currybetdotnet Politics archive
Council coverage in local newspapers: Waltham Forest and Romford
Sarah Hartley has been using the 'Help me investigate' crowd-sourced journalism tool to find out how local newspapers cover local councils. I've chipped in with a review of coverage in the Waltham Forest Guardian and the Romford Recorder.
Too much David Tennant on TV? More like too many politicians if you ask me...
In response to claims that David Tennant was on BBC television too much over Christmas, a Conservative MP seems to think he appeared on over 200 channels.
How the global climate change editorial project appeared online
To coincide with the opening of the Copenhagen Climate Change conference, The Guardian worked to get the same editorial opinion column to appear in over 50 newspapers around the globe. Here is how it manifested itself online.
'Winterval' myth still going strong on Catholic Online
This is a bit of a shame. I spotted a story on the Catholic Online website, which opened with the statement: "Birmingham City Council has changed the name of this year's light-switching-on event to the generic 'Winterval'." [My emphasis] I left a comment pointing out that if you visit the Birmingham City Council website - yes, that website - you'll see a massive banner advert for Christmas in the city. In fact, you can even go to birmingham.gov.uk/christmas for an...
"Waltham Forest is calling for back-up" campaign lays down a welcome mat for criminals
I became a crime statistic last week, when my bike was stolen in Walthamstow.Again.It has prompted me to blog about something that has been irritating me in the Borough for some time. On the day I discovered my bike was missing, I'd been in Selbourne Walk The Mall, where volunteers were out in force trying to get me to sign a council petition. "Waltham Forest is calling for back-up" is a politically motivated council campaign calling for more police in...
PM's private call published by The Sun, but PCC has no interest in a 'public interest' debate
Information trends for 2010I'm still waiting to hear why publishing the PM's private phone call online isn't a breach of the PCC code on privacy and phone tapping.
Paid search and politics - still some learning for the parties to do
A couple of days ago Peter Moore wrote an interesting post about politics and paid search, pointing out how Channel 4 had used Google AdWords to catch some of the search traffic generated by the BNP appearance on BBC's Question Time. He pointed out that: "Paid search has the potential to make an enormous difference [in an election]...It’s possible to carefully study and collect keywords, to manage and monitor huge campaigns that include short and long tail terms as well...
Live-blogging the BNP on Question Time across the web
Live-blogging the BNP on Question TimeA look at how newspapers and political blogs covered Nick Griffin's BBC appearance online.
'The wisdom of crowds and the folly of lawyers'
I wonder if at The Guardian we still have time to re-print tomorrow's fairytale giveaway?After today's #Trafigura #CarterRuck gagging debacle, maybe we should add the story of the plucky villagers who just wouldn't let the king's courtiers silence the town crier.Or perhaps we could simply change the name of the next booklet in the series to 'The wisdom of crowds and the folly of lawyers'?...
Last chance to object to the church plans for Walthamstow's art deco cinema
Today is the final day to object to a planning application seeking permission to turn Walthamstow's listed art deco cinema into a church. As you may know, the cinema has been closed for some time, and the church owners have allowed it to fall into considerable disrepair. Back in the sixties, the EMD used to have concerts on, including The Beatles, Rolling Stones and The Who. It also has lots of cinematic history, being the cinema where Alfred Hitchcock grew...
English Defence League advertises Muslim dating agency on their forum
Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words - one of the best 'When Google Ads go bad' I've seen in a while......
"Breakfast with the Voicebot"
On Tuesday morning I visited Sidekick Studios near London Bridge to have 'Breakfast with the Voicebot'. The robot looked somewhat less human than the illustration on the invite. To be honest, it didn't look like it was capable of wrenching itself free from its base and going on a strangling and mangling rampage, which I always find slightly disappointing when I've been promised a robot. It is the type of machine usually used on car production lines to perform menial...
