 'Madness'
A Reform-led council is planning to double council tax on second homes six months after party leader Nigel Farage denounced such policies as “madne...
www.politicshome.com
November 11, 2025 at 9:32 AM
Reposted by Paul Smith
It is both ethically wrong & fundamentally anti-democratic for one man to command this much wealth and power.

States spent centuries trying to tame the power of over-mighty subjects. The rise of the global barons is not compatible with democracy as we've understood it.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Elon Musk's $1tn pay deal approved by Tesla shareholders
The richest man in the world will get hundreds of millions of new shares if he hits his targets.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 7, 2025 at 8:31 AM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Compare the description of Faiza Shaheen and Matthew Goodwin…it’s not deliberate bias but yet another example of how -in parts of the BBC -the brainwashers have brainwashed themselves:
No more blatant example of Question Time’s bias than this.

Goodwin is a Reform activist and GB News presenter - you’d have to be intentionally blind to think he’s an academic
October 30, 2025 at 7:33 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Help us create a sea of black and white when we play Athletic Club on Wednesday 5th November by bringing a scarf with you to the match. Please share this post so we reach as many people as possible!

(There will still be flags at this fixture)
October 30, 2025 at 8:00 AM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Sitting in the central Gallowgate for Benfica?

Our display includes single-person two-pole flags that need held-up in specific blocks of the Gallowgate; L, M, N, P, G, H, I, B, C, D.

If you can accommodate holding one of the flags, please complete the form below:
forms.office.com/e/geAx1W43PR
October 19, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
BREAKING: Our client Mario Guevara, an Emmy-winning journalist detained by ICE in retaliation for livestreaming law enforcement activity, will be deported tomorrow to El Salvador.

Mario and his family are being punished for his reporting. This cruelty is meant to stifle our free press.
October 2, 2025 at 10:42 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Thatcher first PM to raise global warming at the UN. Theresa May first G7 leader to legislate to stop unmitigated emissions. The Tories have turned their back on their own leaders, their own global leadership, their own credibility.
October 2, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Pro-tip: Don’t try to take on Gavin Newsom’s press team. Especially if you’re a dumb dumb.
September 30, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Then timings get interesting….

Farage quits UKIP 4th Dec 2018

Gill follows him on the 6th Dec

5 other UKIP MEPs follow Farage within days, including Nuttall (former UKIP leader, now deputy chairman of Reform)

All 6 join the Brexit party in Feb with Farage

By April, another 7 have switched

9/14
September 27, 2025 at 1:43 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Hobbyhorse: at university, lectures remain an incredible format. They introduce & explore a huge amount of content in a short period of time. They scaffold further reading, with a personal twist. Workshops, etc, do their own thing, but don't replace effective lectures:

share.google/AyFxBwYh5BYM...
To save in-person lectures, unis need to provide lessons worth showing up for
In-person lectures have been a staple of university learning for centuries. But they are going out of style in an age of TED Talks and Tiktoks.
share.google
September 23, 2025 at 1:53 PM
We gave them a game but weren’t great in the second half. They were very good. Kept the ball better much better than us. Onwards. ⚫️⚪️ #NUFC
September 18, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
I do love the "how can we afford this" framing of the triple lock that utterly fails to engage with the counterfactual of "how do we as a society cope with older people living in desperate poverty and dying of it". Proper basic social policy stuff.
September 16, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
How financialisation is corroding education in the UK
How financialisation is corroding education in the UK
The government is standing by as foreign private equity firms buy up UK universities. This should be a major concern
bit.ly
September 16, 2025 at 9:46 AM
Those Bavarian blogs that were all over this feed saying Big Nick shouldn’t have joined the Mags are quiet #NUFC
September 13, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
This is a masterclass in narrative tension
September 9, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
This is vile. Local guy speaks to Sky News about the impact of asylum seekers protests. Watch what happens and share widely
September 3, 2025 at 10:33 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
So Kemi Badenoch's Conservatives, who have repeatedly pledged to fight for "free speech" and a free press have just banned me and Byline Times from attending their conference.

Has never happened before under any previous leader

bylinetimes.com/2025/09/04/k...
Kemi Badenoch's 'Free Speech' Conservatives Ban Byline Times From Party Conference
The ban on covering the party's annual gathering came despite Badenoch's repeated commitment to "fight" for free speech and a free press
bylinetimes.com
September 4, 2025 at 10:26 AM
Osula’s hold-up play is so much better #NUFC
August 30, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Jonas and Ryan Taylor were oot after the match. They were great crack #NUFC
August 25, 2025 at 10:59 PM
That’s so hard to take but proud of the lads tonight. Phenomenal with 10 men #NUFC
August 25, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Is it good? Anyone could have written this. It says nothing that is verifiable or already known by anyone paying attention 🤷‍♂️
August 21, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Reposted by Paul Smith
Bang on #NUFC
The rats are going to ban Henry Winter from Anfield for talking sense
August 20, 2025 at 10:10 AM