NO newspaper’s journalists appreciate more than all of us here at The National just how lonely it can be when you are the only daily and Sunday paper in the country that supports Scottish independence.
Sadly you will not regularly read about the activities of the Yes DIY grassroots movement in any other national newspaper. We have carried dedicated pages on the movement twice a week since February last year and we are delighted to say that the Yes DIY Hub pages are popular with Yessers everywhere.
We also sincerely appreciate the often lonely work of our fellow supporters of independence who do such a tremendous service with their blogs on social media – you’ll understand if we single out National columnist Paul Kavanagh’s Wee Ginger Dug blog for its continuous excellence. Another blog which has made a serious impact is Scot Goes Pop by James Kelly who has made it his role in life to be the voice of reason about opinion polls.
It is one of the oldest pro-independence websites, as it was started in 2008, and among other scoops, Kelly launched his popular Poll of Polls in 2013 just in time to chart the remarkable rise of the Yes vote.
In 2015 he also called it right about the extraordinary surge of the SNP prior to that year’s General Election and the following year was right to warn that the party was not guaranteed to win an overall majority.
Having nurtured the site from the start, Kelly is now launching a fundraiser. He stated: “It’s that time of the year again when I ask for your help as I continue to write about Scottish politics. If the fundraiser succeeds, the likelihood is that I’ll continue to write on this blog
“With yet another Westminster General Election potentially in the offing now, and as preparations continue for a possible second independence referendum, I hope to continue with the blog’s unique coverage of the polling situation from a pro-indy perspective.
“The latest figures from the Traffic Estimate site suggest that Scot Goes Pop has received 62,200 unique visitors over the last 30 days (as of 31st May 2019), making it the fourth most popular alternative media site in Scotland. Not bad for a one-person operation!”
Having funds will enable Kelly to give a rapid response to a developing political situation, as he explained: An opinion poll can unexpectedly appear at almost any hour of the day or night. Fundraising gives me the freedom and flexibility to drop everything and post some analysis about a poll whenever it appears.”
Unlike some of our critics, The National believes a plurality of view s and coverage is a necessity in a democracy. Kelly’s valuable work can be supported at scotgoespop.blogspot.com
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel