That was 2011...for me!

By Simon Wright (Personal piece)

I WENT into 2011 hoping to have a memorable year, one that I could lookback on full of positives.  As we head into the final ten days of another year, I have to reflect on what for me has been a turbulent year by any sense of the imagination.  There have been phenomenal highs, but also some lows which brought me close to the brink of making some serious errors of judgement.  Generally, I am very thankful that I have got through another year full of health and joy, but ultimately, feel it hasn’t quite lived up to the high expectations I set.

THE LOWS

Well, I thought I should start with the highs, but then it might be better to end it in a positive view.  The main problem has been not being able to settle at times and act as if something minor was the end of the world.  At my age now, I shouldn’t be making these misdemeanours and should be able to deal with life better.  Let’s be fair, life throws a lot at us and then there’s me – generally trying to blow things out of proportion.  That’s not a good sign!  A laptop charger not working is very annoying and frustrating; especially in the midst of a University year, but to go around everywhere feeling like the world has come to an end is not the right attitude.  In my case during 2011, when things went wrong, they generally went wrong for far too long by my liking.  I had a crisis of confidence in March and came very close to walking away from my second year at University.  Looking back at it now, I’m glad that I got pushed into such a position, because it made the final two months of my course go very swimmingly and made me change my outlook on how I was approaching matters.  March’s issues began with a failed laptop charger, combined with a severe lack of motivation to do any work, my general displeasure at the lack of contact with my lecturers, then a severe falling out with a close friend of mine where I really did get the wrong end of a comment and showed my raging or ranting colours shall we say.  After a weekend away from it all, I came back to Northampton a better person, stronger individual and appreciating things far more.  Those who are on my course at Uni can vouch that I was a different person throughout April and May, a time where everything did go right.  In October, things went rotten again.  This time, it was more difficult to explain.  I guess I felt everything was so distant and once again, the lengthy summer break hadn’t done me any favours.  Things got so bad; I needed a three week break from Facebook and what a relief that was.  Facebook had taken over so much and by having the extended break made November not only flyby, but made my life easier.  I now also know that I can cope without Facebook and I’m proud of that.  Twitter is the way to communicate now, especially for my professional career I hope to build in future.  As for Facebook, well I still use it, but it isn’t the attitude of desperation now; more a luxury.  These dips in my morale, confidence and attitude could have wrecked me, but on both occasions, I feel like I turned satisfying corners and that’s a good thing.

THE HIGHS

The Balestra nights out in May were wonderful memories

For me, there are four highs that standout personally for me over the course of the past twelve months.  First, was the two consecutive Thursday nights that as a journalism group, we went out together to the Balestra nightclub.  It was May time and everyone was rushing around to finish projects and beat deadlines.  As I would say, I was as cool as an ice cube and had everything handed in and organised days before!  The nightlife experience was brilliant, because I doubted whether we could do something as a group like go out, dance, drink champagne and have a memorable night/nights.  I’d forgotten what a good night out was upto that point.  I have so many great memories from those nights out on the 11^th and 18^th May and something I will take away from when we graduate next summer.  I’d like to think that we might do a few more like this in the remaining weeks of our degree in 2012.

The page I did that got into RW's October magazine

     Secondly was my work placement experience in London.  I was so nervous in the middle of July, when I went to Runner’s World magazine, part of the NatMags Company.  I didn’t know what to expect, how the staff would be around someone like me, let’s say – not your average everyday person.  There was no need to worry.  I had a brilliant fortnight with everyone there, got on well with 99 per cent of the staff, understood and undertook the tasks given to me with minimum fuss and gained a lot more skills and confidence than what I could have ever imagined.  Some of my work even got into October’s edition of the magazine, something very precious for my portfolio.  I see Runner’s World as the first stepping stone into my future career.

     Thirdly, it was working on the group project documentary for one of my journalism modules.  I had so much fun filming and especially, editing the project with massive contribution from the likes of Tamika Short and Chris Ola within our work.  It didn’t quite get the A grade we were hoping for, but it is the best piece of work I did in 2011 and the one piece in my two years that I take so much pride and place out of.  I am my strongest critic and always have been.  Looking back at my second year work at Uni; it did feel like a case of ‘not good enough, could do better,’ especially from some of the constructive and very harsh feedback I received.  However, I don’t think there was much else I could have done better on the documentary, which leaves me full of vindication and satisfaction.

Enjoying my summer holiday in Fuerteventura

     Lastly, the family summer holiday to Fuerteventura was amazing and the timing couldn’t have been better.  At the start of the year, I didn’t think I’d have time for a family holiday, then decided in April after a hard day at Uni; ‘Nuts to this, I need one!’  I left the country two days after the heist of the UK riots which were sweeping across the country.  I never wanted to leave England so badly and when Fuerteventura was over, part of me never wanted to come back to England.  It’s the first time I’ve ever felt like that after a foreign holiday.  I loved it out there, was so relaxed and really do feel like that in the future, I have a place where I can return for a break, or even set up some sort of holiday home.  So, if things get tough in later life, I can just say; ‘I need to go to Fuerteventura!’  Sorry, but it beats Yarmouth, Dover or Portugal hands down!  (P.S: No offence to any people from those destinations who read this.)

