British media

One of the things that I am starting to get annoyed with living in the UK is the British media and how they operate. I’ve mentioned in a past blog post how the some of the news programs relay heavily on computer generation and large plasma screens behind the presenters (or “newcasters” as we would call them back home) to make them seam they are closer connected with the footage behind them. Sometimes the newscasts are partially based from locations of breaking news. This I don’t mind so much. It makes it look that they are more involved with the story, but it does feel a little artificial all the same. In the morning news, I often hear that the government is expected to make a particular statement to the press later that day. If it was “the Labour Party is expected to make a statement on the new education bill”, I’d be ok with it. However, the morning reports are much more specific saying “the Labour Party is expected to report the new education bill will come into effect on the 2nd of September of 2006”. It appears the media has informers on the inside to give them the scoop before the press statement can be given. If they know exactly what is going to be said because they have a mole in the inside, what is the use for press statements anyway? It really steals thunder from the press statement.
The reporters are getting quite rude, too. For example, during the Melbourne Commonwealth games, one of the English athletes of only 23 years old came shy of winning a medal. A reporter talked with him within minutes of his run. Apparently the athlete was expected to win gold, but came in fourth instead. The reporter asked him when will the country finally be able to see the results that are expected of him and why he was underachieving. Isn’t that kicking someone when he’s down? He was obviously very put off by the question. He said he was still young and improving and walked off in a huff, with good reason.
Also, I think that the noisiness of the paparazzi on the royal family is spilling into mainstream media. I’m used to seeing reporters, and cameras being present in large numbers when they are following someone entering or exiting a major trail. But they need to know when to keep their space, too. For example, there is quite a bit of coverage about the return of Norman Kember, a Christian Peacemaker Teams Activist who has been freed after 130+ days of captivity in Iraq. On the day he returned, they hounded him since his plane touched down, camping outside of his house while he was trying to get some quality time with his family. One of the reporters took note of the frenzy, saying that until the questions of the reporters are answered by Mr. Kember to the reporters’ satisfaction, he will be a prisoner of his own home. This guy has gone through a lot of tribulation in the hands of hostile people. Don’t you think people at home could give him a break, holding his emotional needs in higher priority than the need to be the network with the latest news on his experiences?
Anyway, I'll get off my soap box now. This last week has not been as too bad. There was a country-wide strike on Tuesday by some of support workers over pension. There were about a dozen schools in Essex closed die to this - our school being one of them. Students kept on asking why I was going on strike, and I had to explain to them that I wasn't striking, but support staff were on an issue that has nothing to do with the school. Anyway, end result was the teachers still had to go to school and do professional development while the students had an extra day off, many of them coming back more stroppy than on Monday. Oh well. It's Easter holiday now. Two weeks off, time to "recharge" while needing to catch up with marking, lesson planning and phoning parents. Ah, the life of the teacher. ;)
Shalom
Kevin