'Sweet Pea', is a video documenting the introduction of a female sea horse into a sea horse marine tank. The video starts off quite educational, then turns into a music video. The music doesn't synch up in any significant way, but suits the footage well.
The educational beginning of the video is narrated by the video's poster, and sounds a little wooden. However, the tone of voice he uses when he gives information and the tone of voice he uses when he relates personal stories seems to be the same, so either he's written all material in advance, or that's just his manner of speaking. I'd compare it to David Attenborough's 'Blue Planet', minus the budget.
The video seemed well received by YouTube users, the negative comments only really being directed at the narrator's delivery of information and at the sequence showing a male sea horse giving birth (some viewers thought it disgusting).
Monday, February 19, 2007
Review of 'YouTubers'
'YouTubers' is a compilation video of various YouTube users videos. I think it's trying to give a background on YouTube users and show what an extensive range of people they are. In honesty, I don't know how to review it. It made me feel sad. The music was very delicate and depressing. The videos themselves showed people either ranting at others, or explaining why they used YouTube (the main reason being they lacked confidence to talk to people face to face). The clips that didn't fall into the above categories were miscellaneous activities, or people filming their children or friends, or 'humourous' activities. The clips of people teaching their children and spending time with them I thought were sweet, the other clips just made me feel sad, especially the youth pretending (?) to try to cut his wrists and being unable to bring himself to do it.
Analysis of Shiny Media's 'Heckler Spray'
Heckler Spray is a blog focused almost entirely on gossip. Their gossip is celebrity based, with almost every post featuring at least one high profile celebrity in the title. The posts feature mostly celebrity news, though the writer also contributes a little personal opinion. When Heckler Spray isn't featuring posts based on celebrity gossip, it also features film reviews, tv reviews, betting, and rants.
The posts on Heckler Spray are usually between 400 and 600 words, and are written conversationally, so that the reader feels as though they are being directly addressed. Most of the posts aren't commented on, and when they are, the comments are usually fairly short, reader's opinion of the news featured.
To interact with Heckler Spray, readers can post comments on pieces they read, or email the site directly.
The posts on Heckler Spray are usually between 400 and 600 words, and are written conversationally, so that the reader feels as though they are being directly addressed. Most of the posts aren't commented on, and when they are, the comments are usually fairly short, reader's opinion of the news featured.
To interact with Heckler Spray, readers can post comments on pieces they read, or email the site directly.
Analysis of Shiny Media
Shiny Media is web based publishing company that started in 2003. They publish online blogs aimed at niche markets. These blogs tend to be aimed at women and are slanted towards stereotypically feminine products (women's clothing, bridal wear, 'pink' gadgets, etc.), though also feature technology, and online rants.
Shiny Media publish blogs to earn money through selling advertising space, though they can also be hired to design corporate blogs. By blogging, they also get the opportunity to showcase their writing talents to media agencies. For example, one of the review bloggers work was seen by the BBC and she was offered a TV slot.
Shiny Media will try to identify niche markets and publish blogs aimed at them. These can either be the result of a group discussion, or can be an individual's idea. For example, their Catwalk Queen website was Gemma Cartwright's idea. Gemma Cartwright, Simon Munk, Ashley Norris, Katie Lee, Star C. Foster, Katherine Hannaford, and Chris Price are Shiny Media's journalists.
Shiny Media's journalists can be contacted through email to the Shiny Media's site, or through comments posted on their blogs. Most of the blogs have 2-4 contributors, and the most successful blogs seem to be their gossip blog, Heckler Spray, Tech Digest, and Shiny Shiny, which received 'complimentary' press from high profile media sources.
Shiny Media publish blogs to earn money through selling advertising space, though they can also be hired to design corporate blogs. By blogging, they also get the opportunity to showcase their writing talents to media agencies. For example, one of the review bloggers work was seen by the BBC and she was offered a TV slot.
Shiny Media will try to identify niche markets and publish blogs aimed at them. These can either be the result of a group discussion, or can be an individual's idea. For example, their Catwalk Queen website was Gemma Cartwright's idea. Gemma Cartwright, Simon Munk, Ashley Norris, Katie Lee, Star C. Foster, Katherine Hannaford, and Chris Price are Shiny Media's journalists.
