“Try laughing, so that whatever scares you goes away” hosts Japanese Film, ‘My Neighbour Totoro‘. This is referring to a haunted house in the middle of a deserted countryside. This is very much still a shared concern amongst people, as portrayed in the Horror Movies: ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ (1974), the recent ‘The Stranglers’ (2008) amongst many others, just pick out a handful of Horror Movies and this will be a running theme - away from humanity and surrounded by nature.
According to the Dictionary, Fear, is: an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.
Fear is still a physical feat, but has it escalated past that, mostly? In a world where we are so concerned that our Iphones boot up correctly, the internet connection runs smoothly on our flashy hi-tech laptops (which it ironically isn’t as I type this…and yes I freaked out, it’s been down for many hours now), and when our Facebook refuses to load due to a technical glitch, so we cannot spy on the world or inflict the world with our life stories. What makes the news regarding youngsters at the moment are protests, demonstration movements and of course, looting. Granted that this is just a minority but the video games we have been playing for years such as, Tekken, Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, Halo and Red Dead Redemption are all factors into why I feel a lot of people fear things that will never cause pain but, lack the fear when perhaps it would sensible to fear.
I’m no different - I’d happily walk down a side road at midnight on my own, or crossover a motorway at peak time or order a McDonalds for Breakfast. Okay, so the last one’s a lie, I would only ever order one of those in a fatal emergency. I’m not slating the company, just all fast-good outlets. My point being that the things that worry me most (excepting a few obviously) are things that really don’t matter. So, my Cell has no signal or battery - the other person isn’t going to die if they have to wait an hour longer for a text/call. Despite this known fact, I still feel as if rapidity is the correct and if not the only way.
A few common fears amongst people seem to be: death (themselves or people close to them) and an epidemic. Countlessly I’ve loaded myself into an early morning train and been greeted with an abundance of sniffles, coughs and hanky-shakings. I instantly attempt to shield my mouth and nose before realising I’m in an enclosed space and therefore the bacteria will succeed.
Not afraid of rollercoasters, or being in a Vehicle driving too fast down the M27 or M25 (British Motorways), but afraid of catching a cold, whether my clothes match or whether the flying insect above my head is going to drop onto me. Are all my fears wrong?
A scientific answer to what fear is could be “Fear has a certain contagious feature to it, so the fear in others can elicit fear in ourselves. It’s conditioning, like Pavlov and the salivating dog.” In other words, we can be drawn to fear, so perhaps it is still that we fear these things, but we’ve become immune to the feeling, so therefore do not feel it as fear. We feel it as a similar emotion to those we feel everyday.
Wednesday, 26 October 2011
Tuesday, 25 October 2011
Posh.
It is human nature to want to be something you are not. Recently I’ve grown an obsession with TV Sitcom ‘Frasier’ . Incase, you are unfamiliar with the show, firstly - why? Secondly, find it…re-runs happen regularly on both UK and US TV, I know. The show centres around two Psychiatrist brothers and their problems in dealing with ‘normal’ people. I use the term not in a sense of sane or insane, I mean posh and standard -the everyday person, whom makes up their family and friends. The brothers consider themselves to be of high society and almost frown upon a cheap champagne or a mix-match or clothes, or a piece of furniture which does not fit in with the décor of their room/s,
It’s like a universe out of my galaxy - I know that is a completely un-scientific sentence, but take it. The cavalier, the etiquette, the 1961 Colheita Port. These are all things many of us will not have experienced much of. So, when questioning what it is to be post, I found that one response, which became a regular statement was to “be outraged at everything”. Was this true, I thought to myself? Using ‘Frasier’ as a reference, I found that many rants were amidst including: “My suede shoes, you spilled latte on them, they’re ruined”, “for god’s sake that wine has spent more time in the bottle” and personal favourite “my favourite pair of socks has been reduced to one argyle”.
While I am back-tracking in historical time, at present I am watching ‘A Room with a View’ which is a 1985 film adaptation of E.M. Forsters’ 1908 Novel. It is a tale about a young woman in the repressed culture of Edwardian England, set in Italy and England. It is a story of both Romance and a critique of English Society at the beginning of the 20th Century. I mention this as it shows how the civilised world then, are nowadays perceived as snobbish. Look at that hairstyle, look at their attire, she/he has no prospect you cannot marry into that family.
