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Showing posts with label news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label news. Show all posts
Friday, 13 July 2012
Sunday, 10 October 2010
What A Week.
Well, what an interesting week this has been.
Links as mentioned:
AudioBoo:
http://audioboo.fm/boos/193773-hastin...
http://audioboo.fm/boos/194217-hastin...
http://audioboo.fm/boos/195222-hastin...
Phtots:
http://twitpic.com/photos/andymooseman
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-0GPu...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWCb2D...
And, wouldn't you know it. Whilst putting these links here, i've found out that my Pier memories video is now a featured video on YouTube!
Wednesday, 6 October 2010
Well Done Everyone.
I posted a blog post, earlier today, on my Social Media Journeys blog. It was called "Citizen Journalists" and relayed my own experiences yesterday. The day that Hastings Pier burned.
In it i mentioned how i had used various social media sites to get my photos, video & audio podcasts onto the Internet and how they had been spread by others and then used by other sites.
But, i was by no means the only local person who did this and that is what i want to recognise in this blog post.
I want to say "Well done everyone", to all of those local people who helped to show the world what was happening in our town yesterday. Without us, the coverage would have been nowhere near as extensive, especially in those early hours of this major news story.
When i first got down to the seafront and the pier, at just before 6.30am yesterday. There were no media people to be seen anywhere. Not even from our local newspaper, the Hastings Observer.
One of their reporters did turn up a bit later, on his own and without a photographer. I think i even over heard him saying that he couldn't get hold of anyone on his phone!
This was a major news story, possibly the biggest the town of Hastings has had for many years and there were no local news reporters present to record it. Or, any other media outlets for that matter. Even though the pier had been burning for over 5 hours at that point.
So, what did the established local and national media have to do? They had to rely on you and me, the citizen reporters.
We were the people whose photos and videos appeared on numerous news websites and social media sites generally.
We were the people who were on the scene first and who captured the really defining images. Those powerful images of the pier burning in the darkness, or in the early morning light. Before the media cavalry arrived.
I have seen video and photo's from many local people used on various tv programmes, news websites and even national newspapers.
One local photographer, Andy Wilson, who i know via Twitter, had one of his photos used by The Guardian newspaper, as it's lead front page image
Well done Andy.
We were also ably assisted by all those other locals who passed on our images etc. Whether by Twitter, email or other means. You also helped to get this historic story "out there".
I only hope that the efforts of our local citizen reporters is appreciated when the Hastings Observer brings out it's special "Hastings Pier burns" edition this Friday.
I think it is only fitting that they are. After all, it was us who provided the world with those first dramatic images of that dreadful fire.
I could now go off into another rant and maybe i will, about how woeful the Hastings Observer were with their initial coverage of the story. About how they were comprehensively beaten to the story by the Brighton Argus, amongst others.
I was contacted, via Twitter, by the Brighton Argus asking for permission to use my material, at 09.00. My YouTube video was linked on their website by 09.20 that morning. They also had one of my photos on their site, by the same time.
By contrast, the first Tweet of the day from the Hastings Observer was at 10.30am.
It wasn't until around this time that any mention of this huge local story first appeared on the Hastings Observer website. I could go on, but.....
So, well done everyone.
You did your town proud yesterday.
You recorded a little piece of history. And it's just as well that you did. Because there was nobody else there to do it for us.
And for that, the whole town and the media world in general, should be eternally grateful.
PS: For a local poets version of events. Watch this. It's well worth it.
In it i mentioned how i had used various social media sites to get my photos, video & audio podcasts onto the Internet and how they had been spread by others and then used by other sites.
But, i was by no means the only local person who did this and that is what i want to recognise in this blog post.
I want to say "Well done everyone", to all of those local people who helped to show the world what was happening in our town yesterday. Without us, the coverage would have been nowhere near as extensive, especially in those early hours of this major news story.
When i first got down to the seafront and the pier, at just before 6.30am yesterday. There were no media people to be seen anywhere. Not even from our local newspaper, the Hastings Observer.
One of their reporters did turn up a bit later, on his own and without a photographer. I think i even over heard him saying that he couldn't get hold of anyone on his phone!
This was a major news story, possibly the biggest the town of Hastings has had for many years and there were no local news reporters present to record it. Or, any other media outlets for that matter. Even though the pier had been burning for over 5 hours at that point.
So, what did the established local and national media have to do? They had to rely on you and me, the citizen reporters.
We were the people whose photos and videos appeared on numerous news websites and social media sites generally.
We were the people who were on the scene first and who captured the really defining images. Those powerful images of the pier burning in the darkness, or in the early morning light. Before the media cavalry arrived.
I have seen video and photo's from many local people used on various tv programmes, news websites and even national newspapers.
One local photographer, Andy Wilson, who i know via Twitter, had one of his photos used by The Guardian newspaper, as it's lead front page image
Well done Andy.
We were also ably assisted by all those other locals who passed on our images etc. Whether by Twitter, email or other means. You also helped to get this historic story "out there".
I only hope that the efforts of our local citizen reporters is appreciated when the Hastings Observer brings out it's special "Hastings Pier burns" edition this Friday.
I think it is only fitting that they are. After all, it was us who provided the world with those first dramatic images of that dreadful fire.
I could now go off into another rant and maybe i will, about how woeful the Hastings Observer were with their initial coverage of the story. About how they were comprehensively beaten to the story by the Brighton Argus, amongst others.
I was contacted, via Twitter, by the Brighton Argus asking for permission to use my material, at 09.00. My YouTube video was linked on their website by 09.20 that morning. They also had one of my photos on their site, by the same time.
By contrast, the first Tweet of the day from the Hastings Observer was at 10.30am.
It wasn't until around this time that any mention of this huge local story first appeared on the Hastings Observer website. I could go on, but.....
So, well done everyone.
You did your town proud yesterday.
You recorded a little piece of history. And it's just as well that you did. Because there was nobody else there to do it for us.
And for that, the whole town and the media world in general, should be eternally grateful.
PS: For a local poets version of events. Watch this. It's well worth it.
Tuesday, 14 September 2010
Now look what you've gone and done.
Two stories in the news recently have caught my attention and, for me at least, they both show the possible and potential dangers when certain stories get into the mainstream media.
The first, which you may well have guessed already. Is the story of Pastor Terry Jones, of Gainsville, Florida.
I'm sure that we all are pretty familiar with this story now. If you have no idea what i'm talking about, you have either been living under a rock, or out of range of the worlds media. Lucky you, i say.
If this is the case, i suggest you search Google for the answer.
