Critical Analysis 7-International Media

Japan and Britain can be seen to be similar in many ways, industrial, literate and democratic. But if we dig a little deeper there are a multitude of differences in the structure of the cultures, which directly affects the way the separate medias work.

Japan is regarded as the most literate nation in the world, a staggering 99% literacy rate, and the circulation of its’ five major newspapers reaching 40 million per day. Unfortunately Japanese media has huge failings in its’ role as the watchdog of the state, being referred to as becoming the lapdog instead.

There is an element of corruption in the relationship between government and press in Japan. Many offices the papers occupy are rented from the government at rock bottom prices, so if the papers were to criticise the government they would effectively also be criticising their landlords.

Only journalists from the main newspapers are invited to be members of the ‘kisha’ or press clubs, gaining exclusive access to the people who make the news, such as government officials etc. Many instances of journalists, and in turn the papers they work for, ignoring major scandals and events that put bad light on the government are reported, as doing so will mean they will be removed from the kisha and then be out of the loop, so to speak.

The Japanese writing style is objective to the point of erasing any personality from the articles, which are usually written anonymously without bylines, completely different to the western world. As is Japanese business. Businessmen are far more concerned with security and stability, as opposed to the profit driven westerners ideal of minimum input, maximum return.

Critical Analysis 6-Characteristics of the Tabloid Press

The British press is dominated by national newspapers, which are divided into tabloid and broadsheet. They are positioned as quality, middle market and down market on the media landscape.Tabloid newspapers are deemed to be down market, but why is this? The Sun, the biggest tabloid, has a readership pushing 3 billion.

Many techniques are used in tabloid writing to invoke shock, awe or emotion in the readers, the most obvious being sensationalism, use of verbal or graphic media in order to be shocking, personification, a person or thing typifying a certain quality or idea, and pictorial focus, basically a picture is worth 1000 words. Many ‘qualities’ are now using certain tabloid techniques to try and grab a slice of the pie, such as the Guardian dedicating it’s centre pages to a photograph.

Tabloid newspapers came about with changes to industrialisation, urbanisation and economics. They also, rather surprisingly, gained a large female readership, due to the tabloids having a lighter focus on politics and international issues, and having a higher concentration on celebrity and gossip, along with intertextuality with other media forms the readers were involved in.

These tabloid characteristics allow alternative cultures, often those disdained by classic liberalism. But if the public sphere is what we aspire to, shouldn’t we reject the idea of a tabloid press?

Critical Analysis 5-Technologies of Journalism

Do we live in an information age? Do we control technology or does technology control us? With the industrialisation of the printing press audiences were thrust into an information age, and with further advancements such as the telegraph in the 1830s and Morse code (1844) people were able to communicate internationally with each other quicker and more effectively than ever before, which led to information being passed around more frequently.

A good example of us controlling technology is the advent of the web, revolutionising journalism especially. With more and more of the younger generations logging on, companies are battling for audiences, using newer and newer technology (downloads, podcasts etc) to attract readers to their pages.

Marx predicted technological, economic, occupational, spatial and cultural changes in peoples’ lives. For example with the growth of technology people have to adapt to the shift towards industries using more technological machinery for their occupations. Also the revolution in the drop in cost of home computing has caused a massive cultural change.

A major problem with the web is quality control, or possible lack of. With the growth of ‘blogging’, people have a much easier outlet for their writings, musings and thoughts. Although the possibilities of opinion creeping into their ‘journalism’, or lack of or misguided research is far higher, leading to information without content, this can distort the stories news values. As in printed journalism we should never blindly believe what we read, constantly questioning its accuracy, relevance and proactively deconstructing it.

Critical Analysis 4-Gatekeeping

The gatekeeper is essentially the quality controller, the one who chooses what we know, who tells us what we think we know about the world around us. The one with the power.

In journalism the gatekeeper filters news through to the masses. But who is responsible for this filtration? Who actually gets to choose what constitutes as news? ‘The Gatekeeper’ by David Manning White, suggests that gatekeeping is affected by the gatekeepers characteristics, life experiences, attitudes and expectations of what the news is. White suggests he is a middle aged man with 25 years of journalistic experience.

Organisationally, news is constructed by a certain criteria given to the gatekeeper, but ‘what is news’ is ultimately shaped by the gatekeepers perception of this question, along with questions such as; Who is your audience and what is their perception of news? Does the story attract attention? Or even provide entertainment? Does the story fit in with the current organisational or governmental ideologies?
The power wielded by the gatekeeper can go as far as having a major handle on social control. Governments can use the this gatekeeping to suit their own ends, fabricating or distorting the news to influence social conscience.