As time has moved on, has the way the higher-class are different? The Royal Family in England are at least trying to make an effort to be relatable to our nation, though whether successful is debatable. But, they are not perceived to be uptight, they do occasionally mingle with those lesser than them, but still do not marry into much lesser families.
What do you think? And, how is it in America? It’s a subject I’m a little lacking in knowledge in and would be interested in.
It’s like a universe out of my galaxy - I know that is a completely un-scientific sentence, but take it. The cavalier, the etiquette, the 1961 Colheita Port. These are all things many of us will not have experienced much of. So, when questioning what it is to be post, I found that one response, which became a regular statement was to “be outraged at everything”. Was this true, I thought to myself? Using ‘Frasier’ as a reference, I found that many rants were amidst including: “My suede shoes, you spilled latte on them, they’re ruined”, “for god’s sake that wine has spent more time in the bottle” and personal favourite “my favourite pair of socks has been reduced to one argyle”.
While I am back-tracking in historical time, at present I am watching ‘A Room with a View’ which is a 1985 film adaptation of E.M. Forsters’ 1908 Novel. It is a tale about a young woman in the repressed culture of Edwardian England, set in Italy and England. It is a story of both Romance and a critique of English Society at the beginning of the 20th Century. I mention this as it shows how the civilised world then, are nowadays perceived as snobbish. Look at that hairstyle, look at their attire, she/he has no prospect you cannot marry into that family.
As time has moved on, has the way the higher-class are different? The Royal Family in England are at least trying to make an effort to be relatable to our nation, though whether successful is debatable. But, they are not perceived to be uptight, they do occasionally mingle with those lesser than them, but still do not marry into much lesser families.
What do you think? And, how is it in America? It’s a subject I’m a little lacking in knowledge in and would be interested in.
Anime - explanation?
Anime is popular. Simple and concise sentence. Anime is popular around the world. Anime conventions despite being on a grand scale in the UK, are nothing compared to the amount that occupy the Americas. I’ve scoured the databases for lists and in California alone, there are handfuls yearly. [Soft Break][Soft Break]My question is why do people enjoy Anime? To me it’s a comic and a relief away from the stress in my everyday life. It is more relaxing than a simple film or novel, as it is a reminiscent of my childhood. The reason it sticks in my mind is the over-exaggeration in not only the dialect of the characters (and the over-emphasised punctuation following it), but also how their faces are filled with more emotion than humanly possible - the wide mouth, the drooping eyes, the tears sprawled across the face, the boldened font to the side of a character when the ‘anger’ emotion is being portrayed. The way that the characters are minimised.
The reason I love Anime is the same reason everyone my age loved Pokemon, and Digimon, and Yu-Gi-Oh when they were younger. The believable and the un-believable stories have a paradigm. The way how you believed that when you grew older there was a chance you could be a Pokemon Master, and that that life was real, but the way that you are able to distinguish between the character who head multiplies in size, and the one drop of sweat on his forehead when he is furious, from being realistic.[Soft Break][Soft Break]The current Series I am reading is called ‘Chocolat’, the customised backgrounds, which are a slide away from the story and a continuity error (if Anime cared for that). The little side boxes which are the internal thoughts of the characters, are so sarcastic, which in turn reminds me of the British Comedy and British Humour. [Soft Break][Soft Break]The dazed-knocked out look is something that defines the genre in full to me. It is in a way something I wish that could be translated into real life. The swirly eyes, the lines and tears across the face, the wide mouth and the the steam hat us eluding out of them as they are mercilessly dragged across the floor by a non-sentimental character.