I think the aspect of this particular story that surprised many people, was how a Pastor of a very small congregation (approx 30) can suddenly have the worlds media beating a path to his door?
I suspect the answer lies in the way that other people got involved, or involved themselves, in this story. The very fact that the President of the United States of America and one of his most senior officials felt the need to speak about, or even speak with Pastor Terry Jones, is bound to attract attention. I don't intend to speculate here as to why President Obama decided got involved. Although, i have my own theory.
The last i heard, Pastor Terry Jones, had thankfully decided not to go ahead with his original protest.
The second story, which i heard about on the radio this morning, concerns a young 7 year old girl.
Apparently, the girls parents had been allowing the young girl to cross the road outside of the family home, on her own and then to catch a bus to her school. Nothing too much wrong with that i guess? Especially, when it was explained, by the girls mother, that the road was a very quiet one and that the young girl was very happy with the arrangement.
I know that some people might argue with the girl's parent's decision. But, for the purposes of this blog post anyway, that's an argument for another day.
Well, the local Council got to hear about young girl's arrangements. I have no idea how.
The Council then decided to send a letter to the girl's parent's, effectively telling them that they were not looking after their daughter properly and that they should stop the arrangement forthwith.
My understanding is that the local Council have now backtracked on their decision. Probably because of all of the media coverage and bad publicity for the Council, that this story has generated.
Now, at first glance, it may appear that both of these stories have had happy and probably sensible conclusions. But, in both cases, the damage had been already done before the story concluded.
For example, the parents of the young girl will now have to change their arrangements anyway. This is because every potential child molester and pervert in the UK, now knows that a 7 year old girl might have been standing, on her own, at a quiet bus stop on a country lane. The parents cannot now take the chance of letting their young daughter catching the bus on her own.
The story of Pastor Terry Jones has far more serious consequences. Apart from the fact that many people have already died in demonstrations, around the world, about Pastor Jones and his threatened Koran burning. There are also far longer lasting potential consequences as well.
Because of the world wide media coverage that this story has generated, millions more people now know of it than ever would have done. If certain people had just ignored the mad ramblings of a small town preacher, a world wide problem may well have been averted. Because that is what this has now become, a world wide problem.
Try as the world's media might, to try and brush this whole sorry episode under the carpet. The damage has now been well and truly done.
We all know what happens when allegations are made in the media about certain people, or events. Whether these allegations are correct, or not doesn't matter to many people. They see the original story and that's what sticks in their mind.
I can think of many examples where people have been exposed for an alleged "crime" and it's turned out that the person has been totally innocent of that reported "crime". But, that person has been tainted because of those allegations and often for many years to come as well.
Yes, the newspaper, or whatever, will publish an apology, at a later date. But, nobody sees that, or takes no notice of it.
Once again, the damage has already been done.
And, that's where we are now with both of these stories.
In one, a little girl has had her journey to school changed forever, to protect her safety.
In the other, the USA and potentially the whole western world has had it's reputation damaged and future security threatened.
And all to try and fill up the 24 hour news programmes. Or, because some people just can't keep their mouths shut.
The first, which you may well have guessed already. Is the story of Pastor Terry Jones, of Gainsville, Florida.
I'm sure that we all are pretty familiar with this story now. If you have no idea what i'm talking about, you have either been living under a rock, or out of range of the worlds media. Lucky you, i say.
If this is the case, i suggest you search Google for the answer.
I think the aspect of this particular story that surprised many people, was how a Pastor of a very small congregation (approx 30) can suddenly have the worlds media beating a path to his door?
I suspect the answer lies in the way that other people got involved, or involved themselves, in this story. The very fact that the President of the United States of America and one of his most senior officials felt the need to speak about, or even speak with Pastor Terry Jones, is bound to attract attention. I don't intend to speculate here as to why President Obama decided got involved. Although, i have my own theory.
The last i heard, Pastor Terry Jones, had thankfully decided not to go ahead with his original protest.
The second story, which i heard about on the radio this morning, concerns a young 7 year old girl.
Apparently, the girls parents had been allowing the young girl to cross the road outside of the family home, on her own and then to catch a bus to her school. Nothing too much wrong with that i guess? Especially, when it was explained, by the girls mother, that the road was a very quiet one and that the young girl was very happy with the arrangement.
I know that some people might argue with the girl's parent's decision. But, for the purposes of this blog post anyway, that's an argument for another day.
Well, the local Council got to hear about young girl's arrangements. I have no idea how.
The Council then decided to send a letter to the girl's parent's, effectively telling them that they were not looking after their daughter properly and that they should stop the arrangement forthwith.
My understanding is that the local Council have now backtracked on their decision. Probably because of all of the media coverage and bad publicity for the Council, that this story has generated.
Now, at first glance, it may appear that both of these stories have had happy and probably sensible conclusions. But, in both cases, the damage had been already done before the story concluded.
For example, the parents of the young girl will now have to change their arrangements anyway. This is because every potential child molester and pervert in the UK, now knows that a 7 year old girl might have been standing, on her own, at a quiet bus stop on a country lane. The parents cannot now take the chance of letting their young daughter catching the bus on her own.
The story of Pastor Terry Jones has far more serious consequences. Apart from the fact that many people have already died in demonstrations, around the world, about Pastor Jones and his threatened Koran burning. There are also far longer lasting potential consequences as well.
Because of the world wide media coverage that this story has generated, millions more people now know of it than ever would have done. If certain people had just ignored the mad ramblings of a small town preacher, a world wide problem may well have been averted. Because that is what this has now become, a world wide problem.
Try as the world's media might, to try and brush this whole sorry episode under the carpet. The damage has now been well and truly done.
We all know what happens when allegations are made in the media about certain people, or events. Whether these allegations are correct, or not doesn't matter to many people. They see the original story and that's what sticks in their mind.
I can think of many examples where people have been exposed for an alleged "crime" and it's turned out that the person has been totally innocent of that reported "crime". But, that person has been tainted because of those allegations and often for many years to come as well.
Yes, the newspaper, or whatever, will publish an apology, at a later date. But, nobody sees that, or takes no notice of it.
Once again, the damage has already been done.
And, that's where we are now with both of these stories.
In one, a little girl has had her journey to school changed forever, to protect her safety.
In the other, the USA and potentially the whole western world has had it's reputation damaged and future security threatened.
And all to try and fill up the 24 hour news programmes. Or, because some people just can't keep their mouths shut.
Saturday, 4 September 2010
The Cabinet Minister, His Aide And The Media.
