Cliffs Blog

Deftones - London ULU (12/05/10)

2010-05-13T09:49:00.000-07:00

There is more than a hint of surrealism in the air this evening as a larger-than-life band such as the Deftones packing themselves into a tiny venue in the centre of London certainly doesn’t happen that often. Walking around to join the end of the queue on this mildly chilly Wednesday night and it is plain to see the excitement plastered on the faces of the lucky few anxious to witness this rather special event.

Tonight the venue is packed to the rafters with a noticeably more mature audience, many of whom have undoubtedly grown up through the Sacramento 5-pieces’ various musical incarnations. As soon as they hit the stage it is easy to see why the Deftones have built and maintained such a loyal fan base over the years.

Kicking off with free download offering ‘Rocket Skates’ followed by new single ‘Diamond Eyes’, the band prove (not that they had to!) that they still have the ability to write songs that will transform a room into a mass of writhing bodies at the drop of a hat. The intimate venue can barely seem to contain the energy resonating from the stage and it seems at any moment the building will be ripped from it foundations. Unfazed by this, the band plow through a selection of new material with such total professionalism that you would be forgiven for thinking they have been playing these songs for years.

However tonight is not just about the new and ‘When Girls Telephone Boys’, ‘Lotion’ and ‘Feiticeira’ act as a stark reminder of the quality that lies within their extensive back catalogue. The crowd is made to turn back the years with ‘Be Quiet and Drive’ and a belting rendition of ‘My Own Summer (Shove It)’ and a new leaner-looking Chino Moreno controls the stage, climbing monitors and whirring his microphone above his head with admirable enthusiasm.

Man-mountain Steph Carpenter effortlessly grinds out a selection of the heaviest guitar riffs known to man as stand-in bass player Sergio Vega gives a noteworthy performance in control of the rhythm section.

My personal highlight of the night comes in the form of ‘Passenger’ from 2000’s landmark ‘White Pony’ album and although the track is flawless, there will always be an undeniable sense of disappointment when Tool’s Maynard James Keenan doesn’t appear through a cloud of smoke and lights to sing his parts.

As the hour and 45 min set draws to a close, the band pull out more old crowd-pleasers including ‘Root’ and rapturous sing along anthem ‘7 words’ from debut album 'Adrenaline'.

As the final chord rings out and the crowd begins to disperse, I can’t help but think how much the music world needs bands like the Deftones.

Long may they reign.

Set List

1. Rocket Skates
2. Diamond Eyes
3. Feiticeira
4. Elite
5. Knife Party
6. Passenger
7. CMND/CTRL
8. You've Seen the Butcher
9. Sextape
10. When Girls Telephone Boys
11. Minerva
12. Birthmark
13. Beauty School
14. Be Quiet and Drive (far away)
15. Around the Fur
16. Lotion
17. My Own Summer (shove it)
18. Back to School (mini maggit)
19. Change (in the house of flies)
Encore
1. Root
2. 7 Words

Documentary Clip Log

2010-03-09T04:17:00.000-08:00

These are the clip logs for a documentary being worked on by myself and Mark Lovell at University. There are two documentaries being made one filming of Winchester which will include Winchester from dawn to dusk (Doc 1). The other is a profile in the form of a 'day in the life of'. Our profile was a coffee shop worker (Doc 2).
Log of Shots (Doc 1)

Tape: Blue Ball Hill 06.35-7.15

Time Description

0- Dark, lights over city (speed up and watch sky go from dark to light/slight cloud movement)

35 secs Dark, lights of buildings in background (car lights up house)

[2.40] Car drives past (possible speed up/down)

[8.20] Car drives past

[28-30] Noticeably lighter

[37.30] Camera moves, GV chimney smokes/Cathedral in background

Tape: Winchester 7.15am – 8.00am

Time Description

0.00-0.40 Shaky camera

0.40-45.00 Nice shot over church + smoke (possible fast forward or rewind)

[3.20] Bird flying in shot

[39.00] Flock of birds flying

[40.00] Rain Starts

Tape: Magdalen Hill 8.30-9.15

Time Description

0- GV of cathedral, background and highstreet (people moving – speed up)

[1.30] GV of more chimney smoke (continuous)

[2.10] Bus comes into bottom right hand corner of shot

[3.50] Another Bus

[12.00] Another Bus (possibly use buses sped up)

0-16m Sped up, people/cars/clouds/mist/smoke all move fast

16-27 Rain drops start to hit screen, sped up looks more visible

Tape: Winchester 9.30am-10.20am

Time Description

0.00-3.20 Shaky footage (unusable)

3.20-6.00 Bus into shot - start of high street shot (speeded up)

8.15-8.47 Good shot of buses moving down high street

9.20-10.00 Work men on high street

10.30-48.00 Best shot of high street – people walking, traffic, post van. (speed up or slow down)

[15.50] Buses

Log of Shots (Doc 2)

Tape: Handycam First Hour

Time Description

0.00-3.15 Setting up

3.15-4.15 General shots of café

4.15-5.15 Sally making coffee

6.17-6.32 Sally serving drinks

10.20 Nice audio of steamer

11.45 Change to black and white

13.00 Unnamed girl at dishwasher

15.40 Signs on till (quick shot)

16.05 Sally making drinks

16.27 Menu shots (quick shot)

16.57 Roses shot next to till (quick shot)

17.40 Unnamed waitress doing cutlery

18.40 Back area GVs shelves, through window shot

20.45-23.15 Chatting and serving customer (nice close up shots)

23.55 Shot of till (no audio)

25.15-25.35 Three way chat

25.50-27.25 Sally loading dishwasher – bit of interaction with other staff

28.45-30.28 Mark making coffee (phone goes off - audio)

32.00 Steaming (good audio and shot of steam)

32.28 Sally coming up stairs

33.16 Sally walking down street

34.23-35.00 Folding napkins with chat (nice hands shot)

36.50 Brief shot through display (quick shot)

38.42-41.00 Website chap

41.10 Nice shot of Sally through tea bags (good) (quick shot)

41.45 Shot of Sally through display (nice) (quick shot)

43.31-44.22 Sally using machine (nice audio)

46.06 Accidental nice shot of cup (quick shot)

50.00 Open sign

50.20 Sally chat with customer (good chatty audio)

51.00 Taking bin downstairs

53.00-53.40 Zoom to newspaper date (no audio)

54.00-55.00 Sally chatting and laughing

56.00-56.45 Talking on phone (good shot and audio)

56.50 Nice close up talking on phone

Tape: Ginger Two PD170 First Hour

Time Description

0-35 secs Cliff in Shot – unusable

45-1.25 Mark Steaming milk

1.25-2.00 Mark & Sally Making drinks

7.35-7.55 Staff banter

8.25-9.05 Unnamed staff doing cutlery

9.22 Nice shot through tea bags

9.55 Sally dishwasher

10.15 Nice shot through display

11.38-13.55 Customer Interaction (other camera has other angle)

12.35 Good close up of Sally

14.14-14.25 Low camera on counter

14.45- Nice walking counter shots (shadows) – no audio

15.35-15.50 Close up of workers from behind

16.38-17.00 Unnamed subject clearing table

17.20 Slow zoom of Mark making salad

18.13 Customer interaction

18.25 Slow zoom of Mark writing

19.45 Mark Serving cake

20.02 Close of strawberries (cut between cake and strawberry serving)

20.54 Making hot chocolate

21.09 close up of Mark stirring

23.20 Sally serving customer (mark carries on in background)

23.50 Customer banter

24.40 Serving customer

[Storyboard the whole serving/preparing process]

26.05 Sally/Mark serving – good shots

26.56 Mirror shot of Sally serving

27.19-27.30 Close up of Sally preparing orders

28.20 Close up of Sally

28.45 Steaming audio

33.30 Roses

34.28 Sally returning (other camera has her leaving)

35.59 Worker banter – steaming milk

37.50 Low camera napkin folding

38.44 Workers from behind with slow zoom

39.20-39.40 Close of hands folding napkins

45.00 Till signs

46.10-46.52 Close up of Sallys face

51.00 Customer reading paper

52.30 Signs on the wall

53.00 Table sign

Tape: Ginger Two, PD170 – Second Hour

Time Description

0- Shot from behind Mark’s (owner) back, talking to chap about website

55 sec Jane bringing coffee past camera

4.20 Other worker bringing coffee

5.10 Sally steaming coffee through chair

7.50 GV’s of coffee and cake

8.03 Sally picking up and taking tray of coffee

9.09 Customer using his phone – Dave (regular customer)

9.45/50 Sally through tea stand

14.08 Two workers working from behind customers shoulder

14.34 Sally picking up tray and serving customers coffee

16.00 Working at the counter, Customers book in shot

17.00 Till and Card machine

17.20 Sally? Using till – close up

21.00 Sally and colleague talking about tea bags

22.00 Opening hours

23.15 Outside through window

25.40 Outside sign

26.00 Outside down the side of café, including sign

26.20 Other worker taking bottles out

26.30 – 27.05 Sally talking to Dave (regular customer)

27.05 Fairly close up of Sally talking to Mark (owner)

32 Through cakes – very shaky

32.30 Customers chatting

33.07 Brownies

33.20 Three workers all chatting

35.20 Jam stacks

35.40 Customer enters, cheery hello from workers

35.55 Good shot of all three of them chatting/serving customer

36.15-36.50 Close up of Sally during customer interaction/concentration on till

37.40 Newspaper zoom showing date (audio milk steaming)

40.20 Steam coming out of machine

41 Customers chatting (man and woman – gave consent)

42.28 Sally serving, bending down to pick up a tray

43.46 Sally using coffee machine (good audio/Shania Twain)

43.50-44.20 Sally pouring milk then talking/laughing with colleague

43.40 Sally bringing coffee over

50.57 Mark moving tables, clearing out shop area

52.42 Sally on phone

54.23 Dave (regular customer) leaving café

55.02 Close up on Sally on phone

55.35 Sally behind counter, does “note to self”

Tape: Ginger Two Handycam Final Hour

Time Description

4 secs – 27 secs Sally washing up from behind (black and white)

46 secs Sally/Mark washing up (good audio clinking of glasses)

1.15 Starts process of putting the Soup into an empty bottle for storage

2.20 Pouring soup into a measuring jug

2.34-3.25 Gets other worker to help her pour into bottle using funnel (good audio as she tries to put too much soup into the bottle, laughing/giggling etc)

4.40 Back to washing up

4.54 Steaming water in a jug (good audio)

5.28 Other worker shaking cake holders outside

6.28 Talking to Mark whilst he does DIY cleaning up in other area of café

7.20 Taking the cakes downstairs to cellar (with help of other worker) Shots of her coming up and down stairs to collect cakes one after the other

8.50 Asking other worker if they need milk whilst still in cellar

9.10 Starts to get cleaning materials for coffee machine

10.00-12.50 Start of conversation of Sally reminiscing of her teenage years & good story of her mum (both working whilst chatting, good shots of Sally’s emotions whilst telling the story.)

12.50-13.25 Decide between the two that they will put the close sign on early and clean the coffee machine

14.35-16.40 Sally cleaning the coffee machine, whilst doing other jobs in between (starts clean-works in between-empties and repeats) (Continues after we swap cameraman)

17.00-20.15 Cleaning other machine

17.50-20.15 Counting/Closing Till (Good close ups of face/money)

18.50 Reflection of Sally counting till in the counter

20.35 Cleaning other bits of machine (tray etc) at the sink

22.00 Counting money again, other worker reassembles coffee machine

24.02 Bringing in trees/signs from outside – discusses with Mark where to put them

24.30 Brings in another tree (camera from outside instead of inside)

24.50 Moves the “bike sign” – followed round corner where she puts it away

[24.50 Includes good shot of Ginger Two sign]

27.30 Bringing in more outside furniture

28.45 Splitting the tips (small amount)

29.20 Checking everything has been done

29.45 Discussing their “impressive” early finish

30.25 Cleaning the sink

32.10 Closing blinds/taking off aprons

33.40 Locking back door

Tape: Ginger Two PD170 Final Hour

This tape is of the clock from 17:00 until 17:45 with the idea that we will use it in between the various jobs our profile (Sally). Idea would be to speed up the clock so it goes through 15 minutes at a time between jobs.

Final Rock Sound review

2010-01-28T09:56:00.000-08:00

OK, so I know this is a bit late in coming but better late than never. Due to financial and accommodation hardships I had to cut down my original month long placement to 3 weeks at Rock Sound but in the end I felt I chose a good time to leave.

My final week coincided with the final deadline for issue 132 (out 3rd February and featuring yours truly so buy it!) which meant it was understandably quite busy around the office.

The majority of my time was taken up with reading and sub editing the new issue (which is fantastic by the way!) I was given a spreadsheet of the pages and I had to note down any mistakes I found which needed to be rectified and mark them off once I had done them.

I also transcribed another interview as well as getting to write some of my own interview questions for an up-and-coming chat with a UK hardcore band.

Hopefully my time at RS will have provided me with some valuable contacts along with some good hands on experience. I learnt a lot about interview techniques such as what questions the reader wants asked and the straightforward and obvious questions often don't provide the most exciting answers. Some of the most valuable insights I gained from my placement was how a magazine operates in relation to the staff and their roles etc.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ori0n/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

I hope to gain another placement soon, ideally at another music publication so I can have some sort of basis for comparison and another chance to build up a new set of contacts. Oh yeah and a job at the end of it would be great!

Alkaline Trio Camden Underworld 25/01/10

2010-01-26T07:16:00.000-08:00

The sense of anticipation surrounding this show becomes evident as soon as I walk out of Camden Tube Station. Twenty minutes before doors open and there is already a cue of dedicated fans braving the cold to grab a good spot to see Chicago's finest.

Not that you would need to go in early to have a good view, Camden Underground is a tiny venue for a band like Alkaline Trio and, much like me, I guess these fans must be having to pinch themselves to make sure they aren't in fact dreaming.

Unsurprisingly, the place is packed although thankfully, getting a beer doesn't take long so after hitting the bar and picking up my pre-ordered merchandise, I grab my spot on the floor.
At just after 9pm, Trio make a fairly low key entrance to the stage and launch straight in to new single 'This Addiction'. For the next 20 or so minutes, they proceed to belt out some classic Alk3 material including 'Fatally Yours' and a storming rendition of 'Stupid Kid' complete with fantastic audience participation. The chit-chat between songs is kept to a minimum and the band never take their foot off the gas while flying through songs spanning their whole career.