To wrap up, Anime is popular as it is aimed at Children, Teenagers and Adults. There can be simple storylines such as in Chobits (where a robotic character attaches to it’s master and in-turn “loves” him), or complex story lines such as the feature-film ‘Paprika’ (where refrigerators are dancing, dreams within dreams within dreams are happening). Regardless of the story, one thing is certain and that is the precision of the art-direction, it is simply superb. No faults. Whether you are a frantic lover of Anime or have yet to see anything other than the few TV programs that you by-chance caught as they were on your prime-time Television sets, I would recommend nipping down to your cheapest DVD shop and purchasing something. It’s really like no other genre, in my opinion, gives you a lot of time for interpretation.
The reason I love Anime is the same reason everyone my age loved Pokemon, and Digimon, and Yu-Gi-Oh when they were younger. The believable and the un-believable stories have a paradigm. The way how you believed that when you grew older there was a chance you could be a Pokemon Master, and that that life was real, but the way that you are able to distinguish between the character who head multiplies in size, and the one drop of sweat on his forehead when he is furious, from being realistic.[Soft Break][Soft Break]The current Series I am reading is called ‘Chocolat’, the customised backgrounds, which are a slide away from the story and a continuity error (if Anime cared for that). The little side boxes which are the internal thoughts of the characters, are so sarcastic, which in turn reminds me of the British Comedy and British Humour. [Soft Break][Soft Break]The dazed-knocked out look is something that defines the genre in full to me. It is in a way something I wish that could be translated into real life. The swirly eyes, the lines and tears across the face, the wide mouth and the the steam hat us eluding out of them as they are mercilessly dragged across the floor by a non-sentimental character.
To wrap up, Anime is popular as it is aimed at Children, Teenagers and Adults. There can be simple storylines such as in Chobits (where a robotic character attaches to it’s master and in-turn “loves” him), or complex story lines such as the feature-film ‘Paprika’ (where refrigerators are dancing, dreams within dreams within dreams are happening). Regardless of the story, one thing is certain and that is the precision of the art-direction, it is simply superb. No faults. Whether you are a frantic lover of Anime or have yet to see anything other than the few TV programs that you by-chance caught as they were on your prime-time Television sets, I would recommend nipping down to your cheapest DVD shop and purchasing something. It’s really like no other genre, in my opinion, gives you a lot of time for interpretation.
Sunday, 23 October 2011
Gadaffi - In Iceland?
Gadaffi in Iceland?
Upon looking through the new sites to see what was occurring in the world, I scoured the social networks, to see if anything interesting was happening to the people I know - which almost never is. I came across a status saying ‘Gadaffi’s body in on show in a freezer In a shop”. I try to keep away from political news as much as possible, as it usually depresses, yet this I just had to research. Human curiosity, killed the cat, yeah?
It seems that this is infact a true story, much to my horror. Libyan ex-autocratic ruler, was on display in a commercial freezer as “Libyan authorities argued about what to do with his remains and questions deepened over official accounts of the long time dictators death”. (The Times of India) It seems that this delay came because fighters from Misrata (a city brutally besieged by Gadaffi’s people during the Civil War) had laid claim to his body, which ruined the scheduled plans of a burial on Friday.
So, in Misrate where the body is on show, which was allegedly an initial attempt to keep it out of the public eye, until the masses became aware of the location and so was put on display. What bother me most about this charade and I’d like to point out, I’m not defending him as a person, but no dead body should be paraded. There are families lined up to take photos with him, separated visiting hours are allowed for select people. Now, I understand the term redemption and the need for it, however I could almost see a tacky portable fair with a Ferris Wheel and five bucks for a “viewing and candy floss with the dictator”, and that thought makes me feel sick. Let him be.
Another example of this, though ever so very different is Michael Jackson. I mention him as he is still currently in the news for other reasons. His funeral is the reason I highlighted his name here. For it was not only shown on TV, it was made into a Prime Time TV show, almost like a musical, as Singin in the Rain. Hosting performances from the biggest musical acts, riveting speeches from celebrities who many may or may not have met the King of Pop before. The Golden Casket was on show for the stars on the stage, those lucky enough to be in attendance and for the whole world to view. Why? Do we really need to see where a man who most of us never had the chance to know is lying there, just because he has made some albums, that a lot of people bought. Yes, I love Michael Jackson, I would consider Bad, to be one of my favourite albums, and believed him to be a lovely man, I still don’t need to see his funeral, I wasn’t invited, so why am I being invited via my TV. Reluctantly I watched, as I was a fan. My real problem with this, apart from the fact it had me teary-eyed when I witnessed his children crying during their emotional-yet-scripted speech to all. The fact the money was being made is my problem, he was being promoted on the day we were meant to celebrate his life, it all felt a little too showbiz to me. And, I’m the first to understand the Michael lead a showbiz life, but sometimes tradition is better left unhampered.
