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The British backpacker and the news coverage...

Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2009 8:36 pm
by max_tranmere
That guy who went walkabout around the Blue Monutains, west of Sydney, and go lost, is now making a lot of money out of it. Deals with newspapers, daytime chat shows and so on, are making his bank account bulge. I don't really have a problem with that, it is more how the TV news are prioritising their stories. Anyone would take a load of cash, if offered, to talk about an experience like that, but what gets me is this guy - whose experience was hardly bad compared to soldiers losing limbs in Iraq - is actually getting more coverage at the moment than those soldiers are. A murder in London or Manchaester today wont even make the news, nor will the fact 100 people lost their jobs when a certain company went bust. But a backpacker wandering around the Blue Mountains, getting lost, then getting found, does. It's a weird world and I would love to know why such trivia gets top-billing and really serious stuff doesn't get a mention.

Re: The British backpacker and the news coverage...

Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2009 9:36 pm
by Sam Slater
People lap up stories of this nature, sadly.


Re: The British backpacker and the news coverage...

Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2009 3:13 am
by DanG
Many people are already questioning the veracity of his tale, like Ex-SAS turned author Andy McNab.

It might just be a case of the old build 'em up to knock 'em down...


Re: The British backpacker and the news coverage...

Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2009 5:08 am
by jj
Hopefully, he'll donate a chunk of his 'winnings' to the poorly-funded
rescue-services who saved his incompetent, sorry ass.

But I ain't holding me breath.


Re: The British backpacker and the news coverage...

Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2009 6:47 am
by The Last Word
It's summer. What better than a good student travel/gap year fear story to frighten middle class parents with?


Re: The British backpacker and the news coverage...

Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2009 12:16 pm
by steve56
he sounded young for his years i thought

Re: The British backpacker and the news coverage...

Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 1:40 pm
by bristolian
There's something weird-looking about him, and even more so about his mother (sorry, very fat-ist,I know)