The old trio are catered for with the addition of an unrehearsed version of 'Goodbye Forever' and one of the best versions of 'My Friend Peter' I have ever heard which Matt Skiba playfully introduces as "My Friend London". One of the highlights of the evening comes in the form of 'Cringe' off 1998's 'Goddamnit' in which Skiba pauses to let the crowd sing ("you were the last good thing I ever saw"). Chills.

While the crowd catches their breath, Skiba announces that tonight's gig sold out in under 4 minutes and, for anyone disappointed to have missed out on a ticket, they will be back for a UK tour in May.

Dan Andriano churns out song after song of flawless quality and Derek Grant is happy to sit behind the kit and let the other two share the limelight while only briefly breaking his strong silent persona to stand up and conduct the crowd like a choir during the last chorus of set closer, 'Radio'.

After the thanks are said and the last chords ring out, the crowd starts to filter out and I cant help but think Alkaline Trio were made for venues like the Underworld, small, sweaty and full of fans singing along to every word.

Reliving the gig on the way home, I cant help but think that they should they have played more material off 'Maybe I'll Catch Fire' and at times Skiba's voice was a bit shaky and at just under an hour and half, they could have played a longer set. But in all honesty, none of this matters in the slightest because I have just witnessed a very special gig by a very special band.

Choice Cuts: 'In Vein', 'My Friend Peter (London)', 'Time To Waste'

Good news for armchair sports fans

2010-01-18T08:30:00.001-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/accius/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

The cost of watching live football, cricket and rugby on television is set to plummet as BT and Virgin attempt to end the dominance of Rupert Murdoch's satellite broadcaster BSkyB.

Plans by the media watchdog, Ofcom, will force Sky to drop the price it charges rival broadcasters for its Sky Sports channels.

The Ofcom board is due to meet on Tuesday to discuss the level of the proposed cuts and an announcement will be made in March.

BT hopes to start offering Sky Sports 1 to BT Vision customers for £15 a month.

The plans are set to be the biggest changes to sports TV for almost two decades. Prices scould even drop in time for the 2010/2011 Premier League season.

That girl Peaches does it again

2010-01-13T08:49:00.000-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/62693937@N00/2462277968

The Media Guardian reported that Peaches Geldof received "substantial damages" from the Daily Star this week, over a front-page headline that read "Peaches: spent the night with me for £5k".

The issue arose because the story claimed that Geldof accepted appearance fees for turning up to parties and launches and Geldof's solicitor Jonathan Coad said it implied Ms Geldof "provided services of a personal sexual nature for the payment of a fee".

The story was originally published in September 2008 and Peaches initially went to the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) about the item, but was unhappy with the result.

The paper refused to print a retraction on the front page and instead published it on page 2 where Peaches believed it was not "adequately prominent".

The newspaper's solicitor, Zoe Norden, said it accepted all that had been said by Coad.

Quick Rock Sound update

2010-01-13T06:42:00.000-08:00

Managed to get some fun things done this week including transcribing a couple of interviews with none other than Tom Delonge (Blink 182, Angels And Airwaves) and a very funny one with Mastodon about life on the road. Make sure you keep your eyes peeled for them in the new issue.

Today I also wrote a piece about a new Welsh band called Bastions who are awesome so check them out.

Will update again soon!

Rock Sound week 1 update - finally!

2010-01-08T13:34:00.000-08:00

Well, the first week is over and again apologies for the lack of updates. I also want to apologise for the lack of pictures to accompany this post. I would say that I forgot to take my camera, but the truth is I really didn't want to be known as ‘that weird new guy who takes photos of everything.’

It’s been an eventful week and I pretty much expected it to be. The place where I am stationed is in a lovely part of London, very close to Liverpool Street Station. The office is a bit smaller than I originally thought it would be but I suppose Rock Sound isn’t a huge international operation. The people are really nice and although they are obviously very busy, they have still found time to have a chat with me whenever they get a bit of free time.

The place I was staying at for the week was, ahem, basic to say the least! I don’t really know what I was expecting for £20 a night in London but I mean a TV would have been nice!

I have been assigned several jobs which range from sorting and collecting the post to making the tea! I am also responsible for emailing and collecting all the review artwork for the next issue and making sure the gig listings are up-to-date. I have also completed a couple of reviews which I am hoping will be in the next edition which is out on the 3rd Feb. Note - This is incredibly exciting to me so please buy it!

The hardest thing to get my head round is listening to the people at Rock Sound talk so casually about these big rock stars (big to me anyway!). Yesterday, I was sat next to a chap who was having a full on conversation with Justin Beck from Glassjaw and there was talking today of an imminent interview with Tom Delonge from Blink 182. Now, to me, these two bands are a huge deal! I guess these guys are used to dealing with musicians on a daily basis whereas I am more used to sitting in my room and listening to their records so I guess i've idolised them a bit too much, they are only people in the end!

But the weirdest thing about the whole experience has to be the fact that the subeditor who originally gave me my work experience placement actually comes from Wolverhampton and used to frequently go to the same gigs as I did back in the day.
It’s a very small world!

Anyway stay tuned for (hopefully!) more regular updates next week.

Updating soon...

2010-01-08T06:43:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of updates, the availability of a working internet connection has proved to be a hard thing to find.

I will be updating very soon but in the mean time heres one of my favourite songs of the moment:

My new experience

2010-01-03T07:49:00.000-08:00

For those of you that don't already know, I am set to start my work experience placement at Rock Sound in London tomorrow which I am incredibly excited about.

I have been a huge fan of Rock Sound magazine for many years and after applying a few months back, I was delighted to be offered a January placement.

I have decided to blog about my experiences during my placement dependent on availability of an Internet connection and the amount of spare time I have etc, but I hope to be able to update at least every couple of days.

So keep checking my blog for updates, hopefully they wont all be about how much tea I had to make!

Wolverhampton named fifth worst city in world

2009-12-31T07:25:00.000-08:00

Gordon Griffiths / CC BY-SA 2.0

How could I not possibly comment on this story!

Wolverhampton (my hometown) has been named as the fifth worst city to live in the world on a travellers' website.

The list compiled by travel website Lonely Planet puts the West Midlands city below Detroit (USA), Accra (Ghana), Seoul (South Korea) and Los Angeles (USA).

Now, don't get me wrong, Wolverhampton isn't one of my favourite places in the world! I openly admit that when I was looking at University courses, I wanted to move as far away as possible and I chose Winchester because it was such a nice place compared to the city where I spent nearly 20 years of my life.

But to say that it is one of the top five worst places to live in the world is completely laughable.

Detroit is statistically the most dangerous place to live in the US and Los Angeles has a huge gang culture and an ever increasing number of deaths per year from gun crime among a host of other social and economic problems.

How on earth can Wolverhampton be mentioned in the same breath as these places?

Channel 4's annual list of the best and worst places to live revealed that Wolverhampton wasn't even named in the bottom 20 of worst places to live in the UK in 2009.

I refuse to accept there is not a more deserving place to be named in the bottom five than a small city in the Midlands. One comment on the website even ludicrously compared Wolverhampton to Ground Zero in New York!

I don't know what the criteria was for voting on the worst places to live so if anyone knows could they please comment on this page.

Leicester Tigers vs Sale Sharks 27/12

2009-12-27T11:47:00.000-08:00

Thought I would upload some pictures to show off my new camera!

Ian and Jon in front of the impressive new Caterpillar Stand

A few action shots

View from the stand

Nice scene

Can't afford that ideal Christmas present? Just steal it!

2009-12-22T08:50:00.000-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/goatopolis/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Interesting story on the BBC News site today that is sure to lead to some interesting debates.

A priest from North Yorkshire has advised people to shoplift if they find themselves in hard times.

Speaking at St Lawrence and St Hilda in York, Reverend Tim Jones said people should steal from big chain stores rather than small businesses.

He told the congregation: "When people are released from prison, or find themselves suddenly without work or family support, then to leave them for weeks and weeks with inadequate or clumsy social support is monumental, catastrophic folly.

"We create a situation which leaves some people little option but crime."

Father Jones was blasted by Yorkshire police who said his actions were "highly irresponsible".

Defending his actions, Jones said he was trying to encourage people to give to charity to avoid those in need becoming so desperate, not trying to rally people to shoplift.

I thought I would try and get some reader participation on this story!

Do you think what Rev. Tim Jones said is right, or is he encouraging people to break the law? Is shoplifting ever right?

Vote on my poll and feel free to leave your comments.

Rage Against the Machine are Christmas number 1!

2009-12-20T10:49:00.000-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/penner/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Rage Against the Machine have made it to number 1 in the UK singles chart!!!

I can't quite believe this happened. I know it was close but I never actually expected a song that is over 15 years old to make it to the number one spot over song by X-factor winner Joe McElderry.

RATM's song 'Killing in the Name' sold more than £500,000 copies to keep the 18 year old off the top spot whose single 'The Climb' came in at number 2.

I can honestly say, this has restored a lot of my faith in the music industry and the music buying public.

Rage Against the Machine have achieved this feat off the back of an unofficial facebook group and with a marketing budget of £0.

I know what some people are going to say, Simon Cowell still stands to benefit and Rage are on a major record label yadda yadda. Bottom line, this is a great victory and a good demonstration of social media flexing its muscles and showing how powerful it can be.

The darker side of journalism

2009-12-20T03:08:00.000-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ari/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Everyone knows the well publicised rewards that come with pursuing a career in journalism. The chance to see your name up in lights, being the first to break a story and making high profile celebrities face the music in interviews are just some of the ones which attracted me to study it at undergraduate level.

But it is not all glitz and glamour as a recent article reminded me.

The Committee to Protect Journalists revealed that 68 journalists were killed in 2009, making it the highest yearly tally since the CPJ started detailing records of journalist deaths.

The previous worst stood at 67 in 2007 when the violence in Iraq was at its peak and media deaths were common.

The record toll this year was driven mainly by the election-related slaughter of more than 30 media workers in the Philippine province of Maguindanao. This is the single deadliest event for the press in CPJ history.

The Philippines, Somalia and Pakistan were identified as amongst some of the most dangerous places, accounting for over 50 media deaths.

The full report can be found here

My Favourite Albums of 2009

2009-12-19T03:53:00.001-08:00

The time is finally here!

The selections have been made, the order has been decided, the winners are preparing their speeches; it can only mean one thing...It is time to announce the winner of the highest accolade in music, my top ten favourite albums of 2009!

Honorable mentions: Alexisonfire - 'Old Crows/Young Cardinals'
Obviously not everyone can make it in to my list, so I wanted to start by giving an honorable mention to Alexisonfire. 2009 was a good year for the Canadian-rockers and a new album saw them take an interesting new direction. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite do enough to make it in to my top ten.

Rancid - 'Let The Dominoes Fall'
This was originally in my top ten but it had to make way when I had a re-shuffle. Again, a very good album. I saw it get slated in a few nameless mainstream music magazines but I personally thought it is an excellent Rancid record. ‘Dominoes’ combines all elements of old and new without losing their trademark punk sound.

So, after much deliberation, here is my final top ten:

10. He Is Legend 'It Hates You'
The best band you have never heard! I have been a huge He Is Legend fan since hearing their EP way back when. Every album brings a totally new change in direction and this one is no exception. Combining elements of sleazy southern rock, punk and metal, 'It Hates You' might be the most accomplished He Is Legend album to date.

9. Lamb Of God - 'Wrath'
I was slightly disappointed by the new offering from heavy metal titans Lamb of God, but over recent months, 'Wrath' has proved to be a grower. Songs like 'Fake Messiah' and 'Broken Hands' see a slight move towards an old-school Lamb of God sound which they seemed to have lost on predecessor 'Sacrement'.

8. Converge - 'Axe To Fall'
In my opinion, Converge have always had a more difficult task than a lot of other bands when it comes to producing new material. The band have such a unique style that it could very easily go stale, but at the same time if they drift too far from their signature sound, they risk getting labeled 'sellouts' by the critics. 'Axe to Fall' is a perfect example of how band can evolve and develop without losing their identity. Warning - this album is fast and rough as hell!

7. Every Time I Die - 'New Junk Aesthetic'
Another great record from the Buffalo boys. Singer Keith Buckley uses his voice a lot better on this album and songs like 'Wanderlust' even have elements of, dare I say it, singing in it. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a massive change in direction for ETID and all the old elements of what makes this band great still remain. The lyrics are awesome and the music is still fast, raw and aggressive; just as it should be.

6. CKY - 'Carver City'
I must admit, I was starting to lose faith in these boys before 'Carver City' came along. The very sub-par 'An Answer Can Be Found' left me thinking that they might have lost the magic that is clearly evident on the first two albums. However, after a lot of internal tribulation, the boys are back on top form with a fantastic riff-happy, heavy and well thought out record. Welcome back guys.

5. Biffy Clyro - 'Only Revolutions'
Another band I was starting to lose faith in manages to answer my prayers with a stonking new record. I could literally write an academic dissertation on this band so I’m going to stop myself and say I love Biffy Clyro and 'Only Revolutions' is excellent.

4. Them Crooked Vultures - 'Them Crooked Vultures'
Debut album from Zeppelin, Foo Fighters/Nirvana, Queens of the Stone Age super group. This album was originally a lot lower down until I went to watch them in London last night. I read in a music magazine that this album suddenly makes a lot more sense once you see them live. I originally discredited this statement as usual journalist spiel designed to fill up the word count but,much to my annoyance, I found out it is completely true. Keep checking my blog for a review on last nights show.

3. Sucioperro 'Pain Agency'
Another relatively unknown band that found its way into my list. Sucioperro are a group of Scottish rockers who play a brand of interesting, heavy and at times, damn catchy alternative rock. Sounds like a certain other band in my list…Anyway, the boy’s first album 'Random Acts of Intimacy' is a very raw, unpolished sounding record which undeniably showcases a band with a hell of a lot of talent. 'Pain Agency' is a huge step forward. The sound is more polished, the songs are better structured but the raw, emotive power of the music still remains. This is seriously good.

