A weekly roundup of media news and talking points, sans effort
Thought for the Week
“This man is not a cartoon character … He is a pound-shop Enoch Powell.” Comedian, general loudmouth and self-styled revolutionary Russell Brand launching into one of many verbal attacks against Nigel Farage and the Ukip party during an episode of Question Time from Canterbury last night. Needless to say, the only real winners were the BBC producers, rightfully delighted with the dramatic rhetoric the huge audience were hoping for. Logic only made a short appearance, of course.
Weekly High
This week saw two notable events in the struggle for universal human rights, with Wednesday 10th December being #HumanRightsDay (still trending on Twitter). Meanwhile, the Nobel Peace Prize was also handed out to two recipients, one of which was the youngest ever winner, and the only Pakistani to claim the award; 17-year-old Malala Yousafzai, a key supporter of women’s right to education who was shot in the head by the Taliban because of her progressive views. In a first class example of public speaking, she asked why guns are easier to give than books, and quipped: “I am certain that I am also the first recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize who still fights with her younger brothers… …I want there to be peace everywhere, but my brothers and I are still working on that.???
Weekly Low
Oh dear, Greenpeace, what were you thinking? In a bid to lay out the message ‘Time For Change – The Future Is Renewable’, the environmental protection movement accidentally managed to piss off a lot of Peruvians by not just entering, but also damaging the ancient Nazca Lines, amongst the most sacred works in the world, a move that will have done the organisation no favours, unless they want to be seen as insensitive and single-minded. A commendably frank and straight-talking apology has been issued, but nevertheless Peru is apparently seeking criminal damage charges.
Stories to keep an eye on
The UK Government has drafted a code of conduct empowering police to access journalists’ communications data without them knowing, with the NUJ criticising the proposal because it offers little protection to reporters or their sources.
Instagram, the photo-sharing social network, has just hit the 300million members mark, making it roughly the same size as LinkedIn.
Political publication European Voice will soon by a European version of the U.S. title Politico, employing some 30 journalists, and launching in Spring 2015.