I came home from holiday on Tuesday and stumbled into the back end of a "news" story about the British Foreign Secretary and one of his aides.
I can't pretend to know the full details of this story, which apparently started on the Internet and then found it's way into the national newspapers. But, it seems to centre around the fact that the Foreign Secretary, William Hague, had shared a twin bedded room with his male aide, during the general election campaign earlier this year.
The aide, who is considerably younger than William Hague, has since resigned from his position.
Now, for anyone not familiar with this news item, you might be forgiven for thinking "where's the story here and why has the aide resigned?"
Well, the "story", such as it is, is that William Hague has been married for a number of years now and still doesn't have any children. And we all know what that must mean don't we, boys and girls?
The insinuation is that if you've been married for many, childless, years and you share a bedroom with a young male colleague, well then you must be.... gay. Shock, horror!
These insinuations and rumours circulated so much that William Hague felt that he needed to issue a statement denying that he was gay, or had ever had a relationship with a man.
Worse than that, in my eyes anyway, he felt compelled to tell the world exactly why he and his wife had not yet had any children.
His wife has apparently suffered a number of miscarraiges during their marraige. The latest one being earlier this year, i believe.
I'm sure that i'm not alone in feeling a great deal of sympathy for Mr Hague and his wife, for feeling that he had to divulge this, very personal, information. I'm also a little dumbstruck as to why he felt that he needed to say as much as he did.
After all, do we really need to know such personal details?
I guess this raises a number of issues?
The first, for me, is the way that the press will often put two and two together and make several hundred. And all in the "interests" of column inches and increased sales.
A supposed sex scandal, involving a cabinet minister, will always attract attention and lead to a rise in the sales of your newspaper. The poor victim of the story then has to defend themselves, even if there is no real evidence of any wrong doing in the first place.
If they do not say anything, they are then presumed as "gulity" and if they do say something, that can just help the story to rumble on and on.
It seems a little ironic to me that since Mr Hague's very personal statement, the story seems to have died a death and has been quietly forgotten by the very media that created it in the first place.
It's a pity that Mr Hague doesn't feel that he can persue these false accusations in the courts. But, being a current cabinet minister probably stops him from feeling that he can do that.
Secondly. I find it rather unsettling that there is still a real preoccupation with whether certain people are gay, or not. I thought we'd moved on from those bad old days where people felt that they needed to, or had to, hide their sexuality?
The media's, especially the press', willingness to endlessly persue any supposed story with a gay angle, is something that i find hard to take. Being gay is not a crime anymore and the press and media need to wake up and fully realise that fact.
I'm sure that if these accusations had concerned a female employee, the handling of the story would have been completely different. The general tone would have been along the lines of "well done mate, get in there".
I happened to mention in a Tweet this morning, that maybe William Hague was actually trying to save the country and us taxpayers some money, by sharing a room with a colleague? And when you consider the amount of column inches devoted to the MP's expenses scandal, earlier this year, you can see why he may have felt that way. MP's have probably become rather paranoid about spending any public money on themselves.
Even if this is not the explanation for his actions that night, maybe it should become government policy, wherever possible? After all, i'm sure not everyone really needs a single room?
During the ensuing Twitter conversation that i had about this subject. I happened to mention that i had shared a room with many men over the years and have even shared a room with a gay man before. Now, to the best of my knowledge, nobody has ever accused me of being gay. So, why should this happen to an MP?
If the press and the media generally are going to make these insinuations about a persons sexuality anytime something like this happens. Is it any wonder that ordinary citizens may not wish to become MP's in the first place?
Just think of the many talented, potential MP's we could be losing because of this antiquated attitude of the media. We need the right people to run this country for us and we need to make sure that those people are able to do their job without, improper, interference.
Many spy scandals in the past have been caused, at least partially, because of a persons sexuality and the problems that may be caused if that persons sexuality was revealed.
As i said before, being gay is not now against the law. But, you wouldn't know that sometimes.
Surely the safety, security, economy and future of this country is more important than a persons sexuality?
If it isn't, then maybe i should just close the door on my way out?
I can't pretend to know the full details of this story, which apparently started on the Internet and then found it's way into the national newspapers. But, it seems to centre around the fact that the Foreign Secretary, William Hague, had shared a twin bedded room with his male aide, during the general election campaign earlier this year.
The aide, who is considerably younger than William Hague, has since resigned from his position.
Now, for anyone not familiar with this news item, you might be forgiven for thinking "where's the story here and why has the aide resigned?"
Well, the "story", such as it is, is that William Hague has been married for a number of years now and still doesn't have any children. And we all know what that must mean don't we, boys and girls?
The insinuation is that if you've been married for many, childless, years and you share a bedroom with a young male colleague, well then you must be.... gay. Shock, horror!
These insinuations and rumours circulated so much that William Hague felt that he needed to issue a statement denying that he was gay, or had ever had a relationship with a man.
Worse than that, in my eyes anyway, he felt compelled to tell the world exactly why he and his wife had not yet had any children.
His wife has apparently suffered a number of miscarraiges during their marraige. The latest one being earlier this year, i believe.
I'm sure that i'm not alone in feeling a great deal of sympathy for Mr Hague and his wife, for feeling that he had to divulge this, very personal, information. I'm also a little dumbstruck as to why he felt that he needed to say as much as he did.
After all, do we really need to know such personal details?
I guess this raises a number of issues?
The first, for me, is the way that the press will often put two and two together and make several hundred. And all in the "interests" of column inches and increased sales.
A supposed sex scandal, involving a cabinet minister, will always attract attention and lead to a rise in the sales of your newspaper. The poor victim of the story then has to defend themselves, even if there is no real evidence of any wrong doing in the first place.
If they do not say anything, they are then presumed as "gulity" and if they do say something, that can just help the story to rumble on and on.
It seems a little ironic to me that since Mr Hague's very personal statement, the story seems to have died a death and has been quietly forgotten by the very media that created it in the first place.
It's a pity that Mr Hague doesn't feel that he can persue these false accusations in the courts. But, being a current cabinet minister probably stops him from feeling that he can do that.
Secondly. I find it rather unsettling that there is still a real preoccupation with whether certain people are gay, or not. I thought we'd moved on from those bad old days where people felt that they needed to, or had to, hide their sexuality?
The media's, especially the press', willingness to endlessly persue any supposed story with a gay angle, is something that i find hard to take. Being gay is not a crime anymore and the press and media need to wake up and fully realise that fact.
I'm sure that if these accusations had concerned a female employee, the handling of the story would have been completely different. The general tone would have been along the lines of "well done mate, get in there".
