The Daily Mail

Owned by: Daily Mail and General Trust, owned by Jonathan Harmsworth, 4th Viscount Rothermere

Editor: Paul Dacre

Political leaning: Right / far right

Daily circulation: circa 1,490,000

Today’s leading headline: Three lethal questions

Today’s Mail focuses on the Grenfell fire, and its repercussions. The paper asks the three following questions: were green targets to blame for fire tragedy? Why were the families told to stay in their flats? How many more tinder-box towers are there? The paper demands answers.

Afterthought: Frustratingly but perhaps not surprisingly the Daily Mail is unwilling to ask the necessary questions that point towards criminal negligence. Here is what we know: there were no working sprinklers installed. There was only one fire escape stairwell when there should have been two. The residents complained multiple times about the state of the building. Safety regulations were annoyed. Here are some previous Daily Mail headlines on the topic.

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Yesterday the Mail also saw fit to post a picture of the man whose fridge malfunctioned and started the fire, as if he was to blame. Another low point for tabloid journalism in this country.

The Daily Telegraph

Owned by: Telegraph Media Group, owned by Sir David Barclay and Sir Frederick Barclay

Editor: Chris Evans

Political leaning: Right

Daily circulation: circa. 460,000

Today’s leading headline: Sorrow turns to anger.

In a similar vein to the other papers today, the Telegraph describes the anger that many of the residents are now feeling as the smoke clears. Repeated warnings were ignored, and now the residents ‘demand answers’. The paper claims that as many as 100 people are now feared dead.

Afterthought: Where will this anger be directed? Clearly elements of the right-wing media in this country have no real interest in covering the real reasons that this fire could take place. Yes, it is worth pointing to the materials that allowed the fire to spread, and yes, the landlords who ran this building need to be jailed, but on a wider perspective, why did the council constantly ignore the complaints of the residents? Who implemented the huge cuts to London’s fire services?

The Times

Owned by: News UK, Rupert Murdoch’s company.

Editor: John Witherow

Political leaning: Right

Daily circulation: circa. 446,000

Today’s leading headline: US banned tower cladding.

In a similar theme, today’s Times reports on speed at which the fire consumed the building due to a cladding installed on its exterior. The cladding, which The Times says cost £22 per panel, was only £2 cheaper than the “fire resistant” panels at £24. Making the building non-flammable would have cost £5K more.

Afterthought: The earlier reports coming in are damning. Conversation has veered towards why the exterior was cladded in this material, with some figures accusing the landlords of trying to make the building more visually appealing to richer surrounding residents. The casualty list is still growing. Both Corbyn and May visited the scene yesterday, with the latter coming under fire for not speaking directly with any of the survivors.

The Guardian

Owned by: Scott Trust Limited, run by a board with a policy of non-interference.

Editor: Katharine Viner

Political leaning: Left

Daily circulation: circa. 161,000

Today’s leading headline: Police: some victims of tower blaze may never be identified.

The Guardian today follows the other papers by reporting the consequences of the blaze. The paper warns that due to the incredibly destructive nature and high heats of the fire, some of the victims may never be able to be identified.

Afterthought: Further evidence has come to light that this tragedy could have been avoided. Today’s Guardian online ran an article titled ‘Experts warned government against cladding buildings in material used in Grenfell.’, going on to say that safety experts described the material as ‘potentially combustible.’ There are a further 400 flat blocks like this in the country, all of which will now need to be examined closely.

The i

Owned by: Johnston Press, whose CEO is Ashley Highfield, significant ties to the BBC

Editor: Oliver Duff

Political leaning: Centre

Daily circulation: circa. 264,000

Today’s leading headline: The missing- and the search for answers.

Today’s i carries the faces of some of those missing and feared dead from the fire. The paper carries on to reflect the anger many are feeling at how this could have been allowed to take place. The i also reveals today that the cladding could be put in place because it was claimed to ‘improve the environmental performance’ of the building.

Afterthought: Here is my hot take: watch out for the ‘green’ angle being used throughout the various papers coverage of this incident. All evidence points towards this cladding being used due to its cheap cost, not it’s environmental benefits. Don’t let them scapegoat attempts to make the flat green instead of the real cause, which was choosing the cheaper option.

The Daily Mirror

Owner: Trinity Mirror. Its chairman is David Grigson, formerly the chief financial officer at Reuters

Editor: Lloyd Embley

Political leaning: Left / far left

Daily circulation: circa. 716,900

Today’s leading headline: Criminal.

Today’s Mirror puts out a bold accusation: criminal. The left-wing paper’s anger is adamant. It goes on to state the over the last thirty years, ‘profit mattered more than putting a safe roof over the heads of our poorest’, and that it ‘shames our nation’. It calls the lack of caring a ‘diabolical failing’.

Afterthought: The Mirror declaring this act as criminal is a serious statement. The left-wing paper is furious at what it sees as an abandonment of British values; looking after our nations less well off, not privatising and looking for profit. It’s hard to avoid looking at Grenfell as anything other than a shining example of the distinct difference between social classes in this country.

Financial Times

Owner: The Nikkei, which is based in Tokyo.

Editor: Lionel Barber

Political leaning: Centre

Daily circulation: circa. 193,211

Today’s leading headline: BoE holds rates as weak retail sales add to fears of prolonged slowdown.

The Financial Times today covers the Bank of England’s decision to keep interest rate increases on hold as inflation it set to rise higher than it previously predicted.

Afterthought: Policy makers voted 5:3 to hold the rates, down from 8:1 in March.

The Sun

Owner: News UK, owned by Rupert Murdoch

Editor: Tony Gallagher

Political leaning: Right / far right

Daily circulation: circa. 1,611,464

Today’s leading headline: Now the anger.

Today’s Sun covers the fire and its repercussions, devoting a huge amount of the paper into its investigation. The paper goes on to describe the anger many of the locals feel towards the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. Witnesses asked him “What are you going to do about it?’

Afterthought: The Sun returned to new lows yesterday, as allegations emerged that it sent two journalists to the hospital that was treating many of the victims.

The two journalists pretended to be relatives of the victims to gain insider access. The paper also went on to publish pictures of burnt bodies on its online website.