OVERALL FEELING

Am I pleased with how this year has gone?  Generally, it’s been okay.  Could it have been better?  Yes it could have, I mean, I still don’t have a clear future in mind, still single (AGAIN!) and world events this year were pretty grim to witness or hear/read about.

How would I sum up my 2011?  Character building and turbulent, with some great memories and periods where I would rather just forget I existed.

Thanks for reading my thoughts!    

Pondering short-term failings and longer term possibilities

By Simon Wright (Personal Piece)

NEXT week is what the University calls ‘Production Week,’ ‘Reading Week,’ whatever you want to call it.  Once again, it will provide me with the perfect opportunity to go home for the week, which at the end of the day, is where my true heart is and where I belong.  Not only will I use the opportunity to refocus, but it is time to ponder my next move in the long-term.

      I am one of those people who like security and want to sort things out and not have grave uncertainty hanging over me.  I’m afraid I don’t have that privilege at the moment and it isn’t a nice feeling to have.  None of us want to have this feeling and perhaps that explains the tricky start I’ve had to my final year at Uni.  We all choose to study on the degree for the right reasons and have to deal with the constructive criticism, the knockbacks and the disagreements of opinion in a calm and dignified manner.  There are tough times for everyone in journalism and as they say in the legendary bobsled movie Cool Runnings; ‘Rise above It.’ For example, I was annoyed to find out on Monday that a feature piece which I had already planned out has been changed to a series of topics that don’t interest me in the slightest.  Not only did I feel like I had wasted some of my time, but it would have been nice to hear about this at the start of the year, not five weeks into the course.  However, sometimes you need to take a step back to appreciate the compromises that have to be made.  I’m aware that you can’t complain if you get a job and have to write something that you don’t have any interest in.  So, no kidding, writing about the death penalty will not excite me but I’ve got to get on with what has been set.  I took things too far and moaned about it on Monday evening on Facebook and let’s face it, nobody was impressed.  Fair enough, it wasn’t a wise move and following up from last week; I hold my hands up and should have kept my mouth shut on the matter.  If I don’t like it, I know where the exit door is.  It will probably help in the short-term not using Facebook for three whole weeks, letting things blow over and take a much-needed break from the social network site which has taken a grip of control of late.  Christmas isn’t that far away, and I must approach that in the season of goodwill, not be the green-eyed Grinch monster!

       Throughout the first month of my final year, I will honestly say that it has been a struggle, far more than I could have anticipated.  However, have I dealt with things in the right manner?  Probably not!  The relaxed approach to everything at the end of last year will return while I am at home next week because let’s face it, nobody like serious, moody Simon.  Not even I like myself when I’m like that.  It might take a knock on the head to help, but we are now in the beginning of November.  I’m going to treat it as a new month, new start and forget the tough times of the first month.  As one of my closest friends said to me via the wonderful BlackBerry Messenger service on Sunday night; I’m a stronger person that what I have shown so far.  Yes, we all get disappointed and frustrated when certain aspects are changed and if you don’t, I’d nominate you for ‘World’s Strongest Individual!’

      So, that’s the short-term goal; to return to my old self, be more open and deal with disappointment in a more concealed manner rather than blowing up on one of those rants.  However, the long-term is still uncertain and that is a test that might be harder to crack.  I know in myself that I am good enough to make it and I’m certainly not burnt out by journalism.  To be honest, I never have been.  True, I get annoyed with some of the media’s tactics in reporting a story nowadays and of course, the phone hacking scandal of the summer really changed the landscape of how media and journalists are seen to the general public.  I still want to chase my dream of ultimately being successful in this industry, but probably need guidance in the next move I make.  I’m 23 now and don’t want to be doing more years of constant studying, especially as I came to University two years later than most of the rest of the course I currently study on. 

     Where do I go next then is the question?  The possibility to do an NCTJ accredited course is very tempting.  I’ve been checking out prices for a variety of courses.  The cheaper option would be a Distance Learning course, which I can do in my own time, over a maximum of two years.  Unfortunately, my University isn’t NCTJ accredited, so areas like shorthand are not included on my course.  In hindsight, it’s something I probably should have thought about more when I was making decisions on University in the winter of 2008.  Sports journalism is where I wanted to end up then and it still is today, but I don’t know if I should be more specific in what I am aiming for.  I feel that without getting an NCTJ course or training for one in a job, I can’t see myself reaching and fulfilling my goals.  Summer 2012 is certainly the best option for this, but I wouldn’t mind getting a bit more guidance in this area.

     So, this is something I would like to timetable at while I am at home next week.  It’s no harm pondering over your options and actually, it’s a good thing that I’m trying to keep open-minded on this.  Unfortunately, the unpredictable economic climate and the lack of jobs out there mean that an uncertain future is one that faces a lot of us.  I won’t lie; it’s a small world and not a great feeling to have.

       In summary, sort out the short-term faults of recent weeks and return to University on the 14 November as a far better and more positive person for the testing start; something I know I’m capable of.  In the long-term; give your goals some thought over the next week as playing the waiting game is rubbish!

How useful is Twitter?

