I have no doubt that the case of missing Madeleine McCann will someday become the stuff of multiple academic textbooks for students of marketing, journalism, media, politics and purveyors of snakeoil. Indeed, at one time, Clarence Mitchell, proudly boasted his success, as too did the 'make the lie become the truth' 'Crisis' management companies who swiftly jumped onboard.
It will be hard now for any of them to claim credit for the amazing campaign, and in fact some of the prominent names have long since distanced themselves from the McCann case, especially now, as the truth emerges. And it was an amazing campaign, the like of which we have never seen before, within hours of Madeleine going missing, it was established that the child had been abducted and the parents were one step away from being saints (soon put right with a visit to the Pope). They were presented as distraught (but responsible) parents, to whom something terrible had happened.
That a group of British doctors left their very young, and some sick, babies and toddlers alone night after night in their holiday apartments, distracted from the main story, and in view of what happened, it was spiteful to point it out. Thus the 'hater/pitchforker' myth was born. Anyone pointing out that the Emperor wasn't wearing any clothes, became a social outcast, criticising the parents was on par with kicking puppies or voting UKIP.
An image was created. The perfect family went on a perfect holiday with their perfect friends. They were the cream of British society, aspirational parents who rose above their humble beginnings to form the solid middle class who put the 'Great' in Britain. The complete opposite of the free thinking libertarians who would tear the barriers down, the McCanns were educated, law abiding church goers, who not only respected the dominant ideology, they promoted it.
As medical professionals, they were contributing members of the community. With their posh house, 3 perfect children, devotion to their family and physical fitness, they portrayed the lifestyle that all good people should aspire to. They never quarrelled, even after the most traumatic incident anyone could experience, and they didn't turn to booze and drugs, they turned to God.
The goodness and perfection of this family is almost Disneyesque. Three toddlers sit quietly on the couch reading, while their mother has a leisurely shower and their father plays tennis. Three toddlers who behave perfectly, happily going off to the crèche without a whine or protest, and falling asleep within moments of being put to bed. While the rest of the adults and the babies within the holiday group were going down with diarrhea and sickness, the McCann holiday household was Pleasantville - vomit, poo, tantrum and stress free. Up until Madeleine disappeared 'it had been the perfect holiday'. Indeed. Taking 3 kids under 4 on holiday is a piece of cake. They were in no way troubled by anything, ergo, they couldn't possibly be involved in their daughter's disappearance.
As clean living, white, middle class professionals they became British Ambassadors 'for children' almost immediately with the launch of their European Tour and the Government of the day assisted them by throwing open the doors of their Embassies around the world and lining up diplomats to receive them. The following year, they again represented British parenting with their calls for an Amber Alert (a back door way in which to collect data on the public), their own lost child merely being a blip in their perfection.
Unlike the majority of families hit by tragedy, the McCanns' relationship became stronger. They never blamed themselves, and they never blamed each other. In fact, they dealt with the guilt and blame issue perfectly within the first 48 hours. It was everyone else's fault, except their own and they would name, shame, hound and sue anyone who said different. They had a much wider agenda.
The McCanns and their spin team stirred up public outrage that such a 'nice family' could have something so terrible happen to them. Gerry's mother summed it up perfectly 'how could anyone do this to a Doctor!'. The nicer the family, the more outrageous the accusations against them seemed, and Gerry reinforced their niceness each day with his child friendly toppings and mince and tatties, so his audience could say, 'wow, even though K & G are way above us on the evolutionary scale, they eat the same things as us, that is soooo endearing'. And Kate reinforced her humility with her soft 'Lady Di, Queen of Hearts' smiles and hugs for the less fortunate who joined her in prayer and reached out to touch her on her walkabouts.
Kate - The Voice for Children |
With the best spin doctors, crisis managers and lawyers the Madeleine Fund (not a charity) could buy, the McCanns were sanitised to a point where they became untouchable. And to a point where they actually believe their own manufactured image. In their own eyes and with their own supersize sense of entitlement, they feel that it is they who have been 'wronged', all their dreams shattered by a small group of saddoes on the internet who are jealous of them.