Upon looking through the new sites to see what was occurring in the world, I scoured the social networks, to see if anything interesting was happening to the people I know - which almost never is. I came across a status saying ‘Gadaffi’s body in on show in a freezer In a shop”. I try to keep away from political news as much as possible, as it usually depresses, yet this I just had to research. Human curiosity, killed the cat, yeah?
It seems that this is infact a true story, much to my horror. Libyan ex-autocratic ruler, was on display in a commercial freezer as “Libyan authorities argued about what to do with his remains and questions deepened over official accounts of the long time dictators death”. (The Times of India) It seems that this delay came because fighters from Misrata (a city brutally besieged by Gadaffi’s people during the Civil War) had laid claim to his body, which ruined the scheduled plans of a burial on Friday.
So, in Misrate where the body is on show, which was allegedly an initial attempt to keep it out of the public eye, until the masses became aware of the location and so was put on display. What bother me most about this charade and I’d like to point out, I’m not defending him as a person, but no dead body should be paraded. There are families lined up to take photos with him, separated visiting hours are allowed for select people. Now, I understand the term redemption and the need for it, however I could almost see a tacky portable fair with a Ferris Wheel and five bucks for a “viewing and candy floss with the dictator”, and that thought makes me feel sick. Let him be.
Another example of this, though ever so very different is Michael Jackson. I mention him as he is still currently in the news for other reasons. His funeral is the reason I highlighted his name here. For it was not only shown on TV, it was made into a Prime Time TV show, almost like a musical, as Singin in the Rain. Hosting performances from the biggest musical acts, riveting speeches from celebrities who many may or may not have met the King of Pop before. The Golden Casket was on show for the stars on the stage, those lucky enough to be in attendance and for the whole world to view. Why? Do we really need to see where a man who most of us never had the chance to know is lying there, just because he has made some albums, that a lot of people bought. Yes, I love Michael Jackson, I would consider Bad, to be one of my favourite albums, and believed him to be a lovely man, I still don’t need to see his funeral, I wasn’t invited, so why am I being invited via my TV. Reluctantly I watched, as I was a fan. My real problem with this, apart from the fact it had me teary-eyed when I witnessed his children crying during their emotional-yet-scripted speech to all. The fact the money was being made is my problem, he was being promoted on the day we were meant to celebrate his life, it all felt a little too showbiz to me. And, I’m the first to understand the Michael lead a showbiz life, but sometimes tradition is better left unhampered.
Saturday, 22 October 2011
Romance - alive or just hovering?
Is romance dead? A sentiment that is asked time and time again. The act of romance is made chemically possible due to the Dopamine (a catecholamine neurotransmitter) which is thought to be the “pleasure chemical”. This means this is the one that gives you the feeling of pleasure when your attracted to someone. You can have this feeling for multiple people but there is something else which is vital to this equation.
Norepinephrine, another chemical which produces the adrenaline and excitement inside of you and is generally what makes you focus all of your efforts on one person, opposed to the variants.
I’ve undergone a tangent, but these are the reasons that certain events feel romantic, because of who it is with (which feels right due to the chemicals inside our brain), not necessarily what the action is. Therefore romance is always hovering, perhaps we’ve lost the traditionalist ways however. Though, I dismay there are still some signs of romantic happenings.
Just last week I was given a mixtape - yes, on a tape - remember those?, by my partner. He recorded it on a tape recorder himself, then customised the tape cover - writing personal notes. This is cheaper than a bouquet of flowers, cheaper than a romantic meal out, cheaper than Champagne but I dare you to find those more personal.
