The Oxfam scandal has dominated this week’s front pages with backlash from donors, corporate sponsors and ambassadors. Can the beleaguered charity recover from this reputational damage? What impact will these revelations have on the aid sector?
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has lifted its ban on travel to Tunisia and sun-seeking Brits have been booking holidays. With prices very low compared with other Mediterranean destinations, is Tunisia set to become 2018’s go-to package destination?
The Chinese New Year begins on Friday 16th of February. It comes with a host of superstitions that will apparently dictate how the next twelve months will be for each of us. For a lucky year, play it safe and avoid medicine, laundry and crying children. But just what does being born in the Year of the Dog mean?
New portraits of Barack and Michelle Obama, painted by Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald, were unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC. The internet responded enthusiastically, turning the paintings into a series of memes. Have these portraits captured the essence of the Obamas?
The huge squad of North Korean cheerleaders at the Winter Olympics have caught the world’s media attention, with speculation about everything from their use of masks during a routine to the strict supervision of their minders. Is their presence part of a charm and peace offensive? If so, is it working?
EasyHotel has a special Valentine’s Day offer for the romantically inclined. For £5, couples can hire a pink and orange four-poster canopy to self-assemble in their room. Also included is a litre bottle of Fanta and a Terry’s Chocolate Orange. Is orange the new colour of love?
Elon Musk launched the Falcon Heavy, the most powerful rocket in use today, and its payload was a red Tesla sports car with a mannequin in the driver seat. These new reusable rockets could reignite the space race. But will today's podcast listeners ever get to go to Mars?
Theresa May has announced a review into the future of newspapers, with the PM warning that the closure of hundreds of titles was a “danger to our democracy”. Can local papers be saved? Or has the way we consume news fundamentally changed?
It has been 100 years since married women over the age of 30 got the vote, and there are a slew of events going on to commemorate the anniversary. Should the suffragettes be pardoned? Or is the continued fight for gender equality what really matters?
Feeling romantic? Poundland has a bargain Valentine’s day offer, a meal for two for £2. Is this evidence that love is cheap? Or a clever stunt that has captured headlines and our hearts?
The owner of the Daily Mirror is to buy the titles behind the Express. What will this mean for the editorial direction of the two very different titles? What impact will this merger have on the UK media landscape?
According to the CEO of PepsiCo, when eating crisps women don’t like to crunch loudly or lick their fingers. Her solution is Doritos for women, a suggestion that was met with widespread derision. Are women self-conscious about crunching? Would you buy lady crisps?
Celebrity baker Paul Hollywood was among many high-profile individuals revealed by a New York Times investigation as having bought Twitter followers. Just how widespread is the shady practice of paying for followers? Can we trust that anyone’s social media reach is genuine when it is seemingly so easy and cheap to boost follower numbers?
The UK’s mass surveillance programme was ruled unlawful by the Court of Appeal. The Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act 2014 widely known as the Snooper’s Charter was deemed to lack adequate safeguards around accessing personal data. Just who has access to our data and what are they doing with it?
The decision by the Professional Darts Corporation to end the practice of having scantily clad women accompany darts players to the stage has had a mixed response. Is this the long overdue end of an intrinsically misogynistic practice? Or political correctness gone mad?
Facebook has announced it will emphasise more local stories in your newsfeed. This is the latest in a series of changes to the social media platform. Will prioritising local news help us all to feel more connected to our communities? Or are we about to inundated with stories of aggressive seagulls and cats stuck up trees?
Young people prefer to talk to people they don’t know via social media rather than face-to-face according to new research from Cancer UK. Have young people forgotten how to speak to strangers? Should we all make a greater effort to get to know our neighbours?
Black cats are languishing in animal shelters across the UK because they don’t photograph well and we all want the purrrfect Instagrammable pet. Is the answer as some suggest, to neuter young black cats before they get any big ideas? Meow?
Amazon Go is a pioneering new shop with – it claims- no queues either. The experience is novel, with customers reporting that they felt as if they were shoplifting. A few journalists even tried to sneak things out to see if it was possible to outwit the myriad of cameras and sensors. Is this how we will all shop in the future? Or a stunt that is unlikely to ever be replicated in a supermarket near you?
Downing Street has announced the creation of a new national security unit tasked with combating disinformation by state actors and others. Can this new unit restore our faith in what we view online? Or is the power of clickbait too potent to be tackled by one country alone?