A good example of this is (again) the Fox news networks’ coverage of the early days of the Iraq conflict. It presented the war as a continuing success, showing footage of Iraqi teenagers ‘training for the Olympics’ in order to persuade viewers of the good America was doing in the region. This would lead to Fox viewers having a distorted view of the Americans activities and the actual international feelings towards the occupation.

Critical Analysis 3-Journalism in the 20th Century

The invention of the printing press revolutionised media in the nineteenth century, although it was an expensive item it allowed for broader distribution, which in turn led to increased sales and more money for the media organization.

The introduction of advertising brought about an economic determinism, as the power of mass advertising was realised after the abolition of advertising duty in 1853. This meant more ‘glamorous’ adverts could be used without any tax being paid. It was cheaper for advertisers but also meant more business for the publication.

Soon a dependency on advertising emerged, by 1907 advertising revenue stood at £20m. The power advertising had was had also grown so much it could be used to put publications out of business, for example advertisers boycotted left wing publications for obvious reasons and the number decreased rapidly.

Politicians quickly realised the potential. With this mass advertising reaching most of the population and the political parties’ hunger for exposure and votes, the mass media proved a perfect format.

With this mass media, being fed by mass advertising, reaching the majority of the population, a mass society was established, leading to the development of the consumerism state we now live in.

In modern society journalism has swayed towards lifestyle writing. This may have come about with the changing nature of employment, allowing for more leisure time, thus appealing to people with hobbies or sports interests. It allows readers to feel their identity is being targeted and explored, as well as allowing them to search for how their image within their lifestyle choice should be.

Critical Analysis 2-Institutions of Mass Media

The media, in all its forms, is more prevalent in society today than it has ever been. With the rise of the internet the traditional media forms such as newspapers and magazines are expanding in order to reach out to more people. With this more and more people are using it as an outlet for the ‘alternative’ news, rejecting the facts presented by the traditional mass institutions.

Many believe that these institutions of mass media use their output as a form of control, such as censorship, telling the public only what they want the public to know and propaganda, bending or distorting the facts to suit their own agendas.

A prime example of this is the Fox news network and it’s coverage of the early days of the Iraq conflict. It presented the war as a continuing success, showing footage of Iraqi teenagers ‘training for the Olympics’ in order to persuade viewers of the good America was doing in the region. Further evidence of this can be seen on Outfoxed, available on youtube.com.

The anchorman of Fox news, Bill O’Reilly, openly criticises anyone who questions the methods of the Americans, bullying and personally attacking guests leaves viewers in little doubt that, at least in Foxs’ eyes, these people are the enemy.

This leads to a distortion of how Fox viewers view the world and even their political stance on certain topics. For example, in 2003, a survey carried out by PIPA/The Knowledge networks, showed that 67% of Fox viewers believe that there are links between Al-Qaeda and Iraq, compared to 16% of PBS-NPR viewers.

Clearly with the case of Fox there is evidence to suggest that the American government is being supported in it’s policies by certain aspects of its media, extending to actually misleading viewers with distorted news. This proves the Mass Manipulative model can be applied to modern day media institutions.

News Writing Exercise-Radioactive Leak in Vandrem

An accident involving a nuclear powered submarine and a tug boat occurred at Vandrem dockyard at around 3am last night.

Emergency services were called to deal with a release of fission products from the submarines fuel, which is a serious radiation hazard.

No radioactive material has been released into the atmosphere and the river Musse has not been contaminated, although engineers on site say that there may be a radiation hazard in the immediate vicinity of the submarine.

The dockyard and naval base have been evacuated and an immediate investigation into the cause of the accident is being carried out.

Residents within two kilometers of the site have been advised to stay indoors, close all doors, windows and ventilators and to damp down open fires. Potassium iodate tablets have been handed out which protect against the risk of radioactive iodine, one of the radioactive materials, being absorbed into the body.

Mandovia Naval Commander Simeon Gadd, who is coordinating the emergency operation, said: ‘the leak is restricted to a small area within the submarine itself and the measures are purely precautionary. There is no danger whatsoever of a nuclear explosion but people should stay in their homes.’

It is believed that a tug boat collided with the submarine at the north end of the naval base, damaging the submarines nuclear reactor. The radioactive materials released are fission products that consist of gases and fine particles mixed with steam, although the concentration and radiation emitted from them decreases rapidly the further from the reactor they are.

For further information residents of Vandrem should listen to further broadcasts on the TV and radio or alternatively log on to the city council website, www.vandremcitycouncil.com.



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Critical Analysis 1-Emergence of the Public Sphere

Habermas’ theory of the public sphere, which is the idea that anyone or anything affects the masses, has changed and developed throughout the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.