By Simon Wright (Personal piece)

SOCIAL networking has become a real force in our lives over the past five years.  In fact, it is difficult for many to imagine their lives without any force of connectively to the outside world, expressing your feelings worldwide.  However, some guy from the Netherlands doesn’t want to know if you are about to have a ham sandwich! 

     I, myself, had three social networking options, before deleting my MySpace account last summer.  I had only used it once after leaving college, which was the primary reason why I had one in the first place.  When I went to college in 2007, I was encouraged to join MySpace; just as the Facebook revolution was beginning (I had joined Facebook in July 2007.)  I wanted to convert everyone to the Facebook way of thinking and with mission accomplished at the end of my two years studying media production, I felt quite satisfied.  Despite the recent takeover by Justin Timberlake, don’t expect MySpace to be popular.  In fact, I’d rather read The Sun newspaper, and those who know me know how much I despise that newspaper.

      Facebook may have an integral part in how we go about life, though I’m not one of those who will meet someone new in a bar; then go ‘I’ll Facebook you!’  What is going on with today’s English language system when that is said.  The stupid people could think, ‘oh yay, my face will appear in a book!’  It’s a ridiculous term!  Plus, why do you need to poke people.  Who wants to do that?

     I used to really not get the point of Twitter, which is the other social network that really has taken off in the past four years.  Since its launch in 2006, it is gradually drawing alongside Facebook in popularity.  TV programmes and presenters certainly seem to prefer the ‘tweet’ indicator and understandable, when you have to round it off in 140 characters.  A Facebook status could simply turn into a lengthy, waffle essay.  I’d prefer to eat my Birds Eye Potato Waffles rather than read waffle, but I guess people have their differences of opinion.  I reluctantly joined Twitter as part of an assignment I had to do in my first year at the University of Northampton (2009/10).  I didn’t want to; in fact, I couldn’t see much point in it.  My first thought of Twitter was; “Another place to go and stalk those celebrities.”  Why don’t you get posters and lick them, at least you could kiss them, can’t really do that with a computer screen!  Actually, as it turns out, I’m finding Twitter to be such a useful source of information.

      Having used it sporadically to keep an eye on the 2010 General Election in this country, I have grown into using it every day, tweeting on a regular basis and moving my website updates from FB onto Twitter.  It might be a narrower audience, but more people might be more interested in what you are blogging about.  Some people on my University course are like me; they love using it.  Others don’t get the point of it and do not bother and some don’t tweet, but still find it very newsworthy at least.  I’d say at least 60 per cent of the 115 people I follow are news organisations, magazines or significant leading figures in journalism.  Of course, there is the odd celebrity you want to keep a check on; such as Jimmy Carr, Nicole Scherzinger, Barack Obama, Katy Perry, Jake Humphrey and Fearne Cotton, who are some of the people I follow.  Even I have 51 followers, including ITV Anglia the topical news show 10 O’clock Live and Nick Clegg!  That last one is embarrassing, so I save my Clegg opinions for the dartboard; to be released in some year around Christmas time. 

Twitter has become an invaluable source and gives you an interesting uptake in life, so for me, it’s valuable and very useful.  I predict its popularity will just continue to increase and as far as I’m concerned, that’s a good thing.

Follow me at http://twitter.com/#!/HappyDude88

SOME TWEETS I HAVE PRODUCED IN THE LAST MONTH;

“why do people explode over X-Factor, it's just a TV show - nobody died....”

“is expecting a lot, but feels it will deliver very little.”

“a beer and MOTD. Good times!”

“actions speak louder than words.”

“oh dear, looks like he missed a 'Nando!' Don't mean the restaurant either lol!”

“and the worst miss in Prem history goes to Nando. El Nino shud hav scored with his eyes shut: at least he will hav somethin named for him.”

“thoughts are with the families of the miners who have lost their lives in Wales. Such a tragic story.”

“this is the point where I wished money grew on trees. . .”

“10 years on today from USA's darkest day. My thoughts are with the families who lost their loved ones on this poignant day. RIP”

More changes for Facebook

PROMOTION: Zuckerberg is hoping for more registered users

MARK Zuckerberg, the lynchpin of social networking giant Facebook has announced a sweeping set of changes to his powerful website.  However, it has received a mixed response from regular users of the site.  Under pressure from the public launch of Google+ this week, Zuckerberg has confirmed a new profile will be launched called ‘Timeline,’ in the next few weeks.  Already, new changes made this week have been criticised as too ‘compact’ and ‘confusing.’

     At a conference in San Francisco yesterday, Zuckerberg gave a speech about the changes and showed a video of how ‘Timeline’ will work.  He said; “The first thing you will notice is that it is a lot more visual.  There will still be a section for news stories and your wall page will just look a lot nicer.  All your stories, all your apps, it’s a new way to express your life.”

     ‘Timeline’ will allow users of the site to plot out their lives back to when they were born, through photos and events.  Users will also be able to share photos, videos and links without having to click the popular ‘like’ button. 

      Google+ went public on Wednesday and is hoping to capitalise on those Facebook regulars who are bound to react with disapproval at another rafting set of changes.  25million users worldwide have already been attracted to Google+ via invitation and it will be interesting to see how they can do in an area that Facebook and Twitter have dismantled the other competition in recent years.