Restaurants, coffee shops and supermarkets have all pledged to reduce plastic packaging. Can this movement bring about a real change? Is it possible to undo the damage caused by our previously cavalier attitude to plastics?
Facebook has invented a new unit of time the ‘flick’. Just slightly longer than a nanosecond, the ‘flick’ is designed to help measure individual frame duration for video frame rates. Will flicks make VR so real we won’t be able to tell it’s a simulation?
Cadbury is giving away 10,000 bars of Dairy Milk. The stunt ties in with its latest advert, which featured a little girl exchanging the contents of her pocket to buy her mum a chocolate bar, and is melting viewer’s hearts. Is this offer too good to be true? What old tat would you exchange for a free chocolate?
The first Super Blood Blue Moon for 150 years will appear in our skies on January 31st. A supermoon appears 14 per cent larger and about 30 per cent brighter than usual, as the moon is in the point of its orbit when it’s at its closest to Earth. Will you be dusting off your telescope? Or dropping to all fours and howling uncontrollably?
Facebook has announced changes to its news feed: users will now see more posts from friends and family and less content from businesses. Mark Zuckerberg has said he is trying to make sure its services are not only fun to use, but also good for people’s wellbeing. Will these changes help put the ‘social’ back in social media? How will they affect the brands and publishers that rely on Facebook to reach their audiences?
Virgin Trains has backtracked on its plans to stop selling the Daily Mail on its West Coast services. The rail operator had previously said the views of the paper were not compatible with its brand and beliefs, therefore it would no longer stock it. But it was quickly compelled to reverse the decision after it was met with widespread criticism and accusations of censorship. Was the attempted ban a bid to influence passengers’ freedom of choice? Was the resulting negative coverage a PR disaster for both Virgin Trains, and Richard Branson?
Construction giant, Carillion has collapsed. Ministers faced tough questions after it was revealed that the company was granted more than £1billion in contracts even after issuing profit warnings last year. Who knew what when, and why were those contracts awarded to a business that was known to be struggling? Who will pick up the tab now that Carillion has entered compulsory liquidation?
Airbnb has a new feature called Pay Less Up Front, which will let users stagger payments. No longer will guests be required to settle the whole bill upfront when making a booking. Airbnb hopes that the change will appeal to both guests and hosts. Will this new feature encourage more people to find accommodation through Airbnb, or is the idea of splitting big-ticket purchases hardly novel?
Blue Monday is supposedly the most depressing day of the year. Because the weather is awful, its ages until your next holiday and after all the festive indulgence you are in debt and overweight. The idea was first conceived by a PR company and it is now an annual event. But is the third Monday in January really the most depressing day, or is it just a clever ploy to get us thinking about booking a holiday?
Black has overtaken white as the most popular car colour choice in the UK for the first time in five years. Is it because most of us want to be safe and secure and black is a colour people feel they can hide behind? Or is it simply that no one has time to wash their car and black is best for hiding the grime?
The 75th Golden Globe ceremony was one of the most political of all time, with many actresses dressed in black in support of the Time's Up movement. Oprah Winfrey’s powerful and moving acceptance speech for the Cecil B. DeMille Award had many speculating she could be the next US president. Would she win by a landslide? Or is the suggestion that Oprah throws her hat in the ring a distraction that the Democratic party don’t need?
The children’s commissioner for England has said that children are 'ill-equipped to cope' with the stress of social media and that many eleven-year-olds are feeling under pressure to be constantly connected online. Are we failing to prepare pupils for the emotional challenges of social media, or are kids who have grown up in an online age more social media savvy than those of us born in an analog world?
Carrie Gracie, the former BBC China editor made the news this week when she resigned over pay equality. She refused a £45,000 rise as it still left a “big gap between her and male counterparts”. The BBC’s reporting was complicated by the fact that Ms Gracie was co-presenting Radio 4’s Today programme when the story broke. Was the result, as the Mail Online claimed, a “soggy morass of self-righteousness over impartiality rules”? Or were the presenters simply doing their best to navigate the challenges of the BBC impartiality rules?
Toby Young has resigned from the new board of a university regulator, just eight days after his appointment. Mr Young’s selection had been met with a fierce backlash over a number of highly controversial comments he had made as a journalist. Was his decision to quit an embarrassment to Theresa May who had recently backed his appointment? Will this cautionary tale make us all more mindful of the views we post on social media?
