I believe over 1,000 people were murdered due to the actions of a UK national newspaper

I whole-heartedly agree with what you are trying to achieve. Well done you for not backing down, it is that mentality which has allowed us to get ourselves into this mess in the first place.

Things do stick in your brain. It's the whole point of advertising (mmn, Danone!). We are bombarded with negative imagery and wording constantly. Be it BBC1 or Cartoon Network, there is no escape. We are made to feel like sh*t about ourselves, so that our 'rulers' can get away with telling us that they are superior.

However, what has shocked me most about this wasn't the article itself but the responses to it. I don't frequent forums as a rule, and this reminded me why. How could people be so attackie-fied towards someone who's trying to make their world a more pleasant place to live?

No wonder people think conspiracy theorists are nutcases when they tear each other down so violently.

What's that ever going to achieve? Exactly what we've always had is what. We simply must start holding these people to account or we're stuffed.

This man is not a whinging moaner for not wanting this crap, he's actively trying to make the world a little less sh*t for all to see. I for one applaud his tenacity, because I backed down from my arguement with the ASA about the military adverts containing no disclaimers that the product may cause any personal harm, or them making them look like an 18-30 holiday, out of sheer exasperation.

He has my respect and admiration, complete agreement and thanks.

Kerry-Ann
xXx

reply to post by TheDailyPlanet

DAILY MAIL REFUSES TO CEASE PRINTING THE KNIVES ARE OUT DESPITE THE MANAGING EDITOR ADMITTING IN 2006 THAT THE PHRASE IS UNHELPFUL IN THE FIGHT AGAINST VIOLENCE

Many phrases are unhelpful in the fight against violence (oxymoron?). This means nothing.

A person has said that they don't mind if their details are shared, provided the person is allowed to remain anonymous.

This person told me how she entered a 'trance' state (several years ago), after reading a headline such as "Knives are out for Gordon Brown". She had started to think that the headlines pertained directly to her, and how she should behave and conduct herself in her own life.

She, and others, have said that these headlines have sent them into a trance, where she was thinking "I want to get the knives out, for Gordon Brown' sake".

In the grip of her trance, she rushed to to her local superstore Robert Sayle, went to the kitchen knife display, found one of the biggest knives that she could, which she had decided to regard as a weapon.

She then went up to the sales counter, and brandished the weapon with a threat to the terrified sales assistant. Other personnel rushed over to deal with the situation, and then she snapped out of her psychosis, and said "I'm so sorry" - she had been in a trance. Now in 2009, she is completely fine, and says she is completely free of the psychosis that afflicted her.

Another person, an ex-murderer, who had been influenced by headlines, speaks of the person he murdered in his letter to me "I attacked one of the nicest ladies I had ever met before".

[edit on 23-9-2009 by TheDailyPlanet]

Today there was an article in 'Press Gazette' online version about the Government taking action to assist newspapers against legal actions where charges were up to £700 an hour, in the interests of freedom of speech, after an outcry by newspaper editors such as Paul Dacre. I posted the following, but it went through moderation, and did not appear.

So I'll post it here, this is word for word of my Comment

.............................................................................................

These plans by the Government will not prevent me from taking legal action if I need to regarding the "knife metaphor cacophemism" dispute with the Daily Mail.

The Mail on Sunday printed "Now they will stab him in the front" on January 8th 2006 as their page 3 headline. The Daily Mail printed their page 11 headline "After a week to forget, the knives are out", on May 1st 2009. The Daily Mail recently countenanced article body text saying:-

"In the wake of the credit crunch, however, the knives are out."

They also printed recently:-

"Knives are being sharpened [in the context of the preparation for kniving] for the Health Secretary"

In response to my article in 'Inside Time' newspaper, the newspaper for prisoners, and in the course of interviews with ex-offenders, a person has said that they don't mind if their details are shared, provided the person is allowed to remain anonymous.

This person told me how she entered a 'trance' state (several years ago), after reading a headline such as "Knives are out for Gordon Brown". She had started to think that the headlines pertained directly to her, and how she should behave and conduct herself in her own life.

She, and others, have said that these headlines have sent them into a trance, where she was thinking "I want to get the knives out, for Gordon Brown' sake".

