KICK PARTISAN ‘JOURNALISTS’ OUT OF PRESS BOXES

THE fans alleged to have

attacked two German radio commentators when West Ham played Eintracht Frankfurt last week will be banned indefinitely from the London Stadium. Rightly so. They are two-bob thugs who rained blows on people who were at work, and sitting down, unable to fight back or even defend themselves. Get them out, and get them out for good. There are increasing problems, though, with partisan press boxes. It is not unusual these days to be in the presence of fans with laptops or microphones, particularly at European games. Goals are celebrated, commentaries are blatantly biased and emotional. Every major club has an everexpanding media department taking up room, plus statistical analysts, often wearing club kit. And press boxes tend to be embedded in the heart of the home support, hemmed in on all sides. Flashpoints occur. A partisan radio crew following Paris Saint-Germain nearly sparked a riot with their celebrations when David Luiz scored a late winning goal for them at Chelsea a few years back. Television companies have given up all pretence of impartiality and now show their presenters and commentators celebrating, even singing like supporters during games. This doesn’t excuse what happened at West Ham, but may explain why confrontation occurs. If journalists behave like fans, fans will treat them like fans. If you want to support your team, buy a ticket: this is the press box.