Veganuary is hugely popular: it is estimated that more than 50,000 people will be attempting to give up all animal products for the first month of the year. Restaurants, coffee shops and supermarkets have responded enthusiastically with new vegan offerings. Is this food trend here to stay? Or are the limitations of this diet just too stringent for all but the most dedicated of followers?
Pinterest has shared its round-up of 2018 top travel trends, predicting we will be saddling up our camels for desert escapes, compiling travel journals and getting on board with river cruises. Has the social media site tapped into our actual travel plans? Or just caught glimpsed our collective travel dreams?
Michael Wolff’s new book, ‘Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House’ has put the cat amongst the pigeons. Trump is insistent that the book, which makes a series of damaging allegations about his administration, is "full of lies". Was the Trump team shocked and horrified by his election win? Did Melania cry tears of sadness on election night? One thing is for sure, this book is going to cause a furore.
Winter is always the busiest time for the NHS, but this January the situation has been exceptionally testing. Hospitals in England have been told to cancel all non-urgent operations and in-patient treatments until at least the end of January. How will our septuagenarian health service continue to cope with modern day demands?
YouTube star Logan Paul found himself in hot water this week after uploading a controversial video that showed him laughing next to the corpse of a man who died by suicide. Was Logan’s subsequent apology sincere or as some have claimed self-praising? Will the sizeable online backlash effect the fortunes of the influential vlogger?
There have been several stories about banned adverts lately: Iceland for claims about its crumpets; eHarmony for saying its dating service was scientifically proven; Transform cosmetic surgery for exploiting new mums' body insecurities and finally Captain Morgan’s snapchat advert over fears it would appeal to children. Is this flurry of bans just a coincidence, or a calculated show of strength by the ASA?
2017 saw the biggest rise in UK music sales for two decades. UK consumers streamed 1,036 songs each and bought the equivalent of more than 135m albums across all formats. Is this the dawn of a new golden age for UK music? Or did we all simply have Ed Sheeran on repeat for the past 12 months?
According to a YouGov poll, 3.1 million Brits will be attempting dry January this year. Naturally many will fail. But is getting on the bandwagon for a month a brilliant idea that will save you money, help you lose weight and improve your state of mind? Or, as the Sun argues, is it a dubious move that could lead to an almighty booze binge in February?
Damian Green was sacked from the Cabinet following misleading claims about what he knew about porn found on his computer. As the expression says ‘you can’t put fingers on a keyboard’, so we will never know for sure who was using the laptop when the offending material was accessed. But, for breaking the ministerial code, Green is out. Will his departure unbalance May’s Cabinet? How will the loss of Green’s pro-European voice affect Brexit?
It’s official: Uber is a taxi company and not an ‘information society service’ as the company had claimed. The ruling from the European Court of Justice could have wide-reaching implications for the gig economy. Will this new status drive significant change? Or will this categorisation fail to cause a noticeable shift in direction for Uber?
The stats are in and it’s true, as a nation we are Christmas obsessed. New data from Google has revealed that people in Britain make more Christmas searches than anywhere else in the world. Is our overwhelming passion for the festive season a reaction to all the negative news stories this year? Or are we simply crackers for Christmas?
Twitter has suspended the accounts of Paul Golding and Jayda Fransen, the leader and deputy leader of far-right group Britain First. Twitter is enforcing new rules which target abuse, hateful conduct and threats of physical harm. Will Golding and Fransen supporters follow them to fringe social media site ‘Gab’? Following the ‘purge’, will Twitter be a better, safer place?
Augmented reality is the next big thing if we can just figure out what that thing is. The technology, which lets users view the real world overlaid with computer-generated imagery and information has the potential to change how we drive, shop, work, learn and play. Which brand will be the first to make its use mainstream? Will 2018 be the year we use AR every day?
Rochdale council has ditched a proposed swearing ban after Manchester police warned it was unenforceable. The local authority was looking at ways to cut down on antisocial behaviour. Did these proposed bylaws breach the European Convention on Human Rights? Or was it just a lot of hot air?
The Advertising Standards Authority will introduce new regulations to tackle outdated gender stereotyping in adverts. No more harried mothers doing it all, or hapless dads who don’t have a clue about the most basic domestic tasks. Is this, as actress Nanette Newman claims, ridiculously over the top? Or timely legislation that will stop adverts from reinforcing harmful stereotypes that limit choices and aspirations?