So, is Romance dwindling, or did that just feel romantic to me? Romance in the modern world includes relationships happening on the internet, proposals occurring on social networking sites such as twitter, or love songs sang/read allowed on platforms such as YouTube. I suppose some of these could romantic but none at intimate.
Also, the American idea for valentines day and romance, though I do enjoy the idea of it is interlinked with materialism, as it is around the world for every prestigious holiday. It seems that to give some chocolates, flowers or a card is a done thing, and if you do not do it, you portray a sense of caring less about your spouse than your friend who managed to go to Wal-Mart and purchased half-price gifts.
To me, it is hovering and the next time you wish to buy something for a loved one, buy a blank card and pour your heart onto it, or make them chocolate opposed to purchasing from a retail store. The best and most memorable presents are not infact the gift but the person that is in them.
Norepinephrine, another chemical which produces the adrenaline and excitement inside of you and is generally what makes you focus all of your efforts on one person, opposed to the variants.
I’ve undergone a tangent, but these are the reasons that certain events feel romantic, because of who it is with (which feels right due to the chemicals inside our brain), not necessarily what the action is. Therefore romance is always hovering, perhaps we’ve lost the traditionalist ways however. Though, I dismay there are still some signs of romantic happenings.
Just last week I was given a mixtape - yes, on a tape - remember those?, by my partner. He recorded it on a tape recorder himself, then customised the tape cover - writing personal notes. This is cheaper than a bouquet of flowers, cheaper than a romantic meal out, cheaper than Champagne but I dare you to find those more personal.
So, is Romance dwindling, or did that just feel romantic to me? Romance in the modern world includes relationships happening on the internet, proposals occurring on social networking sites such as twitter, or love songs sang/read allowed on platforms such as YouTube. I suppose some of these could romantic but none at intimate.
Also, the American idea for valentines day and romance, though I do enjoy the idea of it is interlinked with materialism, as it is around the world for every prestigious holiday. It seems that to give some chocolates, flowers or a card is a done thing, and if you do not do it, you portray a sense of caring less about your spouse than your friend who managed to go to Wal-Mart and purchased half-price gifts.
To me, it is hovering and the next time you wish to buy something for a loved one, buy a blank card and pour your heart onto it, or make them chocolate opposed to purchasing from a retail store. The best and most memorable presents are not infact the gift but the person that is in them.
Surveillance: are we just wasting tape?
Surveillance of the UK and USA: are we just using unnecessary tape?
It seems like every corner you turn, we are constantly being witnessed by someone, or other. Whether you’re in a supermarket, walking along the high street or wandering up your own front porch: there is a high possibility that you are being caught on camera (and not in an ironic way). Now, we’re told this is for protection, I think not.
Current news stories in the UK have been arising concerning our said privacy and how people in officials can abuse it, because of power. What a beautiful word. An undercover police officer recently spent 7 years living at the heart of the environmental protest movements where he was “playing a front-lie role in some of the most high profile confrontations” according to Rob Evans of the Guardian. The problem is he worked in authority and to support a movement which is therefore promoting a not-so-neutral view on things. The officer, Mark Kennedy, adopted a fake identity to disrupt the “UK’s peaceful movement to combat climate change”. After changing his image and gaining a fake passport, he attended the G20 protests in London among with almost every other major demonstration in the UK, where he not only became an activist but also helped to organise and fund some of the protests.
This ultimately shows just one story in a line of hundreds where peoples trust has been broken through an authority and surveillance scandal.
In the UK, this story comes at a time when hacking has been at the fore-front of the media for a while. Incase you’re not familiar with the story - ex-newspaper ‘News of the World’, were caught hacking household names, politicians, celebrities of all agendas and even some working class people, just to be able to gain an exclusive news story. Many people of authority argued the pros and cons and legalities of this until it eventually led to the editor giving a full confession and the closure of the paper.
But, is it any wonder? In America you could walk for miles and feel free, feel like the only people watching you are those you catch sight of.
Where, Britain is ‘Surveillance society’, boasting that: “Per capita there are more surveillance cameras than in any other country in the world - more than a million according to a recent estimate” (BBC News), and that article was written over ten years ago. Think about all the recent demonstrations, conflicts between government and the working people and I’m sure that number has increased considerably.