2. Gallows - 'Grey Britain'
Another homegrown product and another band that have created a truly great record, this is one of the best British albums I have heard in a long time. As the title suggests 'Grey Britain' isn't a nice record at all. It is an album filled with songs that many people can easily relate to covering topics of misery, depression and struggle. Don't let this put you off! Rather than take a traditional route of writing slow, sad songs in a feeble attempt to tap into peoples feelings, Gallows take it another way and focus on something that is constantly bubbling away below the surface...anger. The music and vocals are raw and at times very nasty. Frank Carter sneers, snarls and shouts his vocals with a thick cockney accent that somehow makes the anger in the songs more believable. This album gives me Goosebumps and I can guarantee it will be a long time before you hear a more aggressive record.

1. Fact - 'Fact'
That’s right; my number 1 is a band from Japan! I hadn’t heard a thing about these guys until about 8 months ago but since then they have released my favourite album of the year and I have had the privilege of seeing them in a tiny venue in London at one of my favourite gigs of the year. FACT's debut album is simply stunning and yes, they do sing in English if you are wondering! It is difficult to describe exactly what the album sounds like and all my brain could muster up was 'a mish-mash of styles'. Songs such as 'Stretch my Arms’ and 'Purple Eyes' sound like the bastard love-child of Funeral For a Friend and early My Chemical Romance', The intro for 'Reborn' sounds like thrash-era Metallica and 'Lights of Vein' is a lighters-out, arena sized rock ballad. The distinctly, (and thankfully!) un-Americanised vocals are catchy and infectious and complement the music perfectly. The band keeps the listener guessing and it is impossible to tell which direction they are going to fly off in. This album didn’t leave my stereo for months and I find it hard to see how you could tire of this album at all.

Disagree with my selections? Want to add your own? Please comment on my post :)

Mick McCarthy - cop out or wise decision? I feel sorry for the fans...

2009-12-16T03:04:00.000-08:00

Most of the newspaper back pages today are focused around one story.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tgigreeny/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Wolverhampton Wanderers losing to Man Utd at Old Trafford isn't exactly a big story in itself, but last nights result is sure to have any number of bloggers giving their 2 cents worth for a very different reason.

To the surprise of pretty much everyone, Wolves manager Mick McCarthy fielded 10 changes from the side that beat Tottenham at the weekend with only 'keeper Marcus Hahnemann retaining his place. When asked about his choice to play a second string side against the Champions, McCarthy responded by saying the players had a tough game against Tottenham and he wasn't prepared to risk injuries ahead of Sunday's possible relegation clash with Burnley.

This decision by McCarthy brings up a big debate. Did he possibly damage the integrity of the Premier League or did he make a clever, reasonable decision to rest his players for a game they really didn't have a chance of winning?

There is a part of me that believed McCarthy was right to put the needs of his club before those of any other. After all, managers field weaker teams in the cups to save their top players for Premier League (or Champions League) matches so McCarthy was well within his right.

My concern is that if all the teams towards the bottom of the table started to do that, its going to unbalance the competition.

There is also another part of me (and being a Wolves fan myself, a far angrier part of me!) that thinks it was nothing more than a cop out. Supporters would have got the message:“we haven't got a hope in hell of beating United so i’m going to save the first choice players for game with Burnley at the weekend, which we might be able to win".

Many people had written off Wolves' chances of beating Tottenham at the weekend but they managed to come away with a very respectable 1-0 win.

I feel sorry for the fans that paid £42 and made the long trip to Manchester to watch the game. Supporters would have travelled up knowing that this could have been the best chance they had of getting something out of a game with Man Utd. They are plagued with injuries (Michael Carrick playing centre back!) and they are coming off the back of a defeat to Aston Villa so confidence would have been down.

I think Wolves fans were well within their right to sing songs about wanting their money back and feeling cheated, Premier League bosses are used to taking flack for making controversial decisions and this was no exception.

It cant be denied that McCarthy has taken (rightly or not) a bold step time and I guess only time will tell whether anyone is brave (or stupid!) enough to follow his lead.

Remixing bands own songs with Creative Commons

2009-12-15T13:20:00.000-08:00

I am taking an (extended) break from my law revision to write a blog about something that appeared in my twitter feed this morning.

Thinking about it, this blog concerns Creative Commons and copyright so I guess it is kind of connected to my revision anyway!

A company called Topspin Media alerted me to a new band by Dave Lovering and Joey Santiago (formerly of the Pixies) called The Everybody.

The band have released a collection of songs that are available to purchase/download with Creative Commons-licensed, royalty-free stems for remixing. This means you can take their music, edit it whichever way you want to make it your own.

What a great idea!

The really cool part is that you can then take your new version of the song, send it back to Joey and Dave for the chance to get your track on to a limited, vinyl edition of the album.

An equally cool aspect is that the release also comes with a special iTunes LP package. This includes a simple mixing console which allowing you to live mix one track from the album, all inside of iTunes!

The cost of the whole package including stems in WAV format + lossless + bonus tracks + MP3 + iTunes LP is $40, which I personally think is a bargain for such a innovation in music distribution.

If you haven't already, watch the above advert. It is brilliant!

Trying new things for 2010

2009-12-14T14:36:00.001-08:00

I have decided to get a new digital camera for Christmas to assist me in my new years resolution to take more pictures. The whole resolution thing was admittedly an afterthought as I realised I can loosely justify spending near a £100 on a camera as it is an "essential" purchase.

So, I am officially going to be one of those annoying people who carries a camera everywhere and takes pictures of every little thing. An artistic hobby such as photography has always appealed to me, but unfortunately I am one of the least artistically-minded people on the face of the earth.

When I was younger, I tried sitting down with a blank canvas and forcing myself to draw in the hope that in a flash of inspiration, I would produce the greatest piece of 20th Century art ever seen. Sadly, this sudden unexplainable talent never came and quite often ended up with a blank canvas covered in eraser marks. I always found it a seemingly impossible task to think of any original ideas and then translate those ideas into actual things of substance.

However, one thing I have always had is a desire to write, but still this never translated into an art form. Ask me to write you a poem and I'm afraid to say, you would be sorely disappointed.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nickgray/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Street art in New York City

I am not going to kid myself and think that any mug can pick up a camera and suddenly be a brilliant photographer. I don't know the first thing about depth-of-field, overexposure or shutter speed but I believe even suffering from an severe artistic deficiency, I can conjure up something remotely nice to look at.

Check out these new blogs of note I found which contain some excellent photography:

Not So Humble Pie
Hort Log

Noel Edmonds speaks with passion

2009-12-14T05:08:00.000-08:00

Everyone loves a bit of talk show ranting! This is a fantastic bit of TV from earlier this year. This clip comes from Noel Edmonds' Sky One show 'Noel's HQ' about the case of a former soldier who had been denied planing permission to build a bungalow. Enjoy!

WINOL Week 6

2009-12-12T13:45:00.000-08:00

This week saw the penultimate live WINOL bulletin and happily, the near-the-end-of-term mindset was nowhere to be seen as we produced undoubtedly our best bulletin to date.

Editorially, the show was top draw. We had several very strong stories to choose from and I personally felt a lot of our second year reporters really came of age.

We experimented with some new production features such as a backdrop for the studio which we put in, in the gallery. I didn't really feel like this worked very well and at times it looked very unusual if we changed cameras and it didn't move.

I had my first full run using ENPS for the running order and (minus a small panic involving a lack of printer and with deadline looming!), it all ran pretty smoothly.

I again directed output in the gallery and was happy to see that this bulletin came closest to our 10 minute guideline, running over by a few seconds.

A Step Back in Time Part 6: Incubus

2009-12-12T04:25:00.000-08:00

I know it's a cliche, but sometimes it's really strange to think how quickly time goes. The 14th of January next year will bring around the eighth anniversary of this gig. Eight years - that is a long time! In that time I have moved house three times, almost completed an undergraduate degree and had three different jobs...but I can still remember this show vividly.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/srevenge/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Whether it was the fact that it was at one of my favourite venues in the world (the Civic Hall in Wolverhampton has some of the best acoustics this side of the Watford divide!) or because Incubus were the first really 'big' band that I saw live, this gig has stayed in my memory for a long time.

Their 2001 album 'Morning View' was the first Incubus album I really got in to. The album is an impressive amalgamation of styles and although many of their earlier work is good in its own right, in my opinion this is the complete Incubus record.

I am still so glad I got to see Incubus at this time back in 2002. They had just released their best record and they still had the impressive rhythm section partnership of Dirk Lance and Jose Pasillas. Dirk would later leave the band, taking with him any more decent Incubus records it would seem!

The Civic Hall was packed to the rafters and I remember being really far back when Incubus hit the stage. They launched straight into 'Circles' followed by 'Nice To Know You' , the first two tracks from 'Morning View'.

Managing to make some ground, I eventually got a good view from where I was able to witness the band feed off the energy of the crowd brilliantly. Their set was heavy with songs from 'Morning View' and its predecessor 'Make Yourself'. I can even remember the impressive light show for 'A Certain Shade of Green' and singer Brandon Boyd whipping out the bongos for old favourite 'New Skin'.

They finished on Incubus classic 'Pardon Me' which sent the audience into a frenzy. It proved to be the perfect song to end the night and as the crowd filtered out the doors, I remember thinking how good it is to watch a band at their absolute best.

Newspaper forced to pay £30,000 over printing of false Sophie Anderson story

2009-12-12T03:43:00.000-08:00

I got this story in my twitter feed on Thursday and I've finally got round to blogging about it.

I am currently studying for a media law exam which deals with issues of libel, defamation and malice and I found this to be a good example of the law in action.

The Sunday Mirror was forced to pay out £30,000 after it published a story claiming model Sophie Anderton had been the victim of a 'vicious attack' in which she was so badly beaten, there were fears for her career.

Author Jose Rosengurtt . Original uploader was Rosengurtt at en.wikipedia

Property development consultant Ed Buxton launched the libel action as he claimed the article alleged that he was responsible for the attack.

The Mirror Group Newspapers, publisher of the Sunday Mirror, settled the action in the high court in London, admitting that the story was not true.

From studying media law, this is quite a simple case of defamation. Defined, defamation is any statement which will cause a person to lose or diminish their reputation, exposes the person to ridicule or hatred or causes them to shunned & avoided or lowers them in the minds of right thinking people of society.

Clearly in this case, the statement that Ed Buxton was responsible for these attacks would expose him to hatred and cause him to be shunned and avoided.

There are three main defences for publishing a libelous statement:

1. Justification i.e. the statement is true,
2. Fair comment in which it is believed the comment is true, it is based on fact and the statement has to be in the public interest.
3. Qualified Privilege (2 types)- Statutory QP gives protection to things reported from law courts, parliaments, local authorities etc but are subject to refutation.
Common Law QP gives protection to official bodies not mentioned in the statute. The reports need to be accurate, contemporaneous and without malice.

If it can be proved that a publication cant use any of these defences for why it published such a statement then a libel action can be taken against as in the Sophie Anderton case.

Creative Commons in action

2009-12-08T14:09:00.000-08:00

I found an article on copying, sharing and reusing material obtained on the internet. I find this area of media law quite interesting so I decided to re-blog it for you.

Creative Commons: Fair to share?

How to get started with ENPS

2009-12-07T05:51:00.000-08:00

Last week, we used ENPS for the first time to create our script and running order and so I wanted to create a 'how to' guide for getting started with the programme.

Step 1 - Open up a new document by clicking on the green button in your user file at the bottom.

Step 2 - Click on 'New' then 'Rundown'

Step 3 - This brings up a window which allows you to set the duration of the news programme as well as start time and date

Step 4 - This will bring up the basic template for creating your running order then simply right-click on one of the grid squares and press 'insert new row'

Step 5 - Once your row has been created, you can start to insert your programme items.'Story Slug' will be a one or two word description of the item. The button next to the slug will bring up a separate box when you can insert the script.

Step 6 - As well as the script, it is also possible to give details of any other items that are to be included in this section. Right-clicking will bring you up a list of items you may wish to include. In this case I have decided to include a video clip that is 1.30 in length.

Step 7 - Once you have filled in the details, a box will be added to the script page like the one above

Step 8 - ENPS will automatically add the length of the clip to the length of the script

Step 9 - Above is a different example of inserting items into the script. I have included a still clip.

Extra Note: Using brackets around your text means they wont be added to the length of the script

"Revolutionary" e-reader to be launched in Jan

2009-12-06T05:38:00.000-08:00

An article in the Independent today made me realise I needed to do a follow up to my blog about the debates around the death of the press industry with the introduction of e-readers (see it here).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cs-jay/ / CC BY 2.0

The Curreny Sony E-reader

What is being billed as the "ultimate" e-reader is set to make its debut in January 2010 after 10 years spent developing its technology. The Independent is labelling the Que pro-Reader as the thing that "could help save the press industry".

The makers of the Que say that because it is powered by electronic circuitry using plastic as a base rather than silicone which makes it much lighter, more robust product that is also easier to use than other e-readers.

Sales and management of the product is based in California, Chief Executive Richard Archuleta believes the Que could benefit the struggling newspaper industry by "helping our content partners enter new markets and reach new customers". The Financial Times and USA Today are already proving content.

It appears there could yet be a glimmer of hope for the newspaper industry then...

A Step Back in Time Part 5: Biffy Clyro

2009-12-04T07:03:00.000-08:00

Those of you who know me would have known this was coming at some point!

For me, the hardest part about writing about a Biffy Clyro show is choosing one (At the last count my tally of Biffy shows was just entering double figures.)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/johannabocher/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

So, which one have I chosen I can hear you ask? Was it the show in 2007 with the mighty Frank Turner? Was it the show in 2004 when they supported Hundred Reasons and quite frankly blew them off the stage?

After much deliberation, I decided to write about the first time I ever saw them in Birmingham back in 2003.

Biffy Clyro have always been one of the most important bands in my life. I still remember the first time I ever heard them, I was lying in bed listening to Radio 1's late night rock show when they played the track '57.'

As soon as the track finised I text my mate and told him that I had just heard the best song I had ever heard in my life! This was a long time ago, before the band even had an official website. I searched high and low for that song on the internet but I didnt hear it again till I bought the album in 2002.I dont remember when the 2003 UK tour was announced, but I remember ordering tickets as soon as I found out about it.

