Just a fascinating thread about how leaks happen in the wake of the Gavin Williamson affair
Well here’s a fascinating insight into the world of politics – and in particular, the world of political journalism – courtesy of the Guardian’s Gaby Hinsliff.
After Gavin Williamson’s sacking from the cabinet, she offers a ‘brief, boring thread’ about how leaks happen. It’s not entirely brief but it’s definitely not boring.
1.
Look I haven't a clue what Gavin Williamson, or of course Another Mystery Person, said to Steven Swinford but generally: there seems to be some confusion about how leaking happens, so a brief boring thread
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
2.
What ministers almost never do is ring you up going 'HOO BOY GUESS WHAT HAPPENED IN THIS NSC MEETING' (to take a random example). Nor do you generally ring them up going 'ok so what happened in the NSC meeting'.
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
3.
& I think once in 13 years as a lobby hack someone rang me up saying 'there's a brown envelope in X place in the Commons, I think you'll find the contents interesting' & it was a leaked copy of a draft white paper. ONCE. So; it ain't like in films.
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
4.
What happens ALL THE TIME is a sort of jigsaw ID. Maybe you know there was (say) a Cabinet meeting today & it was due to discuss X & X is controversial. So you ring a few people & sort of…bounce things around. e.g. you might say 'I've heard that..
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
5.
..there was a big row about X this morning & that you were anti it, am I doing you an injustice by writing that?" Maybe you do 100% know this is what happened & you are just responsibly checking. Maybe you are kind of guessing, & fishing. But anyway..
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
6.
..the person might then say "You know I can't possibly talk to you about a Cabinet conversation about X, bye now". Or they'll first try to find out what if anything you actually do know (which might not be much). Or they'll say 'gosh you guys are fast'..
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
7.
..& you'll think, ok so I was right. & then you bounce it off a few more people, & same process ensues. Or v rarely someone might go 'well if you know THAT, let me tell you XYZ'. But anything short of the last answer, & that person might tell…
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
8.
..themselves 'well I didn't leak it. They already knew. I just..helped the story be accurate about me.' They reason everyone else is briefing to make themselves look good so why be the one who doesn't & get stuffed? + builds goodwill with hacks.
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
9.
I've had people say to me "I don't know how you got hold of X" & I think 'uh literally from you mate'. Sometimes if you know a person well it's about the face they pull when you ask them did X happen, or the answer they don't give. You might…
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
10.
..not write a story based on that alone obv but it's like a rolling stone, gathering moss. A little bit of info from lots of people who in each case don't think they really told you anything much = quite a sizeable stone sometimes.
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
11.
to repeat i have no idea what happened with Huawei; only the journo concerned does & he's right to protect his sources. But leaking is a complicated thing, done for complicated reasons, & thus v hard to stop. Unlike this thread. (Stop).
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
Illuminating stuff.
'Who gave you this story?'
'Everyone'— Naomi Rovnick 歐蜜 (@naomi_rovnick) May 2, 2019
exactly
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
This is a really informative thread, thank you.
It does suggest that it's too simplistic to say "it was Gavin Williamson".
Rather, it could have been a number of members of the cabinet in parts. Which is far more troubling.
— Tom Phillips (@Tomoooooose) May 2, 2019
It might be right that actually it was just GW. Like I said, nobody knows but him & the journo. But I thought it might be helpful to explain how things often go, in general
— Gaby Hinsliff (@gabyhinsliff) May 2, 2019
To conclude …
If you've ever wondered how political leaks happen (outside of the bathroom) this thread is a must read https://t.co/A0UiniWfmy
— Martin Lewis (@MartinSLewis) May 2, 2019
This is a very handy rundown for non-journalists on how leaking works in practice. https://t.co/BB8aBKzE4K
— The Secret Barrister (@BarristerSecret) May 2, 2019
How leaking works in reality.
Spot on from @gabyhinsliff https://t.co/3jrAbPWsRZ
— Sam Coates Times (@SamCoatesTimes) May 2, 2019
Gavin Williamson: 9 times the sacked defence secretary hit peak Gavin Williamson
