For earlier news see:
2019
David Miller appeared on the Sunday Show on 94.1 KPFA to discuss “Britain on the Rocks”. 17 March 2019. Listen here.
2018
David Miller appears on RT's 'Going underground' to discuss UAE lobbying of the British government over the Muslim Brotherhood.
2017
Paul Hutcheon, Government food adviser in row over paid links to sweets and fizzy drinks companies, The Herald, 16 April 2017.
Claudia Cuskelly, Secrets of Coca-Cola: Soft drink giant's mission to stop sugar tax exposed on Dispatches, The Express, 27 March 2017.
Abdullah Thomson, Revealed: How British Fearmongers Made Millions, Islam21c.com, 11 March 2017.
2016
Oliver Wright, Corporate lobbyist signed up to lead the fight for fairer Britain, The Times, 16 July 2016.
RT UK speaks to David Miller, Professor of Sociology at the University of Bath, 1 July 2016:
L. Churchill, 'Events in Bristol to mark the 100th anniversary of the start of the Battle of the Somme', Bristol Post, 30 June 2016.
Bristol Festival of Ideas and Remembering the Real World War One present a screening of the government-sponsored film 'Battle of the Somme', originally released in August 1916, at the Watershed on Sunday July 3 at 1pm. The film will be accompanied by pianist Stephen Horne and is followed by a panel discussion featuring David Miller (Professor of Sociology, University of Bath), Humberto Perez-Blanco (Senior Lecturer in Film Studies, UWE) and June Hannam (Professor Emeritus of Modern British History, UWE).
Simon Hooper, UK 'grassroots' anti-extremism campaign produced by Home Office, Middle East Eye, 13 June 2016.
Quilliam Foundation go silent over funding questions, 5 Pillars, 19 April 2016.
Paul Hutcheon, 'Criticism as single drug accounts for over 85% of rare conditions budget', Sunday Herald, 27 March 2016.
David Miller, a sociology professor at Bath University, said: "No wonder they wanted to keep this quiet. It is amazing one corporation can profiteer from the NHS by hoovering up the vast majority of the special fund. More transparency is needed about these kinds of decisions."
2015
'Under Investigation', The Times Higher Education Supplement, 17 December 2015.
In the UK, there are also some emerging instances of investigative methods in certain corners of social science. The work of David Miller, professor of sociology at the University of Bath, is worth mentioning. He has been conducting investigative research into corporate lobbying and the use of spin and PR by companies. He is also the editor of the wiki Powerbase - a monitoring service of power networks - and is currently co-editing an essay collection, Researching the Powerful: Public Sociology in Action, which makes a case for the investigative method as public sociology in action.
Simon Hooper, Muslims face 'worsening environment of hate' in UK, Al Jazeera, 18 November 2015.
In a series of high-profile speeches, David Cameron, the British prime minister, has repeatedly called on Muslim communities to do more to tackle extremism, even suggesting earlier this year that obeying the law was now no longer enough.
"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'As long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone,'" Cameron said in May. "This government will conclusively turn the page on this failed approach."
But, speaking at an event to launch the IHRC's report on Tuesday, David Miller, a professor of sociology at the University of Bath, said that government counterterrorism policies were the "backbone" of Islamophobia in the UK, and cited cases of children whose bank accounts had been shut down because their parents were associated with Muslim organisations or charities.
"The counterterrorism apparatus is the key element in disadvantaging Muslims. We should talk about people being attacked on buses or refused service in shops, but what stands behind all that is government counterterrorism policy," said Miller.
"When we are talking about the bank accounts of Muslim children being closed down, that is a real line in the sand. When you start to do that, you are starting to move towards marginalising a whole community."
'No 10's report mirrors thinktank extremism study', The Times Higher Education Supplement, 1 October 2015.
THE has repeatedly tried to contact Downing Street to establish the source of information contained in its 17 September statement, but it has not received a response.
The seemingly unattributed use of the Henry Jackson Society material is likely to concern many within the sector, with several students' unions accusing the organisation of pursuing an Islamophobic agenda.