Gerry, the Voice for Hacked Off libel claimants |
The McCanns had clear goals. They wanted to be so much more than grief stricken parents. They wanted to be heroes, icons, role models and they wanted public recognition for their good works. Kate wanted to be the 'Voice for Children', Gerry wanted to be the 'Voice for Hacked Off' (and much, much, more). Unfortunately, neither of them had the charisma to pull it off - they only get really enthusiastic when they are raising money for themselves.
Unfortunately for them, they lack amiability and warmth, they are restricted to one (very unhappy) subject - game shows and light hearted current affairs are out. Tis my belief, it was Gerry's agenda to create an Organisation similar to the multimillion dollar NCMEC (Nation Centre for Missing and Exploited Children) in the US, with himself the UK equivalent of TV personality, John Walsh. Who can forget Gerry's gleeful little face on the Whitehouse lawn. I think that dream was shared by a few others. After Madeleine went missing, Kate realised the global extent of child abduction, child trafficking etc she told us. Having experienced the tragedy firsthand, both Kate and Gerry pushed themselves to the forefront of child protection, sharing the breakfast sofa with the Head of CEOP and reminding us regularly that our children are in constant danger.
Gerry with Ernie Allen NCMEC at the Whitehouse |
It is a fact of life that people like the McCanns will capitalise on peoples' natural generosity when faced with a tragedy, our instinct is to sympathise and offer help, it is what makes us human, though we see it in the animal world too, when one creature will go to the assistance of another in distress. Predators will capitalise on this human instinct, because they see sympathy and empathy as a weakness. They see people below them on the evolutionary scale (most of us, their own self esteem goes through the roof) as easy prey. We are not clever enough to work out what they are doing. They don't fear us, they despise us, because we are so easy to manipulate. For them it is a game, look closely at their videos, they are laughing at us.
Aren't we clever? |
How do we know, we are just here to discuss the Fund
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Please Give Generously |
Multimillion book deal. Sweet! |
The McCanns turned themselves into icons that the masses could worship. 'You are so brave' swooned Lorraine, 'yeh, more of that sweetcheeks' Gerry replies 'the Missus and I are hoping for honours, a life peerage at least, 'it's not many who get a standing ovation from an audience of police.
We had at home with Kate, the perfect mother, at work with Gerry, the perfect Doctor and partying with our favourite couple and other celebrities at Kensington Roof Gardens - with Kate in a dress designed for a Baptist hoedown and Gerry suitably attired to give a bible reading after. I don't like to say they are manipulating us, but they have been preparing for high office since they first appeared jogging together in matching outfits and giving us accounts of their perfect lives.
The McCanns perfect lives and parenting bears little resemblance to the reality that is familiar to most mums and dads. A home with a toddler is a battleground from dusk to dawn. Jerry Seinfeld put far better than I, having a toddler in the home is akin to leaving the top off the liquidiser. We can't control them, they can't control themselves. No, means No, for less than 5 minutes, they have the attention span of a goldfish, 'oh look, there's a castle, oh look, there's castle'.
The problem the politicians have, and politics lies at the heart of this, is the sheer volume of rich, famous and powerful people who became involved, people who will find it very difficult to explain that they didn't know what was going on. The first two policemen on the scene (referred to by Kate as Tweedledum and Tweedledee in her book), knew immediately that the scene was staged, yet the British government intervened in the investigation to the point where the lead detective was removed. Some might say people in high office perverted the course of justice.
The Establishment defended their intervention by promoting the McCanns as the perfect British Family and putting the blame onto Johnny Foreigner. Portugal were portrayed as a third world country, with corrupt police who couldn't find the abductor so they were blaming Kate and Gerry. Both the British government and the British media bought and promoted dialogue that was coming directly from 2 of the 3 arguidos, choosing to believe Kate and Gerry over the Portuguese police!
There is no real defence to the 'abduction' story, there is NOTHING tangible to back it up, even now 8 years on, there is no proof that Kate and Gerry had nothing to do with their daughter's disappearance. If there were anything that categorically proved the McCanns were innocent, their super efficient media monitoring machine would have shouted it from the rooftops and we could all go home. Proving over and over again, what a nice family they are, just ain't cutting the mustard.