I happened to mention in a Tweet this morning, that maybe William Hague was actually trying to save the country and us taxpayers some money, by sharing a room with a colleague? And when you consider the amount of column inches devoted to the MP's expenses scandal, earlier this year, you can see why he may have felt that way. MP's have probably become rather paranoid about spending any public money on themselves.
Even if this is not the explanation for his actions that night, maybe it should become government policy, wherever possible? After all, i'm sure not everyone really needs a single room?
During the ensuing Twitter conversation that i had about this subject. I happened to mention that i had shared a room with many men over the years and have even shared a room with a gay man before. Now, to the best of my knowledge, nobody has ever accused me of being gay. So, why should this happen to an MP?
If the press and the media generally are going to make these insinuations about a persons sexuality anytime something like this happens. Is it any wonder that ordinary citizens may not wish to become MP's in the first place?
Just think of the many talented, potential MP's we could be losing because of this antiquated attitude of the media. We need the right people to run this country for us and we need to make sure that those people are able to do their job without, improper, interference.
Many spy scandals in the past have been caused, at least partially, because of a persons sexuality and the problems that may be caused if that persons sexuality was revealed.
As i said before, being gay is not now against the law. But, you wouldn't know that sometimes.
Surely the safety, security, economy and future of this country is more important than a persons sexuality?
If it isn't, then maybe i should just close the door on my way out?
Friday, 13 August 2010
Living On An Island - Part 2.
In the first part of this blog, i talked about the Pirate Day event that had recently taken place in Hastings.
The day was a huge success and those who dressed up actually broke the Guinness World Record for the number of pirates in one place at any one time. A wonderful achievement.
When talking about why the record was broken and so easily too, i said "Hastings has a unique character and punches well above it's weight, when it comes to arranging and publicly celebrating events of this kind"
So, why is this?
Well, i think the answer to this question is tied up with something that i overheard somebody saying during the Pirate Day event.
This person had, i believe, moved to Hastings, from the London area, fairly recently and was saying that he didn't think that the type of events that took place in Hastings would ever happen in London. For example, he said that he had never seen Morris Dancing until he came here.
Now, i realise that things like Morris Dancing, Carnivals and some of the other events that happen in Hastings are not unique to the town, of course they're not. Although, some most certainly are.
But, i do believe that the sheer number of these events and the way in which they are embraced by the local community, in many ways is unique. And this, once again, is tied to what this person said.
He went on to say that he felt that Hastings was in some ways an island and with this comment i would have to agree.
Hastings is notorious for having pretty bad transport links with the rest of the country and especially London, which is only 60+ miles away. Both the rail and road links to the town are considered antiquated and slow. This has led to the town becoming and feeling somewhat isolated.
Another aspect to all of this is that Hastings, for some unknown reason, always seems to get a rather bad press and any news coverage generally concentrates on bad news, rather than anything good. Hastings, like any other similar sized town, has it's fair share of problems. But, no worse than anywhere else, as far as i can see.
So, apart from sometimes feeling that you are living on an island. There is almost a kind of seige mentality amongst the local population. This reminds me of a chant used by supporters of Millwall football club, "No one likes us, we don't care".
Maybe, this tends to generate a special kind of community spirit and possibly even attract a certain type of person to come and live here? And maybe this is the reason that pirates feel so at home here?
I am, of course, biased about Hastings, having lived here for 22 years now. But, i do truly feel that there is something a little special about the town and i know that i am not alone in feeling this way.
Maybe, it's about time that others started to recognise that as well?
I, for one, certainly like living on this particular island and in a weird way i'd quite like it to remain cut off from "civilisation".
I'll leave you with a list of links to just some of the events and festivals that happen in Hastings every year. Some are, i believe, unique to Hastings. And some of them i am very happy to be associated with myself.
There are several more that happen in the local and surrounding area too.
I'm sure you'll agree, that for a town of approx 80,000 people, it sure has a lot of things going on and certainly punches above it's weight:
Pirate Day
Old Town Carnival Week
Hastings Half Marathon
Hastings Music Festival
Beatles Day
Hastings Rock radio
Jack in the Green
Hastings Beer and Music Festival
St Leonards Festival
Beach Concert
Hastings Seafood and Wine Festival
Hastings Week
Hastings Bonfire Night
The day was a huge success and those who dressed up actually broke the Guinness World Record for the number of pirates in one place at any one time. A wonderful achievement.
When talking about why the record was broken and so easily too, i said "Hastings has a unique character and punches well above it's weight, when it comes to arranging and publicly celebrating events of this kind"
So, why is this?
Well, i think the answer to this question is tied up with something that i overheard somebody saying during the Pirate Day event.
This person had, i believe, moved to Hastings, from the London area, fairly recently and was saying that he didn't think that the type of events that took place in Hastings would ever happen in London. For example, he said that he had never seen Morris Dancing until he came here.
Now, i realise that things like Morris Dancing, Carnivals and some of the other events that happen in Hastings are not unique to the town, of course they're not. Although, some most certainly are.
But, i do believe that the sheer number of these events and the way in which they are embraced by the local community, in many ways is unique. And this, once again, is tied to what this person said.
He went on to say that he felt that Hastings was in some ways an island and with this comment i would have to agree.
Hastings is notorious for having pretty bad transport links with the rest of the country and especially London, which is only 60+ miles away. Both the rail and road links to the town are considered antiquated and slow. This has led to the town becoming and feeling somewhat isolated.
Another aspect to all of this is that Hastings, for some unknown reason, always seems to get a rather bad press and any news coverage generally concentrates on bad news, rather than anything good. Hastings, like any other similar sized town, has it's fair share of problems. But, no worse than anywhere else, as far as i can see.
So, apart from sometimes feeling that you are living on an island. There is almost a kind of seige mentality amongst the local population. This reminds me of a chant used by supporters of Millwall football club, "No one likes us, we don't care".
Maybe, this tends to generate a special kind of community spirit and possibly even attract a certain type of person to come and live here? And maybe this is the reason that pirates feel so at home here?
I am, of course, biased about Hastings, having lived here for 22 years now. But, i do truly feel that there is something a little special about the town and i know that i am not alone in feeling this way.
Maybe, it's about time that others started to recognise that as well?
I, for one, certainly like living on this particular island and in a weird way i'd quite like it to remain cut off from "civilisation".
I'll leave you with a list of links to just some of the events and festivals that happen in Hastings every year. Some are, i believe, unique to Hastings. And some of them i am very happy to be associated with myself.