David Miller, professor of sociology at the University of Bath, who co-authored a book on the Henry Jackson Society and its funding from pro-Israel supporters, said the government must say where it got its data to show they were "not of dubious provenance". He added: "HJS is not an academic body, but a campaigning thinktank with a neoconservative...agenda, so the notion that it could set the agenda on extremism is staggering."
Simon Hooper, 'Cancelled play highlights UK counter-extremism debate', Al Jazeera, 1 September 2015.
David Miller, the organiser of an academic conference on terrorism and radicalisation at the University of Bath in June, said police had approached university security staff to request a list of all attendees and had asked questions about the attendance of a specific individual.
"I got a call a week before the conference from our security people. They asked me if a particular person was coming because his name was flagged up in the police computer. I don't know how they got that information because the list wasn't public," Miller told Al Jazeera.
"The police also asked if they could see a copy of the list of attendees. I said they couldn't and I kind of thought we were going to get shut down. It is obviously intimidating."
Richard haley, 'Why Holyrood needs to stand up to toxic anti-radicalisation laws', Sunday Herald, 9 August 2015.
Scotland Against Criminalising Communities said in the same year: "Prevent is an attempt to recruit civil society into a kind of open conspiracy against Muslims." A group of academics - including Professor David Miller of the University of Bath and Professor Bill Bowring of Birkbeck College - said this year that "Prevent has failed not only as a strategy but also the very communities it seeks to protect". The National Union of Students is opposed to Prevent and has instructed NUS officials not to engage with it. The University and College Union has this year instructed its National Executive committee to organise a boycott of Prevent.
'Israel's Attempt to Mislead United Nations ECOSOC Member States', PR Newswire, 7 August 2015.
Written by Dr. Sarah Marusek and Prof. David Miller, this study also uncovers that a network of pro-Israel and anti-Muslim groups in the United States are funding the civil society organisations campaigning against the PRC. These groups, including charities, think tanks and media, are not disparate and unrelated to each other; they are connected through key individuals, share funders and uncritically reproduce the same Israeli government views.
Letter, 'PREVENT will have a chilling effect on open debate, free speech and political dissent', The Independent, 10 July 2015.
'Understanding conflict in the contemporary world', European Union News, 10 july 2015.
Commenting ahead of the event, Professor David Miller of the Department of Social & Policy Sciences and Conference convenor, said: "This conference is the culmination of more than two years research and networking. We hope the conference builds a lasting network of researchers who can work co-operatively to encourage policy makers to make more use of evidence based research."
Over four days delegates at the Conference will hear from 17 keynote speakers, as well as scholars from Bath, other UK, EU, African, Asian and US institutions.
David Miller appeared on the Sunday Show on 94.1 KPFA to discuss “England on the Right; Scotland on the Left”. 31 May 2015. Listen here.
Tom Gordon, 'Row over Murphy's link to drinks industry lobbyist', Sunday Herald, 5 April 2015.
Professor David Miller of Spinwatch, which monitors the lobbying industry, said: "It's a conflict of interest and he [Murphy] should have been more transparent. I think he should now give an account of any meetings with this guy."
Letter to the Editor, 'Paying tribute to besieged charity', The Times, 10 March 2015.
Paul Hutcheon, 'Row as ex-MEP takes up lobbyist role for GM firm', Sunday Herald, 25 January 2015.
David Miller, a professor of sociology at Bath University, said: "The news that George Lyon is joining the revolving-door gravy-train from the European Parliament to the world of corporate lobbying fits an increasingly worrying pattern."
"The European Parliament has virtually no rules restricting MEPs from taking up lucrative posts in business or lobbying after they leave office.
"It is high time that effective action was taken to close this loophole.
"There are plenty of precedents such as the US where elected representatives have a 'cooling-off period' before entering the revolving door."
Tom Gordon, 'Scottish Labour leader urged to cut links with right-wing think tank', Sunday Herald, 4 January 2015.
Professor David Miller, co-founder of Spinwatch, which complained about the HJS in the Commons, said: "When you look at what Douglas Murray has said about Muslims, I don't understand how it's possible for the Scottish Labour Party leader to endorse the Henry Jackson Society.
