No one could say that I have been blind to the ubiquitous power of the Liberal Establishment and its grip, in Britain no less than in America, on the newspapers and television: but even I have been startled and rather frightened by the viciousness and unanimity of its response to Goldwater. The Times, the Sunday Times, and the BBC, all of which pride themselves on their public spirit and lofty impartiality, have been the very worst. The Times abandoned all pretense at keeping news coverage separate from editorial comment; its long, prominently displayed reports from San Francisco were positively hysterical. The Sunday Times ran its analysis of the voting under the headline “Goldwater Annihilates Reason.” The BBC commentator said that a victory for Goldwater would be “a victory for ignorance, prejudice and extremism.” Extracts from Goldwater’s speeches were almost invariably followed by a warning that “many people” regard him as highly dangerous.
It is not surprising, therefore, that even right-wing Conservatives in Britain tend to regard Goldwater as (in the words of one of them) “rather a horror.” I heard one young man say, waving his arms about excitedly: “If Goldwater becomes President, it will be the end of the world—quite literally, the end of the world.” And no one was disposed to disagree with him. I have not met a single person with a kind word for Goldwater, and I do not move in left-wing circles.
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