Hillsborough Report

[carlwaring]

Originally Posted by Peter_

I know and fully realise that, my father went the year before and was in the Leppings Lane End and only because he contracted terminal cancer he could have been there in 1989, I sat and watched it unfold live on Grandstand or whatever Saturday afternoon sports programme was on and could not believe my eyes that is one reason I have always felt so strongly about this issue.

I am sorry for your (and anyone else's on this forum) loss from this tragic event.

[Peter_]

Originally Posted by carlwaring

I am sorry for your (and anyone else's on this forum) loss from this tragic event.

I think maybe you can understand the raw emotion in the city at this time so do not feel offended as what more can you expect on such a momentous day as this with all the revelations and facts coming out being angry should not come as a surprise.

Originally Posted by Peter_

I know and fully realise that, my father went the year before and was in the Leppings Lane End and only because he contracted terminal cancer he could have been there in 1989, I sat and watched it unfold live on Grandstand or whatever Saturday afternoon sports programme was on and could not believe my eyes that is one reason I have always felt so strongly about this issue.

So please do not be be offended by anything I posted in anger as maybe now you will understand why.

I was playing football with my brother and some friends down on the seafront and listening to the radio. Someone walked past and asked what the score was, and all we were able to tell them at the time was that the match had been stopped because of some sort of crowd trouble. Of course the story was only pieced together as the hours went by and the enormity of it didn't really come across on the local radio commentary. It only began to sink in for me that evening when I got home, put the TV on and saw the pictures. The next Monday at school the flag was half mast and it seemed everyone knew someone who had been affected. Two boys from my school were injured, thankfully not seriously.

The pain of it is somehow a communal thing for all those of us who are from that part of the world and were immersed in it through acquaintances and through continuing coverage in local media long after the national attention moved elsewhere.

First i would like to say how shocked i am at the depth of cover up that has happened and would like to congratulate the families of those who lost their lives for pursuing this to a conclusion over the years .If it wasn't for their tireless pursuit for justice then this would have remained covered up .They have in my opinion done the whole country a service

Secondly, i don't find it surprising that the police found it so easy to cover it up ,to most people football at the time was the purview of drunken hooligans hell bent on violence and destruction so they used that impression to put the idea across that the "hooligan supporters" where to blame and most people believed the police after all they where the police ,everyone trusts a copper.

Which brings me onto my third point ,which is trust .How much will this affect how people trust the police now ,what else has been covered up .I am a firm supporter of the police but cannot help wondering what else has been going on we don't know about

Originally Posted by martyh

Which brings me onto my third point ,which is trust .How much will this affect how people trust the police now ,what else has been covered up .I am a firm supporter of the police but cannot help wondering what else has been going on we don't know about

I think we sort of knew something like this happened, just surprised by the extent of it. So I choose to believe that we would also have heavy suspicions of other incidents if they were covered up.

I too sat and watched it unfold..absolutely terrible images..

However as I don't read The Sun,in fact I wasn't reading any papers at the time so I only got my news from the BBC and radio at the time so my perceptions are at more of a distance after the event.. I missed most of the dodgy reporting as a result.

[carlwaring]

Originally Posted by Peter_

I think maybe you can understand the raw emotion in the city at this time so do not feel offended as what more can you expect on such a momentous day as this with all the revelations and facts coming out being angry should not come as a surprise.

Absolutely. No problem.

Originally Posted by Maggy J

I too sat and watched it unfold..absolutely terrible images..

However as I don't read The Sun,in fact I wasn't reading any papers at the time so I only got my news from the BBC and radio at the time so my perceptions are at more of a distance after the event.. I missed most of the dodgy reporting as a result.

What appears to have been the most successful tactic by the police was their use of the sun in promoting the idea that it was the supporters to blame .At the time the sun was the biggest selling daily in the country and most people who read it felt that it must be true because it's in the sun

[colin25]

Originally Posted by martyh

What appears to have been the most successful tactic by the police was their use of the sun in promoting the idea that it was the supporters to blame .At the time the sun was the biggest selling daily in the country and most people who read it felt that it must be true because it's in the sun

i haven't read the sun since early eighties, but as an ex-bookbinder, point of principle. Oblivious to what they printed, but more reason to the name used when I think of that paper..the ****, but that seems a new low even for them

Originally Posted by martyh

What appears to have been the most successful tactic by the police was their use of the sun in promoting the idea that it was the supporters to blame .At the time the sun was the biggest selling daily in the country and most people who read it felt that it must be true because it's in the sun

Not me.In fact I had learned early that they weren't to be relied on when the DM misquoted a letter I had sent them in some article I hadn't written to them about.Also the local evening newspaper had written a heading on a paedophile article as if the local teachers were paedophiles.After that I gave up on them as being unreliable.

Originally Posted by colin25

i haven't read the sun since early eighties, but as an ex-bookbinder, point of principle. Oblivious to what they printed, but more reason to the name used when I think of that paper..the ****, but that seems a new low even for them

Not really ,did the sun know the truth? ,i doubt it .They maybe had doubts about what info they where being fed by the police and where at fault for not being an independent reporter of the news .
If you think about it the sun did themselves a disservice in printing what they believed to be the truth because a bit of real investigative journalism would have uncovered the real truth and made a much better story and sold many more papers

[Russ]

Originally Posted by Russ

Someone just said on twitter that it's probably too much to ask The Sun to have their headline tomorrow saying 'The REAL Truth'.

I spoke too soon.... http://twitpic.com/atxgf4

In relation to the sun they were completely wrong in the approach they took on this incident they were lazy and rather then ask questions investigate a bit they took what they were told and were happy with it as they got their headline with no work. That was bad enough but they continued to back that headline and state they had no reason to reproach themselves for many years to come. The context they reported hillsborough was also highly questionable all in all the sun has no one but itself to blame for the hatred L.F.C fans and people of Liverpool in general have for it.

Originally Posted by Russ

I spoke too soon.... http://twitpic.com/atxgf4

Doubt it will be accepted. It's interesting they went with 'Cops smeared' the fans. This is true of course but my initial reading of those headlines furthers my suspicions that their tactic is going to be that the police fed all this information and they were just naive pawns....

[Russ]

It will NEVER be accepted. This along with Mackenzie's apology was damage limitation and just about the only thing they could do.