Keep your eyes peeled!

For my coursework I have been struggling to come up with an idea for a audio clip to put on the news site, but with a quick bus journey and some well placed advertising thanks to West Midland buses I have now come up with the following.

I am going to create an audio interview with bar staff and customers questioning them on how they will be effected by the up and coming smoking ban in bars, enforced on the 1st of July.

This will also allow for a feature on the same topic but including opinions from those already affected by the ban in Wales, which was enforced on the 1st of April, and whether the ban has had a negative effect on businesses or is a deterent from people to not go to the pub?

So keep your eyes peeled and you never know what might inspire you!

Follow this link for a full overview of the whole ban campaign in the UK.

Research Idea

My research idea for my final year dissertation is to look the following aspects of the music print industry.

I decided to look at both the institutional aspect of magazines but including what the magazines do for the readers.

Within this topic the areas to analyse include:

1. Whether readers use the magazines as a source of knowing what music is good?
2. What is the relationship between the magazines and the readers?
3. What this does for the magazine?
4. Why do the readers buy the magazine?

I believe the areas listed above allow for the following research methods:

The topic areas listed allow for a few alternative research methods including focus groups, which would analyse how the audience respond to my questions, giving results for uses and gratifications study.

This can connect to interviews in a ‘vox pop’ style and work place ethnography within magazines with interviews with editors and writers and participation observation looking at both of their opinions, views and decisions towards the content. As well as this a comparison with past and present issues of selected magazines looking at qualitative differences.

This is just a quick look, in fact incredibly brief snippet, at what I want to look at and how I plan on doing so.

The Process

It has been said that I don't record how I research into my blogs, or the general process of making them...This is no lie!

Therefore this post is to give a quick brief of the most recent posts and how they were made.

With the local elections scandal I discovered whilst mulling my way around Birmingham city centre, when I glided past a news counter selling the local newspaper 'The Birmingham Mail', I had a quick glance over the story, whilst avoiding to pay for the paper (the pennies count!) I then ventured back home to access the phenomenon known as the Internet on a mission to find out the history of the story.

After visiting many local blog sites and glancing around local official news sites and it became apparent that this occurred at last years election, which is why the story being repeated had cast so much doubt over the reliability of the local elections in Birmingham. From here i gathered the basic information from the Internet and leaflets that could be considered junk mail,but apparently when reporting on the local government who seem to be the main culprit of junk mail, became very useful in finding a general overview of the current election campaigns and the candidates.

This then allowed me to link to the election results, which I collected off of the Birmingham government website, which I have visited on numerous occasions to keep an eye on what those in power are up to and how they are spending the public's money.

The Jay Jay Pistolet review came about when Justin Hayward-Young, Jay Jay himself, a friend of mine from home, who has started to have interest in his career from the music industry bigwigs told me he was playing and invited me along to the show...but by chance i bumped into him in town earlier that day after finishing a shift selling my soul at GAP.

In my brief meeting we discussed the show and I was introduced to the other artists performing later that evening. From there it was pretty straight forward in attending the 'gig' and speaking to the artists.

I hope this little insight helps in looking at how my little mind works. All the best! Paul

Muslim Oppression Protest

This is the sign that is being posted around area's of the Perry-Aston region, including outside my house.

There is to be a protest outside 10 downing street from the Muslim community. Their motives include occupation of Muslim Countries, raids on Muslim homes and attacks on the veil through the media and their propaganda.

I want to post this here just to see what people's reactions are. please leave a comment letting me know what you think.

