Nothing to do with Australia but this what I love about new media. This arrived on my desk top in my daily news digest.
Not only are we able to read it in the first place, but it’s about someone who’s famous solely for being famous, and whose dubious celebrity has been created largely by the web. The dodgy translation actually adds to the story – “long-lasting shopping” and “rough talk” with the manager – and then, just when you might be losing interest, there’s the link Paris Hilton Enlarges Her Breast – Photos.
And if you ever doubted the wisdom of calling your daughter Paris Hilton, you’ll feel fully justified when you look at the links under Google Ads on the left-hand side. Wonderful.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Only in Australia
With the country currently riveted to the TV series Underbelly, about Melbourne gangsters killing each other in restaurants all over the city – it’s based on fact – it should come as no surprise to hear that a former underworld boss, Mick Gatto, is trying to track down the assets lost by “friends and associates” in the collapse of local stockbroker Opes Prime.
Mr Gatto was charged with killing Melbourne hitman Andrew “Benji” Venjamin and walked free after pleading self-defence. He now, rather improbably, runs an industrial mediation company, according to The Australian, and has set off to find Opes Prime’s funds in Singapore and the Middle East.
“I reckon it’s over $1bn and I have a good record of tracking things down,” he said. “You can run but you can’t hide, and you can quote me on that.”
Some days, I think: “Only in Australia.”
Mr Gatto was charged with killing Melbourne hitman Andrew “Benji” Venjamin and walked free after pleading self-defence. He now, rather improbably, runs an industrial mediation company, according to The Australian, and has set off to find Opes Prime’s funds in Singapore and the Middle East.
“I reckon it’s over $1bn and I have a good record of tracking things down,” he said. “You can run but you can’t hide, and you can quote me on that.”
Some days, I think: “Only in Australia.”
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Biased or Bungled?
While the Conservatives line up to take
another pot at the BBC, the debate rumbles on about its colonial cousin, the ABC.
During the long years of John Howard’s rule, the Government’s view was that the ABC was one of the few remaining bastions of left-of-centre politics and almost everything it said or did was contaminated by the pernicious views of its staff and management. The response was to install “cultural warriors” on the board to set the broadcaster back on the path of truth.
If you did think the ABC was institutionally biased, then it seems things are getting better, though this article does point out that the ABC was prepared to give past Labor governments a shellacking as well.
What’s missing from the debate is the extent to which what’s regarded as bias is, in fact, bad or lazy journalism, or stems from a lack of resources. Biased journalism is, of course, bad journalism, but the former can often result, not from a partial view of the facts, but from the journalism not doing the job properly.
Personally, I’m far more concerned about the ABC telling us a few weeks ago that, despite the terrible economic situation in Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe “remained confident” of winning the forthcoming election. In spite of more recent events, that still seems like a crass thing to say.
another pot at the BBC, the debate rumbles on about its colonial cousin, the ABC.
During the long years of John Howard’s rule, the Government’s view was that the ABC was one of the few remaining bastions of left-of-centre politics and almost everything it said or did was contaminated by the pernicious views of its staff and management. The response was to install “cultural warriors” on the board to set the broadcaster back on the path of truth.
If you did think the ABC was institutionally biased, then it seems things are getting better, though this article does point out that the ABC was prepared to give past Labor governments a shellacking as well.
What’s missing from the debate is the extent to which what’s regarded as bias is, in fact, bad or lazy journalism, or stems from a lack of resources. Biased journalism is, of course, bad journalism, but the former can often result, not from a partial view of the facts, but from the journalism not doing the job properly.
Personally, I’m far more concerned about the ABC telling us a few weeks ago that, despite the terrible economic situation in Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe “remained confident” of winning the forthcoming election. In spite of more recent events, that still seems like a crass thing to say.
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