I haven't seen the article but I've read a little about it. I agree the apology has come way to late but I think the "move on" comment was with regard to the hatred of the sun rather than move on from thinking of the Hillsborough victims (The lessons from that day must never be forgotten - and all seater stadiums are not the answer - but that's another discussion)

I actually feel sorry for Rooney - he was 3 at the time and so didn't see the true horror happening. He sold his story to the Sun on the advise of his agents (and I believe Kenny Dalglish - manager at the time at Hillsborough is one of them - could be wrong on that though). Since he sold his story he has been roundly abused, called Judas etc and been subject to threats.

I do agree that the wording of the Sun's article is not very tactful though. Perhaps if they were to donate some money to the families of the Hillsborough victims it would help - can't see it happening though.

his age isn't really an excuse, im not that much older than him and i know all about the hillsborough disaster, and the sun's coverage of it... but then again, i do believe he has been guided in the wrong way by his management..
i agree whole heartedly with the opinion of a writer in the liverpool echo, who said that this apology is just to cause a stirr, so they can sell a few extra papers, as was there horrible coverage of the hillsborough disaster.
i think even if they donated money, it would never be enough, and would be seen as a false gesture, because it is far too late for making up... i think a lot of people's opinions are never going to change, as hard as the sun tries. As the UK's biggest selling newspaper, im sure they can do without the business of all the people who have boycotted the sun ever since that day, so i say they should just give it up.

They're the Sun, for goodness' sake. The. Sun. 'Nuff said, really!

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by Kneon Light

I actually feel sorry for Rooney - he was 3 at the time and so didn't see the true horror happening.

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So was I, it makes no difference. My dad and my uncle were there and I've seen the footage and documentaries more times than I'd care to count, you'd have to have been very sheltered to not have an understanding of the feelings it would stir up. I agree that he's been misguided by his agent but he must have had some idea of what would go on!

Alan - Sums it up really

Warning: please check the earth is still spinning the right way and the sky hasn't turned green; I'm about to defend the Scum.

The infamous headline was published under a completely different editor: he bears responsibility, not the newspaper. The Sun is now under different management. (Not literally cos it's still owned by Murdoch, but y'know.) There are many perfectly good reasons not to read the rag, but I don't think this is one of them.

As for Wayne Rooney, he's a 18-year-old kid who probably signed whatever deal had the most zeros and doesn't give a hoot about newspaper politics. I say leave the poor sod alone.

Crikey, I'm actually in agreement with Byron for once

*falls over in shock*

Oh God! My heart... it's... stopped in my chest... *clutches chest, falls off chair*

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by Byron
There are many perfectly good reasons not to read the rag ...

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by Whistler
Crikey, I'm actually in agreement with Byron for once

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STATEMENT FROM THE HILLSBOROUGH JUSTICE CAMPAIGN:

The Hillsborough Justice Campaign does not recognise the comments in today's edition of The Sun (7th July 2004) as a genuine or sincere apology for the lies it told in respect of the Hillsborough Disaster.

Any apology should be front page and stand in its own right - on a par with the original damning headline fifteen years ago. However, what we read is front page sensationalism regarding Wayne Rooney being threatened, backed up by a leader inside the paper which attempts to apologise followed by an attack on Liverpudlians.

Any attempt to convince us of the sincerity of their remorse is immediately negated by the context in which the apology occurs.

It is the view of the HJC that the article and commentary are an attack, once again, on the people of Liverpool. It is our belief that The Sun has seriously miscalculated the intelligence of Liverpool people who, we believe, will see through this cynical attempt to increase sales in the Merseyside region.

Hillsborough Justice Campaign
Justice for the 96

For more information on the HJC and the Hillsborough Disaster visit:

www.contrast.org/hillsborough



It doesn't matter wether it's the same editor, it's the same 'paper'. The kind of hatred felt towards the sun doesn't just go away, the memories of that day won't just suddenly stop hurting just because they've issued an apology. I understand that many none Liverpool fans or even none Everton fans can't truly understand the extent of the grief still felt or the refusal to accept the suns apology, but i don't think it will ever be enough. Fifteen years ago they used blatant lies about a grieving city to sell their paper, now they're using a half a*sed apology to try and do the same.

The apology was only even issued because they want to keep hold of Wayne Rooney's story and the fact is if he had any common sense AT ALL, no matter what his agent said he wouldn't have signed the deal. I refuse to believe someone can be THAT naive to think that everyone would go 'yeah ok, all is forgiven, Wayne's on the front so we'll buy it now'

It's not a case of him having a disinterest in newspaper politics, it's his obvious disregard for the feelings of everyone who lost a family member or a friend or was there on the day and who still can't forget watching people they saw every week at the matches crushed to death while the police looked on, the people who sat at home waiting to hear if one of those bodies on the pitch was their mother/father/brother/sister.

The disaster brought the red and blue sides of the city together and now that they can't get the Liverpool fans to forget, they're trying to divide the fans again and target the blues to sell their paper to. But the fact is, alot of them haven't forgotten either.

Wow I've just gone on one :s i think i'll go and calm down a little bit now! x

(Edited by Eve 11/07/2004 00:37)

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by Eve
The kind of hatred felt towards the sun doesn't just go away

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Not making light of any situation, but I'm quite curious to know what the sales of The Sun are like in the Liverpool area.

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by Teresa
(quotes)

Not making light of any situation, but I'm quite curious to know what the sales of The Sun are like in the Liverpool area.

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I don't know whether they're as bad as 15 years ago, but there are still a lot of people who won't buy it and newsagents who won't stock it in Liverpool.

I tend to agree with Byron, and there are so many other reasons not to buy The Sun. I wonder if the people who boycott it instead buy one of the similar titles with similar standards. Kinda hypocritical if they do.

I feel sorry for Rooney. While some people his age may have been told about the depth of feeling about the Sun on Merseyside, not everyone that age would. I'd have thought he'd have advisors who would have warned him.

Although the paper is under different management nowadays, they have still always turned away calls to apologise for the story. Now that pressure has been building on Rooney to pull his deal with the paper (a deal which given Rooney's popularity could potentially sell hundreds of thousands of extra copies), it seems difficult to believe that the apology is anything other than profit driven.

It might seem difficult for people who aren't from Liverpool (and some who are) to understand why the original stories where taken as they were, and why the feeling is still there today. A lot of people from Liverpool don't mind many of the stereotypes about the scally accent and tracksuits etc. mainly because they're true But being labelled as a criminal simply because of where you come from is another thing, especially when the crime rate in Liverpool is the lowest of any major city in the UK (and on a level with Cambridge). When it happens a couple of days after nearly 100 people have been tragically killed, it's no surprise that some people still won't touch the paper 15 years on.

It may be that the same people buy other papers of the same standard. But those other papers didn't print that story, and when the depth of feeling is that great, that's all that really matters to those people.

(Edited by DJ Billy 11/07/2004 17:15)

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by Teresa
(quotes)

Not making light of any situation, but I'm quite curious to know what the sales of The Sun are like in the Liverpool area.

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It sells 3.3 million copies nationwide, it only shifts about 12,000 in Liverpool.

A rival publication calculated that, given an average cover price of 20p over 15 years, the article has cost Rupert Murdoch around £55 million in lost circulation.