Editing Rod Liddle (section)

===''Independent'' editor rumour and Millwall supporters' website===
''The Guardian'' reported on 8 January 2010 that the expected purchase of ''The Independent'' by [[Alexander Lebedev]], a Russian billionaire, would be followed by the appointment of Liddle as editor.<ref>Sweney, Mark and Brook, Stephen. [https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/jan/08/rod-liddle-edit-independent "Rod Liddle lined up to edit Independent"], ''The Guardian'', 8 January 2010.</ref> [[Roy Greenslade]] wrote on 11 January that the reports were provoking a "major internal and external revolt" by ''The Independent'''s staff and readers.<ref>Greenslade, Roy. [https://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2010/jan/11/theindependent-simon-kelner "Independent faces revolt from staff and readers if Liddle becomes editor"], ''The Guardian'', 11 January 2010</ref> The stories about Liddle's posts on Millwall Online apparently further reduced the likelihood of his being offered the job.<ref name=Robinson/> Finally, on 19 February, Stephen Brook of ''The Guardian'' reported that Liddle was no longer in the running for the post.<ref>Brook, Stephen. [https://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2010/feb/19/rod-liddle-independent "Rod Liddle no longer in running for Independent editor"], ''The Guardian'', 19 February 2010</ref> [[Tim Luckhurst]], professor of journalism at the [[University of Kent]], argued that Liddle's prospects of editing ''The Independent'' were nullified "by the people behind a viciously intolerant campaign of liberal bigotry".<ref>Tim Luckhurst [https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2010/feb/19/rod-liddle-independent-editor "How the 'liberal' mob did Rod Liddle in"], ''The Guardian'', 19 February 2012</ref>

In January 2010, the press drew attention to allegedly racist and misogynist comments posted under the username "monkeymfc"—a name Liddle has used—on Millwall Online, a fan club web forum with no official connection to [[Millwall Football Club]]. Liddle attributed some of the comments to opposition fans logging in under his name to embarrass him. He later said he had written some of the posts that were being criticised, including one in support of the BNP excluding Black and Asian people from the party.<ref>Preston, Peter. [https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/jan/17/rod-liddle-alexander-lebedev-independent "Liddle plus Lebedev hardly adds up to Independent thinking"], ''The Observer'', 17 January 2010.</ref> Another post, in which he joked about not being able to smoke at [[Auschwitz]],<ref>{{cite news|last=Greenslade|first=Roy|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2010/jan/18/rod-liddle-theindependent|title=Mystery of racist postings made under Rod Liddle's website username|work=The Guardian|date=18 January 2010|access-date=19 May 2016}}</ref> led to his being asked to explain what he meant in ''[[The Jewish Chronicle]]''.<ref name=Robinson>James Robinson [https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/jan/22/rod-liddle-quip-auschwitz-millwall "Rod Liddle defends quip about Auschwitz on Millwall fans' forum"], ''The Guardian'', 22 January 2010</ref> While he said in June 2014 that his comments were taken out of context, he said that he did not regret making them. "No. Never. Absolutely not. I thought about my mates at Millwall Online, God I respect them so much more than these other people, these ghastly fucking people."<ref name="Hattenstone"/>