It's usually The Sun or The Daily Mail that we have to sigh about when they get science and video games and reality wrong.
Today... it's Piers Moron's old paper The Daily Mirror and ace journalist Andrew Gregory who are front and centre. Andrew has already brought the world such great stories as 'Kissing other people with Noro virus can give you Noro virus' aka "Christmas kiss off: Festive parties are spreading winter vomiting bug, experts warn". Now he's managed to get "Cancer", "Kids" and "Video games" into one story.
The hack also manages to get easily quotable academic "Expert" Professor Stuart Biddle, "sedentary behaviour expert from Loughborough University" or "Emeritus Visiting Fellow of Research Professorship of Sitting Studies" as we prefer to call him to say this:
"Of course exercise is important, it must be done regularly and parents should continue to encourage this. But that should not mean children can then spend hours on the sofa when they are back at home.
"That is the same as adults playing sport and then having a cigarette afterwards."
Yes, THE SAME AS SMOKING A FAG! Which MEANS GETTING CANCER!
Basically the story is wrenched from the guts of a report from the World Cancer Research Fund - which it doesn't reference but which we do - that was press released as follows: "Cut TV time to reduce risk from chronic disease" and which states:
"People should cut the number of hours spent watching television – which add up to 13½ years over an average lifetime – to reduce their risk from chronic disease...
"Sedentary behaviour – when minimal energy is spent, such as when sitting or lying down – is not just the absence of physical activity but is a separate behaviour in its own right. It is prevalent in all aspects of life: workers can spend most of the day sitting at a desk; leisure time often consists of long hours in front of a television; and modern transport, whether public or private, also encourages sedentary behaviour."
The Mirror says... "the World Cancer Research Fund has issued a fresh warning over kids who exercise and still turn to games and the TV."
Erm... we think that Andrew Gregory should probably get out and away from his screen more.
Today... it's Piers Moron's old paper The Daily Mirror and ace journalist Andrew Gregory who are front and centre. Andrew has already brought the world such great stories as 'Kissing other people with Noro virus can give you Noro virus' aka "Christmas kiss off: Festive parties are spreading winter vomiting bug, experts warn". Now he's managed to get "Cancer", "Kids" and "Video games" into one story.
The hack also manages to get easily quotable academic "Expert" Professor Stuart Biddle, "sedentary behaviour expert from Loughborough University" or "Emeritus Visiting Fellow of Research Professorship of Sitting Studies" as we prefer to call him to say this:
"Of course exercise is important, it must be done regularly and parents should continue to encourage this. But that should not mean children can then spend hours on the sofa when they are back at home.
"That is the same as adults playing sport and then having a cigarette afterwards."
Yes, THE SAME AS SMOKING A FAG! Which MEANS GETTING CANCER!
Basically the story is wrenched from the guts of a report from the World Cancer Research Fund - which it doesn't reference but which we do - that was press released as follows: "Cut TV time to reduce risk from chronic disease" and which states:
"People should cut the number of hours spent watching television – which add up to 13½ years over an average lifetime – to reduce their risk from chronic disease...
"Sedentary behaviour – when minimal energy is spent, such as when sitting or lying down – is not just the absence of physical activity but is a separate behaviour in its own right. It is prevalent in all aspects of life: workers can spend most of the day sitting at a desk; leisure time often consists of long hours in front of a television; and modern transport, whether public or private, also encourages sedentary behaviour."
The Mirror says... "the World Cancer Research Fund has issued a fresh warning over kids who exercise and still turn to games and the TV."
Erm... we think that Andrew Gregory should probably get out and away from his screen more.