When considering this idea it is important to understand the main approaches to political economy, which include; Liberal, Marxist, Realistic/Pragmatic and the Constructivist.

The Liberal approach is divided between the legislative and the executive, and points out that power seems to reside with the upper classes.

Marxism emphasises the class based struggle and states that whoever controls production has power.

The Realistic/Pragmatic approach is essentially an anarchy of self-interest in pursuit of resources.

Constructivist is a critique of ‘realpolitik’, which refers to politics or diplomacy based primarily on practical considerations, rather than ideological notions.

These ideas, amongst others, came about alongside European revolutions. People became richer through trading abroad, and whilst having more money to spend, needed information and advice on how their stock was doing. This is how news sheets came about as gossip went from word of mouth to print. Fashion news and other subjects started to emerge in these news sheets, and with these richer people (soon to become the middle classes) came the emergence of newspapers and magazines. From this came the birth of the term ‘the fourth estate’.

Through this emergence of the public sphere came the rise of the radical press. In 1791, Thomas Paine published ‘The Rights of Man’ in response to the French Revolution; it started the up rise of the radical press, effectively an alternative to the official (parliamentary) sources of information. As economic sanctions, such as stamp duty rising 266% between 1789 and 1815, became overtly politically repressive, it became counterproductive in the long term. When the libel act was introduced in 1843 the authorities relied much more on taxation and bonds but the radical press continued to expand.

Guest Speaker-Paul Lashmar-Investigative Journalist

Paul Lashmar gave a talk to level one journalism students at UCF on Monday in order to illustrate what it take to be a successful investigative journalist.

He explained that he feels journalism has become to much of a process, writing about the facts presented and so investigative journalism is necessary to provide a balance in society which is having it's civil liberties ground down.

His advice was to ask 'why is this lying bastard lying to me?', illustrating that some in depth research must be carried out, rather than just accepting things at face value.

An example of this research is the lack of transparency he found when looking into the activities of SOCA (Serious Organised Crime Agency) the UK equivalant of the FBI. When SOCA announced it had seized 73 tonnes of drugs abroad it failed to mention how much it was directly responsible for. When he asked questions, SOCA simply replied 'we are not willing to discuss this.'

Many newspapers lack sufficient funding to allow journalists free reign to dig so deep, but it is necessary to show the initiative and willingness in order to build a reputation as being the one who will look at the finer details.

Lashmar began his career as an investigative researcher for the Observer in 1978, and became a staff reporter in 1980. During his time there he teamed up with a fellow reporter, David Leigh. Working together for eight years they covered many of the biggest stories of the time, winning the Reporter of the Year award in 1986 for their story on MI5 vetting staff at the BBC.

He left the Observer for Granda TV’s World in Action series in 1989 where he worked for three years, breaking stories on Brazilian child killers and the Queens failure to pay income tax.

In the years that followed he has worked in a number of freelance roles, including as a print journalist and a TV producer.

Guest Speaker-Kirsty Newton-Cornwall Today

Kirsty Newton of Cornwall Today was the seventh in the series of guest speakers to talk to level one journalism students at UCF.

Kirsty has worked for Cornwall Today for over a year and in that time has made many changes and added an array of new features. One of the main changes was increasing the magazine by 40 pages to 216. This has 'allowed for a broader range of advertising,' which has increased the magazines income per issue.


Amongst the new features added to the magazine is a property and leisure section in a bid to attract a younger audience. These run alongside regular features in the magazine which include a home and gardens section, a food and drinks section and a wildlife section, as well as various articles on village life in Cornwall.

The magazine is targeting the 'ABC1' demographic, otherwise known as the upper middle classes. On average 16000 copies of the magazine are printed each month, a 1/3 of which are subscribers who live outside of Cornwall.

Cornwall Today also has around half a dozen competitors in the South West that rival the magazine on a monthly basis, these include; Inside Cornwall, Taste of Cornwall and Devon Today.

Before taking up the role of Editor of Cornwall Today, Kirsty worked as a trainee for the Western Morning News in Plymouth, before moving on to Deputy Editor for Devon Today.

Guest Speaker- Nick Mazur-PPA

Nick Mazur, Deputy Chief Executive of the Periodical Publishers Association was the sixth guest speaker at UCF, introducing students to the PPA and their work. The PPA's role is to promote and protect the interests of professional media publishers, in particular it's almost four hundred member companies who publish more than 2,260 consumer, business and professional magazines.

He explained that the industry has an annual turnover of around £7 billion, with the majority of this coming from circulation and advertising.

He went on to explain that the majority of consumer magazines gain around 65% of their revenue from circulation, with only around 35% coming from selling advertising space, whereas business publications rely more on advertising, as much as 80%, and only 20% of revenue coming from circulation.