Shazam, the app that lets users identify songs, movies, TV shows and commercials, has been bought for a rumoured $400m; one of Apple's most expensive takeovers to date. Will Apple suffer buyer’s remorse? Or is this new business duet destined to make beautiful music?
US Ambassador Woody Johnson has told the Today programme he expects Donald Trump to visit the UK early in the new year. According to Woody, the much-publicised Twitter spat between Trump and May was but a misunderstanding. Will Trump grace our shores with his presence early in the new year? If he does, what kind of reception could the US President expect when popping over for tea?
Walt Disney has bought the bulk of 21st Century Fox entertainment assets for $52.4bn, in a deal that is set to reshape Hollywood. What will the ramifications of this mega media merger be for employees and the wider industry? And the question on every fan’s lips - what does this mean for the Marvel cinematic universe?
Uber has had its preliminary hearing at Westminster Magistrates Court regarding its London licence, with the first appeal scheduled to begin in April or June next year. But Mayor Sadiq Khan has warned that the case could go on for years. Is this court case an ominous rattle in Uber’s corporate engine? Or did the media fuel unwarranted hysteria about Transport for London’s ruling?
Beloved cartoon character Peppa Pig made headlines for all the wrong reasons this week when she was accused by a GP of fostering unrealistic expectations about family doctors. Is Peppa Pig telling porkies and encouraging parents to consult their GPs about minor ailments? Or are adult viewers savvy enough to recognise that the actions of the animated animals are just child-friendly fiction?
The first electric black taxis have hit London's roads as part of plans to improve air quality. They are kitted out with a host of bells and whistles, including a sunroof, contactless payment, Wifi and USB charging. But will the price tag of £55,000 deter cabbies from making the upgrade? And critically, will they make a real difference to London’s pollution?
The East of England Co-op is the first big retailer to sell food past its “best before” date, in a move to try and reduce food waste, using the slogan ‘Don’t be a binner, have it for dinner’. Will savvy shoppers be tempted by the bargain price of 10p, or will this prove to be an unpalatable offer?
In the final episode of the hugely successful Blue Planet 2, Sir David Attenborough warned that the world’s oceans are turning into a ‘toxic soup’ of industrial waste and plastic. Can his impassioned plea change behaviour, or is too late to undo the damage humans have done?
It has been announced that House of Cards will re-enter production in 2018 with Robin Wright as the new lead. The future of the show had been unclear after Kevin Spacey was fired following allegations of sexual misconduct. Will viewers embrace the change of protagonist? Will this herald wider changes in Hollywood that sees women get more leading roles and screen time?
Research by Dropbox and The School of Life found workers secretly believe a third of their colleagues are rubbish at their jobs. What’s more, almost a quarter of those polled (23 per cent) complained their workmates were 'lazy'. Is a third of the population awful at their jobs, or are we a nation of complainers who love to moan?
A number of announcements have dripped out of this week’s news agenda following last week’s Budget and the OBR’s dismal forecast for the economy.
On Tuesday, the OECD released its Economic Outlook for 2019. It was not pretty for the UK—downgrading the 2017 growth forecast for UK to 1.5%, making it the weakest economy in G7.
As we’d expect, The Guardian focuses on Brexit as the leading cause, with its headline: UK missing out on rising global growth because of Brexit.
But even the Mail quotes Brexit uncertainty as a driving force of the pessimism. All told, the mainstream media seems to be breaking ties with its scepticism of ‘so-called experts’.
Also on Tuesday, the Bank of England released the results of its ‘stress test’ Stability Report on banks, to see if they could cope with the ‘worst possible Brexit’.
This is where it gets a bit more partisan.
The Express gleefully reports that UK banks WILL prop up British economy if there's a Hard Brexit, insists Bank of England.
The Telegraph confirms its long-held theory that UK banks would deem Brexit-proof in Bank of England stress tests. But it concludes: “I wouldn't get the party poppers out at Canary Wharf just yet.”
You might think that was it for a dreary Tuesday in November. Alas… not one day prior, the Government had released a white paper for industrial strategy.
This is where the media gets its daggers drawn. That’s because it hints at a debate that goes right to the heart of modern politics: how much the state should interfere with the market.