     As for Facebook, the evolution continues. . . 

A brief video of how ‘Timeline’ will work is shown here from YouTube.

London riots escalate

ONLOOK: Riot police watch a fancy dress shop on fire in Clapham

FEAR, astonishment and disgust are amongst the emotions for many British citizens after the dramatic pictures and videos last night.  For the third successive night, the police were fighting a losing battle against hundreds of violent gangs, simply intent on causing as much destruction and damage as possible.  Hundreds of arrests have been made as London begins to count the cost of the damage.  Homes and businesses have been looted and set ablaze as British society faces upto its biggest problem for many decades.  Prime Minister David Cameron has had no choice but to cut short his summer holiday in Italy and make pleas for calm.  Tonight, 15,000 policemen will be out on the streets of London, but the trouble has now also descended outside the capital.  There were major disturbances in Birmingham last night, along with minor skirmishes in Liverpool, Nottingham and Bristol.

     The trouble began at the weekend in Tottenham, after the shooting of Mark Duggan by police last Thursday.  It spread to Ealing and Brixton on Sunday, with cars being smashed up, shops looted and set on fire, with police seemingly standing back and allowing the mob to take whatever possessions they felt like.  Yesterday, the initial trouble began in Hackney, as hundreds of youths attacked riot police and looted stores in broad daylight.  As the Hackney situation was brought under control, fires began in Peckham, with a Greggs store and a local electrical shop set ablaze; the gangs having no regard for the safety of innocent bystanders.  As YouTube footage came in of a man having his bag pack ransacked, dripping blood on the pavement floor, more London boroughs were targeted.  Gangs flooded the high street at Lewisham, once again, torching cars and looting stores at almost freewill. 

     At Clapham Junction, remarkable footage came in from a Sky News reporter close to the scene of a Ladbrokes store being robbed, with windows smashed, cash points targeted and a plasma TV being hauled off the wall.  Amazingly, it seemed like these idiots were being cheered on by people who found it funny!  The spread of violence has come through organised rumours on social networking sites Twitter and Facebook, as well as the BlackBerry private messenger service.  Research in Motion, the Canadian company that owns BlackBerry has promised it will help police to catch those responsible.  In Croydon, a large local furniture store was set on fire and destroyed in one of the most dramatic images of the evening.  The owner is devastated, as it was a business that had gone through four generations of his family.  168 years of graft all burnt out in less than half an hour.

     Prime Minister Cameron has faced a barrage of criticism for his lack of response to the dire situation.  CNN figurehead Piers Morgan wasn’t impressed on Twitter; “Now Cameron’s finally woken up, he should recall Parliament NOW.  This is a national emergency and the British public need protecting.”  This morning, the PM held a meeting with the police and under-fire Home Secretary Theresa May, before revealing in a statement that parliament will be recalled on Thursday for one day.  London Mayor Boris Johnson and Labour leader Ed Miliband are also returning home early from their summer breaks. 

     May went on BBC breakfast this morning to refute claims that heavy-hitting police tactics should be the order of the day, rejecting calls for the army and water cannons to be used, which would be a first in this country.  Yesterday, she pledged that those responsible will face strict action;

“I want to be clear – those responsible for the violence and looting will be made to face the consequences of their actions.”

     The outrage on social networking sites was clear from many shocked onlookers watching on their television screens.  Journalism student at the University of Northampton Chris Ola told me via Twitter the implications will be felt for many; “I can understand the outrage over the police killing the man…but this is ridiculous…it’s going to hurt the taxpayer.”  Another student at the University of Northampton, Stef Ventura fears the worst; “I fear for our country, we might be rewinding to the 1980s.”

     The blame game has already started, with some of the blame being laid at the Metropolitan police, who were over-stretched massively last night.  They made pleas for parents to know where their children were and get them inside as the mayhem continued.  From the skyline, London looked more like a disaster movie, not a bustling capital city that should be looking forward to host next year’s Olympic Games.  Former Labour mayor Ken Livingstone blamed the coalition’s dramatic spending cuts, telling the Daily Mirror; “The economic stagnation and cuts have inevitably created social division.”  Ex-deputy Prime Minister John Prescott expressed his viewpoint by setting-up a Twitter hash tag #where’sthegovernment.

BURNING: The Sony warehouse in Enfield burns to the ground

     However, it isn’t now London where this is happening now.  Birmingham saw trouble too.  Over 50 businesses were targeted by yobs in the Bullring shopping centre.  Melissa Hicks gave me a quick update of the situation on Facebook; “Birmingham City Centre is being smashed up and the big Primark shop has been burnt down.”  In Liverpool and Bristol, it was a similar, if quieter story.  This morning, the large Sony CD warehouse store on the corner of the M25 in Enfield was still burning to the ground, after it was set on fire in the early hours.  The FA have cancelled tomorrow’s night international friendly at Wembley between England and Holland and Carling Cup matches at Crystal Palace, Charlton, West Ham and Bristol City have been postponed on police advice.  The Premier League is also in contact with the police on a regular basis, with significant doubts over the fixtures taking place on the opening weekend involving Tottenham, QPR and Liverpool.  However, despite the Birmingham trouble, the third Cricket test at Edgbaston between England and India is set to go ahead on time tomorrow morning.

