AN academic has called out controversial Talk TV host Julia Hartley-Brewer for “justifying” the type of violence that has erupted across England and Northern Ireland over the weekend.

Far-right riots broke out across the likes of Rotherham, Bolton and Sunderland at the weekend as trouble continues to mount following the killing of three children in Southport last Monday.

During a discussion on Talk TV about the unrest, Jonathan Portes – a professor of economics at Kings College London – called out particular broadcasters and journalists who he feels have helped to fuel such behaviour.

He initially criticised the platforming of Bernie Spofforth on the channel, who appears to have been one of the main figures who initially spread disinformation about the identification of the Southport suspect.

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Spofforth rose to prominence during the anti-lockdown movement.

Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, 17, was named as the suspect after restrictions were lifted on identifying him last week. 

Prior to this, false information had spread quickly online that he was an asylum seeker who had arrived in the UK by boat when he was actually born in Cardiff. 

Portes said on Talk TV: “It’s interesting that you mentioned Bernie Spofforth who was indeed the person who appears to have been the one who set off this false rumour about the incident in Southport because of course she appeared not once but several times on mainstream media, indeed on Talk TV a few years ago. That’s where she came to prominence.”

Portes then moved on to hit out specifically at Hartley-Brewer, whose show Spofforth had appeared on, as well as the likes of journalist Douglas Murray – who has previously been described by the Muslim Council of Britain as “deeply Islamophobic”. 

He went on: “Just to give you an illustration of what I mean, I have here a tweet from Julia Hartley-Brewer. This was sent shortly after a murderous rampage in Australia where she said, quote, ‘another day, another terror attack by another Islamist terrorist. Today it’s Australia’s turn, it’ll be our turn again next. How long do our government think we are going to put up with this?’

“She is a presenter on a mainstream media show here on Talk TV. She said that, that was also false, it wasn’t as it happened an Islamist terror attack in Australia, just was it wasn’t one in Southport.

“But if we think that what we’re seeing now doesn’t have anything to do with Julia Hartley - the attempted pogrom and murders in Rotherham, the riots in various places over the past few days - if we think that doesn’t have to do with Julia Hartley-Brewer and other people who appear in the mainstream media, the likes of Douglas Murray, Matt Goodwin and so on,  who appear not just on Talk TV but in The Times, The Sun, the Spectator, then we’re getting this wrong.

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“They may not explicitly call for violence but they certainly justify it, they say enough is enough, they try to excuse it. That is precisely what is going on.”

Portes added that social media has a “big part” to play in the violence, but it is the “interaction between the supposedly respectable media” and those on Twitter/X that is making matters “particularly dangerous”.

Media platforms including the BBC and ITV have also come under fire for their framing of events over the weekend.

Ed Balls came in for deep criticism for an “unacceptable” interview with MP Zarah Sultana.

During the interview, Balls and Sultana clashed on how the riots were being described with SNP MSP Elena Whitham among those to criticise Balls, saying: “Neither of those ‘anchors’ have any background training in journalism and boy, does it show in this condescending, bullying and frankly dismissive clip.”

Balls was also met with backlash for interviewing his wife and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, with several accusing him of bias.

Meanwhile, a BBC report from Bolton which described rioters as a “pro-British march” was met with fierce criticism with multiple people pointing out violence had not erupted in Scotland or Wales.

Talk TV has been approached for comment.