There are several more that happen in the local and surrounding area too.
I'm sure you'll agree, that for a town of approx 80,000 people, it sure has a lot of things going on and certainly punches above it's weight:
Pirate Day
Old Town Carnival Week
Hastings Half Marathon
Hastings Music Festival
Beatles Day
Hastings Rock radio
Jack in the Green
Hastings Beer and Music Festival
St Leonards Festival
Beach Concert
Hastings Seafood and Wine Festival
Hastings Week
Hastings Bonfire Night
Thursday, 29 July 2010
From Despair To Where?
A bit of a rant about the state of the music industry, the media generally & the direction that it' seems to be taking.
And i know who is to blame!
An Iron Age hill fort vlog.
Recorded near the top of Mt Caburn, near Lewes, Sussex.
Thursday, 8 April 2010
Never Mind The Bollocks...
Having just heard about the very sad death of Malclm Maclaren the ex manager of the Sex Pistols, at the age of 64. I thought i'd get my own obituary in early.
Now, i know that Malcolm Maclaren was not universally liked & for a number of reasons. But, it has to said that without him, the world of music would most likely be a very different place.
Ok, so he didn't write any of the music of the Sex Pistols. But, he did effectively put the band together & certainly guided them during their early days. Without him, the Sex Pistols would not have been the force in British music that they turned out to be.
It is generally accepted that he was the driving force behind many of the bands publicity stunts, their dress, style & much of their confrontational manner. And if not, he certainly encouraged it & got the maximum amount of publicity out of it. That publicity helped to get the Sex Pistols music & the whole Punk idea out into the open & into the media.
The Sex Pistols were a focal point for the whole Punk & New Waxe movement, especially here in the UK. Yes, they stole bits of it from the USA. But, it was only when the Sex Pistols exploded onto the music scene that the whole Punk idea really kicked off. The Sex Pistols showed that Punk Rock was more than just a small youth movement of angry young kids.
The Punk ethos changed the whole world of music & art generally & those changes are still being felt today. The whole Punk movement helped encourage thousands of young kids to try & express themselves. Something a lot of them had never thought possible before. Suddenly anything seemed possible & the whole world was starting to take notice.
Out of that movement came so many bands, writers, artists, film makers, magazines etc etc & a whole new do it yourself culture & way of thinking. As i said earlier, the ripples of that explosion of talent are still being felt today. You only have to listen to the influences quoted by so many of todays movers & shakers, to hear the influence that the Punk movement had on them.
Speaking as somebody who was aged 19 in 1977 & who bought the original 45 of "Anarchy In The UK", i don't think it's stretching things too far to say that without the Punk movement of the late 1970's, the world would be a very different place today.
Whilst Malcolm Maclaren might not have responsible for all of that. He certainly played a very big part in bringing about those changes & for that i am very grateful.
Never mind the bollocks....that's the truth.
R.I.P Malcolm Maclaren.
Now, i know that Malcolm Maclaren was not universally liked & for a number of reasons. But, it has to said that without him, the world of music would most likely be a very different place.
Ok, so he didn't write any of the music of the Sex Pistols. But, he did effectively put the band together & certainly guided them during their early days. Without him, the Sex Pistols would not have been the force in British music that they turned out to be.
It is generally accepted that he was the driving force behind many of the bands publicity stunts, their dress, style & much of their confrontational manner. And if not, he certainly encouraged it & got the maximum amount of publicity out of it. That publicity helped to get the Sex Pistols music & the whole Punk idea out into the open & into the media.
The Sex Pistols were a focal point for the whole Punk & New Waxe movement, especially here in the UK. Yes, they stole bits of it from the USA. But, it was only when the Sex Pistols exploded onto the music scene that the whole Punk idea really kicked off. The Sex Pistols showed that Punk Rock was more than just a small youth movement of angry young kids.
The Punk ethos changed the whole world of music & art generally & those changes are still being felt today. The whole Punk movement helped encourage thousands of young kids to try & express themselves. Something a lot of them had never thought possible before. Suddenly anything seemed possible & the whole world was starting to take notice.
Out of that movement came so many bands, writers, artists, film makers, magazines etc etc & a whole new do it yourself culture & way of thinking. As i said earlier, the ripples of that explosion of talent are still being felt today. You only have to listen to the influences quoted by so many of todays movers & shakers, to hear the influence that the Punk movement had on them.
Speaking as somebody who was aged 19 in 1977 & who bought the original 45 of "Anarchy In The UK", i don't think it's stretching things too far to say that without the Punk movement of the late 1970's, the world would be a very different place today.
Whilst Malcolm Maclaren might not have responsible for all of that. He certainly played a very big part in bringing about those changes & for that i am very grateful.
Never mind the bollocks....that's the truth.
R.I.P Malcolm Maclaren.
Friday, 19 February 2010
Get Your Facts Right!
I recently made a YouTube video called Shock! Horror! all about newspapers & TV news shows using videos, mainly to sensationalise the news & yes, it was a bit of a rant.
Well, here's another one....
Tonight, my local tv news show did an item which contained facts which i know full well are incorrect.
Without going into too much detail. The story concerned a young girl who had recently had life saving heart surgery & had then needed to use a special machine to keep her alive, while she recovered. Thankfully, the little girl is fine & making a full recovery.
During this news item, they referred to this piece of equipment/machine as if it were a fairly new piece of technology & that this young girl was one of the first to ever use it in the UK & at the hospital concerned, Guys & St Thomas' Hospital in London.
The piece of equipment is an ECMO machine. For the uninitiated, this stands for Extra-Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation. The machine is very similar to a heart bypass machine. But, one that can be used for longer periods, allowing the patients heart to rest & recover from the ordeal of surgery.
Just do a Google search for "ECMO" & you get plenty of useful results.
This is one of the best ones: GOSH
ECMO machines have been used in the UK since 1992. They were first used at Great Ormond Street Hospital, in London. So, it's hardly new technology is it?
I know what you're thinking. "How does he know so much about this subject"
Well, in 1994 my daughter used an ECMO machine herself & in Guys Hospital too.
In fact, she was the first person to ever use an ECMO machine at Guys Hospital.
The staff at Guys had never used one before & actually had to borrow equipment from other hospitals to build one. Including Great Ormond Street. I remember one doctor coming all the way down from Leicester with some of the equipment & staying to help set it up & make sure that it all worked correctly.
It all seemed a bit of a Heath Robinson affair at the time. But, it worked & it helped save my daughters life.