'Ten years ago this was a different picture, as both consumer and business magazines relied equally on advertising and circulation revenue,' he said.

There has been a 52% rise in consumers expenditure on magazines and a 22% increase in the number of magazine titles in the last decade, when there was around 8,500 magazines in publication every year, about 5,100 business and 3,400 consumer magazines. This is the 'changing landscape of the magazine industry,' according to Mr.Mazur.

Mintel International Group Ltd, a specialist in consumer, media and market research, expect a turnover of £531 million within the consumer magazine sector by 2009.

Guest Speaker-Boyd Farrow-Freelance Journalist

Boyd Farrow was the fifth guest speaker to visit the journalism students at UCF. He told of his travels to all corners of the globe with his journalistic and 'blagging' skills.

Originally Boyd aspired to be a film journalist but found it tough to break into an increasingly competitive industry. Instead he went into business journalism and used this as his angle into the industry.

During the 1980's he got a job working for Screen International, the magazine all about the business of film, and which during his time he told of meeting all of his idols except Woody Allen, including blagging hs way into pretending to be assisstant to Robert De Niro's photographer.

Unfortunately Boyd eventually became disillusioned and cynical with the film industry and decided a change was needed. And thus he began freelancing, admitting he has many a time 'blagged' his way into first class plane seats and better hotel rooms in return for writing a favourable review of the hotel or airline.

He told of the flexibility needed to be a freelance writer, admitting he rarely gets up before noon and works around three days per week. Maybe not exactly what first year university students should be told.

A few students admitted to feeling slighty skeptical of his ethics, stating he was happy to blag as much frre stuff as possible, yet when questioned of his views on the new generation of multi-tasking journalists (writer, photographer etc in one) he was unwilling to “take the food from someone else’s plate.”

Guest Speaker-Helen Gilchrist-Stranger Magazine

From humble beginnings being given away at car boot sales to nation wide sales of around 15,000 copies every month, Stranger magazine has become a leading light in Cornish youth conscience. It has become a great advertisement to the rest of the country of the creative industries Cornwall has to offer, showing the innovation and eclecticism of the arts and music scene in the county, along with the bustling surfing scene.

Considering this growth the magazine has never lost its original ethos; to be environmentally, ethically and socially conscious, printed on recycled paper using sustainable vegetable based ink, concentrating on the 18-35 year olds of the region. Editor Helen Gilchrist, wanted it to be a collectable and high quality publication, informing its readers whilst being aware of its impact, socially and environmentally.

There have been testing times though. Funding has always been a major factor in the running of the magazine. Gilchrist applied to the Princes' Trust and other similar establishments but soon succumbed to the advertisers, but in an almost impossible situation cited it is hard to sell advertising in a new publication.

Luckily Helen and Stranger fought through the face of adversity and onto the shelves of 180 outlets, selling an additional 300 copies with the advent of its website, which recieves on average 400,000 hits per month, plus at least 250 suscribers, most likely Cornish 'ex-pats' Helen admits.

Stranger is taking some time out until the new year, in order to compile exciting new ideas, but will surely come back with the freshness its readers have become so accustomed to and fly off the shelves at an even greater rate.

News Writing Exercise-Moonville Crash Busts Drug Dealers

A man has died and a policeman injured after a car crash in Moonville town centre last night.

A rucksack containing £30,000 worth of cannabis resin and £17,000 worth of cocaine was found in the car, a red VW Golf. Police suspect that the driver panicked when he saw the police cars blue lights and lost control, hitting the shop front.

Police have set up a hotline and are appealing for witnesses. Detective Chief Inspector Angelica Stripes said, 'We are searching for the passenger of the vehicle who fled the scene. He is described as slim, short – around five feet eight inches tall – with a pale complexion and dark spiky hair.'

It is believed at the time of the crash he was wearing red converse shoes, skinny jeans and a brown leather bomber jacket. The identity of the dead man has not yet been established but police suspect they were both local and known by drug users in the area.

PC Rodgers, who suffered fractures to the nose and leg has been suspended with full pay as the police launch an internal investigation.

The incident held up traffic at the junction of Scar Street and High Street for two hours and was attended by two police cars and two ambulances.

Police Hotline: Moonville - 212121

News Writing Exercise-Legionnaire's Outbreak at Local Hospital

Croxford hospital has been closed today due to an outbreak of Legionnaire's Disease in the maternity department.

The outbreak was confirmed at 7pm yesterday evening by a Croxford NHS Trust statement and the hospital was closed to incoming patients from 10am this morning.

