A reader has urged the media to stop referring to far-right activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon by his pseudonym Tommy Robinson, arguing that doing so amplifies his invented persona.
In a letter to the editor, Brian Davison of Edinburgh expressed puzzlement at the consistent use of the phrase “Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon” in news reports, followed by continued use of “Robinson”. He said this practice reinforces the activist’s self-created image, which evokes a working-class hero from the First World War.
Davison suggested that the phrase should be reversed to “Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, who calls himself Tommy Robinson”, and that a more radical approach would include explaining the origins of his pseudonym to undermine his cult of personality.
He noted that the activist is now well-known enough that the media no longer needs to use his pseudonym at all.