This case is a perfect example of the power of the internet and social media. For the McCanns it was the best thing since sliced bread - they were getting a million hits a day on their website, and they were waking to the kerching of their paypal donate button. All the while Gerry had control of what was appearing online, the world was his own personal jet and 5* hotel. He was hobnobbing at the Whitehouse and planning an annual 'Madeleine Day for the Whole World' something involving Elton John, something Arts, something Sports, something on the scale of Comic Relief and Save the World, with all the proceeds going to the Madeleine Fund (not a Charity). Unfortunately he lacks the chutzpah of Jimmy Swaggart, so it never really took off.
Far from telling Gerry to go and have a lie down with a mind improving book (not Mein Kampf), he was besieged by similarly minded megalomaniacs who could see quite a lot in it for themselves. Birds of a feather and all that. People like Mitchell and Gamble who hover on the periphery of tragedy, feigning empathy whilst screaming inside 'what about me?'.
Having spent a lifetime studying human behaviour, I have to confess, it is the psychological aspects of this case that captivated me, more particularly how to spot a lie/liar. Kate and Gerry truly believe that we are buying what they are selling, they believe it to such an extent, that they keep appearing on our TV screens to sell us some more. They either have advisors who are inept, sycophants (who have the meter running), or they simply refuse to listen.
Vanity too plays a role and indeed vengeance. 'Here I am at the White House, here we are with Oprah Winfrey, Clement Freud, Hugh Grant and with bestie Lorraine on the breakfast sofa, so in your face you lowlife scum'.
What a stupid question, who are you? Don't fuck with me! |
Unfortunately for Kate and Gerry, their love of the limelight digs them deeper and deeper into a hole. Their odd behaviour attracts students of psychology, body language and forensic linguistics, spotting the 'tells' in every interview is an enlightening process, when you learn to spot a liar, the world changes.
The experts 100%, unreserved, belief is based on 'the parents couldn't possibly be involved because they are far too nice'. Crimes such as these are committed by chavs, drug users, alcoholics and low lives, not nice respectable families. And if we dare to believe or even think otherwise then the whole fabric of our society breaks down. And that's a pretty good reason to cover up the truth.
One of the best blogs you have ever written cristobell
ReplyDeleteI second that.
DeleteAbsolutely brilliant. Spot on.
ReplyDeleteFor those familiar with the German language.
ReplyDeleteLast night an audience of 10 Million watched an episode of the long running crime series Tatort Bremen, entitled 'Die Wiederkehr' (the return) on the state ARD TV (available on youtube now) I know it's just fiction but the similarities to the case we are discussing are baffling.
Spoiler alert:
child goes missing - 7 years ago - drunk father is first suspect - he had an alcoholic blackout, the night the child went missing - father hangs himself in the cells following his interrogation
- present day - a girl appears on the family's doorstep with a crumpled 'Wanted' poster of herself in her hand- claiming to be the missing child.
A DNA test confirms that she is the missing person - or does it?
A truly labyrinthine plot, made me sit up anyroad - central question being - if a manipulation of the control DNA occurs - should one not look at the party that supplied the control DNA?
The lab, any lab can only compare samples put in front of it - not question the
provinence of the samples.
Am I correct in assuming we should be questioning the DNA supplied by Gerry McCann.
DeleteOoops another senior moment: it's provenance of course
DeleteIMO - and to answer your question: the blog owner decides what's being discussed/questioned on their blog.
Sounds very interesting 19:42, and as you say, not too dissimilar to Madeleine's story.
DeleteRegarding the DNA, I am sure there is much still to come. It is baffling that there was no clear DNA from Madeline. Where were the dirty clothes she wore that day, the beads she had in hair as seen in the last photo, her toothbrush, her hairbrush, all the obvious sources? Why was Kate so keen to do the laundry on Saturday 5th May? Why should DNA be among the areas of suspicion?
I don't for one second think there is cloning or anything like that involved, I think it is more a case of trying to prove any traces of death found, belonged to anyone other than Maddie. But who knows with this case? I suspect the longer the investigation drags on, the deeper the rabbit hole. A straight forward case of child abduction would not drag on for 5 years. Even cases of notorious serial killers who remain on the loose, are not allocated unlimited taxpayers money and a dedicated team of 30+ homicide detectives to track them down.