All patient awaiting non-emergency operations are being sent home.

One new born baby, two patients who have recently given birth and a midwife are being treated for the disease but are responding well to treatment.

Lilly Harborne, 59, said: “My daughter Debbie had the baby, a little boy, on Friday, but was sent home last night after her baby became ill. They’ve kept the baby in hospital for treatment and we’re not allowed to visit at the moment. We are all absolutely distraught.”

Investigators believe the disease originated in the air conditioning system, which has since been closed down.

There is a large possibility of further cases as the incubation period of the disease is 2-10 days, although it is not contagious so there is no possibility of infected patients infecting others.

The hospital has set up a hotline: 01326 400 400

News Writing Exercise-Megabucks Protesters Dig In

A group of protesters are making their voices heard by climbing trees at the site of a proposed new Megabucks.

Contractors for the supermarket chain were scheduled to start tree-felling on a copse in Moonville, Wishingshire this morning but are being held up by protesters climbing trees and digging tunnels underground.

The campaign is being spear-headed by Joseph Bloggs, 24, who shacked up in a tree two weeks ago, along with twenty other eco-warriors and has had a court order authorizing his immediate removal.

‘I’m not going anywhere. They will have to drag us from these branches,’ he said. ‘There are already empty shops in Moonville, this will only make things worse.’

They are protesting against the proposed building of a superstore along with a car park, petrol station and restaurant plus up to seventy houses when a superstore already exists on the outskirts of the town.

Michael Meeting, planning manager at Wishingshire District Council said the town was in need of vital regeneration and having the store on the high street would draw more visitors to other shops.

Around 1700 local residents signed a petition against the building of the store and many older residents are upset as the towns’ war memorial would be relocated to make way for heavy site traffic.

A Megabucks spokeswoman reiterated that all the trees cut down would be replaced elsewhere and added, ‘A vast majority of local residents want the new store.’

Toby Gunn, 65, works 30ft from what would become the Megabucks back gate said, ‘A new store would be fantastic for the town. It would create more jobs and more business.’

Falmouth and Penryn-Cornwall Film Fest Hits Falmouth

The annual Cornwall Film Festival kicks off this weekend at Falmouth's National Mritime Museum and The Princess Pavilion. This year's programme includes the premieres of five feature films shot by Cornish film makers including The Midnight Drives directed by Mark Jenkin and Dressing Granite directed by Bill Scott. The Cornish Premiers of the South African comedy Bunny Chow directed by John Barker, and the Gary Hustwit documentary Helvetica which explores global visual culture.The premier of An Jowl yn Agas Kegin – The Devil in your Kitchen, directed by Brett Harvey winner of the 2006 Govynn Kernewek Award and over 150 other films by Cornish film makersincluding drama, documentaries and animation.

There will also be The Big Pitcher competition, where prospective film makers have two minutes to pitch a film idea with the chance of winning £100 to make a film, plus the premieres of last year's winning film.

Professional development events will be running which include practical workshops giving tips on using low budget lighting and HD cameras and lectures from industry professionals. Also on the bill is the return of Board Shorts at the Sandsifter, Godrevey, promising action packed surf films, live music and DJ's. and a two day Festival of young peoples' film has been organised by young people from across Cornwall for under 18s only.

Contact the Festival Office on 01209 204655.
Tickets can be purchased from the Princess Pavilion Box Office Tel: 01326 211222 (Mon-Fri 9am-1pm or on the door s.t.a.).
Weekend Season Ticket £33 / £27 concsDay Ticket £14 / £12 ConcsSingle Event £6 / £5 Concs

Guest Speaker-Sue Roberts-PCC

The third in the series of Guest Speakers who have come to University College Falmouth to advise first year students on a variety of topics related to journalism was Sue Roberts, External Affairs Manager for the Press Complaints Commission (PCC).

There has been some form of self-regulation within the industry since 1953, when the Press Council was formed. This acted as a watchdog of the industry until 1991 when it was replaced by the PCC after there was a decline in confidence from members of the press and some MPs

The PCC is an independent body, dealing with complaints from members of the public in relation to editorial content within newspapers and magazines. It aims to respond to most complaints within 35 days, at no cost to the complainant.In 2006 there were 3,325 complaints. Of these only approximately 25% were regarding privacy. The most common complaint is over accuracy of published content.

The PCC publish a Code of Practice, which is reviewed every year, which provides the framework of the self-regulation of the industry. This code helps ensure no inaccurate or misleading stories are published, and if so that they are quickly and publicly altered. It also deals with complaints from people who feel they have had their privacy intruded, although many now feel that the PCC has begun to side with the newspapers in many cases, but the PCC strongly deny this.