Shiny Media's journalists can be contacted through email to the Shiny Media's site, or through comments posted on their blogs. Most of the blogs have 2-4 contributors, and the most successful blogs seem to be their gossip blog, Heckler Spray, Tech Digest, and Shiny Shiny, which received 'complimentary' press from high profile media sources.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Getting on in the Service Industry
When dining out, as a standard, I tip 10%. By UK standards, this is acceptable. This is not to say that I'll tip 10% regardless of how good the service was. If the service was awful I will tip less. I very rarely leave nothing, and have only walked out without paying a bill once (in Cambodia, where I waited 30 minutes for a drink, and 2 hours for a steak that was undercooked. I might add this was in a quiet hotel, not a busy restaurant). However, most of the time, I will tip a little even if the food takes a long time. My reasoning behind this is that the chef probably took ages, and that's hardly the waiter's fault. Even if the prices are excessive, the waiter hasn't set them, he merely delivers the bill. Only if the waiter gives me atrocious service, will I pay the bill and leave nothing for him. I thought everyone acted to this principal.
Then I got a job working as a barman in a hotel.
I have had weeks at a time, where I have received absolutely nothing in tips. You could argue that my service is bad, and I just don't realise it. It would have to be seriously bad though, and that wouldn't explain why I have had guests compliment me so profusely on my professionalism. On other days, I have been the only serving staff on shift, and a wedding reception of 30 people have shown up unexpectedly. On such an occasion, I had one table of 7 people complain to me about how slow my service was, told me I should be ashamed, and then left without paying. At the same time, I had another table complimenting me, telling me they could see how hard I was working and was coping very well with an exceptional situation. Actually, it was a group headed by a somewhat boisterous Scotsman, so what he actually said was "I couldn't do your job, Christ, I'da punched that p***k in the face! Does he not realise he's not the only one in the bar? You're doin fine work." He went on to tip me £10 for a pint of Carling.
Sadly though, I have come to make some generalisations. The first is that English people do not tip, or if they do, it's around 1%. I have had far fewer tips from English people than from any other nationality guest. It is a very rare occasion when I receive a decent tip from an English guest. It would seem the only English people who tip on a regular basis are myself, and my dad, who I learnt this behaviour from.
European guests tip in trickles. It's not 10%, but it's usually around 4%, and is fairly constant. This is excluding the Irish guests. Somewhat bizarrely, I have yet to be tipped badly by an Irish guest. Bizarre, purely based on the law of averages. I should have received a bad tip from an Irish guest by now.
Americans though, take the trophy for best tippers. I once got told that in America the minimum wage is so low, waiters live off their tips. This may help to explain why most of the American guests I serve tip around 20%. This may have something to do with the cost of living in America, in terms of taxes alone. Every American I have told is appalled at the level of VAT (Value Added Tax) that we pay on all goods purchased in England. It is 17.5%
I remember reading an article, I think it was in 'The Guardian', about a study carried out which showed service staff were more offended when they got a bad tip, than when they got no tip at all. I'm not sure why, but this is true. I also remember listening to my brother, when overhearing someone yell at a waiter in a restaurant, telling me that anyone on that table eating something that came out of the kitchen afterwards was an idiot. I'm proud to say I have yet to spit on some one's food, no matter how rude they were to me, and I don't intend to. However, based on my uniqueness in tipping, I may be the only one not to.
Then I got a job working as a barman in a hotel.
I have had weeks at a time, where I have received absolutely nothing in tips. You could argue that my service is bad, and I just don't realise it. It would have to be seriously bad though, and that wouldn't explain why I have had guests compliment me so profusely on my professionalism. On other days, I have been the only serving staff on shift, and a wedding reception of 30 people have shown up unexpectedly. On such an occasion, I had one table of 7 people complain to me about how slow my service was, told me I should be ashamed, and then left without paying. At the same time, I had another table complimenting me, telling me they could see how hard I was working and was coping very well with an exceptional situation. Actually, it was a group headed by a somewhat boisterous Scotsman, so what he actually said was "I couldn't do your job, Christ, I'da punched that p***k in the face! Does he not realise he's not the only one in the bar? You're doin fine work." He went on to tip me £10 for a pint of Carling.
Sadly though, I have come to make some generalisations. The first is that English people do not tip, or if they do, it's around 1%. I have had far fewer tips from English people than from any other nationality guest. It is a very rare occasion when I receive a decent tip from an English guest. It would seem the only English people who tip on a regular basis are myself, and my dad, who I learnt this behaviour from.
European guests tip in trickles. It's not 10%, but it's usually around 4%, and is fairly constant. This is excluding the Irish guests. Somewhat bizarrely, I have yet to be tipped badly by an Irish guest. Bizarre, purely based on the law of averages. I should have received a bad tip from an Irish guest by now.
