Swedes for Europe

Reading the Times of Malta nowadays is as much a guessing game as it is informative. More often than not it is more a case of the former than the latter. Take this article that was uploaded at a quarter to eight in the evening on Sunday:

Alleanza Liberali to field Swedish candidate for 2014 EP elections

Alleanza Liberali this evening announced that it will be fielding Swedish Peter Lowe as one of its candidates for the 2014 European Parliament elections. On twitter, Mr Lowe describes himself as an urban European fighting for human rights and a better, stronger and larger EU.

The article was accompanied by a photo of a beaming man who presumably is the Swede (not the Swedish) Peter Lowe. Whoever filed this article must have been on a trip and so must any person who proof read or approved it for immediate uploading. Why? Do we need to explain?

First of all there is a glaring lack of facts. What is the Alleanza Liberali? Who spoke for it? Where? Did the heavens above the Times part and did a voice suddenly “announce” that Alleanza were fielding a candidate? It is not like Alleanza Liberali are in the news everyday – I for one thought that whatever Liberal formation existed in Malta had long disbanded. Was it a press conference? Was it a press release issued on Sunday afternoon – as an afterthought following a Sunday lunch that was heavy on the grappa?

Then there is “Swedish Peter Lowe”. It’s either Swedish national or Swede Peter Lowe (with the unfortunate consequences of associations to cousins of turnips). The second (and final) sentence of this enigmatic appendage on the timesonline pages is actually part of Peter Lowe’s twitter blurb about himself. Lazy journalism? You bet.

GIGO proceeds: What the root vegetable is an “urban European” who “fights for human rights”? Why did the Times print this bullshit?

Well ok, the Alleanza Liberali exists and it is a band of nutjobs. So far so good. Only a band of nutjobs would announce their candidate for an election two years in advance (woosh – see that? there goes the element of surprise). As for the Times lazily copying a press release into their paper… well trashofmalta anyone?

A quick internet search led me to ProKredit a property financing firm in Germany. Peter Lowe is the CEO of this firm that, among other things, translates the German “Menschen” to “Human Beings” in the English version of their website.