Jan 11 2010
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Journalism

Common Ground

Uploaded by littlesaint_uk.

At the risk of spreading myself too thinly I’ve decided to set up my own hyperlocal blog. Part of the reason I haven’t done this already is because I’ve not had a permanent address until now. Now that I have, I intend to immerse myself in my neighbourhood.

My current locality is Balham, but my blog covers Balham, Tooting and Clapham South, or more specifically the area between Clapham, Tooting and Wandsworth Commons. So I’ve called it Common People and South West London’s green lungs have already featured prominantly.

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Dec 14 2009
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Journalism

It’s good to talk

uploaded by BESTO (Giuseppe Stella).

I’m a fan of late night phone-in shows. But when it comes to phone-ins on immigration, the same myth always seems to crop up.

It relates to mobile phones. Those who perpetuate it are keen to suggest that migrants, particularly asylum seekers, are being given mobile phones, by some unspecified governmental body

The caller usually starts by complaining about the hand-outs given to immigrants. When asked by the host to substantiate the claim, they usually start waffling on about cars and mobile phones.

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Dec 11 2009
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Journalism

Festive Sheffield

Christmas lights on Sheffield High Street.

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Dec 01 2009
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Journalism

There’s nothing wrong with aiming high

The Homeless World Cup 2008 in Melbourne

Originally uploaded by littlesaint_uk.

This time last week, Tom Gockelen-Kozlowski was standing outside an office in Kings Cross handing out his cards to staff as they arrived at work.

The 22-year old graduate hoped his initiative would impress bosses at the Guardian enough to hire him as a journalist. Well it certainly impressed some Guardian journalists – one actually asked him to blog about his experiences

A week later and Tom has had a blogpost in the Guardian’s money section and has been discussed by a number of other bloggers and on Twitter. He may not have a job yet, but he is certainly being talked about. And unlike one of the Guardian’s previous rookie bloggers, the infamous Max Gogarty (now what ever happened to him?), the reaction to Tom’s post has been largely positive.

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Nov 17 2009
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Journalism

Conference Call

Chain Reaction 2009

Originally uploaded by chainreaction2008.

In the past month, I’ve attended two conference-type events. Nothing unusual about that, other than they were the first events in the UK I’d covered as a journalist for more than a year.

In the eleven months up to August, I was out of the country and on my return to active service I noticed big changes to the events I attended. Previously, organisers had attempted some sort of interactivity, but it often felt token and meaningless. Both events were more successful in promoting interaction from delegates than previously – one reason for this must be the popularity of social networking.

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Nov 11 2009
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Journalism

The changing face of television news

For anyone involved in newsgathering, hearing from leading journalists the nature of the news we will see on our televisions in the future was an opportunity not be missed.

The Media Society event Will We Have News For You? brought together five journalists from public and commercial broadcasters to discuss the future of regional news. The panelists involved in the discussion at BBC Television Centre, were:

Nick Pollard (Former Head of Sky News in the Chair)

Mary Hockaday (Head Multi-media Newsroom, The BBC)

Jonathan Munro (Deputy Editor and Director of Newsgathering, ITV News)

Jonathan Levy (Editor General Election Sky News )

Stephen Cole (Presenter Al Jazeera English)

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Nov 10 2009
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Journalism

Back in London

It’s been a while since I posted – in that time I have travelled from Melbourne back to the UK via Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and India.

I’ve also lived back home in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear for the first time in twelve years. I’ve been spending my time there learning to drive – resitting my test in December – and working for New Start and the BBC in Newcastle (see my biography for more details).

I’m now part-time assistant editor at New Start and will continue to cover London events. There’s a lot coming up so I hope to be kept very busy. I’m also planning to do a lot more blogging, so watch this space to see how this blog develops!

Jun 03 2009
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Journalism

Is the Australian suburb under threat?

Australia’s most famous suburban street

Originally uploaded by littlesaint_uk.

Well it could be according to a Brisbane-based planning academic.

Professor Tony Hall of Queensland Griffith University has noted that backyards are shrinking across Australia. In an interview published in the Sydney Morning Herald, Hall claims this reflects a shift away from the outdoor-loving lifestyle that Australians have long treasured.

Hall has found the newer homes have smaller backyards. He blames this on home-buyers desire for bigger houses and too little time to spend in their gardens. Continue reading →

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Apr 11 2009
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Beauty and the backpacking beast

First Thailand, then Vietnam and now Laos have become a must-do destination for backpackers in the far east. While Thailand has its islands and Vietnam spectacular bays, Laos’ main asset is its dramatic landscape – and good, cheap beer!

Backpackers’ favoured combination of extreme sports and excessive drinking come together in the resort of Vang Vieng. The town is famous for waterbourne pub crawls where participants ride the rapids between waterside bars on inflatable inner tubes.

But there are concerns that if action isn’t taken, the natural beauty of Laos could be destroyed by intensive tourism development. In a recent issue of the magazine Planning, I wrote about a project seeking to ensure that one of Laos’ up-and-coming destinations is protected from the negative effects of tourism development.

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Mar 10 2009
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Journalism

The High Line

Originally uploaded by littlesaint_uk.

If you are lucky enough to be going to New York this summer, make sure you leave time to check out its newest park – the High Line.

The High Line, which opens later this Spring, has supporters ranging from U.S secretary of state Hillary Clinton to actor Edward Norton. The difference between The High Line and a traditional park is that you won’t find it at ground level. It has been cultivated on a disused elevated railroad above the streets of Manhattan.

You can read more about the story behind the High Line’s creation in an article I have written for the March edition of New Start.


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