Mark Thomas in this week’s New Statesman:

The arms manufacturer General Electric, maker of the engines for the F-16 fighters that fly over the occupied territories, and recipient of US aid via foreign sales, owns NBC Universal. Universal bankrolls Working Title Films in a partnership deal. Working Title pays Richard Curtis to write its films. Richard Curtis is one of the founders of Red Nose Day and a fellow wristband-wearer . . . Love Actually? Er, money, actually.

In other news…

Red Pepper: Make Poverty History in turmoil over new wristband scandal

Clothing and shoe shops across the UK, owned by the Scottish multi-millionaire business tycoon and philanthropist, Tom Hunter, who is bankrolling the Make Poverty History campaign to the tune of £1million, are selling the coalition’s special white anti-poverty wristbands branded with the logos of companies campaigners accuse of violating workers’ rights in developing countries.

As lofty and above reproach as MPH’s aims are, somebody in their upper echelons needs to get a grip and soon before wheels start falling off. This kind of stuff isn’t exactly rocket science and MPH help nobody by continually giving their detractors (and yes, supporters) the sticks to beat them with.

Putting Geldof back in his box for a bit would be a start. They’re queuing up to give him a going over - Claire Short and Andy Kershaw being just the latest.

I’d argue that the column inches devoted to Kershaw could have been better used by highlighting what arms sales and privatisation have done to Africa but I’m not an editor of a national newspaper and attacking Geldof clearly sells papers right now.

He’s now the story and you don’t have to be Alastair Campbell to know that that’s bad news.