The Director of BBC News, Helen Boaden, has just sent out this chatty email to all her staff today:

Dear All,

We have had some occasions recently of BBC News staff using social networking sites to share with the world their somewhat controversial opinions on matters of public policy and the future of the BBC. Unsurprisingly, these have been picked up by the wider web and used to discredit the BBC and its impartiality. We have Editorial Guidelines which cover the personal use of the internet …which everyone should observe. We also have brains and judgement which I suggest people fully engage before rushing to communicate. Hx

What she appears to be saying to Beeboids is “keep your opinions to yourself” lest the truth gets out. Yesterday Guido drew attention to the Thatcher-hating, Green-loving, Tory-bashing, anti-Israeli BBC News Editor Rachel Kennedy’s rather candid Twitter-stream of left-wing consciousness. Guido is watching, and the BBC bosses are reading…

UPDATE : The info-graphic below is taken from the www.order-order.com server logs for yesterday. It shows the top ten sources of visitors, notice that the BBC is, after parliament, the second biggest source of visitors, making up the rest is the usual mix; politicos, media hacks, bankers, Oxbridge wannabee politicos and media hacks. Associated Newspapers probably scores higher than News International because the Daily Mail’s Andrew Pierce keeps hitting the “refresh” button. There were some sixty odd thousand visitors yesterday…