In the grip of her trance, she rushed to to her local superstore Robert Sayle, went to the kitchen knife display, found one of the biggest knives that she could, which she had decided to regard as a weapon.

She then went up to the sales counter, and brandished the weapon with a threat to the terrified sales assistant. Other personnel rushed over to deal with the situation, and then she snapped out of her psychosis, and said "I'm so sorry" - she had been in a trance. Now in 2009, she is completely fine, and says she is completely free of the psychosis that afflicted her.

Another person, an ex-murderer, who had been influenced by headlines, speaks of the person he murdered in his letter to me "I attacked one of the nicest ladies I had ever met before".

I now have information about 8 knife crimes where the Daily Mail knife metaphor's acted as catalysts.

I feel I have a strong case for corporate incitement to murder legal action. Since my cease and desist letter to the Chief Executive of DMGT plc, Martin Morgan, and phone calls to other newspaper editor's offices, knife crime homicide has dropped from around 12-15 incidents per month, to

What do people think about this topic, after Derren Browns little trick last night where he admitted to influencing people through subliminal adverts placed throughout Britain's newspapers.

KNIVES ARE PUT AWAY FOR ALESHA - FOR GOOD


In the Sun newspaper today, they had a tiny piece with a very small headline "DYING FOR A FAG".

The article was one sentence long, telling how a man, Stefan Schoenbauer, 73 years old, had tragically died in a fire caused by smoking in bed, and this occured on the day before he was planning to quit, in Austria.

So the headline initially appears to what most would expect is a metaphor use, and you find that the words used were literally pertaining.

..............................................

I have complained to the Executive Managing Editor of the Daily Mail, again, about the knife metaphor usage, and he has forwarded my email to the Editor. The last time, and I hope it's the last time, was about a week ago "KNIVES ARE OUT FOR ALESHA" the headline said, spread across 2 pages.

There has been a dramatic drop in knife crime, I hope the knives have been put away for good.

[edit on 26-9-2009 by TheDailyPlanet]

My disagreement with the OP is that 'the knives are out' 'stab in the back' etc etc are not only used by the DM, the BBC and the Guardian as well as other media outlets use these terms. the Sun newspaper which sadly has a larger readership than the Mail is far more procative.
There are songs and films about knives which will reach those who are vunerable far more and make a bigger of an impact than a right wing newspaper.

Where does it all end, shoudl society ban idioms that have been used for decades and beyond because they may incite someoe to stab, or beat up a gay, where does personal responsibility come into the equasion? or is the OP saying we are all numbskulls.

Imo the OP has a vendetta against the Mail, it is big on anti knife and any other crime does in fact demonise youth and if anyone from outside the UK read only the DM they would have a view which has nothing to do with reality.

I have posted about the fact I have information from people who say that they were triggered to commit their knife crime after reading Daily Mail headlines about knives where the article had nothing to do with knives whatsoever. At this stage, I have information about 8 knife crimes, where the Daily Mail headline has been cited as psychotic catalyst, or crime trigger.

So you've decided to write them another letter, despite the fact that you are now fully aware that every time you write them a letter about this they deliberately increase the number of knife metaphors they use.

Cause, effect, cause, effect.

The effect? Knife crimes. The cause (according to you?) Knife metaphors in the newspaper.

The effect? Knife metaphors in the newspaper. The cause? You, writing letters to the newspaper complaining about knife metaphors.

Either there is a cause and effect relationship going on, or there isn't. And that means that either you are causing these knife crimes by stirring the pot, or they are happening on their own with no relation to these news articles.

Incidentally, you know what else stops knife crimes? Shooting people that come at you with a knife.

The usage of knife metaphors has reduced since 2006, when my contact became Mr. Robin Esser. Each complaint would generally render a reduction in usage. At one point, they would use knife metaphors at least once a week in their headlines.

....................................................

I am livid. We had been doing so well. We had had 2 murders in 2.5 months, and now, I hear, a man has been murdered with a knife in Sudbury in the early hours of Saturday morning.