     As the cleanup began this morning, the whole country has to reflect on the trouble and the damage it has done to our society, with fingers crossed that tonight doesn’t bring the same amount of carnage and chaos in the country that last night did.

News Corp sells MySpace to Timberlake

STAR of one of the hit films in 2010, Justin Timberlake now has his own Social Network.  The actor and singer, who featured heavily in the film about the birth of Facebook, now own MySpace, alongside another US advertising agency.

     News Corporation have decided to sell the social networking site, which in recent years, has really struggled to keep up in the social network world, largely thanks to Facebook’s domination and the rise of Twitter.  The deal is thought to be around £22million, but falls well short of the £60million that News Corporation wanted for the company.

     With Timberlake’s help, the new owners are hoping to be able to revive MySpace’s fortunes.  Understandably, Timberlake is delighted and sees some promising opportunities for his new venture;

“I’m excited to help revitalise MySpace by using its social media platform to bring artists and fans together.”

     Under the deal, News Corp will retain a minor five per cent stake in MySpace, and now has holdings in the US firm that has teamed up with Timberlake to thrash out the deal, believed to be Specific Media. 

UNPOPULAR: Can Timberlake turn around the fortunes of MySpace?

     MySpace has been around on computers, phones and various networks since 2003.  News Corp has owned MySpace since 2005 but in the last three years, it has simply failed to cope with the excessive craze people have for Facebook.  I know this personally, having had a MySpace account myself in 2007, but deleted it last year, due to the lack of use of the site.  The early plans for the change in MySpace will be to boost its content of music videos, blogging and original TV shows.

     It is a brave move from Justin Timberlake to enter into the social networking world and he will need to spend a lot of time to eclipse Facebook and turn MySpace into a worthy and strong challenger again in this particular genre.

Cardle's Christmas gets even better

NO.1: Album cover

JUST over a week after winning the X-Factor, Matt Cardle’s Christmas has got even better, after he was officially crowned as the winner of the Christmas No.1 on Sunday night.  Cardle’s winners single, his rendition of Biffy Clyro’s massive hit ‘Many Faces of Horror,’ which he titled ‘When we Collide,’ held off challenges from protest campaigns on Facebook about X-Factor’s domination of the coveted prize.

Other competitors included a hit from Rihanna, one of Cardle’s closest friends with ‘What’s My Name,’ which finished in second place and John Cage’s protest against Simon Cowell, known as ‘Cage against the Machine.’  Their idea was to record a 4min 33sec song of complete silence and was supported by bands such as Madness, The Kooks and Pendulum.  In the end, it didn’t launch a serious threat to the final outcome. 

FORMIDABLE: Matt with his mentor, Dannii Minogue

17.2million viewers watched Matt, 27, the former decorator from Colchester overcome Rebecca Ferguson and One Direction in last Sunday’s final.  Mentored by Australian Dannii Minogue, he was the red-hot favourite to win the ITV talent show for a large proportion of the show, highlighted by the fact that he topped the phone votes on nine of the ten live show weeks.  Cowell will be hoping that Cardle’s success starts a new trend of X-Factor domination of the Christmas charts, which has seen No.1’s for Alexandra Burke, Leona Lewis and doomed Scottish singer Leon Jackson.  It was halted last year, by a successful Facebook campaign to get Rage Against the Machine’s 1992 hit ‘Killing in the Name’ to the top of the charts, overhauling last year’s winning single, ‘The Climb’ by Joe McElderrey. 

On hearing the news of his success, Cardle was gobsmacked; "I can't believe it.  As if winning wasn't enough. I honestly didn't think I'd even make it on to the live shows, let alone win and now be the Christmas number one.  "I can't even begin to describe how it feels.”

Congratulations to Matt, a fitting Xmas No.1, I hope he can build on this success for a long-time to come.  

Tax demonstrations add to coalition issues

LAST weekend, the fast-growing movement UK Uncut stepped up their campaign over evasion of taxation regulations.  Across the country, demonstrations and blockades of shop entrances led to several major top-chain stores being forced to close their branches on their busiest day of the calendar year.  Why are these big businesses and individual avoiding the system and is it fair?  Journalism student Simon Wright looks into this controversial detail in closer form.

WITH the highly anticipated tuition fees vote in the House of Commons tomorrow, the budget cuts that the coalition government have come under severe fire in recent weeks. 

DEMOS: Protests take place last weekend at Oxford Street

One issue that seems to be dodged by all politicians is the lack of action on tax avoidance by some of the wealthiest in our country.  Last Saturday, campaigners from UK Uncut carried out some deep pop-up protests about the regulations, which force several branches of TopShop and Vodafone around the country to close their doors, on one of the busiest trading days of the year.  Several campaigners and journalists were ejected by security guards as demonstrations took place in 21 towns and cities across the UK.

UK Uncut is a fast-growing movement that is gathering growing support via social networking sites Twitter and Facebook.  Already, demonstrations have been planned this weekend for Aberystwyth, Chester and Bury St Edmunds.  A website was set-up as recently as November 28, with many people already getting involved.