"It's moved from an intellectually respectable conservative position to an increasingly anti-Islamic position."
In 2012, founder member Dr Marko Attila Hoare resigned from the HJS saying it had become "a mere caricature of its former self".
Instead of a bipartisan think tank, he said it has become "an abrasively right-wing forum with an anti-Muslim tinge".
2014
Randeep Ramesh, 'Rightwing thinktank pulls funds for Commons groups after disclosure row', The Guardian, 30 December 2014.
David Miller, a professor of sociology and co-founder of Spinwatch, said the society was “actively avoiding transparency, preferring to ply its trade in the subterranean fashion beloved of the lobbying industry. It is time that all-party parliamentary groups came clean on their corporate and other significant funders so the public and indeed parliamentarians can be clear exactly who is trying to influence their views and behaviour.”
Miller said Spinwatch had combed through public records in the US and UK to find out just who donated to the and says that the rightward drift in the Henry Jackson Society has coincided with a hefty rise in donations.
In 2009 Spinwatch believed that the society’s total income was £98,000 – a little more than the previous year. This then jumped to £321,000 in 2010 before rising sharply to £815,000 in 2011, until it raked in a high of £1,313,000 in 2013.
David Miller is interviewed on RT International regarding the Scottish independence referendum, 19 September 2014:
Paul Hutcheon, 'Patient groups taking cash from drugs groups', Sunday Herald, 15 June 2014.
Professor David Miller, a sociology professor at Bath University who campaigns for transparency in lobbying, said: "The financial connections between patient groups and pharmaceutical firms give rise to possible conflicts of interest, especially where the patient groups then support the drug with the Scottish Medicines Consortium. The SMC should work towards eliminating advice from patient groups that have potential conflicts of interest."
Mićo Tatalović, 'UK's Science Media Centre Lambasted for Pushing Corporate Science', SciDev.net, 14 May 2014.
David Miller, a professor of sociology from the University of Bath, United Kingdom, presented a more scathing analysis of the SMC, based on a combination of methods, such as analysing the SMC’s website content and sending out freedom of information requests. He looked at which experts the centre uses — given that its mission is to get scientists’ views across.
What he found was that some 20 of the 100 most quoted experts were not scientists, as defined by having a PhD and working at a research institution or a top learned society. Instead they were lobbyists for and CEOs of industry groups.
“If you say you quote scientists and end up using lobbyists and NGOs, the question is: how do you choose which lobbyists or NGOs to have?” he asked. “Why don’t you have lobbyists who oppose genetic testing or members of Greenpeace expressing their view rather than bioindustry’s position? That really reveals the kind of biases that are in operation.”
Paul Hutcheon, 'MSPs warned over business links code', Sunday Herald, 11 May 2014.
Professor David Miller, above, whose complaint sparked the investigation, welcomed the findings but said Parliament should probe further. CPGs bring outside bodies and MSPs together to discuss policy, but fears have been raised about the influence of commercial interests in the groups.
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Miller said: "The Standards Committee clear felt there was no alternative to finding a breach of the rules. The committee should move to requiring a declaration of clients/funding for each group that provides secretariat for CPGs. Otherwise vested interests will be able to sail under the radar by using front groups with no requirement for public disclosure of their involvement."
Paul Hutcheon, 'Revealed: how Big Pharma funds trials for the drugs you are prescribed', Sunday Herald, 13 April 2014.
David Miller, professor of sociology at Bath University and a campaigner for lobbying transparency, said: "The revelation that patient groups funded by pharma companies are not excluded from the new drugs process only reinforces the need for much greater transparency from the SMC. Declarations of interest must be public, not heard in secret by decision-makers.
"Scottish citizens also deserve much greater transparency from scientists and doctors who are paid advisers to 'Big Pharma'."
Paul Hutcheon, 'Big Pharma's links to doctors', Sunday Herald, 30 March 2014.
David Miller, a sociology professor at Bath University, said: "Regulatory bodies should work to minimise or eliminate conflict of interest. In the case of the SMC, it has not been transparent. This shows the need for much more stringent rules on conflict of interest, as well as effective means of monitoring and enforcing them."