The FT welcomes the paper, although merrily points out that Europhile and Tory Grandee has suggested that a much better way of improving growth would be to ‘stop Brexit’.
But it’s the Mail which is positively furious about the lack of oomph behind the paper writing that “when it comes to the real world of business, the Government’s new Industrial Strategy has more holes than a colander.”
There’s been a lot of press around Taylor Swift of late—she isn’t exactly backwards in coming forwards when it comes to launching an album. These have ranged from Buzzfeed staff searching for ‘easter eggs’ in her videos, to all the music editor reviews, to the New York Times gushing with praise as she brought Jimmy Kimmel to tears with her song New Year’s Eve in his first show after his mother passed away.
But perhaps there’s a deeper story afoot. The Verge writes cuttingly that Swift is the “modern celebrity we all deserve,” and that it “takes a real weirdo to write a song like Look What You Made Me Do; a real compelling anti-heroine to make spite the driving force of her entire life”
And this week, the Guardian’s editorial asks if she is an envoy for President Trump’s values, noting that her silence is striking, highlighting the parallels between the singer and the president: their adept use of social media to foster a diehard support base; their solipsism; their laser focus on the bottom line; their support among the “alt-right”.
YouTube under siege
A landmark deal in British media was finally cemented on the 22nd as rival publishers Telegraph Media Group, Guardian News and Media and News UK banded together to combat the ‘duopoly’ of online video advertising held by Google and Facebook. The Verified Marketplace is “designed to attract advertisers seeking large audiences and to ensure their brands do not appear alongside inappropriate material, as well as assurance their money is not wasted.”
Coincidentally, the announcement came only a few days after an investigation by The Times revealed that big brands were being marketed on YouTube videos attractive to paedophiles.
Adidas, Mars and Diageo withdrew campaigns from the platform immediately and ISBA called an urgent meeting with Google executives to demand more proactive policing of its video platform, lest the lost advertising revenue would not be readily replenished.
Markle’s Sparkle
And, to sweeten the deal, we’ve got a Royal wedding to look forward to with Prince Harry proposing to actor Meghan Markle.
Clarence House shared the news on Monday via Twitter and there was a photo-call at Kensington Palace Gardens.
The couple were also interviewed by BBC journalist MishaI Husain. It was broadcast at 6pm on the BBC News, then shown in full on The One Show. Kate and William were interviewed by ITV's Tom Bradby.
The Mail Online noted that Argos carries a very similar engagement ring—on special for £32.99.
The wedding will take place at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, in May, Kensington Palace says. We won’t get a day off. :-(
With special guests Amelia Ayres and Dave Horner from Diagonal View
After much anticipation, the John Lewis Christmas advert has finally been unveiled, starring Moz the Monster. But the creative offering, from award-winning film director Michel Gondry, has had a mixed response. Is it a touching tale of one little boy’s vivid imagination and the impact the right Christmas gift can have, or is it a confusing and decidedly un-festive offering?
Tesco’s Christmas advert features the message ‘Everyone’s welcome at Tesco’. But it was not welcomed by everyone. Some viewers took umbrage at the inclusion of a Muslim family in the montage of people celebrating. Was this a creative misstep by the UK‘s largest supermarket, or have we become a nation of complainers, who are actively looking for anything to moan about?
Facebook has put out a carefully crafted statement, which seems to suggest for the first time that Russian linked accounts may have used the site to attempt to sway public opinion on the EU referendum. Are we being influenced by an online army of bots? Or are we overestimating the power of fake posts?
It seems no matter what you are in the middle of, the lure of the camera is impossible to resist. Eric Rivers, a bank robber in Georgia, took time out between heists to film an interview with a local traffic reporter. His local media appearance, which led to his arrest, is currently trending on YouTube. But what is it that makes a video trend? And does Eric regret taking a break from his crime spree to give an interview?
In Los Angles, thousands of people marched in support of victims of sexual assault and harassment. Inspired by the #Metoo campaign, it has revealed just how widespread this type of abuse is, also proving the potential of social media to be a powerful force for good. Why did this hashtag resonate so strongly and what’s next for the #Metoo movement?
Sometimes when you’ve got to go, you’ve just got to go, as Stormzy found out at this year’s MTV European Music Awards. After rushing to use the facilities, the musician realised he had accidentally used ladies and was trapped for fear of seeming creepy. His answer: an SOS message to a friend and to tell all his followers on Snapchat. Embarrassing blunder? Or a funny story that only makes us love him more?