Come the day of the show, I remember being more excited than I have ever been for a gig. I also remember the first song they played was 'the go-slow' , one of my all time favourite Biffy Clyro songs off their first album.

During the slow song 'Christopher's river', there was a group of guys standing next to the bar (myself included, even though I didnt know them!) and almost simulantaneously we pulled out cigarettes and lit up. I still have a very vivid memory of this one event and it has become one of my fondest memories of this show.

The only sour point was at the end of the gig, apparently there were some technical difficulties and I didnt find out till later that Biffy were actually scheduled to play an encore but it had to be scrapped.

However, this wasnt enough to stain the experience in the slightest and it still remains one of my favourite shows of all times.

Biffy Clyro are a live band, thats where they really excel. Dont get me wrong, I love their records and 'Blackened Sky' is, and always will be, my favourite album of all time. However to see them live adds another dimension to their music.

They play with such energy and enthusiasm that I genuinely believe this band loves playing music more than any other around today and that is why I will continue to pay money to watch them for as long as they are going.

See the other parts of A Step Back in Time here:
Part 1 Weezer
Part 2 The Used
Part 3 Bad Religion
Part 4 Mogwai

First run of ENPS and a lot of faulty equipment...

2009-12-03T02:37:00.000-08:00

Another week, another live bulletin.

The Wednesday definitely felt a lot more subdued than previous weeks and everyone seemed happy and settled in their roles. Turns out this overconfidence would send us crashing down to earth with a bump!

The production was our weakest yet and was one of those in which everything seemed to go wrong. There were problems with sound, VTs, microphones and auto cues. Admittedly many of these mistakes were out of our hands but at the end, it was hard not to feel like we had taken a giant step backwards.

http://www.enps.com/

My role was made more exciting/challenging this week with the introduction of ENPS, industry approved technology which I used to compile the script and running order. The system is much more advanced than what I had been previously using but it also made working out timings a lot easier. There were a few glitches when it came to printing the final product and putting the script on the autocue but hopefully these can be ironed out before next week.

We also ran into technical difficulties on the Tuesday as the tape deck malfunctioned while we were recording the 'What's On' and 'Date with Fate' features in the studio. This was very frustrating as we would struggle to make time to record them on the Wednesday.

On the Monday, Rich and I spent all day editing all the material on Joomla which we eventually put up on the WINOL website. It was good to finally get on top of all the stories and with the new editing system Rich set up, it should be a lot easier and quicker in the future.

An interesting media law debate...

2009-12-02T01:06:00.000-08:00

During my time studying Journalism, I have found learning about the aspects of media law to be one of the most interesting. I quickly leaned that it often brings up fierce debates between freedom of speech and the public right to privacy.

Looking on the Press Gazette website, I came across a very recent case that was dealt with by the Press Complaints Commission (PCC).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackcustard/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

The PCC has censured the Bristol Evening Post for intruding on the funeral of a suicide victim. The paper published a story with the headline "Farewell to our darling son" alongside images of mourners attending the cremation of Mark Cattermole.

The mother of the deceased filed the complaint against the newspaper, claiming that on the day of the funeral a photographer was "hiding in the bushes outside the crematorium" and had to be asked to leave.

However, the newspaper told the PCC that "cremations were public events and the photographer HAD behaved in a sensitive manner."

They also said that "out of respect, he had decided to remain between the main gate and the chapel, and was shielded from mourners by a hedge. He was not ‘hiding' in the bushes."

The ruling by the PCC went in favour of the family and it stated that the paper’s behaviour was not appropriate in this context.

Factors of the child's age, the way he died and the fact that the paper wasn't able to prove they paid appropriate regard to the feelings of the family all contributed to the final decision by the PCC.

However it also said that "newspapers have an important role to play in the reporting of tragic events, which it did not wish unduly to restrict."

This brings up an interesting debate.

Although the ruling by the PCC went again them, the newspaper WAS operating entirely with the law and so it can be argued that the journalist was well within her right to take and publish the photos.

However some would argue that any journalist, operating within the law or not, has no right to publish pictures of a grieving family at a funeral.

A key factor in this case was that the publication didn't get consent from the family before filming, had it taken these steps the ruling may have been very different.

It is also important to remember that whether the paper SHOULD have taken the pictures down to moral reasons is an entirely new debate.

Journalism.co.uk :: #WANIndia2009: Friend or foe? How global newsrooms are using social media

2009-12-01T12:02:00.001-08:00

Journalism.co.uk :: #WANIndia2009: Friend or foe? How global newsrooms are using social media

Posted using ShareThis

An example of bad journalism and clutching at straws

2009-11-30T14:21:00.000-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/newbirth/ / CC BY-NC 2.0

I came across a BBC article today (OK, in truth it was posted on my facebook wall!) which details that surgeons in Swansea have seen an increase in men getting non-cancerous chest lumps by taking body building supplements.

On the surface it appeared to be a good story and as a user of such supplements, I was intrigued enough to read on.

Sure enough they have a quote from a doctor talking about an increase in the number of patients he has seen who have developed the lumps known as gynaecomastia.

Now, the first problem with this story I came across was with how said doctor was quoted.

Firstly he talks about how he feels that "a lot of this (developing gynaecomastia) is to do with the increased awareness of body image amongst men."

On a basic level, (I don't know about you!) I don't particularly want to hear a Consultant Breast Surgeon's greatly generalised opinion on matters of men's self image!

He then clumsily mentions (also then clumsily reported) that this male image concern "leads them to go down the road of weight training and taking supplement and anabolic steroids."

He is basically quoted as saying that males who weight train are as likely to take anabolic steroids as they are to take the usual supplements. There is a world of difference between the two! Mainly the simple fact that anabolic steroids are illegal and extremely dangerous.

Which brings me on to my next problem.

Further down the article a quote is used from a man who recently had a non-cancerous growth removed. The journalist has written above his quote that:

He had been taking creatine, a completely legal supplement to help bulk up his muscles.

But he then started to notice something going wrong...

This is not only lazy but its completely misleading!

The article NEVER ONCE mentions that creatine or anything in creatine has anything to do with why this poor man suddenly developed a lump in his chest. From the way it is reported, the readers are made to feel that it is in fact the creatine that has caused the problems in this individual.

Creatine and anabolic steroids are completely different, it is even written in the article that creatine is a completely legal substance. I have done some research and as far as I know, it has never even loosely been connected with gynaecomastia!

What this journalist has done is very loosely tried to link a relatively common problem in adolescent males to something that there is no real scientific evidence to prove. In fact reading it again, there is a distinct lack of connection between anything to do with the 'cause' and the problem throughout the article.

Have a read of this here, I welcome your own comments!: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/8383609.stm

A Step Back in Time Part 4: Mogwai

2009-11-26T14:22:00.000-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wonker/ / CC BY 2.0

A bit of a change of style for my next 'ASBIT' as this week features post-rock pioneers Mogwai.

I didn't really know much about this band when I saw them live back in March 2006 and if I'm being totally honest, I don't know much about them now.

All I really know is they are a (mostly) instrumental, noisy and interesting band from Scotland and they were formed back in the mid-90s.

In hindsight, I'm not even too sure why I actually went to this gig in the first place. I wasn't exactly a huge fan of Mogwai's music and the ticket was £16 which, I think you'll agree, is a lot to pay for a band you don't really like/know much about.

Because of my aforementioned lack of knowledge about this band, I cant really go into a detailed narrative of what songs they played and in what order. All I can mention is how entranced I became with the music at this gig and I still maintain that Mogwai have the ability to put people in music comas.

Ill come clean now, I was pretty drunk at this gig which probably played a big part in why I believe I was in a trance! However, I can still remember being spellbound by the incredible wall of distorted sound made by the band, neatly coupled with a truly intense light show that really made for a hell of a live spectacle.

Their lengthy and musically diverse range of songs and styles constantly kept me guessing which way they were going to turn. One minute they would be playing slow, sombre electronic pieces on keyboard when without warning, they would suddenly explode into a noisy, fast paced metal song.

The crowd interaction was minimal and the band would only take short breaks in between songs which was barely gave me enough time to catch my breath.

I remember leaving the gig determined to buy some Mogwai CDs and really get into the band but to this day I still don't own any Mogwai records.

I think I am just worried that listening to them at home on CD just wouldn't live up to the expectations I have built up for the band after seeing them live.

If you get the chance, go and see them.

Winchester News Online - week 4 critical reflection

2009-11-26T13:23:00.000-08:00

The second proper week of WINOL finished yesterday in the culmination of the live bulletin. We continued the trend of improving with every week and yesterday was a lot tighter and professional and from a production side, it was definitely the strongest broadcast to date.

We had a lighting masterclass with Dave which helped us improve the lighting and dressing of the set. Although it was a blow to lose our regular Director Leanne, Cara stepped in and did a good job leading the production. Liban and I took control of managing the output and attempting to resolve any last minute problems that arose with the script or running order etc.

I was again in charge of writing the script and running order which I am starting to really enjoy doing. I found the job of compiling the links quite difficult this week as overall the quality was pretty poor and many of them had to be rewritten. The links were being delivered to me more like headlines with a lot of them needed another line inserted into them to make them more suitable.

Guest Editor Andy Steggall was very helpful when it came to going through the script and running order with me. He made some good suggestions when it came down to writing links that acted as teasers for the story. He also seemed to be impressed that the reporters were actually writing their own links, which in his experience doesn't happen very often!

One production issue that was raised this week was in regards to the submission of stories on the website. Many of the editors and reporters are unhappy because their stories aren't being edited and placed on the site fast enough. It is difficult as the production team focus on editing and submitting these stories on a Monday and Tuesday but the Wednesday is focused entirely on the bulletin.

Therefore, if a reporter submits a story on a Wednesday or Thursday, by the time it comes round to being edited it is out of date. This is an issue that I feel needs to be resolved soon in order to make the website more contemporaneous which is sure to attract more visitors.

How to get more followers to your blog

2009-11-25T14:30:00.000-08:00

An interesting little feature on blogger is the 'Next Blog' button. This brings up a totally random blog which can prove to be not only interesting, but useful as well as you can find people with similar interests and hobbies etc.

Following these people on facebook will open up your blog to a whole new audience in different countries across the world and is sure to increase your hit count.

By the way, I realise the above picture is not my blog but I haven't got the task bar in my template so I haven't got the option to use the 'Next Blog' button directly from my page!

A Step Back in Time Part 3: Bad Religion

2009-11-22T12:42:00.000-08:00

It's over 4 years on from this gig and I still cant believe how lucky I am to be in the position to say "I saw Bad Religion at the Academy 2." Now This might not mean a lot to most people, but to me it is still difficult to comprehend.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carboncopy/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Bad religion are a legendary punk band, there is no other way to describe them. They have been cranking out material since 1980 and boast and impressive back catalogue of classic punk rock albums. They have also toured the world over and inspired a countless number of other bands.

Founding member Brett Gurewitz is owner of one of the most successful independent record labels of all time which has an impressive CV of releases including the Offspring's Smash, which is the biggest selling independently released album of all time. Their 1988 album Suffer (which I'm listening to as I write this!) is often regarded as one of the most important punk rock releases ever.

So, you can start to understand why I was so excited to see they had announced an intimate UK tour stopping off at Birmingham.

Without even consulting anyone else about the possibility of going, I ordered 2 tickets knowing that the other one would be snapped up. Sure enough, my mate Ad claimed the extra ticket and rather than a simple cash-for-ticket exchange, I managed to claim his new pair of his trainers that I had my eye on. A fair trade I think!

After months of agonising waiting, the gig finally rolled around. There was a small part of me that was thinking surely after all the waiting and hype, this has to be a let down?

Not a chance! Bad Religion were immense. They powered through classic after classic, jumping around with all the energy of a bunch of 20 somethings. It was easy to see they were feeding off the energy from the crowd and it I could tell straight away that this band was born and made in the small clubs of the Southern California.

We managed to force our way right to the front and I remember standing there watching this display of flawless punk rock musicianship and thinking, this is how to play a show.

That night, just like many others, Bad Religion showed the youngsters how it is done and I still feel unbelievably lucky to have witnessed such a trailblazing band back in the clubs where they started.

Not tonight dear, im too tired

2009-11-22T08:38:00.000-08:00

I read a great story in The Times this week.

A major company in Japan has told its workers to knock off early all this week. So, rather than leaving at 7pm, they left at 5.10pm.

Not too unusual, right?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sanjoselibrary/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Wrong! It turns out this story has more to it than your usual story about flexi-time.

The strange part concerns what the workers were supposed to be doing with the extra time off. According to an employee, a pretty frank e-mail was send around the office on Monday morning explaining the companies plans to participate in a scheme to try and help solve one of the countries major problems.

The national birthrate in Japan is low so in an attempt to try and combat this, Mitsubishi UFJ suggested people go home and enjoy "family time."

Management must have had a brainwave and thought that sending workers home earlier would mean they could be reunited with their partners and exhaustion wouldn't crush the passion in the bedroom and the declining birthrate problem would be solved.

This is the first example I have heard of a companies agenda making its way into the bedroom.

I personally hope the idea takes off and I look forward to the day when an employees 'romantic time' is scheduled and enforced by a legally binding document!

DJ Hero

2009-11-20T14:54:00.000-08:00

Check out my mates excellent blog review of DJ hero and be sure to watch the video featuring a guest appearance from yours truly!

While your there you might as well check it out his whole blog at http://mark-lovell.blogspot.com its good stuff!

A Step Back in Time Part 2: The Used

2009-11-19T04:37:00.000-08:00

My next tale begins (and ends) on a cold night in January back in 2003 when Utah's The Used landed in Birmingham.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/freschwill/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

One of my all time favourite gigs at one of my all time favourite venues. The Academy 2 in Birmingham is exactly what a gig venue should be, its hot, crowded and noisy - pretty much the ideal hunting ground for a band like The Used.

How I came to actually go to this gig was a bit of a last minute decision. I had previously heard a few songs off the first Used album and in all honesty, I wasn't overly impressed. A few of my mates already had their tickets so when the day of the gig rolled around I was faced with the decision to stay at home or go out.

So, after some convincing, I made the choice to order a ticket and go to the gig. Admittedly, my decision was probably partly down to the fact that my mates were already of legal drinking age so they could buy me beer!

