Or how we exploited social media to change the world… Less than a month ago, fellow journalist Linda Jones asked me to join her on a project to raise money for Comic Relief using the medium of Twitter. What a rollercoaster it has been! By harnessing Twitter, we somehow managed to create an entire book [...]
Ivan Cameron – a death not in vain
Published in February 26th, 2009
Yesterday, when there was a fatal plane crash in Amsterdam and several British soldiers were killed on duty in Afghanistan, one other story dominated UK headlines – the death of six-year-old Ivan Cameron. Normally, I’d consider it inappropriate for such a private tragedy to be given priority over other news that is arguably far more [...]
Schiphol plane crash – news and green views
Published in February 25th, 2009
Shortly after 9.30 this morning, I learned – via Twitter – of the plane crash at Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands. A Turkish Airlines Boeing 737 came down short of the Polderbaan runway, where it promptly broke into three pieces. It was a miracle that it didn’t turn into a fireball and that so many [...]
Disability and diversity in the public space
Published in February 23rd, 2009
One of today’s top stories has centred on children’s TV presenter, Cerrie Burnell. The Daily Mail ran an insidious, scaremongering feature about how she is supposedly frightening the young kids she presents to on CBeebies. Listening to Cerrie talk on the Jeremy Vine Show on Radio 2 today, I was struck by her calm dignity [...]
Twitter: celebrity and comedy
Published in February 9th, 2009
I’m a huge fan of Twitter – I find it immensely useful as a work tool and it’s no surprise that so many other journalists do too, as it’s such a good way of connecting to useful people. I’ve been meaning for a couple of weeks to post about the celebrity invasion of Twitter, but [...]
A foodie on the cheap
Published in January 17th, 2009
Apologies for my quietness of late – I’ve been writing a book (details to follow). In the interim, I’ve been guest-posting on Scott Colvey’s new blog on discount food shopping during the credit crunch. Read on for my tale of my first experience of hunting for gourmet bargains in an el cheapo supermarket… Bookmark It [...]
Baby P – some random thoughts
Published in November 18th, 2008
Not much to say, really. The papers are awash with news, views, op-eds and outrage. Ten days of coverage, more details unfolding daily on the catalogue of inaction. I couldn’t face watching Panorama tonight after reading today’s news. It would have been like getting an abuse-porn fix. Like the rest of the nation, I feel [...]
Election? What election?
Published in November 4th, 2008
I hate elections. And I particularly hate the US presidential election. Try as I might, I just cannot work up the slightest enthusiasm for it. Or even the vaguest smidgeon of interest. I ought to feel guilty about that but I don’t. Try as I might to ignore the saturation coverage, it’s unavoidable, and irritating [...]
No orchids for Mr Brand
Published in October 29th, 2008
No question the hottest story of the week has been Brandgate, pushing Robert Peston and the recession off the front pages and onto the backburner. Things moved fast today when the BBC announced first the suspension of Brand and co-broadcaster Jonathan Ross, then Brand’s resignation. The fate of Ross remains unknown but Brand was always [...]
Held to account
Published in October 10th, 2008
Ever been without a bank account? With the turbulence on the global financial markets over the past few days, not having a bank account probably seems like a pretty good idea. BBC Magazine looked at the difficulties of surviving in modern society on cash alone. The story touched only briefly on the concept of so-called [...]
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