Is there anything to learn from the death of Stephen Gately?

Setting aside the issue of how Mr Gately died, I was struck by the massive reaction to Jan Moir’s appalling article in the (where else?) Daily Mail. There was nothing less than a Twitter-storm with links to the Press Complaints Commission.

That was a classic case of where a large body of like-minded people decide that enough is enough and they individually and collectively take action to try and redress the balance.

Interestingly enough, something on a much smaller scale happened concerning the BBC blogger Paul Fletcher who insinuated that a fairly large body of Derby fans were attempting to push Clough out (see it here).

Their complaint? The same old stuff that we have heard before – he’s bought dross from lower leagues, he’s never managed at a decent level etc, etc.

Several fans wrote in saying that those views were representative of a certain bulletin board and not of the wider majority. So much so that Mr Fletcher was forced into writing:

“OK, OK, OK, enough already. Hands up - I should make it crystal clear I'm not talking about every Derby fan. And to those who might have taken slight offence because you have never wavered in your believe (sic) in Clough - sorry.”

Let’s be fair to Mr Fletcher – he is one of the more readable writers around, with two others being James Lawton of the Independent and Patrick Barclay of the Times. Most of the rest just write unbelievable dross and I don’t exclude the DET from that.

Much of the output on the media is simply rehashing who said what. There are very few incisive journo's that enlighten and educate those of us about how football works.

It’s the same for the TV output that we get these days. The selection of certain matches for prime time viewing is based on a narrow focus that a team wearing a red shirt is compulsive viewing and if they have a manager that waves his arms about, so much the better.

The real truth is that the majority of football supporters don’t – repeat DON’T – support the big four clubs. We support the rest of the Premiership, the Championship and so it goes on down the lower Leagues. Yet we are incredibly badly served by those who decide what we watch, and what we read.

For instance, my brain now possesses the priceless (!) information that the Rooney family have a little baby called Kai. I don’t want or need this information – but I’ve got it anyway because there is no simple way of avoiding it.

How is this supposed to enlighten me about how my – yes, my – team Derby County are doing? It doesn’t. Which is why the Internet is now growing as the resource whereby real supporters share and learn from each other about the real beauty of football as opposed to the mind-numbingly boring back pages and the so-called incisive commentary from the likes of Lawrenson and Shearer.

So back to the two un-seemingly connected events (Gately and the back-lash against Blogger Fletch) which got me thinking. Wouldn’t it be marvellous if the rest of us (those of us untainted by the rubbishy media projection of Manure / Chelski) got together and unleashed a storm of protest every time MoTD lavished far too much time on SAF and his boring team of divers and whingers?

Worth thinking about - eh? Let’s unleash a Twitter-storm on these suits at Broadcasting House (some of whom have never even seen a football match in their lives and only go by what they see in JJB sports shop windows as they whiz past in their chauffeur driven cars) that it’s time for a bit more balance in what we receive. And that includes comments like: “I hope he doesn’t get banned for that little stamp on him.”

And how about flooding the FA with a flood of emails when SAF is told sternly not to say naughty things about referees and given a suspended sentence that he can blow his nose on?

Here is a comment I came across last weekend in ‘The League Paper’:

“The lower league clubs get some tough penalties for wrongdoing, and rightly so, but we want those penalties to be reflected at a higher level as well.”

This comment was made by Heather Rabbatts, Millwall Chief Executive, who then went on to say she would look with interest at what the FA do about Man Utd fans’ violent rampage at Barnsley.

So how about it – you Derby County Supporter’s Club and Rams Trust people – get your members emailing, a-Twittering, and Facebooking the FA when they lightly apply the tap on the wrist that passes for justice?

Better still; rally all other supporters’ clubs up and down the country to join in for a campaign for real justice in football? I’m not a member of anything – but I’ll gladly add my email of protest.

The power of the Internet is here now and let’s harnesses it for all of us who care about the game of football.

Photo: Action Images

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