However, after only a couple of songs I knew I had made the right choice!

I had honestly not witnessed anything like what I saw that night. The raw emotion, passion and reckless energy that these four underachievers demonstrated on stage was unreal. Singer Bert Mccracken whipped the crowd into a frenzy with his unique mixture of emotive singing and raw visceral screaming which at times was almost too much.

As a kid watching this band bare their scars on stage with songs about serious drug addiction, abuse and broken homes helped me to realise that music, for a lot of people, is a very real and sometimes necessary outlet. No doubt that a countless number of bands and artists announce that music 'saved their lives', with The Used, it seems to hold an awful lot of truth.

The songs that had once washed over me in a wave of 'meh, they are alright!' suddenly took on a whole new meaning. After the gig, The first Used album didn't leave my stereo for the best part of a year and still remains in my top ten debut albums of all time. They also opened me up to a lot more music (and helped me find some of my now-favourite albums) that I wouldn't have previously discovered.

The same year as the Birmingham gig, the band realised a live album which to this day I cant listen to without getting shivers up my spine.

Winchester News Online goes live! Critical reflection

2009-11-18T12:47:00.001-08:00

Today was the big day! WINOL finally went live and I'm happy to say that it was our strongest bulletin to date.

The two dummy runs proved to be excellent learning curves for everyone and today people finally looked confident in what they were doing.

From the production side of things, the bulletin looked very good and well polished. The black holes that plagued our other two bulletins were practically non-existent and I felt, from my perspective, the show ran very smoothly.

Again, the Wednesday was the busiest day for the production team and I was in charge of writing and editing the script and running order. While being a pretty daunting task, I felt it was made easier than last week by the fact that the links and intros were being delivered to me much more quickly so I could get them edited and placed in the script earlier.

I also assumed the role of output editor which meant I was in charge of making sure the overall production was broadcast and run smoothly.

I was sat next to the director Leanne while the bulletin went to air. During the rehearsals, we were able to see any changes that needed to be made to the script and adjust them accordingly. If we were to do the bulletin again, I would like to change a few other areas of the script that I felt weren't particularly well written and proved to be difficult for the presenter to say.

You can check out the stream of our efforts at www.winol.co.uk

A Step Back in Time Part 1: Weezer

2009-11-16T13:55:00.000-08:00

Ive decided to start my reflective gigography with a show that I still consider to be one of my favourites of all time.

It was in 2002 and (for those of you that know Weezer) it was the tour for the Green Album.

Well, it was supposed to be but the original show at the Que Club (don't know if this venue still exists!)was cancelled and eventually moved to a bigger venue. In this transitional period, Weezer suddenly became huge off the success of the Green Album and by the time this tour eventually came around, they had already released a single off a new album Maladroit. So, I guess it could have been classed as the Maladroit tour.

Anyway, I went to the gig with a good friend of mine called Daniel Fullard whose name will appear pretty regularly in this series of blogs. By the way, he also happens to be a music genius and one of the kindest people you could ever hope to meet.

As I am sat here writing this, the main detail that I remember from the gig was how many people were there. The venue was absolutely packed to the rafters and it was clear to see that the gig must have been over-sold. This was also the first (and only) gig I went to in Birmingham when I watched from the balcony and I remember looking down on the poor people down in the pit squashed together like Sardines.

When the time finally came around, the houselights dimmed and Weezer hit the stage I vividly remember seeing the venue explode into a sea of writhing bodies. There was very minimal chat in between songs and the energy on stage was non-existent as the band just stood static and played.

The great thing about Weezer is they don't need gimmicks or huge pyrotechnics to put on a show. On this night they just seamlessly powered through tune after tune and not once did the audience look like they were disinterested.

The bands' set was a superb mix of new and old and when I got home I was lucky enough to find a set list on the Internet which I have included above.

Troubled front man Rivers Cuomo, in my own humble opinion, is one of the all time great songwriters and just watching him pour his heart out on stage through his music was nothing short of deeply moving.

Saying this gig changed my perception on music forever would be no exaggeration as on this night, more than any before it, I believe I truly appreciated a brilliant artist at work.

I will also never forget buying a hooded top outside the venue from a very dodgy looking man which to this day still doesn't fit me!

Part Two coming soon..

Not quite the whole picture..

2009-11-15T11:29:00.000-08:00

I was reading a story today in one of the Sunday papers under the headline "English GCSE? It's just 2EZ." The story was about a new English exam that includes a section on the grammar of mobile phone texting.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dlisbona/ / CC BY 2.0

The article details plans by the Assessment Qualifications Alliance (AQA) to introduce the test that could earn up to ten percent of students overall GCSE mark.

Obviously, the plans have come under attacks from various objectors claiming that the plans reveal a "dumbing down" of the subject. A direct quote from the story reads: "Next year pupils will be tested on text messaging as part of their English GCSEs."

Like many people who read this, I thought the concept of teaching text message lingo in schools was ridiculous so I decided to research a bit more into it.

I started by visiting the AQA website in an attempt to find out more about the plans. I came across the document detailing the course outline and I found out a few interesting things.

Firstly, the module is optional so teachers can choose not to teach it if they wish which wasn't mentioned at all in the newspaper article.

Secondly and I quote from the AQA web site: "This topic deals with new technologies that alter the demarcation between traditional ares of spoken and written language - MSN, text speak etc." - (http://store.aqa.org.uk/resourceZone/pdf/english/AQA-ENGLANGAB-W-TRB-U3ASLS.PDF)" p2.

So the idea that schools would in fact be 'teaching' text speak is a myth. From what is detailed on the AQA website, it appears that that they would actually be attempting to highlight the differences that exist between 'proper' English and text speak. Now maybe it is just me but surely that is a good thing to be teaching to children?

Personally, I'm all for it!

A Step Back in Time

2009-11-15T06:53:00.001-08:00

Today I decided that my blog needed a new element to it. Something a bit different, a bit more personal. Therefore I decided in a moment of retrospective thinking, (while listening to the new album from one of my favourite bands Biffy Clyro ), that I wanted to write about something from my own life because it is my blog after all.

As anyone who knows me will tell you, I have what can only really be described as an obsession with music. This includes talking (often at length) about music and buying more new music than I can afford. Frequently this obsession often manifests itself in the form of heavily opinionated rants and or stories of my own personal experiences of gigs and bands.

Therefore I decided to delve into my own memory banks and share some of the great gig moments I have experienced in my life. Write about what you know and all that!

Now I warn you, some memories will be hazy, others will most likely be wrong but I wanted this to be my own memories so therefore, I will tell it as I remember it. If you are a stickler for correct details then dont read it!

Part one is coming soon..

How to avoid Flickr copyright issues

2009-11-14T03:29:00.000-08:00

Flickr is a brilliant website where anyone can upload their photos which can be viewed by anyone. Obviously there can be issues with copyright if you wish to use other people's photos for your website. Here is a way to make sure you stay safe in regards to copyright by attributing photos back to there original source:

Step 1 - Log on to 'Flickr' website.

Step 2 - Once you have chosen the image you want to use, scroll down to the bottom of the page until you see these options.

Please note: To narrow down your searches, there is a way to only search for images that you can reuse. First click on 'advanced search' option located next to the search bar. Scroll down the options and check the box that says 'only search within Creative Commons-licensed content'. More about Creative Commons.

Step 3 - You must first check that you are 'free to share, to copy, distribute and transmit' the work. If this is the case then under 'Attribution' you may be required to attribute it back to the persons flickr account. You can do this by inserting this code into your website. If you are not free to do this, then you must not use this image.

Step 4 - Save the image to your computer and insert it into your website/blog along with the attribution.

Job Done!

25 Great Blogger Widgets

2009-11-14T02:08:00.001-08:00

Bloggers! check out this very useful blog post:

25 Great Blogger Widgets

Posted using ShareThis

UK libel law and the 'libel tourists'

2009-11-13T11:37:00.000-08:00

This week, several of the mainstream newspapers including the Daily Mail have covered an interesting story that certain individuals are calling for changes in the law in order to stop so-called 'libel tourists'.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/megaqueen1167/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

These are wealthy individuals from across the world who come to the UK to use our courts' stringent libel laws to silence their critics.

The Daily Mail has a quote from an individual who believes English libel law imposes massive restrictions on free speech and this is being exploited more and more by people who can afford to do it.

Some American newspapers are even considering stopping the sale of copies in Britain and blocking their websites to UK readers.

One example I found involved Cameron Diaz and the publication the National Enquirer. In 2005 Diaz won an out-of-court settlement (for 'substantial' damages) after the magazine claimed Diaz was cheating on her then boyfriend Justin Timberlake.

The publication couldn't have been sued in the US under its libel laws but in the UK the case for libel stood.

Pressure groups English PEN and Index on Censorship believe that a rule to ensure London courts cant have a say in a case unless 10 percent of the publication's current circulation is in England.

How to get more blog hits

2009-11-13T07:37:00.000-08:00

As I have all but finished my new blog template, I wanted to name-drop a few useful blogs and blog help sites I came across. These really helped me answer some of the questions I needed to know when setting up my blog and making it look sexy! So, in no particular order:

Blog Skins - I got my template from this site. Has loads of original (and free!) skins for your blog. I chose a notebook theme as I thought it was quite fitting to my subject matter!

Blogger Buster - Loads of helpful blog advice. I found out how to add the 'read more' function from here.

World 4 Masti - A real must read for anyone planning to change their blog template but doesn't want to lose all their items and widgets.

Google Blogger Help - More info on putting widgets into your blog.

Blog Catalogue - Massive directory of user submitted blogs. Great place to promote yourself and guarantees you more hits.

Ping My Blog - Notifies all the major blog directories about your recent blog posts. Saves a lot of time and gives you more exposure.

WWW Observer - Some good suggestions for where to promote your blog.

How to avoid image copyright issues

2009-11-13T07:04:00.001-08:00

I stumbled across a very simple and quick way to make sure you avoid any copyright issues when it comes to uploading any images to your blog posts.

Step 1 - Once on 'Google Images' click on 'Advanced Image Search'

Step 2 - When the screen has loaded you will need to change the 'Usage Rights' drop down menu to read 'labeled for reuse'

Now when you search for the image you want, Google will only bring up pictures that can be used by anyone.

There are also other options, for example, if you require a picture that you wish to modify in any way.

Please note: You still may have to attribute photos to their original source even if they are labeled for use by anyone. This is important to remember!

My New Blog!

2009-11-12T14:41:00.001-08:00

Hope you like the all new Cliffs Blog! Its not 100% finished yet but as they say, Rome wasnt built in a day.

Stay tuned for new updates coming soon!

Winchester News Online - week 2 critically reflected

2009-11-11T12:42:00.000-08:00

Well, the second production is over and I feel it is safe to say that it's definitely getting better!

We stayed in the same roles as week 1 so I personally felt I had a bit more direction this week and I knew more about what I needed to do. I think this was a common feeling among the group as everything seemed to be a lot more organised and it ran a lot smoother.

Monday was similar to last week, the production team worked as a group to determine what stories needed to be edited and what packages we could expect to come in on the Tuesday. Between us we managed to get all the feature/sports stories edited and put on the Winchester Journalism website.

Tuesday was again spent editing and for some of the time in the afternoon Rich and I taught a handful of the first year students about the studio. We started by showing them the basics on camera and then we set up the equipment and got them to film and present the 'Whats On' feature which is going up on the website.

I enjoyed doing it as I feel it furthered my learning and helped refresh me on the equipment which I haven't used for a while.

Then the big day, production Wednesday!

I nominated myself to be on script duty which I started early and felt like I had totally under control...for a little while at least!

As the day wore on, it became clear that getting links/in and out words from reporters for their packages was a lot harder than I originally thought. The editing and rewriting of some of the links took time and the arrival of a few late packages meant we were pushed right to the end, meaning we didn't have much time for rehearsals. However we did get the script and running order in sync and delivered on time which was my main concern.

The whole package was a lot more polished and content-wise it was a lot stronger than last week. However there is still plenty of work to be done before the live bulletin next week. I have also been given the responsibility of communicating with the director to make sure all the live output runs smoothly next week.

Should be fun!

How to embed HTML objects into Joomla

2009-11-10T02:24:00.000-08:00

This tutorial will show you how to embed HTML objects into your articles on Joomla hopefully without any error messages!

Step 1 - Log in to the back end of Joomla

Step 2 - Click on 'User Manager'

Step 3 - Find your name on the list (please note: must have 'administrator' status or higher)

Step 4 - Under 'Parameters' change 'User Editor' to 'Editor: No Editor'

Step 5 - Save the changes

Step 6 - Under 'Content' in the toolbar go to 'Article Manager'

Step 7 - Select the article you want to insert the HTML code into

Step 8 - In a separate window, find the HTML code from the object you wish to insert.

Step 9 - On Youtube it is located in the box next to the video.

Step 10 - Once you have copied the code, paste it into your article and click 'Save'.

Job Done!

Wolves v Arsenal Molineux 7/11/09

2009-11-08T07:38:00.000-08:00

The prospect of facing Arsenal in their current form is a daunting task for any team and a Wolves side that has racked up just ten points from their opening eleven fixtures would need to cause a huge upset if they were to get anything from this game.

The Molineux faithful were in good voice from the start as Wolves attacked the old South Bank end. They soon showed their attacking intent as they managed to pin Arsenal in their own half with some fluent attacking play.

Karl Henry marshaled the midfield proving the link between attack and defence. Kevin Doyle looked a real threat on the ball but despite all the Wolves pressure, they failed to create any real chances.

Midway through the first half Arsenal midfielder Abou Diaby picked up a knock and was replaced by the youngster Alexandre Song.

This seemed to kick the Gunners into life and a breakaway attack saw them win a corner and create their first real chance of the game.

Cesc Fabregas whipped in the corner which was deflected by Ronald Zubar into his own net.

The goal settled Arsenal nerves and they continued to press, another lovely passing move setting up Eduardo whose delicate chip deflected off Jody Craddock to give Arsenal a two goal advantage.

The three points was all but sealed a minute before half time as Cesc Fabregas finished emphatically after some good work from Robin Van Persie.

The second half got off to a slow start as Arsenal knocked the ball around with no immediate urgency and Wolves tried desperately to regroup.

