Red Issue In Sensationalist Shocker

While United ended their night with a nervy finish to grab three vital points at Old Trafford, which brings them top of the Premier League; members of both Manchester clubs will have a bitter taste in their mouths for different reasons. Manchester City fans may slightly rejoice in the fact that no cameras will be present tonight to expose their teary eyes to the world but they'll still be upset. Meanwhile, many red supporters have been outraged by the obtuse cover of the Red Issue Fanzine which took the internet by fury this evening.

Maintaining firm ground on Twitter that their aim was not to have a dig at Fabrice Muamba, who collapsed and went into cardiac arrest during Bolton's game against Tottenham Hotspurs; the fanzine reiterated that their moral crusade was aimed towards the media circus surrounding the unfortunate incident and the feel-good yet fake sentiments demonstrated by sympathetic football enthusiasts.

One question that people might ponder in the next couple days is; why exactly is a Manchester United Fanzine going to such lengths and tabloid-like opportunism, similar to what one might expect from The Sun, to be the moral arbiter of society in something that does not connect to the club in any way shape or form on or off the pitch.

This might be an elaborate marketing or journalism gimmick where a relatively unknown author, such as this one, goes beyond the realms of common sense to say something outlandish in an attempt to gain more readership. However, Red Issue is a widely known Fanzine for one of the best supported clubs in the world and surely they must be aware of the hypocrisy prevalent in their actions, regardless of their intentions. If their aim was to promote their product then surely there's more ethical ways to go about it.

Where was the common sense or the ethical integrity of their editorial team when one of their idiot-savant writers decided to show them a picture of Fabrice Muamba in a clinically dead state with a speech bubble on top of the medical team asking; Is he dead?

If there's anything we've learnt off the pitch this season from the Liverpool guide to public relations; it's that regardless of their intentions, they've managed to deeply offend a large portion of the public and defiant justification will only create more problems for them. Simply stated; they should start preparing a very good apology statement.

In the meantime, Red News and United We Stand are two fanzines that should be covering what brought us all together in the first place; Football and a love for Manchester United.