A weekly roundup of media news and talking points, sans effort

Image by fox_kiyo, licensed under Creative Commons

Thought for the Week

“We strongly oppose the proposals currently under consideration by the BBC Trust for a wider commercialisation of the World Service… …We continue to be concerned that the protection of the BBC World Service’s interests within the BBC’s governance structure is not as strong as is being claimed.” Or so says a new report by MPs criticising the BBC’s plans for its World Service. 

 

Weekly High

Not before time, this week saw the launch of App Publisher Magazine, a brand new monthly digital publication aimed at informing people on the rapidly developing world of apps and mobile, with the focus being on ways to publish via these mediums, and most importantly for writers in this day and age, how to get paid for doing so. Hopefully it will serve its purpose well, as the idea is certainly rather promising. Read all about it here.

Weekly Low

We hate to say we told them so… but nevertheless, considering Google and Apple have been regulars in our Weekly Low section it’s not that surprising to hear that shuttle buses designed to take their staff from San Francisco to Silicone Valley have been mobbed this week by protesters who are angry at the impact the tech industry has had on their region, inflating house prices and displacing communities. Let’s hope someone also mentioned the treatment of workers at production plants in developing countries.
 

Things that may happen in the next week

300,000 residents in West Virginia, USA, will await news on whether their tap water is safe to drink and wash in following a serious chemical spill into Charlestown’s Elk river yesterday morning. Awkwardness should abound as the first European parliamentary inquiry into the GCHQ and NSA electronic spying programmes condemned the actions, and said they ‘appeared illegal’. Athletic fans will adjust to the news that British Olympic gold medalist Jessica Ennis-Hill will miss this year’s Commonwealth Games, due to be held in Glasgow, because she is expecting a baby.

Just in case you missed it…

Channel 4 has removed all its long-form programmes from YouTube, meaning people will no longer be able to use the video-based social network to view the likes of Peep Show and The Inbetweeners. Take a look at the full story here.
 
If there is a success story, blunder, or news event you’d like to see included email helloATsmokinggun.co.uk or tweet using #blaggersblog. Happy Friday!