A spokesman for UK Uncut, James Kelly told the Guardian; “Tax avoidance is a big issue and we believe this is the alternative to the cuts the government are making.”  UK Uncut is taking their action on two organisations in particular.

Vodafone dodge

TAXING: UK Uncut's strong opinion of Vodafone

OVER the last ten years, communications giant Vodafone have been fighting tooth and nail to avoid paying the government around £6billion in tax.  After a defeat this summer in court to HM Revenue and Customs, current chancellor George Osbourne let Vodafone off the hook, rather than force through the payment in October.  The UK Uncut called the action ‘shameless’ and furious ex-Vodafone customer Tamika Short agrees; “Everyone has to pay their way and the higher should pay more than poorer families and students.  What Vodafone are doing is an absolute disgrace!”

The campaign continues against Vodafone, and they aren’t the only businesses to be affected, with Boots, HSBC and Barclays Bank avoiding similar laws.

Greedy Green

THE ninth richest man in the UK, Phillip Green is also taking a lot of stick from UK Uncut.  Green, whose wealth was, estimated at £4.4billion in 2008 runs some of the biggest names on Britain’s high streets.  His retail empire includes TopShop, BHS and Dorothy Perkins.  Even though Green lives in the UK, he runs the Arcadia retail group that he doesn’t even own.  His wife does, and by living in the tax haven of Monaco, doesn’t have to pay a single penny.  One of the demonstrators, Chris_Coltrane posted this chant on Phillip Green in London on his Twitter account last weekend; “Where did all the money go?  He sent it off to Monaco!”

In 2005, Green awarded himself a cool £1.2billion, and divided it via tax havens in Monaco and Jersey.  It is costing the annual taxpayer around £300million, which angered protestor Benjamin Neem.  Neem told the BBC; “Phillip Green’s missing millions need to be reclaimed and invested into public services, not his wife’s bank account.”

Recently, Green was made an advisor on the spending cuts by David Cameron, which adds to the pain for many protestors, including James Kelly; “Phillip Green is a well-known tax avoider and today, we’re bringing our campaign right to the heart of the empire.”  In fact, his £285million dodge could pay the salaries of 20,000 NHS nurses and the full tuition fees of £9,000 for almost 32,000 students, an extraordinary statistic. 

Link with students

I ASKED accounting and finance expert at the University of Northampton, Christopher Cook on the issue, but he declined to comment, only saying “It would cause heated and long debates.”

The evasion of tax payments links in with the tuition fees issue, as these were two of the Liberal Democrats four key pledges that have been broken from their manifesto.  The newly-formed group UK Uncut is also believed to feature public sector workers, the unemployed and pensioners.

This is one debate that won’t go away, and the coalition government have now got major tests infront of them, if they are to control the growing frustration from many on the spending cuts.

Woman Found Guilty of Cat Cruelty

A WOMAN who was caught on camera, dumping a cat into a wheelie bin has been fined for his cruel actions.

Mary Bale, 45, admitted to a cruelty charge offence this morning at Coventry Magistrates Court.  She has been fined £250 and has also been forced to pay £1,171 in costs.  To compound her misery, she has been banned from keeping or owning animals for the next five years.  However, a second charge of not providing the cat with a suitable environment under the 2006 Animal Welfare Act was dropped.  Consequently, a six-month prison sentence was avoided.

The incident occurred in the early evening of Saturday August 21.  Footage on Brays Lane showed Bale stroking the cat, before picking the four-year old tabby called Lola up by the scruff of the neck.  She then dropped Lola into the bin without any regard for her safety.  Although Lola suffered no physical injury, she was left in the bin for 15 hours.  The cat was discovered by its owner, Darryl Mann the next morning.

Mr Mann, 26, checked the security camera footage, and posted the shocking video onto the Internet.  Within days, the RSPCA were investigating the incident and Bale has become a hated figure globally, with the social networking site Facebook having to remove groups from animal rights lovers calling for her death.  She resigned from her job as a bank worker because of the scandal.

Bale, who was said to be in tears throughout the hearing left court on Tuesday without comment.  She is grieving over the death of her father last Thursday at Coventry’s Walsgrave Hospital.  During an interview in the investigation process, Mary Bale admitted that she had been struggling with depression and coping with her father’s sudden decline in health.  The district judge in this case, Caroline Goulborn told Bale on the sentence: “The media interest in this case has resulted in you being vilified in some quarters, and I have taken that into account.”

To some, it might sound a lenient penalty for such a cruel mistreatment of a pet, but hopefully, this message has been hammered down for all people to look after pets in a responsible manner.

The X-Factor - Where Are They Now? (Part 1)

THIS BLOG WAS WRITTEN BY MY BROTHER, JASON WRIGHT

BY JASON WRIGHT

The X Factor, widely regarded as Britain’s biggest and best talent TV competition, returns for its seventh series on Saturday.  Since its launch back in 2004, it has become a national phenomenon and is always a Saturday night (and from last year, also a Sunday night) ratings banker for ITV1.  Last year’s series attracted a record series average of over 15 million viewers, including a peak of 20 million for the finale.