However much James Murdoch wishes, the World Service made a BBC News website inevitable
James Murdoch's speech in Edinburgh, and a recent survey suggesting that more people favour advertising or subscription as a funding model rather than the Licence Fee, has continued scrutiny of the role of the BBC in the digital media landscape. The ICM poll shows that whilst 43% of people think the Licence Fee is the best way of funding the BBC, 57% do not. Murdoch described the BBC News website as 'dumping free, state-sponsored news on the market', and I...
The BT broadband boxes that have muzzled the Muswell Hill fibre trial
Muswell Hill BT fibre controversyPictures of the new BT broadband boxes causing a nuisance on North London streets.
A monkey could also write the annual stories knocking A-Level students
This week is one of my least favourite weeks of the year, as the annual media game begins of knocking the achievements of our children at school. Rather than write another whole rant on the topic, here are links to a few I made earlier. Is Britain's brightest A-Level student a boy or an anonymous photogenic teenage girl? - August 2007 Do boys even take A-Levels these days? - August 2006 It must be nearly A-Level time again - August...
Birmingham City Council - an inspiration in how not to do web procurement
There was much chortling this week at the discomfort of Birmingham City Council after the details of their hugely over-budget and late new website were released, following a Freedom of Information request by Josh Hart. I have to confess that given a budget that big to spend on delivering 'a website', I'm not quite sure where I'd start over-spending first - gold-plated servers was one suggestion in the office. Maybe it is the expense on the website that has led...
Toby Moores and Mark Jones discussing social media and 'the third voice' at #newsinnovation
"It's not a few people talking a lot, it is a lot of people talking a bit" One of the more interesting panels at the News Innovation conference featured Toby Moores from Sleepy Dog talking about social media, alongside Mark Jones from Reuters. Part of the focus of the talk was how to capture 'the third voice' in the room. Politicians and journalists are used to conversing with each other in the set-piece of an interview of a press conference,...
Activate 09 at The Guardian: Notes and take-away quotes - Part 3
Last week I was lucky enough to go to The Guardian's first Activate summit - a one day conference at Kings Place which brought together politicians, economists and technologists to discuss the future shape of the world. Today I wanted to pick up another thread that ran through the day - data and story-telling. Arianna Huffington described story-telling as "mankind's greatest gift". Personally I reckon fire is probably up there as well, but let's not quibble. She was responding...
Activate 09 at The Guardian: Notes and take-away quotes - Part 2
Wednesday was The Guardian's first Activate summit - a one day conference at Kings Place bring together people to discuss how technology, politics and social sciences could come together to forge the future. Yesterday I published some thoughts about the presentations by Gerry Jackson and Nick Bostrom. One panel, chaired by Emily Bell, focused specifically on politics, featuring former minister Tom Watson, shadow minister for science and innovation Adam Afriyie, and Thomas Gensener from Blue State Digital. Adam Afriyie's...
MPs expenses, The Telegraph, The Guardian, and the 'open' and 'closed' models of 21st century journalism
"MPs Expenses and 'open' and 'closed' journalism"
How the contrasting approaches of The Telegraph and The Guardian to the MPs expenses data demonstrates debates about digital journalism.
European Elections - do the right thing...
A Google-eye view of the European Elections
My 'undecided' view of European Election literature in London
'Local newspaper week' - The local council publicity machine
'Local newspaper week' - Council newspapers in London
A quick online guide to the minor party and independent London European Election Candidates
'Local Newspaper Week' - Council newspapers
'Local Newspaper Week' - Democracy
"Maps and legends" - The Macedonia naming dispute on currybetdotnet
How the Ian Tomlinson G20 video spread The Guardian brand across the media
Tracking the "Credit Crunch" with Google Street View: Crouch End
Tracking the "Credit Crunch" with Google Street View: Muswell Hill
'Delivering Digital Britain' still too much about 'delivery'
The Obama honeymoon seems over in Walthamstow
John Redwood's blog response to the Ofcom Public Service Broadcasting review
Terrestrial TV's invisible online DEC Appeal
Is 'Search online for "Act on CO2"' costing the taxpayer unnecessary pay-per-click money?