The Paradise Papers, a huge cache of leaked documents, have dominated the headlines with revelations about the world of offshore finance. A host of celebrities, politicians and multinationals have been caught up in the story, exposed as sheltering their wealth in tax havens. But is this latest expose reputationally damaging? Or is the public suffering “leak fatigue”?
A bumper crop of Christmas adverts has been unveiled all aiming to get us feeling festive and in the mood to spend. Which retailer has found just the right combination of creativity and nostalgia to tug not only at the heartstrings but those of our purses too? And just what is lurking under the bed?
Started in 1921, the Poppy Appeal is one of the longest-running and most successful campaigns of all time. It is Great Britain’s biggest commemoration event and will see more than 40 million poppies distributed by 150,000 collectors. How does this enduring campaign continue to stay relevant? And as we move towards a cashless society, do they need to enable digital donations?
The first episode of Blue Planet 2 was the most watched programme of 2017. 14.1 million people tuned in to see surfing dolphins, gender changing fish and a herd of walruses. Not only was it the biggest show of the year so far, it was the third most-watched programme of the past five years. What is the secret of its whale sized success? Will viewers continue to be hooked on this underwater drama?
Boris Johnson may have worsened the situation for Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British mother in prison in Iran. Mrs Zahari-Ratcliffe faces having an additional five years added to her sentence after Boris told a select committee that she was in Iran training journalists. Was this simply a slip of the tongue, or merely Boris being Boris? Or was it a sackable blunder from a Foreign Sectary who should know better?
What’s in a name? Puff Daddy, aka PDiddy, aka Diddy, aka Sean Combs has a new name – Brother Love, but you can call him Love for short. Is this a shrewd move by a master of reinvention as he evolves his brand? Or just a bit of birthday tomfoolery that was seized upon by the media?
Prue Leith put her foot in the cake mix this week when she tweeted her congratulations to the Great British Bake Off winner, nine hours before the final episode aired. Did Prue’s Twitter blunder ruin the finale and leave viewers with a bitter taste? Or for dedicated fans, was salivating over the ingredients more important than knowing the result?
Post Weinstein and the #Metoo campaign, Westminster is the latest workplace to be rocked by claims of inappropriate sexual conduct. The allegations are deeply disturbing. May has called for reform of the House of Commons “toothless” disciplinary procedures. Just how far reaching will this scandal be? Can public opinion of MPs sink any lower?
Campaigners were angered when it was announced that an anti-abortion charity will be one of the beneficiaries of the levy on women’s sanitary products, also known as the tampon tax. The charity will receive £250,000 for a project to help pregnant homeless women. Does the charity’s rigid pro-life stance make it an unworthy recipient of funding intended to help women? Who on earth thinks sanitary products are a luxury?
Paddington Bear has been revealed as the furry face of this year’s Marks and Spencer Christmas advert. Will Paddington be advocating that shoppers only need the bare necessities? Or will he be seduced by Marks and Spencer’s more indulgent creature comforts?
The popularity of witchcraft or Wicca is on the up. According to The Sun ‘more young Brits are coming out of the broom closet than ever before’ and the movement has its own hashtags and social media stars. Is this a passing fad that will be swept away by the next trend? Or are the new generations of witches here to stay?
Thought for the Day is deeply, deeply boring. Well, it is according to John Humphrys. In an interview with the Radio Times Today programme presenters John Humphrys and Justin Webb complained about hearing that “Jesus was really nice”. Is Thought for the Day out of touch with listeners? Or a valued moment of religious reflection?
All Hallow’s eve, or Halloween, is the day when spirits roam the earth. It is traditionally when children gorge on sweets and people of all ages dress to impress. According to an analysis of Google data, this year’s hottest costume is Wonder Woman. As festivities go, it is second only to Christmas in terms of consumer spending. There can be only one question: trick or treat?
Facebook is trialling splitting users’ news feeds. The move would shift non-promoted posts out of the news feed and could be catastrophic for publishers that rely on the social network for their audience. Is this really, as Facebook claims, a way to make it easier to see what our friends and family are up to? Or is it a canny and calculated move to increase advertising revenues?
What’s on your shopping list? Milk, eggs and a three-piece suit? Sainsbury’s is confident that shoppers will grab a garment bag alongside their groceries as they launch a smart men’s clothing range. Will this new line of bargain priced formalwear be a real rival to men’s high street retailers? Or will Sainsbury’s suits sit stubbornly on the shelves?