What is happening with all of these images they have of us? We aren’t the only country wondering. To be surveilled but the info unveiled. In the US Air Force, recent claims that “data collected by US government satellites and aerial surveillance platforms has increased 1500% over the last five years, but the American government’s ability to process the information has only increased by 30%” (Defence Web)
Therefore, are we really protected more or are we just using a lot more tape than before, because we can and have the power?
It seems like every corner you turn, we are constantly being witnessed by someone, or other. Whether you’re in a supermarket, walking along the high street or wandering up your own front porch: there is a high possibility that you are being caught on camera (and not in an ironic way). Now, we’re told this is for protection, I think not.
Current news stories in the UK have been arising concerning our said privacy and how people in officials can abuse it, because of power. What a beautiful word. An undercover police officer recently spent 7 years living at the heart of the environmental protest movements where he was “playing a front-lie role in some of the most high profile confrontations” according to Rob Evans of the Guardian. The problem is he worked in authority and to support a movement which is therefore promoting a not-so-neutral view on things. The officer, Mark Kennedy, adopted a fake identity to disrupt the “UK’s peaceful movement to combat climate change”. After changing his image and gaining a fake passport, he attended the G20 protests in London among with almost every other major demonstration in the UK, where he not only became an activist but also helped to organise and fund some of the protests.
This ultimately shows just one story in a line of hundreds where peoples trust has been broken through an authority and surveillance scandal.
In the UK, this story comes at a time when hacking has been at the fore-front of the media for a while. Incase you’re not familiar with the story - ex-newspaper ‘News of the World’, were caught hacking household names, politicians, celebrities of all agendas and even some working class people, just to be able to gain an exclusive news story. Many people of authority argued the pros and cons and legalities of this until it eventually led to the editor giving a full confession and the closure of the paper.
But, is it any wonder? In America you could walk for miles and feel free, feel like the only people watching you are those you catch sight of.
Where, Britain is ‘Surveillance society’, boasting that: “Per capita there are more surveillance cameras than in any other country in the world - more than a million according to a recent estimate” (BBC News), and that article was written over ten years ago. Think about all the recent demonstrations, conflicts between government and the working people and I’m sure that number has increased considerably.
What is happening with all of these images they have of us? We aren’t the only country wondering. To be surveilled but the info unveiled. In the US Air Force, recent claims that “data collected by US government satellites and aerial surveillance platforms has increased 1500% over the last five years, but the American government’s ability to process the information has only increased by 30%” (Defence Web)
Therefore, are we really protected more or are we just using a lot more tape than before, because we can and have the power?
Thursday, 20 October 2011
Should the News be Sexy?
For this piece, I am going to focus on the UK mainly for the reason that it is where the majority of my news reading/coverage takes place. I follow comedian-writers mainly such as Charlie Brooker and David Mitchell, to name but a couple. These are predominantly not the kind of writers I’m talking about with this headline, however I will indulge and see if there are any issues in their articles too.
I’ll backtrack – picture this, walking in a convenience store, tracing your feet past a rack of newspaper from; conservative to the highly commercial, right-wing to left. All are part of the corporate machine, some however are not bothered about wasting artists and writers’ integrity, it seems.
The array of awful puns for headlines such as – Match of the Pray (a play-on British Football show ‘Match of the Day’), End of an Eire after 14 years (a story that Irish group ‘Westlife’ have split up) and my favourite recent story ‘X-Factors Cocozza is up to Frankie Pankie’.
The latter referring to the sliding ratings of the show, as it has recently declined due to ‘poor talent’ according to the some news sources. So, this week to get this “talent show” more viewers and to make it even more of an entertainment show – they called for Frankie Cocozza to let loose to save the show. This news story is a story about him going to a club, drinking a few beers after an all-day rehearsal and leaving in a taxi with three ladies whom he apparently back to one of the dorms of and stayed until the next morning. Scandalous!
This is all very sexy and interesting if you want to read about a recent celebrity and what he’s doing outside of the show, which I’m sure happens with X-Factor USA – but is it really essential? Is this news?