The BBC colossus stumbles again over DEC appeal
President Obama coverage on the UK's regional press websites
VAT rate cut information design in Muswell Hill
He might be the Web 2.0 President, but Barack Obama's change.gov site doesn't get SEO
A German child's eye view of FYROM: Mazedonien
A Greek political map of Europe is also a map of the Greek political mindset
"The Former Scottish Constituency of Northumbria"
"It's for you" - Lloyds TSB splashes taxpayer's cash in the Metro
A brief history of Olympic dissent: London 2012
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Beijing 2008
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Athens 2004
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Sydney 2000
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Atlanta 1996
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Seoul 1988 & Barcelona 1992
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Los Angeles 1984
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Moscow 1980
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Montreal 1976
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Munich 1972
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Mexico 1968
'F' for 'Former', 'R' for 'Republic' or 'M' for 'the M word'?
A brief history of Olympic dissent: The post-war years 1948-1964
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Berlin 1936
A brief history of Olympic dissent: The inter-war years 1920-1932
A brief history of Olympic dissent: The pre-war years 1900-1912
A brief history of Olympic dissent: Athens 1896
Has Boris Johnson switched 'off' the Mayor of London 'ON' branding?
Lies, damned lies, and motoring statistics in The Sun
Propaganda, politics and censorship - The Olympic Torch Relay since 1936
Those Daily Express migrant arrest statistics in full
From Athens, Georgia, to Athens, Greece - Democratic primary goes global
Greece admits defeat against Olympic phone-tapping spies
Protection of journalist sources at the centre of the Zahopoulos affair in Greece
'Militant' atheists are not killing people
Putting my money where my mouth used to be over ID cards
George Galloway speared by Diamond Geezer
"This Is Not My Country" blogger outed by racists and nationalists in Greece
Server response codes interpreted as political censorship on the Newsnight blog
BBC Jam closes today - how far will the repercussions be felt?
Gaza strip kidnapped by BBC Journalist according to the Daily Mail
Working Together - lessons from the road-pricing petition for eGovernment
Failing to petition Number Ten on Darwin Day
Today and the Hunting ban repeal vote
A happy new year in 2007? Don't count on it
The compassionate heart of Middle England
The spamosphere already have their eyes on Number 10's E-Petition site
Nine years on and still we wait for a timid reform of the House of Lords
Why I, and thousands like me, can't make up the European Year of Workers Mobility Citizen's Panel
European Workers' Mobility questionnaire and hotline from ECAS
The depressing speed with which sound bites outstrip historical context
The New York Times and geo-location of internet users - what I might have said on Radio 4 yesterday
It must be nearly A-Level time again
GIYUS.org's Megaphone Desktop Tool - the web turns their 'malware' against them
Who is paying for this "free" BBC content after all?
Blair is right to sick by his principles
"Shame on you, BBC. Shame on you, Tony Blair"
Israeli-Palestinian Impartiality Review by the BBC Governors - Public Consultation
Panic On The Streets Of London
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Talks & presentations
"Journalism in the digital age"
I'll be appearing on a panel with Sarah Hartley and Iain Hepburn at the Edinburgh International Science Festival on Sunday April 11th. More details...
Posts of the moment
Day of the Triffids
If everyone suddenly went blind, how long would the Internet survive, and could you still publish news on it?
With professionals of this quality, who needs 'citizen journalist' enemies?
It is hard to argue that ethics and quality set the 'professional journalist' apart from the amateur blogger, if the 'professional' keeps publishing articles so wrong that they have to be deleted.
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- The future of news
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- New media best practice
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- Notes and quotes from media and web events
- 'Old' media relationship with 'new' media
- Site search management and design
- Working at the BBC (2000 - 2005)
- Working at The Guardian (2008 - now)
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Contact: martin dot belam at currybet dot net. © Martin Belam where appropriate.
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