Do snakes give you goosebumps? Do big hairy spiders have you quivering in your boots? New research from Sweden has found that a phobia of snakes and spiders may be innate. Babies shown photos of snakes and spiders exhibited signs of internal stress. It seems some threats are scary no matter what your age. Remember that when planning your Halloween scare fest...
Three people died and thousands were without power and water after Hurricane Ophelia struck the British Isles. Tropical air and dust from the Sahara, drawn by the storm, also caused the sky and sun to appear red. It was extreme weather, but did our focus on the storm detract media attention from the terror attack in Somali? Or is it inevitable that dangerous weather conditions at home will dominate the front pages?
Who killed Crimewatch? If you have any information, please call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 1111. After 33 years and featuring over 4,000 cases Crimewatch has itself become the victim. Was it declining viewers or an out-dated format that finally killed the show? And will any dedicated fans attempt to stage a reconstruction?
A new report from thinktank Future Advocacy has confirmed Optimus is primed and ready to take on human jobs. Put plainly, the report predicts that automation will affect one in five jobs across the UK. Despite the threat the public appears largely untroubled, with only 2% very worried that they might be placed by a machine. Are we woefully oblivious to the risk we may become obsolete? Or are we wisely opting not to worry about things beyond our control?
The Today programme on BBC Radio 4 is a morning must for millions, providing reliable news and current affairs in uncertain times. The presenters are known for their aggressive, ‘take no prisoners’ style and it makes great radio. But for potential guests it’s a daunting prospect. Is it worth the likely mauling to give your side of the story? Or are you better to refuse than risk it?
Yorkshire has a population similar in size to Scotland and an economy that’s bigger than 11 EU states, but despite several proposals councils have so far failed to agree a pan-Yorkshire deal to gain devolved powers. Will intervention from the Archbishop of York help end the stalemate? Would the official snack of a devolved Yorkshire be the Yorkshire Pudding or a Yorkie bar?
Finally, Good Housekeeping shared the results of an extensive Christmas food and drink taste test. M&S took top spot for turkey, while Aldi won best marks for its Christmas pud and Tesco had the finest mince pies. But is October too early to start planning the Christmas food shop? Or is it high time we ditched the diets and started scoffing brandy butter?
Movie mogul Harvey Weinstein has been fired from his own company after the New York Times published a story alleging he has been sexually harassing women for decades. Since the story broke, dozens more women have come forward. Did everyone in Hollywood really know what was going on? Will Weinstein face charges?
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has been labelled a ‘heartless billionaire’ and accused of exploiting disaster after appearing as a virtual reality cartoon in hurricane-hit Puerto Rico. Was this the best way to showcase Facebook Spaces potential to bring social interaction into 3D virtual spaces? Or cringeworthy marketing that severely missed the mark?
Will the real FLOTUS please stand up? Ivana Trump kicked a hornet's nest this week when she declared herself the real First Lady. Melania Trump – the actual First Lady – came out swinging and retorted that it was attention-seeking and self-serving noise. Handbags at dawn? Or a clever move by Ivana to shift copies of her latest book?
A Dove advert was deemed racially insensitive after it appeared to show a black woman transforming into a white woman after using its soap. Dove quickly apologised and pulled the advert. Has this advertising blunder tarnished the brand's reputation? Or will the swift apology wash this incident from shoppers’ minds?
The father of nudge theory, Richard Thaler, has been awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics. Thaler’s ideas of nudging people through subtle changes found favour with both Number 10 and the White House. A big recognition for the man whose thinking boosted the number of people saving for a pension? Or a small acknowledgement for the power of suggestion?
The Wall Street Journal has ceased printing its Europe and Asia editions. And Glamour magazine has announced it’s going digital-only. Will readers follow these titles online? Or will paywalls and subscriptions prove to be a click too far?
Uber suffered a blow last week when it lost its licence to operate in London, with Transport for London saying it was not "fit and proper" to hold a private hire operator licence. Uber is appealing the decision and more than 800,000 Uber-loving Londoners have signed a petition in support. Is Uber’s apology enough? Or has the company that’s notorious for playing fast and loose with the rules run one too many red lights?
