One hacked tweet yesterday and the DOW plunges 100 points, only to regain it all in a matter of minutes. The AP twitter account has been restored this afternoon, the offending tweet deleted, and normality returns to the markets…

A big scoop for the Guardian’s home affairs editor Alan Travis…

David Cameron about to confirm temporarily withdrawing from the european convention of human rights to enable sending Qatada back to Jordan—
Alan Travis (@alantravis40) April 24, 2013

…but one that will remain exclusive. Theresa May has confirmed withdrawal has not been agreed, so a spectacular misfire from the Guardian. Home Office sources tell Guido they have no idea where the briefing is coming from. Oops.

The Sun having some fun at the Loverson lovers’ expense today.

“No indication of huge Romanian-Bulgarian influx”, is the BBC spin from their poll of potential migrants to the UK. The reassuring results show just 4.2% of Bulgarians and 1% of Romanians are making definite plans to come to Britain in 2013 or 2014. For some reason the Beeb haven’t mentioned how that translates into actual real numbers. 4.2% of 4.67 million working age Bulgarians equals 196,140, and 1% of 15.3 million working age Romanians equates to 153,000, making a pretty daunting total of 349,140. Not that you’d hear that number from the BBC themselves…

A month ago in his Sun column Guido revealed that UKIP are already up and running on the ground in Portsmouth South in anticipation that self-confessed teen fondler Mike Hancock will be forced out, triggering a by-election. Today Farage has confirmed he is predicting a by-election this summer, telling a press gallery lunch that he thinks UKIP will win. Dave will note the several Tory MPs quaffing Merlot with the hack pack as Farage confessed he had been a frequenter of lap-dancing establishments, laid into Leveson and endorsed Gove for PM. He knows his audience…

Taking Polly Toynbee’s increasingly fact-free rants with a pinch of salt is generally good advice, but there is a difference between her standard spin and a complete falsehood. In a typical Gove-bashing piece for the Guardian today Polly asserts:

“Gove, calling for payment by results, cited Singapore’s high-achieving school system, “where expectations are higher”. What he didn’t say is that Singapore, like top performer Finland, is one of the most equal of developed nations. As his government drives up inequality, his schools face an ever tougher task compensating for the society they inhabit.”

Only Singapore isn’t one of the most equal developed nations. In fact, it is one of the most unequal. The country is currently dealing with one of the most severe income gaps in the world, indeed it has one of the highest Gini coefficients – the standard measure used to gauge inequality – of developed countries. But why let the facts get in the way of your see-through agenda, eh Polly?

Congratulations to the Huffington Post. Not only have they managed to recycle discredited BBC polling information into a story…

…They’ve also managed to get some of their much loved side-boob in too. Double boobs.

From next Monday @cg_williams is the new Telegraph tech and telecoms editor. @kerushton becomes US business editor.—
Media Guido (@MediaGuido) April 22, 2013

Note that the Telegraph dropped “Media” from Rushton’s old job title – Chris Williams will be just Technology & Telecoms editor. The Barclay brothers don’t like hacks sniffing round secretive media businesses…

Suspended on his first day…

UPDATE: He has now been given the push:

Unfortunately KFYRTV has decided to let me go. Thank you to them and everyone in ND for the opportunity and everyone for the support.—
A.J. Clemente (@ClementeAJ) April 22, 2013

UPDATE II:

@GuidoFawkes Goodbye AJ. Top tip: Never ever ever swear anywhere near a mic or a camera. It might be live. Oh, I guess he knows that now!—
Glen Oglaza (@glenoglaza1) April 22, 2013

Culture Secretary Maria Miller is rather chirpy this morning that the government have won their case in the ECHR  against opening the door to the freedom for political parties to reach a wider broadcast audience:

“We welcome the fact that the European Court has upheld the UK’s blanket ban on political advertising.  Political adverts are – and have always been – banned on British TV and radio.  That ban has wide support and has helped sustain the balance of views which is at the heart of British broadcasting – and ensures the political views broadcast into our homes are not determined by those with the deepest pockets.”

Pity.

UPDATE: PA has more:

“An animal rights group has narrowly lost a bid to open up paid political advertising in the UK. Human rights judges in Strasbourg ruled in a 9-8 test case verdict that Government refusal to allow Animal Defenders International to screen a TV advert promoting animal rights was not a breach of ADI’s freedom of expression.”

It was close…