European and cash values

Lots of virtue signalling in the Guardian editorial today, as the editor insists that the Guardian is going to maintain contacts with Europe, as if all the rest of us have now broken them off altogether. It looks like tokenism, combined with a strange view that covering 'Europe' means the same as upholding progressive views — no doubt the two will be combined in the actual coverage.

The editor-in-chief explains why the Guardian is deepening its commitment to European voices, issues and people

At this critical moment in history, where many are turning to disengagement, introspection and national self-interest, we will stay open to shared perspectives and the public sphere...We were European 100 years ago...on the continent throughout the second world war. We were there at the collapse of communism and reunification of Europe, and throughout Britain’s EU membership....our courageous correspondents covered wars in Bosnia, Kosovo, Georgia and Ukraine..We were European during the dramatic migration crisis of 2015 and the terrible succession of terrorist attacks that continues to unsettle Europe. And, of course, we were European in the Brexit referendum in 2016.

Rather ironic that after a list of topics that any reasonable newspaper would have covered, and most of them did, it all ends with a boast about the ludicrous partisan campaign for Remain where they abandoned most of that tradition of objective journalism. Any readers of this blog might forgive my cynicism for also suspecting a commercial motive:

Traffic from Europe to the Guardian website has doubled in just four years and in the same period Europeans have chosen to contribute to the Guardian financially. Thank you...From now on, European voices, issues and people will be more visible and present across everything we publish, from our news pages to opinion, to culture to fashion and beyond.

In Europe today, crises and challenges – migration, the environment, populism, the digital revolution, contagious diseases – almost always transcend national borders. But so does the Guardian, as a genuinely transnational publisher. As Britain moves further from the EU in political terms, we know many of our readers both in the UK and across Europe remain as interested as ever in common themes and common ground, in all that we share. We will meet that need by informing Britain about Europe, Europe about Britain, and Europeans about each other.