There are currently so many news outlets, official and unofficial, that to stay competitively in the make they have to have differing news stories from the others, different twists on the same events. It is hard though to find numerous news stories every day, so stories are invented, exaggerated and twisted, including gossip to meet the deadlines.
Luckily, the papers I read are generally lacking in the celebrity news, though there are still some cases of whether news is still news or if it is all purely glamorised entertainment?
Take for example a Charlie Brooker article in the Guardian which is entitled: ‘When even Weetabix has turned evil, you know the world is in a sorry state.’ The article discusses the Celebrity Endorsements on say an Activia Yoghurt – “you think of Martine McCuthcheon and make positive connections”. Or, perhaps an article by David Mitchell in the Observer, entitled: ‘Keep your lion, Flanders – it’s a better look than a pair of slippers’, which combines a serious issue of the stereotype of Belgium, taking an issue of their official symbol, whilst questioning: “what’s their tulips-and-cannabis, corruption-and-fornication, sausages-and-genocide, paella-and-castanets equivalent?”
What I am trying to say here is that no matter the seriousness of the article or paper, they seem to be covered by entertaining tit-bits. An inappropriate joke here or there, which I’m not complaining about, it is one of the main reasons I read the Guardian.co.uk as it features the three newspapers which can be witty and comic at once. Still, next time you look at a newspaper, try and find a story that isn’t one-sided or in the shadows of an alluring image or joke, try.
I’ll backtrack – picture this, walking in a convenience store, tracing your feet past a rack of newspaper from; conservative to the highly commercial, right-wing to left. All are part of the corporate machine, some however are not bothered about wasting artists and writers’ integrity, it seems.
The array of awful puns for headlines such as – Match of the Pray (a play-on British Football show ‘Match of the Day’), End of an Eire after 14 years (a story that Irish group ‘Westlife’ have split up) and my favourite recent story ‘X-Factors Cocozza is up to Frankie Pankie’.
The latter referring to the sliding ratings of the show, as it has recently declined due to ‘poor talent’ according to the some news sources. So, this week to get this “talent show” more viewers and to make it even more of an entertainment show – they called for Frankie Cocozza to let loose to save the show. This news story is a story about him going to a club, drinking a few beers after an all-day rehearsal and leaving in a taxi with three ladies whom he apparently back to one of the dorms of and stayed until the next morning. Scandalous!
This is all very sexy and interesting if you want to read about a recent celebrity and what he’s doing outside of the show, which I’m sure happens with X-Factor USA – but is it really essential? Is this news?
There are currently so many news outlets, official and unofficial, that to stay competitively in the make they have to have differing news stories from the others, different twists on the same events. It is hard though to find numerous news stories every day, so stories are invented, exaggerated and twisted, including gossip to meet the deadlines.
Luckily, the papers I read are generally lacking in the celebrity news, though there are still some cases of whether news is still news or if it is all purely glamorised entertainment?
Take for example a Charlie Brooker article in the Guardian which is entitled: ‘When even Weetabix has turned evil, you know the world is in a sorry state.’ The article discusses the Celebrity Endorsements on say an Activia Yoghurt – “you think of Martine McCuthcheon and make positive connections”. Or, perhaps an article by David Mitchell in the Observer, entitled: ‘Keep your lion, Flanders – it’s a better look than a pair of slippers’, which combines a serious issue of the stereotype of Belgium, taking an issue of their official symbol, whilst questioning: “what’s their tulips-and-cannabis, corruption-and-fornication, sausages-and-genocide, paella-and-castanets equivalent?”
What I am trying to say here is that no matter the seriousness of the article or paper, they seem to be covered by entertaining tit-bits. An inappropriate joke here or there, which I’m not complaining about, it is one of the main reasons I read the Guardian.co.uk as it features the three newspapers which can be witty and comic at once. Still, next time you look at a newspaper, try and find a story that isn’t one-sided or in the shadows of an alluring image or joke, try.
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About Me
- Tash
- I'm not religious, I beleive in equality, karma and supernatural existence.