They soon found themselves in trouble again as another fluid Arsenal gave the visitors a corner. Wolves keeper Hennessey was forced to punch clear but the rebound fell to Andrei Arshavin who hit an inch perfect low drive which found its way into the bottom corner.

Wolves managed to grab a late consolation as Jody Craddock powered in a header from a corner with a minute to go.

The result means Arsenal move up to second in the Premier League and Wolves drop into the bottom three.

Wolverhampton

1 Hennessey
5 Stearman
6 Craddock
16 Berra
23 Zubar
4 Edwards (Mancienne 80)
8 Henry
20 Milijas Jarvis 74)
35 Castillo (Kightly 65)
9 Ebanks-Blake
29 Doyle

Substitutes

13 Hahnemann,
27 Mancienne,
07 Kightly,
15 Halford,
17 Jarvis,
10 Keogh,
33 Maierhofer

Arsenal

1 Almunia
3 Sagna
5 Vermaelen
10 Gallas
28 Gibbs
2 Diaby (Song Billong 24)
4 Fabregas
16 Ramsey
23 Arshavin (Nasri 74)
09 Eduardo (Rosicky 70)
11 Van Persie

Substitutes

24 Mannone,
6 Senderos,
18 Silvestre,
27 Eboue,
7 Rosicky,
8 Nasri,
17 Song Billong

Ref: Bennett
Att: 28,937

Winchester News Online - week 1 critically reflected

2009-11-07T03:39:00.000-08:00

Winchester News Online (WINOL) is a news website set up by Journalism students which aims to cover all the news and sport in Winchester and the surrounding areas.

The second and third years have been assigned jobs with the third years mainly taking the editorial roles and the second years taking the reporter roles.

For the first weeks I am assuming the role of Sub Editor/AV Editor on the Production team.

Rather than bore you with how I felt the production went as a whole, I am going to focus on my own role and reflect (as honestly as possible!) on how I think it went.

WINOL is split in to two parts, the first being the news website and the second is the live news broadcast aired on a Wednesday. Being a part of the production team, my role is concerned with editing and writing some of the online content and setting up the studio ready for the live production.

The Monday was somewhat a quiet day as there was no content to edit so I spent my time learning about the programme Joomla which we will be using for the WINOL website.

I could have maybe contributed more on this day and helped in other departments as I felt a lot of my time was wasted. Next time I hope to be more adequately trained on the Joomla setup in regards to submitting and editing stories so I am able to students in other areas.

Tuesday was a busier day as content started to arrive on the Joomla website so the other subs and I set about editing. Our production editor Rich drew up a table containing a list of the stories and who had edited what so we were clear on what needed to be done.

The Wednesday turned out to be the busiest day because the production team are integral in setting up the studio for the production as well as writing scripts and running orders.

As my job role originally stated that the main days I would be needed would be Monday and Tuesday, I decided to work Wednesday morning and get to the studio about 12.30pm.

Turns out this was to be a mistake!

A few other members of the production team were unavailable so when I arrived there was lots to be done oin preparation for the live news broadcast.

Much of the time on this day was spent chasing up reporters for their links to packages. We were even forced in some cases to write some of our own which proved to be difficult if we didn't know exactly what the story is!

However we did manage to finish the script and running orders on time as well as set up the studio for the broadcast. I also nominated myself to operate one of the cameras which was really just a matter of focusing and framing up one shot and listening to instructions given by the director, Leanne.

It was made clear at the end of the session this week that the reporters need to write links for their own packages which will make the sub editors' job a bit easier on the Wednesday.

This way we can focus on making the next broadcast better and more professional by concentrating on the script and the studio set up.

Is True Blood really sucking the innocence out of children?

2009-11-06T09:29:00.000-08:00

'True Blood' is a new smash hit US drama series that has just unleashed itself upon UK shores.

It is set in Louisiana and is loosely based around the idea that scientists have found a way to make artificial human blood, meaning vampires (no longer a danger to society) and humans are now living side-by-side.

The show regularly uses graphic and sometimes violent sex scenes as well as some rather colourful language that is sure to have the prude television purists up in arms.

One such objector called Olivia Lichtenstein was making her feelings very clearly known in the Times today.

Now rather than do my usual response to a comment piece I find interesting/absurd, I am going to highlight some other points about the piece and leave formulating the opinions up to you the reader.

For the benefit of the people who haven't had a chance to read the article, the basic overview is that Lichtenstein believes True Blood is "sucking the innocent out of our children" because of its gratuitous use of sex, swearing and violence.

She uses lose examples and weak arguments in a feeble attempt to argue her point but the main thing that struck me about this was the sloppy journalistic style of the piece.

Lichtenstein frequently uses wishy-washy statements in what appears to be an attempt to give her arguments validity. I have cited a few of these examples below with my own comments.

"Various U.S. studies have shown that teens who watch a lot of sexual content on TV are more likely to initiate intercourse.."

Various U.S. studies? With no mention of any specific studies or any facts and figures to actually back this up, it comes out as a totally hollow and meaningless statement.

"Firstly, the breakdown of the traditional family means that many children might not be supervised adequately."

What is the "traditional family?" Does anyone (Lichtenstein included) actually know what this means? Again, hollow and pointless.

"Many of my 16-year-old daughter's peers have been sexually active from the age of 13 or 14."

Firstly, we didn't really need to know this. Secondly, we are talking about a fantasy TV show about vampires. Boggles the mind to think that she might think that this could factor in the decision by young girls to become sexually active.

"One quarter of 12 to 15 year olds watch television or film content via websites."

How does she know this? No source of information is quoted here so this is a useless and possibly fraudulent statistic.

I could go on but I fear I will bore people.

My final point is that Lichtenstein's piece completely takes the notion of individuality and free will away from children in the decisions they face. Her article makes them appear as passive pawns in in the cruel and disturbing world of 'evil' television producers.

I do agree with one point she makes, we should "protect minds of the young". However I don't think banning a TV show about vampires would be the first place I would start.

Maybe banning the news would be better?

Advancements in UK copyright law

2009-11-05T06:56:00.000-08:00

Following on from our lecture on UK copyright law, I found an recent article on The Register which details new changes in how copyright laws are read and implemented to make them more understandable and useful.

The Government said the move to producing new and easier to understand 'model contracts' was necessary because "digital technology is fundamentally changing the relationships between consumers, producers and consumers."

One of my colleagues James Kenyon also introduced me to a very useful website called Creative Commons, which you can use to search for images, articles etc which you can safely use on your web page without infringing on copyright laws.

The UK's £1000 train fare, surely there must be a cheaper way?

2009-11-03T13:00:00.001-08:00

It is a rainy and cold Tuesday evening, I am stuck inside reading BBC news online so I decided to undertake a bit of investigation work.

The BBC reported today that the UK officially has its first £1000 train fare. The journey travels from Cornwall (in Newquay) to Kyle of Lochalsh (in the Scottish highlands). As someone who regularly takes the train, I found this particularly interesting as well as being totally outrageous.

Long story short, I decided to research other methods of making this journey and this is what I found..

Now unfortunately the Kyle of Lochlash doesn't have an airport, therefore I had to make some slight modifications to my journey.

I was looking to book in advance so I set my outward date as the 1st December 2009 and my return was seven days later on the 8th December 2009.

I found the site Airsouthwest which would do flights from Newquay to Glasgow for an amazing £162.00 return (inc. tax and exc. credit card fees and booking fees etc)

The flight departed at 4pm and arrived at 5.45pm so a very quick and painless journey I think you'll agree!

Arriving so late it would be difficult to find a train that ran to Kyle of Lochalsh at that time from Glasgow so you would need overnight accommodation. (See, I have thought of everything!)

The Express Holiday Inn offers a double bed for £69 a night which includes such luxuries as en suite rooms, TV and hair dryer!

A train direct from Glasgow to Kyle of Lochalsh is available at 10am the next morning and National Rail offers tickets for £27.60 return.

The train travelling back to Glasgow on the 8th December leaves at the early time of 6.21am, arriving in Glasgow at 12.46pm which leaves plenty of time to catch the flight back to Cornwall at 6.10pm.

OK so now the hard part is done, I started to work out the costs associated with this method.

Adding it up, I found that a flight, hotel and train will set you back £258.60. This is compared to the £1,002 it would cost you on the train.

This is a whopping saving of £743.40!

The BBC also reported that cross country trains sells advance tickets for this journey for £561, however this is still £302.40 more than what I would have paid.

So, in conclusion, if you are looking to get from Newquay to the Kyle of Lochlash in December then don't take the train! I quite like this public service stuff...

Where is my organ donor to lend a hand?

2009-11-02T08:52:00.000-08:00

Today, I finally took a step that I have meaning to take for a long time. It is one of those things that I have always wanted to do but have never got round to doing.

I decided to become an organ donor.

My philosophy has always been that when I'm dead, how will I mind who is using my organs? It is also nice to think that my death could give life to another human being.

Admittedly, my decision wasn't totally my own and partly was in response to the front page of the Independent today. The story was concerning a proposal by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) to change the law so every adult in the UK would be legally required to decide whether to donate their organs after death.

My first time reading the article gave me some reservations about the scheme. I thought forcing people make this kind of decision may lead to them thinking there was something wrong with their final choice of yes or no. However, reading on a bit further it turns out there will be a third option.

Unlike in Texas, (where the yes or no system was employed and over 80% of the population chose no), there will also be the option to 'ask my relatives'.

It will be interesting to see if this is implemented and the scheme could have numerous complaints if people felt they were being 'forced' to make a decision.

Also, unless people are facing certain death, it is unlikely they talk to relatives about whether they want to donate organs or not so the problem of making a yes or no decision would still exist.

All I know is I liked the freedom to choose for myself and I believe a lot of others will feel the same.

Maybe increased publicity and hard-hitting advertisements focused on the help that donating organs can give someone may be more effective?

Carr's Gag still causing offense

2009-11-01T03:34:00.000-08:00

Reading Carole Malone's little rant in the News of the World today, I felt obliged to deliver my own personal response.

I was going to leave this issue, it is no longer a news story, however newspapers are determined to milk the story by continually printing opinion pieces on the matter.

For those of you who don't know, then basically the comedian Jimmy Carr got in trouble for cracking a joke about amputees who have been injured in war.

At a gig in Manchester he said to the crowd "Say what you want you like about those servicemen amputees from Iraq and Afghanistan but we're going to have a f***ing good Paralympics team in 2012."

As expected there was a huge uproar from the media and politicians who branded the joke as "sick". After reading the story and hearing the joke, I myself was appalled.

I was appalled at the over-reaction by the press and everyone else who felt the need to slate a comedian for making a joke.

Jimmy Carr is well known for controversial and outspoken style of comedy. He regularly makes jokes about rape, obesity and the plight in countries such as Africa and the Middle East.

However the tabloids decided to focus on this one particular joke by claiming that Carr "sparked uproar with the remark at a gig."

This of course isn't true. The press caused the uproar by reporting it and if tabloids tell everyone how bad something is, of course there are going to be complaints!

Never mind that Lance Corporal Rory Mackenzie (who lost in leg to a roadside bomb in 2006) came out and said he "laughed out loud" at the gag.

However my main issue lies with the context in which the joke has been told. At a comedy gig, with a performer known for his sometimes outlandish jokes, people cant be expecting not to hear some controversial gags. It is not as if a politician has come out in Parliament and said it.

In her amazingly angry and bitter piece, Malone even brings Carr's income and lifestyle into the matter, comparing his wage with that of a soldier. I fail to see how this has any relevancy to the issue but apparently it is important.

People need to lighten up, just because someone makes a joke about a solider, doesn't mean they are unpatriotic and should be instantly destroyed in the press.

I believe Carr wasn't mocking servicemen and women who have been injured in combat, but bringing to light and underlining the horrific injuries of soldiers on the frontline.

So to people like Carole Malone I say, stop wasting your time with trivial comedy acts. Get out there and do something about bringing to justice the individuals who are blowing our boys limbs off day-in-day-out and save your rants for someone who deserves it.

Frank Turner comes home! 28/10/0

2009-10-28T16:32:00.000-07:00

The Winchester Guildhall is full to the brim with expectant fans for solo artist Frank Turners biggest ever hometown show.

The atmosphere reached boiling point as Turner hit the stage to rapturous applause, launching straight in to new song Live Fast Die Old off his new album Poetry of the Deed.

"This is the biggest ever indoor event that Winchester has ever seen" Turner announces with a sense of smug satisfaction. Cheap digs at Southampton and Portsmouth along with a few amusing stories about his childhood highlight the fact that Turner is a true Winchester boy through and through.

His set tonight is an equal mix of old and new and he seamlessly manoeuvres through fan favourites such as The Real Damage, Substitute and Long Live The Queen.

One of the highlights of the show (including this authors favourite) comes in the form of Smiling at Strangers on Trains, a homage to Turner's previous band, Million Dead (check them out here)

Sections of his set are broken up by passages of witty banter and light-hearted conversation and Turner never once releases his grip upon his mesmerised audience.

As the show draws to a close and the final chords of Photosynthesise ring out, it is hard to think of a reason not to love Frank Turner and I think this entire audience can head home safe in the knowledge that they have witnessed one of the greatest live performances that Winchester has ever seen.

University of Winchester welcomes Ian Anderson

2009-10-27T10:08:00.000-07:00

In conjunction with the behemoth of journalism Ian Anderson's' visit to the University of Winchester, I decided to post some pictures of his tour of our brand spanking new television studio.

Down in the studio.

Lecturer and Journalist Chris Horrie shows off his new pride and joy to a captivated audience.

Shot from up in the gallery.

Sound desk

Green screen for use with weather and other graphics.

Ian Anderson chats to journalism students Ben King (left) Rich Taylor (centre) and Mark Lovell (right)

The internet may not be the death of the music industry

2009-10-26T15:05:00.000-07:00

Interesting article in the Guardian today about Cheryl Cole's debut album which went on sale today.

Cole's debut single Fight For This Love is currently the fastest-selling single of 2009 and the album 3 Words is expected to be one of the biggest of the year.

One of the big reasons for the predicted success of the album, along with the stars memorable performance on hit TV show The X-Factor, is the clever marketing tactic employed by her label, Fascination Records, part of the Universal group.