Neil Findlay, Scottish Labour's health spokesman, said: "The pharmaceutical industry is worth over £1bn in Scotland, so it's imperative that those making decisions on which new drugs come on to the market are doing so based on the needs of patients and their expertise in the field. Commercial interests cannot be a factor in making such important decisions, which is why the system must be fully transparent."
Miller added: "Professional bodies such as the General Medical Council should investigate the apparently widespread conflicts of interest of doctors advising the SMC."
Paul Hutcheon, 'Global medical company pay bill for parliament committee's refreshments', Sunday Herald, 30 March 2014.
David Miller, a Bath University professor who campaigns for transparency in the public affairs sector, said group members had been right to seek clarity on the Medtronic funding.
He added: "This raises questions about how the Parliament is regulated. Will the CPG publish a complete list of all the financial help provided by Medtronic?"
Paul Hutcheon, 'Calls for probe into health forum link to Big Pharma', Sunday Herald, 2 March 2014.
Professor David Miller, a lobbying expert and professor of sociology at Bath University, who has campaigned for transparency in this area, has written to the committee about the two CPGs. It is understood he has asked about the groups' link with the Wellbeing Alliance.
2013
BICOM: Giving peace a chance? Middle East Monitor, Friday 08 November 2013.
Last night MEMO launched The Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre: Giving peace a chance? report at the House of Commons in Westminster. Hosted by Sir Bob Russell MP, speakers at the event were investigative researcher Tom Mills, professor of sociology at the University of Bath David Miller, writer and researcher Tom Griffin and researcher and writer Hilary Aked.
The report was published by Spinwatch and examines BICOM, a pro-Israel relations group. It concludes that although BICOM presents itself as though it is progressing towards peace, it in fact rejects international law. It calls for greater transparency of BICOM on the basis that this would help civil society groups hold them to account.
For copies of the report, please contact Middle East Monitor.
David Miller interviewed by Tony Gosling on BCFM Dialectradio.co.uk, Bristol, 9 July 2013:
Victoria Brittain, David Miller: Intervention, War and the Media, Frome, 7th Feb 2013:
Insight into war reporting, Frome and Somerset Standard, 24 January 2013.
David Miller is professor of Sociology at the University of Bath and is widely known for his writings on propaganda, spin, lobbying and is a commentator on media issues, writing regularly for popular media outlets.
He is a founder member of Spinwatch a website which promotes greater understanding of the role of PR, propaganda and lobbying and he is also an author.
2012
Professor David Miller (Department of Social & Policy Sciences) talks to BBC radio Wiltshire about the findings of the Leveson inquiry and the likely impact on the media. 29 November 2012.
Professor David Miller (Department of Social & Policy Sciences) talks to BBC radio Somerset about the findings of the Leveson inquiry and the likely impact on the media. 29 November 2012.
Media & War: Challenging the Consensus was a one day conference held at Goldsmiths College, London on November 17th 2012:
David Miller discusses terrorism and counter-terrorism in a documentary broadcast on Press TV, the English language service of the Iranian government. The documentary covered the Decade of Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism conference which was convened by David Miller and held on 8-11 September 2011. The conference, funded by the British Academy, featured a public meeting, plenaries, research workshops and panels including almost sixty speakers, from four continents. The proceedings of the conference were published as a special issue of the journal Critical Studies on Terrorism in early 2012. The documentary was broadcast on 10 October 2012 and is available online.
Grant Winners, Times Higher Education, 1 November 2012.
ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
Global Uncertainties Leadership Fellowships
Award winner: Peter Morey
Institution: University of East London
Value: £4,082
Muslims, trust and cultural dialogue
Award winner: David Miller
Institution: University of Bath
Value: £401,523
Understanding and explaining terrorism: expertise in practice
Gratitude for what, Mr Humphrys?, Morning Star, 28 October 2012
In contrast to Humphrys's self-serving self-image, University of Bath sociology Professor David Miller recently explained that "the research evidence that we have does not suggest a liberal bias" at the BBC. "On the contrary, it suggests a routine tendency for BBC news programmes to give more time and context to, and less interrogation of, Establishment and elitist views."