News Writing Exercise-Londoners Most At Risk From I.D Fraudsters

Reports of identity fraud increased by more than two thirds in the first half of this year according to new research carried out by a leading credit rating company.

The report by Experian says that London remains the identity fraud capital of the U.K, stating those living within the M25 are three and a half times more likely to fall victim, especially residents of Kensington who are almost five times more at risk compared to the national average.

Present address fraud, which involves intercepting mail, remains the most common crime representing 39% of frauds reported in the first half of this year and reports of forwarding address fraud rose the most up to 32% in the same six month period, compared to 22% for the second half of 2006.

The hardest hit financially are loan providers, where the average cost per case has risen to £6,138, compared to £4,797 for the second half of last year. Credit and store card issuers are also among the most commonly targeted but are successfully taking steps to reduce their exposure.

Around 55% of victims self diagnosed the problem, the largest proportion ever, which suggests people are becoming more aware of the possibilities of becoming a victim.

Fraud and Regulatory Compliance Director at Experian, Helen Lord, commented, ‘Although some people are more likely than others to be targeted, everyone is a potential victim. People need to take active steps to protect themselves, including regularly checking their credit report. This enables people to quickly spot any fraudulent activity and seek assistance in sorting it out.’

Tips on avoiding becoming a victim, especially when moving house, include removing your name from the electoral register, informing banks and utility companies and redirecting mail to your new address for at least six months.

Despite taking all measures when he moved to East London, Joseph Bloggs, 37, was defrauded of £6,500 on a credit card by fraudsters who also ran up a debt of £500 with a utility company and even set up a computer company in his name.

‘Despite doing all the sensible things I still fell victim. It is an extremely stressful and unnerving experience and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone,’ he said.




367 Words.

College News-Dartington Merger Plans Announced

The proposed plans to merge Dartington University and University College Falmouth have finally been announced on both establishments websites.

On 1st January 2008 the two colleges will combine and over the next three years courses from Dartington will relocate to a new purpose-built specialist accommodation at Falmouth from September 2010. This will create new courses in Music, Theatre and Choreography at Falmouth along with strengthening the existing Writing and Art courses and open a range of collaborative opportunities for the Arts, Media and Design.

Students starting courses at Dartington in September 2008 will study there for two years, before moving to the new accommodation in Falmouth in 2010 to complete their degrees.
Student numbers will slowly increase by around 225 per year up to more than 4000 by 2012/2013, when the University College will be able to apply for full University status.

The merger is estmated to cost around £20m and the additional influx of students would give a huge boost to the local economy.

Penryn resident Cathy Richardson said, 'This would be really good for Falmouth and Penryn. The diversity of people would grow even more and Penryn especially would feel the benefit of 1500 more students spending their money here.'

But not all are in favour of the move. The 'Save Dartington Community Campaign', consisting of,
amongst others; local residents, lecturers and students past and present, is calling for a years moratorium and a public enquiry in order to explore other options and save the college from closure, citing the Totnes area could lose £5m a year along with a large part of it's history and culture.

In their 'Peoples' report' they state the implications for Falmouth and Penryn could go as far as 'a full-time war' between students and residents and compare moving from Dartington to Tremough like going from 'a dream to a nightmare'.

Totnes town council finance committee acting chairman Mike Hannaford said,'We are hoping that a public inquiry will open the whole thing up again for discussion. Clearly we want to change the decision so that the funding comes to sustain the college at Dartington.'

The Peoples' report can be found here http://www.savedartingtoncollege.org/webdb/application/workfiles/resources/peoples%20report.pdf

Student Life-Students Left In The Dark Over Loans

Local education authorities are facing stern criticism as many students from University College Falmouth report late payments and increased stress over getting hold of their loans.

The students applying to the Lancashire, Devon and Denbighshire LEAs have reported poor service, long phone waiting times and sending required information twice.

The LEAs, along with the Student Loan Company have recently introduced a new online application system in a bid to speed up the application process, but many applications seem to have been lost in ether.

The apparent breakdown in communication between the SLC and the LEAs has angered many students struggling to pay rent, food bills and other general living costs.

Alex Titley, a Journalism student at University College Falmouth said, "I applied online around April/May of this year, when I still heard nothing by the start of term I rang up Denbighshire LEA and they said they hadn't received required information they needed to process my application, but I had already sent it and then had it sent back!

"So I've had to send my passport and parents financial information to them again and have been told I may not get my loan until November" he added.

He also told of other students he knew who were having similar problems with their applications derived from local authorities in Devon and Lancashire.

The Student Loan Company boast of having the most efficient year ever in 2006 in their annual report, but declined to comment on the current situation presented before them, along with the LEA.