My daughter was born with her Pulmonary Artery & her Aorta connected to her heart the wrong way round, amongst other issues. This condition is know as Transposition Of The Great Arteries, or TGA & requires major open heart surgery to correct it.
This is exactly the same condition that the young girl in tonights tv news programme had.
Thankfully, like the young girl featured, my daughter has made a full recovery & is now a happy & healthy 15 year old teenager.
OK, so i have had personal experience & so knew about this condition & about the ECMO machine itself. But, it only took me a few clicks of a mouse to find plenty of information about the subject & enough information to know that the facts they used in their news story were incorrect.
In these days of widespread Internet access, i don't think anyone can be excused for not checking their "facts". Especially not a BBC news show.
So, is this another case of lazy journalism? Possibly....
My other theory is that this is could be another effect of getting the viewers to suggest stories for the programme. Something i wrote about in my last blog post: Ask The Audience
I have contacted the news programme & have pointed out their error. I'll let you know if i hear anything back from them.
I will not be holding my breath though.
Well, here's another one....
Tonight, my local tv news show did an item which contained facts which i know full well are incorrect.
Without going into too much detail. The story concerned a young girl who had recently had life saving heart surgery & had then needed to use a special machine to keep her alive, while she recovered. Thankfully, the little girl is fine & making a full recovery.
During this news item, they referred to this piece of equipment/machine as if it were a fairly new piece of technology & that this young girl was one of the first to ever use it in the UK & at the hospital concerned, Guys & St Thomas' Hospital in London.
The piece of equipment is an ECMO machine. For the uninitiated, this stands for Extra-Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation. The machine is very similar to a heart bypass machine. But, one that can be used for longer periods, allowing the patients heart to rest & recover from the ordeal of surgery.
Just do a Google search for "ECMO" & you get plenty of useful results.
This is one of the best ones: GOSH
ECMO machines have been used in the UK since 1992. They were first used at Great Ormond Street Hospital, in London. So, it's hardly new technology is it?
I know what you're thinking. "How does he know so much about this subject"
Well, in 1994 my daughter used an ECMO machine herself & in Guys Hospital too.
In fact, she was the first person to ever use an ECMO machine at Guys Hospital.
The staff at Guys had never used one before & actually had to borrow equipment from other hospitals to build one. Including Great Ormond Street. I remember one doctor coming all the way down from Leicester with some of the equipment & staying to help set it up & make sure that it all worked correctly.
It all seemed a bit of a Heath Robinson affair at the time. But, it worked & it helped save my daughters life.
My daughter was born with her Pulmonary Artery & her Aorta connected to her heart the wrong way round, amongst other issues. This condition is know as Transposition Of The Great Arteries, or TGA & requires major open heart surgery to correct it.
This is exactly the same condition that the young girl in tonights tv news programme had.
Thankfully, like the young girl featured, my daughter has made a full recovery & is now a happy & healthy 15 year old teenager.
OK, so i have had personal experience & so knew about this condition & about the ECMO machine itself. But, it only took me a few clicks of a mouse to find plenty of information about the subject & enough information to know that the facts they used in their news story were incorrect.
In these days of widespread Internet access, i don't think anyone can be excused for not checking their "facts". Especially not a BBC news show.
So, is this another case of lazy journalism? Possibly....
My other theory is that this is could be another effect of getting the viewers to suggest stories for the programme. Something i wrote about in my last blog post: Ask The Audience
I have contacted the news programme & have pointed out their error. I'll let you know if i hear anything back from them.
I will not be holding my breath though.
Sunday, 3 January 2010
Running Free - A Jog Blog.
I posted a blog the other day, "New Years Resolutions - Why?", all about, guess what, New Years resolutions & the fact that i don't make them. Amongst other observations.
One of the aspects of that i talked about, was how many people at this time of year will be thinking about getting fit, or at least trying to lose weight. That is one of the most popular New Years resolutions that i hear & it's the same every year.
I suppose this is only to be expected, after the excesses of the Christmas period.
What made me think of this again, was that this morning i went out for a run. It was my first run of the new year & the first of the new decade for that matter.
As i've mentioned before, either here, on in my vlogs on YouTube, i have been running for over twenty years now.
I first started running when i gave up smoking, which was rather ironically around the New Year of 1985/86. I had tried to give up smoking on a number of occasions before. But, had always started again. I was only what could be termed a "social smoker", but a smoker nonetheless. For example, i never smoked at work. Maybe, for this reason, i found it easier to give up?
I gave up smoking, more or less, on a whim. It wasn't planned at all. I just woke up on the morning of New Years Day in 1986 & never smoked again.
Well, you know how it is on New Years Day morning? The last thing you want is a cigarette! So, i didn't have one. This went on for a fair part of the day & suddenly i thought to myself "why not use this as an opportunity to try & give up smoking for good?"
As mentioned in that recent blog, i didn't tell anybody i was giving up, or at least trying to. I just did it quietly on my own.
For me, this was the best method & it's a method i've stuck with when i've ever wanted to change anything about myself ever since.
A friend of mine had decided to give up around the same time & he suggested that maybe we should try running? To help us get a bit fitter & also to help us combat the evil weed.
I can still remember that very first run & i'm pretty sure my friend can too!
As is usually the case, you never feel that you are actually as unfit as you really are. So, that first run, even though it was for only approx 20 miuntes, was not easy. But, then what did we expect?
We continued these runs for a while & then my friend decided that he was going to stop. I can't remember why.
I now had a decision to make. Do i stop, or do i carry on on my own? Thankfully, i decided to carry on. This was partly because i had come to realise that i was actually enjoying running.
I realise that i am quite lucky to feel this way. So many people i know, who do run, don't really enjoy it & find it a real chore. I am one of the lucky ones who loves to be out there, running free.
I carried on running, gradually increasing the distances, for a few months & then an opportunity to run a real race came up.
On Sunday, May 25th 1986, myself along with millions of others across the world, ran the world for Sport Aid, an offshoot of Band Aid & Live Aid. It was only a 10k "race", but it set the ball rolling for me, as far as running races was concerned.
Since that day, in May 1986, i have run 7 full marathons, including 4 London Marathons, 23 half marathons & many more races of varying distances.
Those races are something that i am very proud of, especially the marathons.
I tend not to run races nowadays & haven't run a full marathon for over 10 years now. I always have good intentions of running races, but those good intentions are usually as far as it goes.
I do still "tick over" as far as running is concerned. I don't run as much as i could, or probably should. But, i still enjoy it when i do & that's the main thing.