As record sales continue to plummet (down a further 6% last year), there has been a massive increase in ways for music stars to connect with fans and Cole appears to have exerted some influence over nearly all of them.

A few examples include users on myspace getting a live web chat, Bebo viewers made videos for a chance to interview the star and on twitter, fans asked questions which Cole answered in a video on her website.

Being an avid music fan and harbouring a (possibly delusional) belief that I can make a career out of Music Journalism and also having a keen interest in new media technologies, this story was of particular interest to me.

The music industry is one of many that is in a state of flux with the evolution and development of new media technologies and in the face of falling sales and an increase in digital piracy, labels are having their hands forced into changing how the most integrated systems of PR and promotion operate.

As the Guardian article mentions, while high street record sales may have disappeared, there is still a huge range of online retailers that need to be catered for and Universal has done just that with Cheryl Cole's first album.

The biggest online retailer Amazon got 200 signed albums while HMV.com got personalised calenders and iTunes got an exclusive track and digital booklet.

With the inevitable emergence of more ways to buy and access new music, labels are going to have to do their best to keep up and continue to find new and interesting ways to promote their artists in order to see any potential return.

Resurgence in studies into health benefits of LSD and Ecstacy

2009-10-25T13:18:00.000-07:00

During the 1950s and 60s research was carried out into the effects of psychedelic drugs. In some places they were even used as cures for anxiety and depression. However as the use of LSD and Ecstasy as a recreational drug began to increase, studies into the possible beneficial effects of the drugs were suspended amid fears that taking them would cause mental illness' such as schizophrenia.

This week it has been reported that there is to be a resurgence of research into the possible therapeutic benefits of the drugs LSD and Ecstasy. This has come as good news to people who take the drug as they may soon be able to get the psychedelics from their doctor, rather than having to purchase it illegally.

It has also come to light this week that there are a community of people that passes the drugs between users on the basis of need and support, with money rarely being involved.

These studies into the medical benefits could be a massive significance for anyone who suffers from a variety of conditions and this could be a big step forward in the field of medical science.

While obviously there would need to be extensive testing into the effects of taking the drugs, there are bound to be many objections from various groups who wont agree with the use of 'dangerous' drugs as a cure for common medical problems.

It is important to remember that while these drugs may be illegal, if handled with care, they would be no more dangerous than many other therapies. Some academics studying the effects are already arguing that no drug will ever be completely safe, illegal or medical.

If the new studies prove to be a success the Government will have no option but to downgrade the class of drug that LSD falls into as it is currently classified as a Class A, schedule 1 substance – which means not only is it considered highly dangerous, but also that it is deemed to have no medical research value.

Griffin on Question Time - more harm than good?

2009-10-23T08:26:00.000-07:00

Well, despite all the protests and complaints, it went ahead. Nick Griffin, leader of controversial right wing party the BNP, appeared for the first time on Question Time.

Predictably, the party's exposure to a Nationwide audience provoked outrage as Griffin, although unsurprisingly more subdued than usual (check out this speech made to a group of right-wing extremists in the US: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04QolIvfQEw ) still managed to make a few ludicrous claims such as that if Churchill had been alive today he would be a member of the BNP, which is the focus of the story in The Times today.

While the debates about whether Griffin should have been allowed on Question Time in the first place or whether he will be allowed on again will continue to rage, a new debate will now surely take centre stage, how effective was his performance on the show?

Inevitably the focus of the show was centered on Griffin and his controversial beliefs on issues of race, immigration and multiculturalism. There are two ways to objectively view his performance when it came down to answering questions on these topics.

Number one, Griffin showed a lot of bottle when it came to facing 300 hostile people and was always going to struggle when it came down to answering these questions. He did his best at trying to debate but every time he opened his mouth he was instantly shouted down or had to deal with choruses of boos and jeers from the audience.

Number two, Griffin couldn't hold his own when it came down to intense scrutiny by the panel and audience, choosing to hide himself behind a child-like-veil of 'I didn't do it' when it came down to accounting for his own words, even when he was confronted with video evidence.

Which ever you believe, there is no denying that Griffin can have a case for believing he was treated 'unfairly' as only about 10% of the show was spent discussing his parties policies. The other 90% was (rightly) focused on Griffin attempting to fend off attacks about his personal beliefs and his highly controversial quotes.

The star of the show was undoubtedly David Dimbleby who controlled the show brilliantly. Dimbleby consistently highlighted Griffins shortcomings by pressing him every time he tactically avoided answering questions and he constantly levelled Griffins' own quotes at him and got nothing but consistently nervous and unconvincing responses.

By the end, the audience were essentially ridiculing Griffin. Things were being shouted from all areas of the crowd and people seemed to just get tired of what he had to say. Griffin showed himself to be a nervous and rambly public speaker who tirelessly contradicted himself. However, it is difficult to know how he may have performed when faced with a different audience and a more political line of questioning.

The BNP claim that last night gave them the biggest recruitment drive in their history, with over 3,000 people joining the party. In a poll on the Daily Mail website, 55% of people believe the appearance was a success for Griffin and the BNP.

In this authors opinion, successful or not, Griffin should become a regular guest on Question Time. Maybe then he will get to truly show how much of a politician he ain't and people will soon start to see the real side of him, rather than a slimy yet very clever PR man.

BNP question time

2009-10-22T12:54:00.000-07:00

It has been brewing since the announcement that the BNP leader Nick Griffin was set to appear on BBC Question Time and today the anti-BNP protesters turned nasty.

Over 500 people were involved in demonstrations outside the BBC studios in White City.

3 police officers were injured as 25 protesters beat BBC security to gain entry to the reception area of the building.

Meanwhile Griffin entered via a side entrance, licking his lips and rubbing his hands.

This whole over the top media coverage coupled with the-now-violent demonstrations has played right into the hands of the BNP. It has made them look like victims and has given them credibility.

Griffin even had the audacity to call the protesters "yobs". Although he then went on to reveal his real right-wing paranoia by denouncing that all the protesters "have been bussed in from around the country by groups funded by Labour councils".

Griffin has done what any self respecting racist party leader would do and hidden behind the banner of free speech and since the protesters are denying him this 'right' he can now play the innocent victim.

There is a danger that Griffin can successfully play this role well and turn himself into the textbook pantomime bad guy.

Lets see if he can keep up this facade on Question Time tonight at 10.35pm on BBC 1. It promises to be pretty explosive.

How to write news features

2009-10-20T12:15:00.000-07:00

In our lecture on Monday we discussed features and feature writing. These are the main feature format used in the news outside the designated 'feature' section. They shouldn't be confused with hard news stories and they are usually longer. Often they are usually located near or on the news pages of a newspaper.

Quite often they can be classed as 'wrap up' articles and a good example I found in one of today's tabloid papers was 'Ten Interesting Facts About Buttons' which was an article that used a news 'peg' of Jensen Button winning the world Formula One title.

I also managed to find 'Top Ten Tips for Writing Effective News Features from News USA which provides some interesting advice:

1. Write for your audience.

Your feature should appeal to a broad, general newspaper readership. All through the course we have been taught to avoid technical jargon and overly complicated sentences, news features are no exception.

2. Follow The Associated Press Stylebook, the universally accepted journalism standard.

Use this style and editors will be inclined to give your feature serious consideration. Break the rules and your feature may not place.

3. Make a keen statement in your first paragraph.

Features are all about grabbing the readers attention so a good idea is to lead with a question or a statistic that highlights the most important point of the feature.

4. Think in terms of “news you can use.”

Readers enjoy nothing more than to read information and tips that can help them and/or that they can apply to their daily lives. Articles along these lines could be very successful.

5. Avoid commercialism. If your feature reads like an ad or press release, editors won’t run it.

Product promotions don’t work well except around the holidays — and even then, they should be accompanied by consumer tips.

6. Remember, the shorter the better.

Editors at all publications have limited space to fill so he chances are your article will have to be trimmed down to fit the space you have been allocated.

7. Use quality photos or graphics.

We learnt that because of the lighter tone of the feature, they are often heavily reliant on photos and graphics. Include these in a feature to make it more appealing and pleasing on the eye.

8. Keep headlines and captions short and to the point.

News organisations often use standard typesetting guidelines, so headlines will need to be kept short but it is important to remember to include all the relevant information needed to lure the reader to the story.

9. End your feature with a Web site, e-mail address or phone number.

Readers need to know where they can get more information.

You can see the original top tips here: http://about.newsusa.com/corporate/Getting_Started/pdfs/top_10.pdf

Ramsay's foul mouth to blame

2009-10-20T05:09:00.000-07:00

Dame Joan Bakewell (don't worry, I had no idea who she is either!) was reported in the Daily Express today as saying Gordon Ramsay is to blame for the increase in swearing among schoolchildren.

The journalist and broadcaster argues that children are picking up and copying obscene language used by by the popular TV chef on his shows the F-word and Kitchen Nightmares.

Even writing this now, it seems really absurd that an individual, famous or not, can be blamed for an increase in "a culture of yob-speak" by children.

Channel 4 broadcasts Ramsay's shows after the watershed and so surely the responsibility lies with the parents?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not implying that its the parents fault that children might be watching TV shows with obscenities in them. Trying to stop children from being exposed to swear words is as ridiculous as blaming a TV chef for all the swearing in the playground.

My second point is only a minor one but still relevant. How does this woman know there has been an increase in swearing among schoolchildren?! How is this possible to prove? It seems to me as this is nothing more than a sweeping generalised statement in an attempt to prove her silly attempt to pass blame.

However, the funniest part of the article lies further down as Bakewell then moves to defend the use of bad language in "certain circumstances". These are loosely categorised as "tense, gritty dramas".

What a ludicrous double standard! Whether swearing in a seemingly 'appropriate' scenario or casual swearing to blow off steam in a kitchen, the words are the same and children can still mimic them.

I'm not too sure this woman really knows what she is trying to say in this article. Maybe its time people stopped trying to push the blame and faced up to the fact that children are always going to be exposed to swear words and the focus needs to be on getting them to stop repeating them, rather than blaming individuals who use them.

New robotic hand can 'restore sense of touch'

2009-10-18T09:24:00.000-07:00

The BBC reported a story on the development of what is thought to be the first robotic hand that has feeling.

It work by connecting nerve endings to electronic sensors.

I thought it was pretty amazing so I decided to post the link for your enjoyment:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8313037.stm

The midst of an apocalyptic end?

2009-10-16T10:42:00.001-07:00

Reading the news, it appears Amazon will unleash its Kindle upon the UK market next week and in good time for Christmas. Now, for those of you who don't know, the Kindle is a wireless book reader device on to which you can download books and get them delivered to you in under 60 seconds. Check it out here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0015T963C/ref=ms_sbrspot_0?pf_rd_p=494263771&pf_rd_s=center-1&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_i=507846&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1VGQ09T29YA80KJVWHK4

The e-book market is potentially hugely lucrative and it is currently dominated by Amazon. However sensing the huge potential in this and not want miss out on a piece, Google is set to launch its Google Editions in early 2010. Now rather than simply provide competition to Amazon, Sony and Plastic Logic for the way e-books are read, the eggheads at Google have been very clever indeed.

Google Editions will be a full online library meaning that Google can get a say in not only how e-books are read, but also how they are bought and sold. What is sure to have Amazon quaking in its boots is that Google Editions will support a variety of e-reading formats, something that its online Kindle e-book store cannot do.

I know what you're thinking. Why should I care?

The blogging world is currently buzzing with the topic of e-books and the impending doom of the written form. While it is far too early to tell the extent of damage e-books could have on the publishing industry, the fact is e-readers have proved to be increasingly popular over recent months. If Google Editions really takes off and it fulfills its claims of being able to make available 500,000 titles from day one, it will certainly have a huge impact instantly.

This will not just effect the publishing trade but also the Journalism industry. If a huge number of e-readers are sold then people could ultimately decide that 80p a day spent on a newspaper is an unneccessary expenditure as the proper "paper" version of the newspaper is available on their fancy new toy anyway. Print Journalism has certainly taken a huge hit with the unprecendented expansion of the Internet and this could change the way the whole industry operates.

Could this prove to be the final nail in the coffin for the print Journalist?

If it is, remember that you read it here first!

World Wide Mistake

2009-10-15T13:34:00.000-07:00

The two forward slashes at the start of Internet addresses have been the bane of many Internet users' life. Typing them in has wasted hours of precious time and if you mistakenly miss one out you are faced with the error message that we all dread which means you have to type it in again. It really is a huge deal...apparently!

This week Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the creator of the World Wide Web has come out and apologised for the inclusion of the two // at the start of addresses and admitted they were 'unnecessary'.

He even admitted if he had know they would have caused so much 'hassle' he wouldnt have devised them.

I found this news story one of the most entertaining I have read in a while. Mostly, because I thought it was hilarious and totally bizarre to think that some people could really have felt inconvinienced by having to type in two forward slashes, but also because it made me think of the amount of unneccesary and pointless things that are now all over the web thanks to Berners-Lee's invention. I decided to pick some of my favourites for your enjoyment.

1. http://www.Faceinhole.com

I never really understood the appeal of this website but it seems to have become really popular for some reason. The website offers a selection of photographs of famous people without faces and the idea is that you place your own or someone elses face in that hole. Hense, face in hole. In case you were wondering, yes they do look really stupid.

2. http://www.pointlesscalendar.com/

A pointless website where you can buy a pointless product. This "calender" has four rows of ten numbers and no days of the week designed with the idea in mind that it can be used again and again!

3. http://cloudappreciationsociety.org/

Yes, this is a real website. The funniest thing about stumbling upon this site was finding out that it had 19,000 members! If you can find a point to this website please comment and let me know.

4. http://www.piratequiz.com/

Ever wanted to find out your pirate name? If so then give it a go. Mine was Dirty Sam Bonney!

5. http://www.dramabutton.com/

My personal favourite and totally unneccesary, guaranteed to bring laughs though!

Please feel free to comment on my choices and add your own favourites.

Wine expert wins defamation case

2009-10-15T07:20:00.000-07:00

Following on from today's university lecture on defamation and libel, I stumbled across an interesting article from yesterdays guardian online news page.

The case involves one of the worlds top wine dealers, a Paris wine cellar, Thomas Jefferson, and the most expensive bottle of wine ever sold.

Apart from sounding like a synopsis from the latest Dan Brown novel, the case has had significant impact on defamation cases as a whole.