At the time of going to press the NUS was also unavailable for comment.

News Writing Exercise-Queue Rage Victim Dies

A Boldover man died on Sunday after being involved in a road rage incident whilst queuing for the local refuse site.

During the scuffle Harry Hampton, 64, suffered a broken arm and a cracked rib. His partner, Barbara Richards, 56, drove him to hospital but he later died of heart failure.

Police are appealing for witnesses to the incident which took place around lunchtime on Sunday, and are also making a direct appeal for the other driver involved to come forward. He is believed to have been driving a silver BMW and is described as a white man in his forties, around 5ft 7", stocky build, clean shaven and possibly wearing glasses.

Detective Inspector Helen Havers of Wishingshire police said, "There was a very long queue of cars and there must be several people who saw what happened."

The couple were clearing unwanted possessions as Mr. Hampton was preparing to move into Ms. Richards house in nearby Broxham. A police spokeswoman said Ms. Richards is "absolutely distraught".

Mr Hampton's neighbour Susan Witchard (67) said: "Harry was an extremely good friend and neighbour. He was a real gentleman and used to put my rubbish out for me every week. He wouldn't hurt a fly.

"Harry and Barbara were so happy together. They both had grown-up children from previous relationships and were excited about starting a new life together. I'm devastated."

Toby Norris, a consultant clinical psychologist at Daring Hospital, Mornbury, said: "Outbursts known as 'road rage' and 'queue rage' seem to be growing as life gets more crowded. People are more likely to become angry when they feel frustrated or restrained and may perceive themselves to have been attacked or insulted regardless of whether someone has innocently or deliberately jump a queue.

"Even in Wishingshire these types of incident are escalating as the county becomes more densely populated," he added.




I found this exercise a good lesson in finding the relevant information, knowing what to leave out and then condensing this information into a news story. I used the experts' opinion quotes to give the story some psycological background as to why this may have happened and it may also have made people think more about their own reaction in a similar situation.

Guest Speaker-Jilly Easterby- Head of Public Affairs, UCF

In the second installment of our weekly guest speakers, Jilly Easterby, Head of Public Affairs at University College Falmouth, spoke to the journalism students about her role at the Univesity and her path to this position.
The five main jobs she does are:
1) Media relations, which consists of giving official comments on behalf of the University to newspapers or other third parties.
2) Internal affairs, which is informing staff of policy changes or other related information.
3) Prospectus editor, creating the University prospectus as part of a team.
4) Web content manager, which means she is responsible for everything that is published on the University website
5) Community relations, which consists of dealing with complaints from local residents, attending local community meetings and generally convincing the local public the students are good for the area.

She originally wanted to be a journalist for the national newspapers, studying English Literature at North London Polytechnic, but quickly decided she wanted to get into publishing.

She got a job with the infamous Sidgwick and Jackson, selling publishing rights for many celebrities autobiographies, including selling Boy Georges' autobiography for a company record in 1991 of £250,000.

Sidgwick and Jackson were eventually bought by Pan Macmillan and Jilly began working as an agent for Colin Baxter, author of the Inspector Morse stories, selling the rights to his short stories.

After around eight years she decided newspapers were where the money was and so she managed to get a job at the Daily Express, suggesting books for the Saturday supplement magazine, eventually getting a job on the main paper helping with advertising campaigns.

Living in London for 13 years bagan to it's toll though. She started looking for work in Cornwall but took a job for a TV company promoting digiboxes and the upsurge of the digital TV switch-over in Chiswick.

Eventually after working there for around eighteen months she got the job at UCF and is also currently studying an MA in Public Relations.

The next big event she is gearing up for is the proposed merger with Dartington University.

National to Local-South West Foot and Mouth Restrictions Eased

South West farmers are to see a major relaxation of the movement restrictions that were imposed over the latest foot and mouth outbreak.
All foot and mouth related livestock movement controls, including at markets and abattoirs will be removed on Wednesday 17th October, DEFRA has announced.

Some relaxation of the blue tongue restrictions have also been announced. Movement of susceptible animals to approved markets and abattoirs outside the control and protection zones will be permitted from midnight on Sunday.

Peter Kendall, NFU President, said the moves would provide a much-needed boost for livestock farmers who have faced difficult operating conditions and rock-bottom prices for their stock.
"This demonstrates the progress made in discussions aimed at getting the industry back to more normal trading conditions so the markets can work and avoid these disastrous prices continuing," he said.
"However, farmers in high risk FMD areas and the blue tongue zones are still having to operate under very onerous restrictions and we will continue to press for them to be lifted as soon as sound science indicates they should be."