Americans though, take the trophy for best tippers. I once got told that in America the minimum wage is so low, waiters live off their tips. This may help to explain why most of the American guests I serve tip around 20%. This may have something to do with the cost of living in America, in terms of taxes alone. Every American I have told is appalled at the level of VAT (Value Added Tax) that we pay on all goods purchased in England. It is 17.5%
I remember reading an article, I think it was in 'The Guardian', about a study carried out which showed service staff were more offended when they got a bad tip, than when they got no tip at all. I'm not sure why, but this is true. I also remember listening to my brother, when overhearing someone yell at a waiter in a restaurant, telling me that anyone on that table eating something that came out of the kitchen afterwards was an idiot. I'm proud to say I have yet to spit on some one's food, no matter how rude they were to me, and I don't intend to. However, based on my uniqueness in tipping, I may be the only one not to.
Sunday, February 4, 2007
Personal Thoughts on 'Baghdad Burning'
Having viewed other 'professional' blogs, I find Baghdad Burning to be one of the more impressive. The author of Baghdad Burning writes with exceptional English, in terms of both range of vocabulary used, and also the accuracy of her spelling and punctuation. From a less analytical point of view, she also writes very passionately. When reading her entries, you get a sense of what she's going through, and a slight insight into what life for her is like.
Compared to Where is Raed?, you find a regular document of her opinions and thoughts on daily life in Iraq. Salem Pax provides this to an extent with his entries for Where is Raed?, but whilst he includes in detail his experiences, it is harder to determine his opinion.
I can't help but question the validity/reliability of Baghdad Burning though. A post which exemplifies this perfectly, is 'Sunday, December 31, 2006: A lynching...'. In this post, the author comments, and casts her opinion on, the hanging of Saddam Hussein. The opinion I find fascinating to read. Writing from a western perspective, primarily, I do not understand the traditions and religious emphasis which thankfully is elaborated on and explained by the author. Secondly, living in the west, I have no comprehension for what these people have been through, so to read her reflections on both the past and the present with reference to the history and the religious undertone is enlightening.
However, my question regarding the reliability of Baghdad Burning comes through her criticism of the western media's coverage of Saddam's hanging. She claims that both CNN and the BBC are misrepresenting the actual events. I think her statements are intriguing, and well worth looking into as they could in fact be the actual accounts, but I cannot help but doubt her as well. I think this is a problem with almost all personal blogs though. Whilst you can build a sense of trust with the reader through your posts, I think it may be impossible to be fully trusted. That said, I don't trust all 'reputable' media sources either...
It is said that to meet their deadlines, the western media reporters had to file their stories before the hanging had even taken place. How can I trust one source over the other. One has a reputation behind it, but one was actually written AFTER the event had taken place. Granted, the western media then followed up with more reports, but in the rush to break a story in time, maybe the truth is lost. What trust can you place in that?
Compared to Where is Raed?, you find a regular document of her opinions and thoughts on daily life in Iraq. Salem Pax provides this to an extent with his entries for Where is Raed?, but whilst he includes in detail his experiences, it is harder to determine his opinion.
I can't help but question the validity/reliability of Baghdad Burning though. A post which exemplifies this perfectly, is 'Sunday, December 31, 2006: A lynching...'. In this post, the author comments, and casts her opinion on, the hanging of Saddam Hussein. The opinion I find fascinating to read. Writing from a western perspective, primarily, I do not understand the traditions and religious emphasis which thankfully is elaborated on and explained by the author. Secondly, living in the west, I have no comprehension for what these people have been through, so to read her reflections on both the past and the present with reference to the history and the religious undertone is enlightening.
However, my question regarding the reliability of Baghdad Burning comes through her criticism of the western media's coverage of Saddam's hanging. She claims that both CNN and the BBC are misrepresenting the actual events. I think her statements are intriguing, and well worth looking into as they could in fact be the actual accounts, but I cannot help but doubt her as well. I think this is a problem with almost all personal blogs though. Whilst you can build a sense of trust with the reader through your posts, I think it may be impossible to be fully trusted. That said, I don't trust all 'reputable' media sources either...
It is said that to meet their deadlines, the western media reporters had to file their stories before the hanging had even taken place. How can I trust one source over the other. One has a reputation behind it, but one was actually written AFTER the event had taken place. Granted, the western media then followed up with more reports, but in the rush to break a story in time, maybe the truth is lost. What trust can you place in that?
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