Glasgow East by-election: Cyberwar as blogger targets Sturgeon

Published on Friday 18 July 2008 22:05

THE struggle to win the Glasgow East by-election has been turned into a cyberwar between some of Scotland's most ardent bloggers after one targeted Nicola Sturgeon, the Deputy First Minister.

Kezia Dugdale, who works for Labour MSP Lord George Foulkes, alleged on her Soap Box blog that Ms Sturgeon was kicked out of a shopping centre while campaigning for the SNP. Nobody has backed up the claim and Ms Dugdale received an e-mail from Ms Sturgeon demanding she remove the blog.

But when Ms Dugdale refused and claimed she could stand the story up, it provoked a series of counter blogs, with the SNP apparently briefing its supporters to go on the attack. But one blogger, writing at SNPtacticalvoting.blogspot.com and known to be sympathetic, changed his mind and decided Ms Dugdale might be correct.

Ms Dugdale said: "I can't believe the SNP have devoted so much time taking on my blog. We've got a C difficile crisis in our hospitals. As health secretary, shouldn't Ms Sturgeon be sorting that out?"