I am livid because just a few days ago the Daily Mail newspaper printed a double-page spread headline saying word for word as follows "KNIVES ARE OUT FOR ALESHA". And in addition, I was walking towards a pub in the evening last night, and I heard a blatant violence incitement in music coming out of a car window as a car sped past - it could well have been a radio transmission, but I do not know that for certain. The lyric was repeatedly singing that somebody was going to get stabbed. And now someone has been murdered, hours later. This is an absolute outrage, the Editor of the Daily Mail, the knives have been put away, for good.

one can always blame the crowbar or the gloves or the skimask but to be honest im not even supriced that the "nanny state" is coming with attitudes like that.

you can blame the gun you can blame the knife all you want,
its still the person who makes the "crime" that is to blame if not the parents for bringing up an nonchalant idiot.

Originally posted by dizzylizzy
My disagreement with the OP is that 'the knives are out' 'stab in the back' etc etc are not only used by the DM, the BBC and the Guardian as well as other media outlets use these terms. the Sun newspaper which sadly has a larger readership than the Mail is far more procative.
There are songs and films about knives which will reach those who are vunerable far more and make a bigger of an impact than a right wing newspaper.

Where does it all end, shoudl society ban idioms that have been used for decades and beyond because they may incite someoe to stab, or beat up a gay, where does personal responsibility come into the equasion? or is the OP saying we are all numbskulls.

Imo the OP has a vendetta against the Mail, it is big on anti knife and any other crime does in fact demonise youth and if anyone from outside the UK read only the DM they would have a view which has nothing to do with reality.

The Sun has never used "the knives are out" phrase as a headline that I can recall, and I only once saw it used as article body text. The Daily Mail never used the phrase prior to July 2001, the Independent did use the phrase as early as 1998. Prior to July 2001, I had never heard the phrase, usage soared after the Daily Mail started pushing it regularly since 2001.

I heard a track of music from a car window the night before last singing that "somebody was going to get stabbed", repeating the lyric over and over again. And someone was murdered a few hours later.

[edit on 27-9-2009 by TheDailyPlanet]

Originally posted by mattifikation
So you've decided to write them another letter, despite the fact that you are now fully aware that every time you write them a letter about this they deliberately increase the number of knife metaphors they use.

....

To give you full clarification, every time I wrote in 2001, my letters would be ignored, and the reverse implemented, "knives are out" was printing more, and so yes, obviously there was more knife crime.

Gradually, my letters become more effective in stopping the metaphor abuse, and since 2006, my letters have led to reduction in usage. Every single time the metaphor has been used there has been a murder a little while later, usually 3-4 days later.

I was very upset though when I wrote to the Daily Mirror to complain about a dysphemism headline printed in Red in the Sun newspaper (published by News International Ltd.)

"Thank you very much for your letter, the details of which have been noted. " words similar to these were written to me by Richard Wallace, the Editor of the Daily Mirror (he had taken over from Piers Morgan)

The very next day, his newspaper published "Spice Girls are AXED from Live8" with the word Axed printed in Red, and that afternoon Anthony Walker was murdered with an axe.

[edit on 27-9-2009 by TheDailyPlanet]

**** THIS CANNOT BE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE ****

Re Knife Metaphor Abuse

The newspapers cannot continue to get away with printing "The knives are out" when they blatantly know that these headlines lead to murder.

Furthermore, I have heard blatantly illegal music, inciting violence, for example what I heard on Saturday night, hours before somebody was murdered - a repeating lyric singing "Someone's going to get stabbed" coming from a car as it sped past - then hours later, someone had been murdered in Sudbury, and it appears there were at least 3 other murders.

Please, note the following carefully:-

SO, FOR NEARLY 3 MONTHS, THERE WAS ONLY 2 KNIFE CRIME MURDERS.

THEN, THE DAILY MAIL PRINTED "THE KNIVES ARE OUT FOR ALESHA"

AND NOW, THERE HAVE BEEN 4 KNIFE CRIME MURDERS IN A SINGLE WEEKEND.

[edit on 27-9-2009 by TheDailyPlanet]

Derren Brown the Illusionist did the same thing on the nation by placing adverts in news papers and influenced the nation on what to think in his latest trick. I hope this vide below maybe adds some truth to this thread, but I think rap music, heavey metal, kill music also play a part in influencing young minds.

Hello DailyPlanet, might there be a possibility that the knife metaphors bother you so much because they are a catalyst in your own mind? Only in your case you are rebelling against those 'knifing' thoughts in the form of protest?