The lack of DNA however suggests a clean up and staging.
correction to the above: the girl claiming to be the disappeared child, has a 'Missing' poster in her hand rather than a 'Wanted' poster apols.
ReplyDeleteGreat stuff Linda .Back on form I see xx
ReplyDeleteLet's see if they, especially him, are still laughing when the investigation starts digging in the right place.
ReplyDeleteNot in Murat's garden, and not in Carpenter's imaginary and weirdly mysterious Luz garage!
It was like a capsule, lol! Priceless!
Who was it that said: " if you're going to tell a lie, tell 95% of the truth, just remember to mix it up a bit?" Even geography, age and gender is not out of bounds.
A three-year-old girl, or an eight-year-old boy? Given the quality of the photographs, the fact that the PJ declared 'everybody lies', and the layered video images, nothing would surprise me.
Absolutely nothing!
Hopefully, Nicola Wall is the 'closer' she is 'purported' to be. I reckon she is.
ReplyDeleteJust a thought, if you don't mind? Does anyone remember the name of the Portuguese journalist who, allegedly, traced the origins of the fund's registration back to 2006?
ReplyDeleteI believe he became sick, he was pretty active in the early days though, and was a proper, thorough, old-fashioned style journalist.
Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I seem to remember his first name was Paulo or similar.
Thanks in advance.
Paulo Reis? He sort of disappeared from the McCann scene to a job abroad I think. However he seems to be in the mix again lately ...good!!
DeleteHappy St Paddy's Day, I wonder if they are raising a glass in Joe People's Bar?
ReplyDeleteWhat, it doesn't exist .... no way man, but the newspapers, but Clarence, but but but, don't tell me, it's fantasy and reality blurred, it can't be, surely only the media and Hollywood do that.
Pure pantomime and hidden secrets, until you listen to aunty Phil, that is, or Kate - she's in a house with a couple. Also, a nice house was mentioned, has Kate been trying to tell the truth all along?
Serious question.
Middle class couple secures mortgage with Northern Rock (interest rates?) then proceed to apply for planning permission twelve weeks later, why?
ReplyDeleteYes exactly.
DeleteI have never thought of them as middle class though. They just got lucky.
Yes indeed, they did get lucky on the unsuspecting public's money!!
DeleteAnd there's nothing middle-class/superior about someone with a gob like a sewer, as much as they'd like us to believe they are.
No way have they ever been in the middle-class bracket. I would really like to see their medical qualifications for one. Not to mention they obviously studied in the Blair babes era, that should speak volumes.
DeleteWhy did melting Mitch say: "Jon Corner has played a big part in this?"
ReplyDeleteWe have a right to know!
Where was Paul Seddon working in December 1998? Hawaiian shirts and friendship stories don't cut the mustard in a court of law.
ReplyDeleteSuperb blog Cristobell. Never one to let her readers down, certainly got them sussed!
ReplyDeleteI wonder how much longer we are going to have to wait for some news good, or bad, about the libel case. It seems the Portuguese justice system are having difficulty deciding whether the McCann's were damaged by Dr Amarals book. Or could there be another reason for the delay in the summing up.
Excellent summing up Cristobell.
ReplyDeleteIf all else fails, attack the McCann family.
ReplyDeleteDesperate times me thinks Cristobell.
You have made no attempt to rebut a single word I have said 23:21, so if all else fails attack the messenger eh?
DeleteThat certainly does seem to be the modus operandi of McCann supporters, I agree!
DeleteAttack is the only form of defence for those with a weak or non-existent case.
The only failings I can see at the moment is getting justice for Madeleine!!
ReplyDeleteExcellent read.
ReplyDeleteMany thanks 17:19, perhaps it is due for another airing.
DeleteIs there any truth to this story?
ReplyDeletehttps://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071203045735AAtviVp
Great post, Rosalinda!! Thank you x
ReplyDeleteexcellent article!!
ReplyDeleteBrillant post! One of the best I have ever read on this case. Spot on... The McCanns thought they could take everyone for a ride and they did for quite some time. (Although there were of-course those who did not believe them from the outset - not just those on the scene early on but also some less gullible members of the public.)