The story begins 24 years ago, a bottle of 1787 Lafite was sold in London for a staggering £105,000. It remains the biggest sum ever paid for a single bottle of wine and much of the value is down to the initials 'TH.J' printed on the side of the bottle which, it was claimed, meant it belonged to the third president of the US Thomas Jefferson.

Michael Broadbent, the man who authenticated the wine and presided over the auctions for the bottles won and apology and substantial damages from the publisher Random House over a bestselling book, which, he argued, had suggested he had sold the wine knowing its provenance to be suspect.

The book brilliantly entitled 'The Billionaire's Vinegar' by Benjamin Wallace outlines the case of the so called 'Jefferson Bottles' and because of the ruling in the case must now be removed from British bookshelves.

Now in relation to what we studied in lecture today, it is clear that this defamation case was successful because the book can be seen as discrediting Broadbent in his profession.

While Michael Broadbent has retired as the senior director of Christie's wine department he remains, according to Adam Lechmere, editor of decanter.com, "among the top three most respected wine critics in the world".

Broadbent's lawyer Sarah Webb said he had been forced to take action because the book suggested he had acted "at best unprofessionally, at worst dishonestly".

This case is interesting because it still has as yet to be proven whether the Jefferson bottles are actually genuine.

In response to the ruling Benjamin Wallace told the Guardian: "I have never felt that Mr Broadbent acted in bad faith, and contrary to his claims, I maintain that The Billionaire's Vinegar does not suggest that he did."

High Court reinstates nurse whistleblower

2009-10-13T07:43:00.000-07:00

The papers today are reporting the story of the reinstatement of Margaret Haywood, a nurse with over 20 years of experience who was struck off the register for bringing to light cases of unacceptably low standards of care for elderly patients.

Haywood secretly filmed patients at the Royal Sussex Hospital in Brighton to show they were being neglected. Her findings were broadcast on the TV documentary series Panorama .

The cases exposed included a patient who was left to die alone and another who was forced to wait hours before being allowed to go to the toilet.

There was a public outcry when the nurse was struck off in April for breaching confidentiality, however the penalty imposed by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) was overturned yesterday by the High Court in London.

Not good enough I'm afraid.

Those individuals who have the courage, honesty and bravery to expose genuine cases of neglect and wrongdoings should be rewarded rather than cast off as troublemakers.

Whistleblowers risk being condemned by friends and co-workers and also face disciplinary action and in some extreme cases, dismissal. Dismissal is exactly what happened in the case of Margaret Haywood and while the decision may have been overturned, the accusations by the NMC of what she was doing was wrong still stands.

The fact that the case has been overturned because of public outcry will have little effect on people in the future who are considering exposing unacceptable practices as they could be (understandably) discouraged because of fear for their careers.

I am certainly more inclined to trust a whistleblower who saved suffering and even lives over someone who goes to work every day, saw this happening and does nothing about it.

The dreaded interviews

2009-10-12T06:02:00.000-07:00

One of the most nerve wracking and seemingly unconquerable fears I faced as a first year Journalism student was the prospect of face-to-face interviews.

Not being an overly confident person the prospect of sitting down with a seemingly unwilling interviewee to ask them questions that they have probably been asked dozens of times was about as appealing as sticking a needle in my eye.

As this was one of my biggest fears about undertaking a undergraduate degree, I have put a lot of time and effort into attempting to improve my interview skills and I have managed to pick up some useful tips along the way.

1. Do your homework!

As a reporter you will usually have time to prepare for an interview as the News Editor will tell you about it beforehand. It is essential to use this time well to read up on your interviewee and ready any past articles/stories about them. There is nothing worse than the dreaded realisation you have to attempt to ask questions to someone you know nothing about. You don’t want to stumble through the interview making the source think you don’t understand the topic.

2. When setting up the interview don't leave the interviewee in the dark about what you want to ask

Providing them with some details before the interview will give the interviewee a chance to think about some of the questions you might ask and gather relevant information they think you might need for your story.

3. Prepare a few questions beforehand

Interviews (especially ones with people who like nothing more than to talk about themselves) have a tendency to drift away from the topic you want to talk about. This is why it is important to have some questions pre-prepared and while it is important to keep your interviewee talking, having a question you can ask to get the interview back on track is important.

From my experience I realise that you don't have to rigorously stick to your original questions and asking follow up questions will relax your interviewee and show you are actually listening to what they have to say.

4. Think of your readership

It is essential to consider what you want to get from the interview and what will the reader/listener/viewer want to know about the topic. It is equally important to remember what would be of particular interest to your audience.

Understanding these tips greatly helped me when it came to heading out and talking to people in order to get the information I needed. Hopefully I can keep on furthering my learning and before long I could be interviewing interesting characters such as this lady.

Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp0Q3UJHrkU

New mums shun NHS

2009-10-11T08:21:00.000-07:00

The Independent on Sunday today covered a story that an increasing number of new mums are choosing to ignore motherhood advice given by the NHS in favour of turning to the Internet.

A survey found that "information overload and conflicting guidance" mean that only a shocking 3% of new mothers put any faith in anything the Government or the Department of Health has to tell them.

It is easy to see why.

The NHS is constantly in the news for the wrong reasons. An institution that is criticised for its lack of funding, staff shortages and long waiting lists is never going to have the public confidence. Plus the rapid growth and ease of access of the Internet means useful information is never more than a click away and sites such as Netmums and Newmothers means advice and guidance can be sought from individuals battling with the same problems.

More than a third of the women surveyed admitted that "confusing" advice on certain issues such as feeding and sleeping routines has marred their experience of being a parent.

Former Midwife Vicky Scott says that now "midwives don't have the time to understand problems before dispensing advice" and so the scepticism of the state will continue to grow as the problems with the NHS mount up. Whomever is in power after the next election will have to plug this trust gap between the Government and the public in order to regain their confidence.

Just checking up on you..

2009-10-10T06:08:00.000-07:00

I found this hilarious clip on one of the (dis)advantages of parents using social networking!

Check it out at: http://www.theonion.com/content/video/facebook_twitter_revolutionizing

Students Living the Life of Luxury?

2009-10-09T14:11:00.000-07:00

Leafing through the Daily Mail during my lunch break, I stumbled across a rather interesting headline that read: Hard Up? Students are living a life of luxury, says Professor. Now, being a student myself this certainly got my attention.

Delving a bit deeper into the story and I was startled to find that it wasn't in fact a clever misleading headline but a genuine quote from an article published in the Times Higher Education magazine and The Professor in question was a man named Kelvin Sharpe.

Professor Sharpe certainly doesn't pull any punches and is quoted as saying students these days enjoy the spendthrift life enjoyed in Friends by regularly splashing out on £2 cappuccinos and eating at restaurants a lot. We can then go back to our student homes that are "equipped with large LCD TVs, Sky Boxes and several high end laptops.".

Reading on I wasn't too sure which, if any, University managed accommodation Professor Sharpe was actually talking about. I have friends at University all over the country and I couldn't name one that could even be jokingly described as a (quote) "posh pad with two bathrooms".

In this current economic climate, eating out has become far less of an expenditure as it used to be and choose the right day and you can get three courses for £10, I wouldn't eactly say lavish spending.

However, (and trying my best not to turn this into a bitter rant) the one final point that really surprised me was that at no point in this unnecessary swipe at students was there any consideration taken to the fact that maybe some of these 'big' spending students actually work an awful minimum wage job to afford there (quote) "Ipods and LCD TVs". I happen to know several people who work a bar job that often sees them home at 2am or later who then struggle to get up for a 9am start.

With the news that some students still haven't received there student loans and the rest of us still coming to the realisation that we have to work 20 hours a week because they barely cover rent, I guess we should be grateful that we have a middle class, Oxford Educated Professor to tell us we got it easy.

Tories Hopeless Battle against Binge Drinking Britain

2009-10-08T13:57:00.000-07:00

So election time is fast approaching and with it comes more ambitious promises from the Tories to fix the seemingly unfixable broken Britain.

My favourite one this week was the pledge to crackdown on binge drinking. The Tories are proposing to increase the tax on alcopops and super-strength lager in effort to crackdown on "drink fuelled louts" as The Sun so delicately puts it. Therefore, under the new proposals a four-pack of strong lager would rise by £1.33.

Now maybe I'm just being facetious, but can you really see four semi-pissed individuals getting ready to hit the town, walking in to an off license and picking up a 4 pack of 9% Tennants Super Lager and then suddenly having a moment of clarity and deciding maybe they shouldn't buy this product. Maybe they should call it a day and go and get an early night as tomorrow will bring a busy day of being a good citizen and helping the local community. All because of the extra £1.33 extra they didn't spent the night before?

Basically, my incoherent and somewhat rambling point here is that people will always drink irresponsibly, there is no point punishing the millions of individuals who like to go out, have a few drinks of whatever they chose and have a good time. All this will mean is people who drink ten cans of lager before a night out will now only be able to drink eight.

Over the years binge drinking has become embedded into the British culture and a relatively minor tax hike on a few products certainly isn't going to change that any time soon. Let be honest, even if it did, people will just drink something else.

Criminal Cases in the Crown Courts

2009-10-08T06:58:00.000-07:00

When reading up on the Crown Courts in the new edition of McNae's Law for Journalists;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/McNaes-Essential-Journalists-David-Banks/dp/0199556458/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1255010671&sr=8-1

I found one section on reporting on majority verdicts particularly interesting.

In Crown Court, a judge will initially advise a jury to arrive at a unanimous verdict on each charge however if the jury had 'retired' for at least two hours and ten minutes and has failed to reach a verdict, then the judge will rule that a majority verdict is acceptable for each charge.

Now if a defendant is convicted by a majority then it is unproblematic for the media to refer to the fact that it was by a majority decision. This is because it indicates that one or two people didn't agree with the guilty verdict, and to report this is regarded as fair to the defendant.

However the problems lie in regards to reporting when a defendant is acquitted by a majority vote. It is regarded as 'undesirable' to publish the fact that it was by a majority verdict as it indicated at least one member of the jury believed the defendant to be guilty.

If reported, such an suggestion leaves a stain on the defendant's character even though he or she was cleared of the charge.

This could prove to trip up many journalists who believe they were reporting a seemingly innocuous truth so it is definetely something to watch out for.

ITV Idol?

2009-10-07T13:14:00.001-07:00

The Independent surely has the story of the day today.

The paper highlighted a rumor that Simon Cowell and retail tycoon Sir Philip Green are working on a bid to save the soon-to-be-doomed broadcaster ITV.

A channel full of repeats of Britain's Got Talent,The X-Factor and American Idol. Great stuff.

However it might not all be bad as we could soon see some exciting new programmes hitting the airways such as 'Trousers: How High is too High?' and 'Ten Essential Guidelines On How to Act Like a Prima Donna at Your Birthday Party' .

Unfortunately friends of the pair deny the rumors. Maybe they could start off small with a two man double act. Then maybe ITV could get some laughs for once.

Too sick to work?

2009-10-06T02:39:00.000-07:00

The recent announcement by David Cameron to cut incapacity benefit to those deemed "fit enough to work" has been met with an understandably mixed reaction from the British public.

Cameron suggested bringing in a new test to determine whether individuals should be placed on job seekers allowance instead of incapacity benefit which would mean reducing their benefits by £25 a week.

There are 2.6 million incapacity benefit claimers in the UK and the Conservatives believes one in five are actually fit enough to work. That's about 400,000 people.

For one of the millions rightfully claiming benefits this will mean more stress as they have to go for more check ups and tests to determine whether they are actually unfit to work.

Some individuals will undoubtedly believe that if they are told they are fit enough to work, the jobs they are qualified to do just simply aren't there.

Anthony Phillips from Cambridge who stopped working a year ago from a heart condition said: "They should think about cutting their own wage packets before picking on the already poor." (BBC News)

Cases in the UK must be handled more personally and should take into account the whole picture of the claimant.

The Conservatives need to realise that their proposed system of ticking boxes and fulfilling criteria will lead to many people in the UK feeling like scroungers.

Letterman blackmail case

2009-10-05T09:13:00.000-07:00

Last week, the U.S. chat show host David Letterman shockingly informed his viewers of his affairs with women who work on his late night show.

He made the revelation during a filming of his late show because he said he was being blackmailed by a former colleague attempting to extort $2 million from him.

As the UK media history has shown us, Letterman had several options available to him once he knew that someone was in a position to expose his wrong doings.

As with the 'royal' blackmail case last year, Letterman could have applied for an injunction preventing the newspapers from reporting his name. Even though once the case went to court anyone with access to the Internet and even the remotest knowledge of how to operate a search engine could have found out the name of the 'celebrity' embroiled in the scandal.

More recently this inadequacy of media law was once again exposed in the UK as the papers were banned from revealing the identity of a TV journalist who was involved in an extra-marital affair which resulted in a child.

In order to make the area of media law relating to the press banning publication of names more airtight the Internet needs to closely regulated. This is a totally separate issue and many feel this would never be entirely possible because of the scale of in the World Wide Web.

More importantly the Letterman case demonstrates that some celebrities are willing to stand up tall and admit they made mistakes, even if it takes a blackmail case for them to finally come clean.

Maybe its time some UK celebrities started to face the music as well.

Barmy Blaney's Blarney

2009-10-02T09:18:00.000-07:00

Browsing the news websites this morning I stumbled across a fine example of a giant waste of time:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8285954.stm

For those of you who didnt bother to click the link then basically a blogger called Donal Blaney managed to get a high court injunction preventing someone writing under his name over a fake twitter account. Some of the provocative tweets posts included:

“So the Iranians were lying all along. Time for the RAF to start practicing bunker bombing...”

“Now Obama, who the eurofederasts [sic] love, is happy to leave us to the mercy of the mad mullahs...”

All very amusing.

An equally effective, less time consuming and certainly less over-the-top solution may have been to email the nice people at twitter and ask them to take the account down.

In a shameless display of egotism Blaney then wrote on his blog that: "It is, as I have said in the media, the day the scales of justice were tipped back in favour of innocent victims".

Lets hope this doesnt set a precedent for overly sensitive drama queens wasting legal time and resources on trivial matters.

Oh and Blaney my name is Matt Clifford, thought it might make my injunction easier.