I often look back very favourably to that New Years day in 1986, when i decided to give up smoking & also to that day when i forced myself & my friend out of the front door, to go for that first, life changing, run.
I fully intend to keep on running free, for as long as my body, or my heart, will let me.
Here's hoping that will be for quite some time yet.
One of the aspects of that i talked about, was how many people at this time of year will be thinking about getting fit, or at least trying to lose weight. That is one of the most popular New Years resolutions that i hear & it's the same every year.
I suppose this is only to be expected, after the excesses of the Christmas period.
What made me think of this again, was that this morning i went out for a run. It was my first run of the new year & the first of the new decade for that matter.
As i've mentioned before, either here, on in my vlogs on YouTube, i have been running for over twenty years now.
I first started running when i gave up smoking, which was rather ironically around the New Year of 1985/86. I had tried to give up smoking on a number of occasions before. But, had always started again. I was only what could be termed a "social smoker", but a smoker nonetheless. For example, i never smoked at work. Maybe, for this reason, i found it easier to give up?
I gave up smoking, more or less, on a whim. It wasn't planned at all. I just woke up on the morning of New Years Day in 1986 & never smoked again.
Well, you know how it is on New Years Day morning? The last thing you want is a cigarette! So, i didn't have one. This went on for a fair part of the day & suddenly i thought to myself "why not use this as an opportunity to try & give up smoking for good?"
As mentioned in that recent blog, i didn't tell anybody i was giving up, or at least trying to. I just did it quietly on my own.
For me, this was the best method & it's a method i've stuck with when i've ever wanted to change anything about myself ever since.
A friend of mine had decided to give up around the same time & he suggested that maybe we should try running? To help us get a bit fitter & also to help us combat the evil weed.
I can still remember that very first run & i'm pretty sure my friend can too!
As is usually the case, you never feel that you are actually as unfit as you really are. So, that first run, even though it was for only approx 20 miuntes, was not easy. But, then what did we expect?
We continued these runs for a while & then my friend decided that he was going to stop. I can't remember why.
I now had a decision to make. Do i stop, or do i carry on on my own? Thankfully, i decided to carry on. This was partly because i had come to realise that i was actually enjoying running.
I realise that i am quite lucky to feel this way. So many people i know, who do run, don't really enjoy it & find it a real chore. I am one of the lucky ones who loves to be out there, running free.
I carried on running, gradually increasing the distances, for a few months & then an opportunity to run a real race came up.
On Sunday, May 25th 1986, myself along with millions of others across the world, ran the world for Sport Aid, an offshoot of Band Aid & Live Aid. It was only a 10k "race", but it set the ball rolling for me, as far as running races was concerned.
Since that day, in May 1986, i have run 7 full marathons, including 4 London Marathons, 23 half marathons & many more races of varying distances.
Those races are something that i am very proud of, especially the marathons.
I tend not to run races nowadays & haven't run a full marathon for over 10 years now. I always have good intentions of running races, but those good intentions are usually as far as it goes.
I do still "tick over" as far as running is concerned. I don't run as much as i could, or probably should. But, i still enjoy it when i do & that's the main thing.
I often look back very favourably to that New Years day in 1986, when i decided to give up smoking & also to that day when i forced myself & my friend out of the front door, to go for that first, life changing, run.
I fully intend to keep on running free, for as long as my body, or my heart, will let me.
Here's hoping that will be for quite some time yet.
Friday, 1 January 2010
New Year Resolutions - Why?
It's that time of year again.
That time of year when everybody is busy making New Years resolutions. Resolutions that they will be determined to keep. But, which will probably be broken within a week, if they're lucky!
You know the kind of thing:
I will get fit, lose weight, stop smoking, read more, cut down on my drinking etc etc.
So, why do people make these resolutions in the first place?
My own theory is that most people make them because they feel that they should do so. There is almost an obligation to make those resolutions these days. After all, everybody else seems to be doing it, so why not me?
Maybe because i seem to have an inbuilt rebellious streak, i refuse to make New Years resolutions? But, not just because i don't wish to be told what to do. I also feel that for the vast majority of people, these resolutions don't really have much benefit.
As i commented to somebody on a YouTube video the other day. A video spelling out this persons own New Years resolutions by the way. Why wait for the New Year to try & change your life in some meaningful way? Surely, if something needs to change in your life, you should be making that change straight away?
We all need to re-evaluate aspects of our lives. But, this should be done all year round.
A resolution is for life, not just for the New Year.
As with most things in life, if you feel forced to do something, you will probably not carry it out. For something to work, so have to want to do it. Whether that be getting fit, or quitting smoking. If you are happy with the way you are, why change? Especially if it's just to please somebody else.
Of course, if there is a health issue involved & that person telling you to change is your Doctor. I suggest you listen!
I make resolutions all the time. But, i make them to myself.
Keeping them personal reduces the amount of pressure that you put on yourself to carry them through.
For example, when i stopped smoking, over 20 years ago now, i didn't tell anybody of my intentions. I just did it. That way, i didn't have people constantly talking to me about quitting smoking & asking how it was going.
You'd be amazed how much of a difference that can make to your resolutions success.
So, if you make one New Years resolution this year. Keep it to yourself, please.
That time of year when everybody is busy making New Years resolutions. Resolutions that they will be determined to keep. But, which will probably be broken within a week, if they're lucky!
You know the kind of thing:
I will get fit, lose weight, stop smoking, read more, cut down on my drinking etc etc.
So, why do people make these resolutions in the first place?
My own theory is that most people make them because they feel that they should do so. There is almost an obligation to make those resolutions these days. After all, everybody else seems to be doing it, so why not me?
Maybe because i seem to have an inbuilt rebellious streak, i refuse to make New Years resolutions? But, not just because i don't wish to be told what to do. I also feel that for the vast majority of people, these resolutions don't really have much benefit.
As i commented to somebody on a YouTube video the other day. A video spelling out this persons own New Years resolutions by the way. Why wait for the New Year to try & change your life in some meaningful way? Surely, if something needs to change in your life, you should be making that change straight away?
We all need to re-evaluate aspects of our lives. But, this should be done all year round.
A resolution is for life, not just for the New Year.
As with most things in life, if you feel forced to do something, you will probably not carry it out. For something to work, so have to want to do it. Whether that be getting fit, or quitting smoking. If you are happy with the way you are, why change? Especially if it's just to please somebody else.
Of course, if there is a health issue involved & that person telling you to change is your Doctor. I suggest you listen!
I make resolutions all the time. But, i make them to myself.