Rory MacKinnon, 'Khan vows to sharpen FOI Act's teeth', Morning Star, 4 October 2012.
Open government campaigners appeared to greet the news with cautious optimism. Spinwatch director David Miller told the Morning Star it was a relief "after all the talk that there's been over gutting the Act or introducing charges." But even public officials' responses were increasingly sparse: Labour would have to support any amendments with new powers for the Information Commissioner and tougher enforcement, he said.
Philip Ebels, 'Anti-gay lobby in Brussels linked to US neocons', EUobserver, 28 June 2012.
Transparency activists, such as David Miller from UK-based pressure group Spinwatch, claim that over the years "there have been millions of US dollars pouring into conservative think-tanks in Europe."
"[The] Heritage [Foundation] has long played a key role in supporting conservative and anti-left initiatives in Europe," according to the group's related website Powerbase.
James Ball and Teodora Beleaga, MPs' £1.8m in perks revealed, The Guardian, 10 April 2012.
"There are a number of ways to funnel money into all-party groups, none of which are particularly clear," said Professor David Miller of the University of Bath, a director of Spinwatch. "Associate memberships, companies banding together to fund groups, and lobbying companies supplying services with no clear ultimate client are all issues. All-party groups perform some useful functions but these have been undermined by lobbying money."
Miller also warned that regulations covering "associate" groups, unofficial groups similar to APPGs which are not bound by even the restrictions on all-party groups, must be tightened.
Appointments, Times Higher Education, 23 February 2012.
University of Bath
David Miller
A newly appointed professor of sociology at the University of Bath aims to analyse the impact of terrorism studies as part of his new role. David Miller, previously professor of sociology at the University of Strathclyde, said that research on terrorism was of great interest to him, especially the extent to which terrorism experts' knowledge affected policy and the criminal justice system. "A better understanding of terrorism expertise might help to foster evidence-based decision-making," he said. "One result might be in avoiding miscarriages of justice based on questionable expertise." Professor Miller completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Glasgow, where he studied biological science. He then undertook his doctoral research with the Glasgow Media Group, after which he was a lecturer and then reader in film and media studies at the University of Stirling. He said of his shift into sociology: "Sociology is important because it looks at society as a whole, enabling a holistic understanding of how social structures and natural processes impinge on society. It provides context rather than just a look at processes, which for me is key to understanding how society works." He added: "I hope to play a key role in building research strategies and culture, and in particular, building interdisciplinary links within and beyond the department."
Rob Evans, 'Michael Gove criticised for awarding public funds to organisation he advised', The Guardian, 27 January 2012.
David Miller, of the Spinwatch pressure group, which campaigns for greater transparency in politics, said: "It is blindingly obvious that he should have stood aside, as this is a potential conflict of interest. This is another example of transparency rules in the UK being ineffectual and in serious need of overhaul." Miller first drew attention to Gove's advisory work for the trust.
2011
Adrian Roberts, Far-right racism 'played down by Tory think tanks', Morning Star, 2 August 2011.
David Miller took part in a discussion regarding Cybercrime on Newsnight Scotland, 27 July 2011:
Dahr Jamail, 'Murdoch's ambitions in the Middle East', Al Jazeera, 20 July 2011.
Professor David Miller, a sociologist at Scotland's Strathclyde University and co-founder of the media watchdog group Spinwatch, told Al Jazeera that he feels the Sky News Arabia venture is "unsafe".
"I don't know what the regulating authority would be in this case, but it certainly does not bode well for a news organisation to have Sky or NewsCorp involved at all."
Daniel Goldberg, Call for Papers: Paranoia and Pain, Medical Humanities Blog, 8 July 2011.
Letters, Can we restore faith in a fair land? Topic of the week The ‘two nations’ speech Who’s looking after Scheme children? Joining together to fight the cuts The word genocide is being misused, Sunday Herald, 5 June 2011.
2010
David Miller appeared on BBC Radio 4 to discuss lobbying, 22 March 2010.