Bartholomew's Notes

From Hope Not Hate:

HOPE not hate can reveal that two Brexit Party MEPs and a prospective parliamentary candidate (PPC) have appeared on the Richie Allen Show, a David Icke-affiliated radio broadcast that serves as an online platform for antisemitic conspiracy theorists and Holocaust deniers.

Ann Widdecombe MEP appeared on the show three times between August 2017 and April 2019, David Bull MEP appeared on the show as recently as 30 April 2019, and Stuart Waiton, PPC for Dundee West and an unsuccessful MEP candidate in Scotland, made five appearances between 27 June 2018 and 9 May 2019.

The story was picked up by the Observer, under a headline that refers to “alt-right media” (1)  – however, while it is true that Allen frequently platforms alt-right figure, his podcast’s vibe is more alternative left, and an earlier controversy about his show concerned a certain Alex Scott-Samuel, who is a Labour Party activist opposed to Luciana Berger and a member of the pro-Corbyn Jewish Voice For Labour. The Jewish Chronicle noted a 2017 appearance in February:

He said on the programme: “The Rothschild family are behind a lot of the neo-liberal influence in the UK and the US. You only have to google them to look at this.

“Ever since they funded the Napoleonic Wars and made enormous profits from them just over 200 years ago they’ve had a quiet vested interest in the pursuit of free trade and neo-liberalism.”

Mr Allen – who has continued to invite Dr Scott-Samuel on his show since splitting from Mr Icke to air his shows on his own website – hosted notorious antisemite Gilad Atzmon last July, former KKK Grand Master David Duke in 2016 and self-described “Holocaust revionist” Alison Chabloz in 2018.

(More on the “Napoleonic” Rothschild conspiracy theory here)

“Mainstream” public figures who have previously agreed to appear on the show include Michael Mansfield and Maggie Oliver. It would be wrong to assume that such guests must therefore be in sympathy with Allen or agree with his other interlocutors, but it is very reasonable to ask them to clarify their opinion of Allen once the nature of his podcast has been brought to their attention, and to ask how they justify raising the profile of a damaging conspiracy-monger by lending their names to his show.

Footnote

1. The Observer article goes on to note other material from Hope Not Hate, in particular Nigel Farage’s involvement as an interview subject in a documentary called Bilderberg: The Movie, and the willingness of Brexit Party figures to promote American alt-right figures on social media:

Farage and his MEPs Michael Heaver, Nathan Gill and Martin Daubney have shared the tweets of Jack Posobiec, a promoter of the “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory, which claimed a Washington pizzeria was a front for a paedophile ring that stretched to the top of the Democratic party. Other figures to be retweeted by Brexit party MEPs include Mark Collett, a former BNP figure, Stefan Molyneux, a far-right Canadian YouTuber, and Mike Cernovich, who has kept a blog promoting men’s rights, anti-feminism and misogynist pick-up artistry.

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