As the new series draws closer, I will be taking a trip down memory lane to look at how previous contestants have fared since making their appearance on the show.  This first of two blogs looks at 12 acts that didn’t win the show outright but have either gone on to enjoy success or be consistently in the public spotlight.

G4 (Series 1 Runners-Up, 2004)

This quartet of male vocalists may have lost the first series final to Steve Brookstein but there is no denying that they were the true winners of that year’s competition.  There debut album reached number one in the albums chart and their lead single from the album, a cover of Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ went on to strike the top ten in the singles chart.  The group split in early 2007, citing disagreements over their record company, about their UK tour schedule.  Group member Jonathan Ansell has since had a successful solo opera career.

Andy Abraham (Series 2 Runner-Up, 2005)

Originally a binman from North London, he won over thousands of fans in the second series and was rewarded with second place.  His debut album reached number two in the charts but since then, nothing has gone right.  A last-gasp effort to revive his career by appearing as the UK’s entrant at the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest failed thanks to the domination of tactical voting by Eastern Europe in the competition.  He is now beginning a new life as a property developer.

Chico (Series 2 5th Place, 2005)

The real joker of the pack in series 2, he became well known for his catchphrase ‘It’s Chico Time’ which became the title of his first single which reached top spot in the charts.  Since then, he has become more of a children’s entertainer, regularly appearing at Butlins holiday parks, and still is today.  He also competed in the failed ITV2 reality series CelebAir in 2008 and was one of a dozen people to release an unofficial anthem for the 2010 World Cup called ‘It’s England Time’.  Needless to say, it failed to chart in the top 100!

Ray Quinn (Series 3 Runner-Up, 2006)

This young Liverpool lad was already a star by the time he entered the show in 2006, having starred in the Channel 4 soap Brookside.  Critics wrote off his chances before the live finals, but he soon got them on his side and reached the final.  Despite his one and only album not being as successful as he hoped, he has gone on to be a success in the West End, appearing in shows such as Grease and Dirty Dancing.  In 2009, he appeared in Dancing on Ice and turned it into a one man competition, finishing top of the judges’ leaderboard every week.

Rhydian Roberts (Series 4 Runner-Up, 2007)

His operatic voice in series 4 made him the hot favourite to win; in fact some bookmakers had begun paying out to punters on the night of the final.  Then he lost to underdog Leon Jackson and the controversy began, several people claiming ITV had fixed the voting which was strenuously denied.  This allegation led to ITV now publishing voting statistics for every reality show after the series end.  Despite being beaten at the last, his debut album went platinum and his second the following year sold more than 100,000.  Earlier this year, he left his record company, the full reason of this has yet to be established.

Same Difference (Series 4 3rd Place, 2007)

Written off by everyone before a note was sung in the live finals but it turned to be completely the opposite for this brother and sister duo from Portsmouth.  Louis Walsh couldn't stand them them but the public loved them and voted for them to get to the final.  A record deal was sealed, but several rescheduling issues over their debut single and album was to be the ultimate downfall.  Neither reached the top 10 in 2008 and they were swiftly axed.  Like Chico, they’ve have now resorted to the Butlins tour circuit.

JLS (Series 5 Runners-Up, 2008)

There is some debate as to whether Alexandra Burke or this four-piece group were the real winners of The X Factor 2008.  Most believe that it is JLS and the evidence is simple.  They have scored three number one singles, two BRIT awards, two MOBO awards and several marketing deals.  They are also due to begin a career in the US next year.  On the basis of that, it shows that some acts don’t need to win the show to be rich and famous.

Diana Vickers (Series 5 4th Place, 2008)

A girl that well and truly split the nation with her “unique” voice.  But love her or hate her, she just couldn’t be ignored, and at one stage becoming the favourite to win.  In the fifth week of the competition however, she had to withdraw because of a throat infection and then literally battled as far as she could afterwards, finally succumbing at the semi-final hurdle.  Since her rollercoaster appearance, Diana has had a successful stint in the West End and this year, returned to the music scene with a number one single and album.  Whatever you’re views are on her, everyone has to admit that she is an act that is here to stay for quite sometime.

Laura White (Series 5 8th Place, 2008)

Before the live finals, the girls category was looking to be the one to beat and this 21-year old was tipped to be the favourite.  However, something didn’t gel in the live finals and Laura was booted out on week five.  Her exit prompted outrage.  Facebook petition groups were set up, calling for her reinstatement and Louis Walsh, who had the casting vote that night, to be sacked.  A subsequent Ofcom investigation cleared ITV of vote fixing and Walsh then made the grave mistake of going public with his comments on blaming the viewers for her exit, rightfully being heckled by the studio audience throughout the following week’s programme.  Laura has since gone onto release a single but her early exit from the show hampered any chance of being successful.

Olly Murs (Series 6 Runner-Up, 2009)

This wasn’t the first time this Essex lad was on TV.  He took part on the Channel 4 show Deal Or No Deal in 2007…and won just £10!  In the live finals, he won everyone over with his regular upbeat performances and rightfully reached the final two.  In the final, he became great mates with Robbie Williams and their performance of ‘Angels’ is widely regarded as one the best moments in X Factor history.  Williams invited him to play in this year’s Soccer Aid charity football match and Olly is now set on releasing his debut single, ‘Please Don’t Let Me Go’ later this month with an album to follow shortly after.