Local Election Results

Listed by Ward and winning candidate:

Acocks Green: Penny Anne Wagg - Lib Dem
Aston: Muhammed Afzal - Lab.
Bartley Green: John Lines - Cons.
Billesley: Colin John Hughes - Cons.
Bordesley Green: Shafique Hussain Shah - Lab.
Bournville: Tim Huxtable - Cons.
Brandwood: Mark Hill - Cons.
Edgbaston: James Hutchings - Cons.
Erdington: Gareth Francis Thomas Compton - Cons.
Hall Green: Jacqueline Anne Hawthorn - Lib Dem.
Handsworth Wood: Paulette Adassa Hamilton - Lab.
Harborne: Peter Hollingworth - Cons.
Hodge Hill: Gwyn Neilly - Lib Dem.
Kings Norton: Barbara Iris Wood - Cons.
Kingstanding: Peter Kane - Lab.
Ladywood: Albert Bore - Lab.
Longbridge: Keith Henry Barton - Cons.
Lozells and East Handsworth: Mahmood Hussain - Lab.
Moseley and Kings Heath: Emily Rohaise Cox - Lib Dem.
Nechells: Yvonne Mosquito - Lab.
Northfield: Reg Corns - Cons.
Oscott: Keith William Linnecor - Lab.
Perry Barr: Jon Hunt - Lib Dem.
Quinton: Len Clark - Cons.
Selly Oak: Robert Ian Wright - Lib Dem.
Shard End: Ian Antony Ward - Lab.
Sheldon: Paul Calvin Tilsley - Lib Dem.
Soho: Sybil Eurlena Spence - Lab.
South Yardley: David Osbourne - Lib Dem.
Sparkbrook: Mohammed Ishtiaq - Respect
Springfield: Tanveer Choudry - Lib Dem.
Stechford and Yardley North: Barbara Ann Jackson - Lib Dem.
Stockland Green: Mick Finnegan - Lab.
Sutton Four Oaks: Maureen Cornish - Cons.
Sutton New Hall: John Beadman - Cons.
Sutton Trinity: David Christopher Pears - Cons.
Sutton Vesey: Stuart James Macgregor Clarkson - Cons.
Tyburn: Mike Sharpe - Lab.
Washwood Heath: Ansar Ali Khan - Lab.
Weoley: Adrian Joseph Delaney - Cons.

So the overall verdict of elections concludes that the Conservative party won the overall majority, which was a common theme on a national scale, with the Liberal Democrats almost matching the Labour Parties figures in the West Midlands.

Birmingham Bar Academy (6/5/07): Frank Turner, Captain Black, Jay Jay Pistolet.

Last night saw Birmingham's introduction to the acoustic delights of Jay Jay Pistolet.

The New Forest originated performer, now living in London has been touring all of this month with Ex-Million Dead front man Frank Turner, a cult hero in his own right.

Jay Jay performed a mellow, but very intense acoustic act, grabbing the audiences attention with his catchy hooks and personal lyrics that give an insight to the past couple of years of his musical career in both a band and as a solo performer.

Songs such as 'This Place Is Like A Maze' and 'Holly' were immediate attention grabbing sing alongs. "Birmingham's alright innit, I was surprised to see so many people watching me" were the words from the modest Jay Jay following his performance.

Jay Jay definitely held his own well in a night full of great acts including Captain Black, another former Hampshire based, now London based, act who have gained much industry attention for their catchy country/pop rock which sounds a bit like The Levellers - but cooler!

Not forgetting the phenomenal Frank Turner, who had a massive cult following and has been drawing enormous crowds since his Million Dead days. With his punk rock roots combined with the more traditional acoustic influence Frank definitely knows how to write a catchy tune - even political ones like 'Thatcher Fucked The Kids', and does moan about Blair, like a certain Mr Ashcroft loves to do!

All 3 acts are performing nationwide throughout the next couple of months, check the links for tour dates.

Cheating Politicians... who'd have guessed?

Labour activists in Birmingham have been accused of 'dirty tricks', following the recent arrests of 2 Lib Democrats in the latest postal vote fraud inquiry with the elections polls taking place later today.

Labour have dismissed the claims as 'outrageous' and have claimed to surprised by the arrests. But the ugly problem has reared its head once again just as the voting polls are being prepared for the elections later today.

In addition to this, the tightening of regulations towards the voting in the 6 wards of Birmingham has seen 20,000 people eliminated from voting, increasing speculation that the voting scandals were further widespread than previously predicted.