Culture

John Oliver Has A Strong Message For The US Media After The London Attacks

"In no way is Britain under siege."

by Meg Watson  6 June 2017
John Oliver

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There’s a tendency to lean towards hyperbole in the wake of any horrific event. When things come as a shock, it’s hard not to catastrophise and think the worst. But in the case of terrorist attacks, this is actually a pretty harmful and unproductive way to act. Not only does it create panic, it satisfies the people who wanted to cause hurt in the first place.

This is all too familiar to people in the UK right now. After the violent London Bridge attacks on the weekend, there’s been an avalanche of breathless media reportage about Britain being “under seige”. Londoners are being told — particularly by US publications — that they’re “reeling”, when in fact many feel as strong and defiant as ever.

“As a British person living in America”, John Oliver has now issued a response to all this on Last Week Tonight. “In no way is Britain under siege. Is it upset? Yes. Is it pissed off? Oh, you better fucking bet it’s pissed off. But to say it’s under siege and that it’s people are reeling is to imply it’s somehow weak enough to be brought to its knees by three monumental assholes.”

“The British people are never going to let terror change their way of life.”

Oliver’s response to all this comes after a lot of protest to the attack’s coverage on social media. A headline from The New York Times has attracted particular condemnation. “We’re not ‘reeling’,” said author Nick Harkaway. “We’re an old, scarred country and we know how to take a punch.”

Things then turned to outright mockery under the hashtag #ThingsThatLeaveBritainReeling:

Oliver also praised the now internet-famous guy who took his pint with him when fleeing the scene of the attack and a guy who was having dinner with Labor Senator Sam Dastyari next to London Bridge at the time.

Richard Angell, director of UK Labour Party group Progress, went back to the restaurant the next morning to pay his bill and tip the staff, then issued an excellent statement to the British media. “We’re not gonna let these people win,” he said. “I keep saying, if me having a gin and tonic with my friends, flirting with handsome men, hanging out with brilliant women, is what offends these people so much, I’m going to do it more, not less. That’s what makes London so great.”

As Oliver put it: “Fuck yeah, it is.”