(Quotes courtesy of www.falmouthpacket.co.uk)

News Writing Exercise-Web Racist Sentenced

A man has been sentenced to 38 months in prison after posting racist material on a memorial website to a murdered black teenager.

After Anthony Walker, 18, of Huyton, Merseyside, was murdered a friend set up a website in his honour.

But less than a week after his death a 30 year old man posted at least six messages on the website inciting racial hatred.

The man, Neil Martin, from Maghull, Merseyside posting under the name ‘Genuine Scouser’ suggested that white people should celebrate the murder, that Anthony’s family should be burned and made references to slavery.

When he was arrested police officers found 33 child pornography images on his computer.

Martin admitted posting the messages but insisted he was not racist. He told officers his intentions were to simply stir up an argument on the website but did not believe in what he had written.

During the trial at Liverpool Crown Court, Judge Henry Globe QC told Martin: “The intention of the website was innocent, honourable and well motivated

“You accessed that website and you abused it. You posted highly abusive, insulting and racist messages.”

The court heard how Martin had created an internet profile using Anthony’s name and photograph, and he also posed as a schoolgirl on teenage chatrooms.

Heather Lloyd, defending, said Martin had no history of racist behaviour and that he felt “deeply ashamed.”

She added her client had written a letter of apology to both the court and to the Walker family.

After the verdict, Gee Walker, Anthony’s mother, said she was satisfied by the verdict and did not accept the written apology.

“After hearing what he had said in those messages, I don’t buy it. I don’t accept it. He had time to think about it and he did it six times. I don’t accept his apology.”

Martin pleaded guilty to charges of publishing material likely to cause racial hatred and also to making indecent photographs of children.

He was sentenced to two years and eight months for the race hate crimes and a consecutive six months for the child pornography offences.

Guest Speaker-Steve Ivall-Falmouth Packet

Steve Ivall, deputy news editor for the Falmouth Packet, gave a talk to the year one journalism students at University College Falmouth yesterday. He was the first of a series of guest speakers to talk with the students about life working in the news industry.

He explained how the Packet was just one of a range of around 300 other local newspapers along the south coast owned by larger subsidiary Newsquest, who, he then explained, belonged to American company Gannet. He described the Packet as "a small cog in a big wheel."

After this he went on to explain that as well as the newspaper, many magazines are also produced by the group. The reason for this is because magazines are very profitable, but it also gives them a large market spread.

Another point he made was that the nationals feed off of the local papers, explaining how a front page story from the Packet may only make a five paragraph story in a larger publication.

He also stressed the importance of local journalists not only writing but also being adept at working with a wide array of multimedia formats, including photography, audio and video, and the web. The importance of having a shorthand speed of at least one hundred words per minute was also a major point he made.

The issue of the NCTJ qualification was raised, saying that without it many budding journalists may struggle to find work. It teaches the proffesionalisation of journalism and the journalistic values of getting the information without being pushy or aggressive.

Personally I found the talk very interesting. To hear what the daily grind of the newsroom is like from someone who experiences it every day.

Vox Pop-Residents Would Back Future Expansion

Further expansion of the University College Falmouth would be a positive move according to 70% of local residents following a recent survey conducted by a University College Falmouth student.

The university would be looking to expand to around 4000 students by 2012 in order to claim full university status, potentially creating many jobs and giving a major boost to the local economy.

Many residents agreed the potential influx would be most beneficial to many local traders and businesses, especially in and around Penryn where there are few large chain stores.

Many local traders, mostly pub landlords and takeaway owners cited students as being a large majority of their customers, and some independent grocers said many students would prefer to buy locally grown produce as opposed to shopping at supermarkets.

“Falmouth has a very diverse range of people and an extremely eclectic music and arts scene. If more young people were to come here and add to that diversity then that can only be a positive thing,” said Penryn resident Cathy Richardson.

Although many residents also voiced their concerns over a possible lack of housing and an increase in noise pollution.

“Last year four students lived in the house next door and they were constantly having parties, playing loud music late at night and generally being quite inconsiderate.

"The new lot seem to be much better but the experience has tarnished my view of students. I certainly wouldn’t want other people to have to deal with what we went through,” said Dennis Wilkinson of Falmouth.

Only a few cases of students struggling to find accommodation have been reported, but with the potential of an additional 1500 students pressure on landlords and estate agents to provide affordable student housing would dramatically increase.

Numero Uno

Welcome to the darkerst depths of of my psyce, your tour starts here. I've known this would come around but I haven't prepared much admittedly. I've always stereotyped bloggers as a bit self indulgent, being of the 'only say something if it's worth saying' persuasion, but now trying to be a journalist it makes perfect sense to actually start writing, so here goes.......................to be continued