John & Edward, a.k.a. Jedward (Series 6 6th Place, 2009)

In a mild context, these identical twins from Dublin raised a lot of eyebrows in the sixth series.  When Louis Walsh was revealed as their mentor at judges’ houses, they became a dead cert to be in the final 12. They were despised by the public left, right and centre…and Simon Cowell, who famously described them as “vile, little creatures” and that he would be on the next plane out of the country should they win.  The twins courted massive controversy in week five when Cowell chose to save them instead of ditching them and their luck finally ran out a fortnight later.  Since their appearance, Jedward earned themselves a number 2 hit with their take on the Queen song ‘Under Pressure’, mashed together with ‘Ice Ice Baby’.  Following this, they were dropped by Sony, only to be snapped up 24 hours later by Universal and worse is to come, they have there own television show beginning on ITV2 next week.  Anyone with a nervous disposition should look away now!

Lucie Jones (Series 6 8th Place, 2009)

The 2009 series once again boasted a very strong girls category.  This time it was this beautiful Welsh teen who was leading the pack.  After a solid, if unspectacular, first three weeks of performances, she really came into the competition in week four.  However the following week, she ended up in the bottom two with Jedward and when Simon Cowell made the shocking decision to let the public vote determine the elimination, the twins’ growing popularity with the public sealed her fate.  Lucie's fans slammed Cowell's decision and slowly boycotted the show.   The Sun, a popular newspaper for the programme, labelled Cowell as THE MOST HATED MAN IN BRITAIN and even later reported that he had been sent death threats over the vote.  Cowell eventually apologised to the public over his decision.  Following her shock exit, the 19 year-old has signed a deal to become a fashion model and more recently, is performing in the West End.  Even though we may not see her now enter the world of music, her future is still definitely bright.

These 12 acts are just handful of contestants that have shown you don’t need to win The X Factor to either launch a career or earn a bright future ahead.

Coming up soon is part 2, focusing on the previous six series winners.

Twitter vs Facebook - The Facts & Milestones

The debate is bound to rage on: Which social networking giant is really the best?  Some will prefer to Tweet, others prefer Farmville; tastes will depend on whoever you associated yourself with.  However, with Twitter having recently celebrated its 20^th billionth tweet – just days after Facebook notched up its 500^th millionth member, here are some interesting facts about the two dominant leaders in social networking.

Facebook

Facebook was founded in February 2004 by Mark Zuckerburg – whilst he was studying a Psychology course at Harvard University.  In 2006, Zuckerburg rejected a $1billion takeover offer from Yahoo.  One year later, he sold a 1.6% stake to Microsoft for £117million.  This year, figures suggest that Facebook is estimated to make $1billion.  Users post videos, pictures, status updates and pictures on their own personal profiles.  They connect with their friends via Facebook Chat and can have total control on who has access to personal information.  Facebook makes most of its money by targeting advertising to certain individual’s likes and dislikes.  Statistics suggest that Facebook users will spend around eight billion minutes on the site every day, and they send about a billion messages via Facebook chat.  It is almost impossible to tell whether famous people are using the site – fan pages are more likely to pop up.  Recently, a tribute page to the UK’s most wanted man, Raoul Moat was set-up.  ‘RIP Raoul Moat You Legend!’ attracted 30,000 fans and received serious condemnation from David Cameron.  It has since been removed.  A campaign to get the 1992 song ‘Killing in the Name’ by Rage against the Machine was successful in December 2009 for the coveted prize of Christmas No.1.  It beat ‘The Climb,’ by UK X-Factor winner Joe McElderry, in a bid to put an end to Simon Cowell’s domination of the Xmas No.1.

MY VIEW OF FACEBOOK: I joined Facebook back in July 2007, after being sent a friend recommendation.  Honestly, I didn’t think it would catch on, I hadn’t even heard of it before then.  However, I spend a load of time on Facebook and despite receiving some criticism of late – some of it deserved, it will remain king of the social networking world in my view.

Twitter

Twitter was created in 2006 by work buddies Evan Williams, Biz Stone and Jack Dorsey.  It started initially as a side project to a blogging website.  There is no source of revenue so far for Twitter, with many waiting to see how it will generate profit.  People write short updates called ‘Tweets,’ of 140 characters or less.  These are posted to your profile/blog and sent to all of your followers.  In 2007, about 5,000 tweets were sent a day, with that increasing to 300,000 messages per day in 2008.  Famous celebrities who regularly tweet for their millions of fans include Jamie Olivier, Alan Carr, Dannii Minogue, Amanda Holden, Tony Blair, Kaya Scodelario, Stephen Fry, Lily Allen and Barack Obama.

MY VIEW OF TWITTER: I joined Twitter last October, as it was an expected requirement of my first year Journalism course at The University of Northampton.  To be honest, I rarely use it, although I will pop on from time-to-time to see what my friends and celebrities I’m following, and post the occasional updates, normally about this website.  Twitter is not my favourite site, but is a nice back-up to have, should I require it and it is one hundred times better than my MySpace account, which I closed down this summer due to lack of activity.