You see, it doesn't seem to bother most people that the words 'knife/murder' e.c.t are used in headlines, which in itself is bad because it means we've been desensitised.

Can I ask, do you believe violent computer games turn people into psychos?

reply to post by Hawkwind.


The knife metaphors enrage me, because there has not been a single instance where a knife metaphor has been used and there has not been a subsequently reported murder a few days later.

I notice, at the moment, last time I checked a few hours ago, that despite printing "KNIVES ARE OUT FOR ALESHA" - which I think is an effective murder incitement catalyst, they have not so far printed or published on-line about a single one of the 4 knife murders that were commited over the weekend.

The knife metaphors do not catalyse me personally in any way, to be honest. However, I have interviewed people to whom they have been triggers for crime.

I do believe that computer games if they are extremely violent, can in a very small minority of people, lead to real life crime with the onset of the psychosis that real life is a computer game, for example. I have read a report about a man, who is now in prison for life, who murdered a taxi-driver after playing one of these games.

I am absolutely certain that the "knives are out" headlines have literally led to knife crime as "knives were out". The latest headline was deployed, and there were 4 murders during the weekend, after knife crime murder had virtually ground to a halt in the UK !

I am very keen that people get to hear about this outrage - I do not think this newspaper company can be allowed to continue to trade.

Could anybody give me an estimate as to how many people have read this thread already ? (During it's first 10 days, it entered the top 6 threads, it was no.2 in one of the pull down lists of featured threads)

Published about 16 hours ago by the Boston Globe, link below:-

www.boston.com...


Article called 'Thinking literally',

"...What they have found is that, in fact, we do. Metaphors aren’t just how we talk and write, they’re how we think."

[edit on 27-9-2009 by TheDailyPlanet]

Here is the comment that TheDailyPlanet put on the Boston Globe page:-


Peter-Dew-Media wrote:-
METAPHORS - A note about KNIFE METAPHOR CACOPHEMISMS
====================================================

This is a very interesting article, and I have a very serious comment to make indeed.

Back in July 2001, I made complaints to the Daily Mail newspaper after they printed the Front Page headline as follows verbatim "KNIVES ARE OUT FOR GORDON BROWN". I argued that this headline would lead to violence, as to a potentially violent youngster, there was nothing to suggest the metaphor - you had to know this and accept it as a metaphor.

EVERY time I complained in 2001, the Daily Mail printed more and more "Knives are out" headlines.

I complained at least 80 times between 2001 and 2009, and finally started to make progress in 2006, when the Executive Managing Editor of the newspaper wrote me a letter saying "these phrases can be unhelpful in the fight against violence", and that he would send a memo to all editorial staff to stop them using these phrases.

For a while, the use of "knives are out" / "knives come out" metaphors in headlines stopped, and there was a reduction in homicide. Then, the paper resumed.

Every time the paper printed "Knives are out" there was always a murder by knife a few days later. Once, the Mail on Sunday (on January 8th 2006) printed "Now they will stab him in the front" as a headline.

Despite threats of legal action for corporate incitement to murder, just a few days ago the newspaper printed in bold a double-paged spread "KNIVES ARE OUT FOR ALESHA". We had had 3 months with hardly any knife crime at all, there were just 2 murders. Now, there was 2 murders in the space of 24 hours, catalysed I believe by yet again, yet further metaphor abuse (by use of 'knife metaphor cacophemisms')

For further information, search "Knife metaphors" in Google and check the front page search results.

I have information from 8 people who commited knife crime who cite the use of knife metaphor cacophemisms in the Daily Mail newspaper as triggers to their crimes; the ex-criminals stated that they felt that the headlines literally pertained to them and how they should behave and conduct themselves. One person, an ex-murderer, speaks of the person who he murdered in his letter to me "I attacked one the nicest ladies I had ever met". You see, the newspapers printed "knives are out", and the knives were got out - it's a frightful metaphor, and I would like to state my opinion that I believe that this metaphor is tantamount to an incitement to murder due to the fact that youngsters do not understand the apparent allegorical intention of the phrase, and furthermore it can be a 'call' to people with a serious mental condition to commit knife crime. It's happened time and time again, and I'm absolutely appalled. I thank you for your article. (Comment recommended by 2)