Keeping them personal reduces the amount of pressure that you put on yourself to carry them through.
For example, when i stopped smoking, over 20 years ago now, i didn't tell anybody of my intentions. I just did it. That way, i didn't have people constantly talking to me about quitting smoking & asking how it was going.
You'd be amazed how much of a difference that can make to your resolutions success.
So, if you make one New Years resolution this year. Keep it to yourself, please.
Saturday, 19 December 2009
Sunday, 13 December 2009
News?
I have noticed recently, what is for me anyway, a disturbing trend.
I have always liked to try & keep up with the latest happenings in the world of news & current affairs. But, that is becoming increasingly difficult. It appears that all anyone wants to concentrate on & talk about these days, are trivial stories & celebrity/entertainment gossip.
My usual way of getting my daily dose of news is via the BBC.
That may be via their website. My home page is actually the BBC news site & also by watching the BBC news bulletins.
I am an avid viewer of their 6 'o' clock bulletin for example, during the week anyway (by the way, does anyone, apart from me, call them bulletins any more?)
The BBC has always been held in high regard for their news reporting & rightly so.
But, what i have noticed over recent months, is an increasing emphasis on & drift towards the trivial.
For example, on one 6 'o' clock bulletin last week, there were "news" items on Tiger Woods mother in law being taken to hospital & the upcoming X-Factor Final. Now, for me at least, that is not what i call news.
I saw another great example, just today, on the BBC news website. Admittedly it was under the Entertainment section. But the main headline was "Millions to watch X-Factor Final"
Now to me that is not news, but more information, or even just plain promotion. The same kind of reporting has been used to "promote" BBC reality TV shows, especially Strictly Come Dancing.
"News" is usually defined as "a report of a recent event"., or something very similar.
Now i do realise that telling the public of an upcoming event can be newsworthy.
For example, the recent coverage of, what was then, the upcoming Copenhagen Climate Change Summit.
But, even then, the reporting is more conjecture & guesswork, than real hard factual news.
This whole problem is part of a general dumbing down of news.
We are all presumed to be gagging for more & more celebrity gossip & trivial news items. Whilst this may be true for a part of the population, the rest of us want to hear what is really happening in the world at large. That is becoming increasingly harder to do.
There are plenty of TV shows & magazines that report & even specialise in the reporting of celebrity gossip & the best if luck to them i say. At least if i buy one of those magazines, or watch one of those TV programs, i know what to expect.
But, i don't wish to be subjected to that kind of reporting whilst watching, what is supposed to be a serious TV news bulletin.
Another problem, i believe, is the emergence of 24 hour TV news channels.
These 24 hour news channels obviously need something to report & talk about, to fill their shows. So, they've found that the celebrity angle is a good one to go down.
There is always some celebrity who is doing something that might be considered newsworthy by someone.
It is also cheap programming. They can just cut & paste something from one of the celebrity gossip magazines that are so prevelant. Or even from the tabloid press, who also seem to revel in that kind of "news".
Whilst i concede that my views may well be in the minority & that i might also be accused of being old fashioned. I do feel that this issue is having a wider effect.
Children are growing up without being exposed to what i would call "real" news.
Those world events & stories that i grew up seeing on the TV news bulletins, are just not reported so widely nowadays. The result of this is that those children & a great many adults too, are not learning about the world as i did.
Ask a child today to find Iraq, or Afghanistan on a map & i doubt that they could do it.
Whether we like it , or not, world events affect us all & events during the past decade have illustrated that to great effect.
Celebrity & entertainment events will never have that same impact.
We would do well to remember that in the future.
I have always liked to try & keep up with the latest happenings in the world of news & current affairs. But, that is becoming increasingly difficult. It appears that all anyone wants to concentrate on & talk about these days, are trivial stories & celebrity/entertainment gossip.
My usual way of getting my daily dose of news is via the BBC.
That may be via their website. My home page is actually the BBC news site & also by watching the BBC news bulletins.
I am an avid viewer of their 6 'o' clock bulletin for example, during the week anyway (by the way, does anyone, apart from me, call them bulletins any more?)
The BBC has always been held in high regard for their news reporting & rightly so.
But, what i have noticed over recent months, is an increasing emphasis on & drift towards the trivial.
For example, on one 6 'o' clock bulletin last week, there were "news" items on Tiger Woods mother in law being taken to hospital & the upcoming X-Factor Final. Now, for me at least, that is not what i call news.
I saw another great example, just today, on the BBC news website. Admittedly it was under the Entertainment section. But the main headline was "Millions to watch X-Factor Final"
Now to me that is not news, but more information, or even just plain promotion. The same kind of reporting has been used to "promote" BBC reality TV shows, especially Strictly Come Dancing.
"News" is usually defined as "a report of a recent event"., or something very similar.
Now i do realise that telling the public of an upcoming event can be newsworthy.
For example, the recent coverage of, what was then, the upcoming Copenhagen Climate Change Summit.
But, even then, the reporting is more conjecture & guesswork, than real hard factual news.
This whole problem is part of a general dumbing down of news.
We are all presumed to be gagging for more & more celebrity gossip & trivial news items. Whilst this may be true for a part of the population, the rest of us want to hear what is really happening in the world at large. That is becoming increasingly harder to do.
There are plenty of TV shows & magazines that report & even specialise in the reporting of celebrity gossip & the best if luck to them i say. At least if i buy one of those magazines, or watch one of those TV programs, i know what to expect.
But, i don't wish to be subjected to that kind of reporting whilst watching, what is supposed to be a serious TV news bulletin.
Another problem, i believe, is the emergence of 24 hour TV news channels.
These 24 hour news channels obviously need something to report & talk about, to fill their shows. So, they've found that the celebrity angle is a good one to go down.
There is always some celebrity who is doing something that might be considered newsworthy by someone.
It is also cheap programming. They can just cut & paste something from one of the celebrity gossip magazines that are so prevelant. Or even from the tabloid press, who also seem to revel in that kind of "news".
Whilst i concede that my views may well be in the minority & that i might also be accused of being old fashioned. I do feel that this issue is having a wider effect.
Children are growing up without being exposed to what i would call "real" news.
Those world events & stories that i grew up seeing on the TV news bulletins, are just not reported so widely nowadays. The result of this is that those children & a great many adults too, are not learning about the world as i did.
Ask a child today to find Iraq, or Afghanistan on a map & i doubt that they could do it.
Whether we like it , or not, world events affect us all & events during the past decade have illustrated that to great effect.
Celebrity & entertainment events will never have that same impact.
We would do well to remember that in the future.
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