ReplyDeleteThe McCanns downfall in my opinion is that they did not keep their heads down when the case was shelved. If they had disappeared into obscurity at this point I think they could have got away lawyered up. I think one of the top honchos at Carter Ruck has boasted that the McCann case was one of the highlights of his career or words to the effect. What a worm. More like one of the low-lights I would have thought. That poor child has been denied justice and look how many people got rich off the back of her mysterious disappearance and almost certain death. It has to be one of the biggest scandals of the decade if not decades in terms of a missing person case.
Where there's muck there is brass and there was no shortage of vultures feeding off the spoils of the case (as in Carter Ruck). The Fund was a huge success thanks to some clever marketing ('a good marketing ploy' - Gerry) and that, along with some generous sponsors, lined the pockets of the spin doctors, lawyers, PR and marketing people and reputation managers. Not to mention the angel of death Clarence Mitchell who seems to pop up whenever people die in mysterious (and often gruesome) circumstances. I don't think Mitchell would have been assigned this case if a death had not been involved.
It's incredible how, despite spending all that money on so-called professionals, the McCanns actually received some very poor advice. Why were they allowed to parade the twins around giving them huge exposure in the media when the big bad abductor was still on the loose supposedly?
ReplyDeleteThe media interviews were hugely ill-advised. The pair are the most shocking actors and their body language gives them away time and time again. While over time they learnt the double or even triple bluff (Kate's curled lip for instance to indicate that the crying incident was unimportant despite despite having become very agitated while talking about it in a very early TV interview.)
The pair seem to have devised their own code while in interviews - a light tap on the shoulder by Gerry or a squeeze on the hand when Kate's 'Saint' mask starts slipping. Gerry did his best not to lose his temper or become agitated in interviews but he did storm out once (the dogs were always a sore point) and Paxman clearly got his measure and couldn't stand him.
One of the best interviews is the TV interview with the Irish journalist. I think he plays the pair beautifully. He disarms them with flattery which they both adore as they are both hugely narcissistic, imo. Once their guard is down the interviewer cuts to the chase and asks them about their row that week. This is clearly a biggie and as you quite rightly say Rosalina there is no way that week was a bundle of laughs. Holidays with three children under four are not relaxing. The twins were at the most demanding age. The airport bus video showing Gerry hunched broodily on the bus, completely disengaged with his children, and swearing that he was not there to enjoy himself gives the game away.
I think he perked up when he clapped eyes on the curvaceous quiz host, probably at the Saturday welcome meeting. I suspect this did not go unnoticed by Mrs. I would imagine that Gerry inviting the quiz host to the TM table on Tuesday evening would have raised a few eyebrows and I think Kate would have felt publicly humiliated. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned so they say. It is on record that Kate left the table early this evening and her mobile phone shows use when she returned to the apartment. (I think she phoned her friend Amanda whose husband is a toxicologist?)
This is the evening that neighbour Mrs Fenn hears crying coming from the apartment for an hour and a quarter. If this was indeed Madeleine crying that is a very long time indeed for a child of nearly four to cry. I think it is hugely suspicious, as is the fact that Mrs Fenn reports the crying stops abruptly when she hears the patio doors being opened or closed.
This must surely have been the night from hell for Kate? Her husband is getting boozed up at the dinner table while ogling the curvaceous and flirtatious quiz host and she storms off and is left to fume in the apartment while Madeleine (it would seem) becomes increasingly hysterical and screams out 'Daddy'. Under those circumstances, it perhaps becomes clearer why Kate was not consoling Madeleine. She was too busy trying to calm herself down to be able to calm down her daughter?
And, as Kate herself admits in an early TV interview when asked about the crying incident, she regrets that she did not properly sit down and get to the bottom of what had upset Madeleine so much. It is perfectly possible that Madeleine was not crying out for her father but was crying out her father's name because she had been upset by him. We know what Mrs Gaspar thought about his best friend David Payne.
tick tock....tick tock ....tick tock....
ReplyDeleteGerry is a sociopath .As for his scrawny wife ,she is not as docile as they would have us believe . To admit to neglect ,as a defence tells us there is some real nasty goings on that they would like too keep secret .I myself believe that Pedophilia is what is being hidden .
ReplyDelete