Meanwhile, in Brighton, the Labour party conference was in full swing. Check out Keith Vas doing Bob Marley’s Jammin’ at karaoke. For those looking to buy an early Christmas present, there was an exciting array of Corbyn paraphrenia on sale. Hands up who wants a tin of shaving cream Jeremy has never used? Are they, as Corbyn claims, the next government in waiting or will it turn out to be all talk and no trousers?
On the other side of the Atlantic Harry and Megan had their first official public outing at the Invictus games in Toronto. There were smiles and in a gratuitous display of public affection handholding. Start shopping for hats people, it’s clearly only a matter of time before they announce the engagement. Bride? Or Groom?
In the US and Japan, there is a new trend for chicken sashimi, which sounds revolting and has turned more than a few stomachs. Closer to home Michelin star chef Mark Sargent has landed in hot water after serving pink chicken livers. Is this the right way to cook them? Or as Shepway District Council food hygiene inspectors claim an unsafe practice?
New research claims millennials are not getting drunk because it’s what their parents did and they consider it “pathetic” or “embarrassing”. Are clean-living young people really shunning the booze in favour of sobriety? Or are they just not opting to share their drunken over indulgences on social media platforms that could be searched by potential employers?
A woman has made the news after attending every funeral at the Holy Redeemer Church in Slough for the past 14 years. Her devotion has upset some relatives who feel her attendance is motivated more by hunger than piety. Just how good are these funeral buffets?
After a mistake with holiday rota for pilots, Ryanair was forced to cancel up to 50 flights. Understandably irate customers took to social media to vent their frustrations. Can Europe’s biggest airline weather this latest turbulence? Or will this crisis see Michael O’Leary heading for the emergency exit?
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson set out his vision for Brexit in a lengthy article in the Telegraph. Was it back seat driving, or just Boris being Boris? Will this political infighting stall the Brexit negotiations, or can May keep the discussions on the road?
Sometimes you just need to hit snooze. Facebook has recognised this and is trialling a pause button that would give users the option to silence a person, page or group for anything from 24 hours to 30 days. Is this new feature a welcome way to give us all more control over our news feeds? Or simply a sneaky way for the social media giant to garner yet more data from its users?
Do not adjust your set, five new adverts on Channel four have been deliberately shot to show what life is like with various eye conditions. Will this innovative advertising help more people see what life is like for the visually impaired, or will mixing an awareness campaign with commercial messaging all end up as a bit of a blur?
Sainsbury's has shot its latest advert through the lens of Snapchat Spectacles. They are the first to use the glasses to film an advert. Is this new format a must-have for every marketer's shopping list? Or will Snapchats young users be reluctant to ‘check out’ the grocer's ad?
Research from Women in Journalism (WIJ) found that 75% of front page by-lines are written by men. Is this because women can’t write for toffee and quite frankly should get back to the kitchen? Or a shocking imbalance that needs to be addressed immediately?
This week we saw the first glimpse of the iPhone X, Apple’s tenth iPhone. It may have facial recognition, wireless charging and advanced camera features, but at £999, will the hefty price tag put people off buying it?
Parliament has only been back in session for two weeks, yet controversy is already emanating from the Commons. Has the governments so-called “power grab” gone too far?
Recently the news has been dominated by stories of extreme weather affecting people around the world. Closer to home, this week Storm Aileen hit the UK, giving Brits (and the media) the chance to discuss their favourite topic: the weather.
Rihanna becomes the latest in a long line of celebrities to launch their own beauty line. Brand/celebrity partnerships may often fall flat, but with Rihanna’s 40 shades of foundation range already attracting plaudits, could she buck the trend?
BBC Radio 4 may no longer have to fulfil all of its public service duties. With the British public – quite literally – heavily invested in the BBC, what will this mean for iconic features like Thought for the Day?
And finally, where is the worst place for women to live in the United Kingdom? That’s what a survey by BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour has been looking into, with surprising results.
North Korea tested a hydrogen bomb, increasing fears of a nuclear strike. American diplomat Nikki Haley says they are “begging for war”. The media coverage spoke of catastrophe and World War Three. Just how far can North Korea’s missiles reach? Can this global crisis be adverted?
In other lighter – less apocalyptic – news, it was announced that Kate and Wills are expecting another baby. While most sent congratulations, others were less taken with the news and couldn’t understand what the fuss was about. The big questions is: what will the new prince or princess be called?
The PR industry hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons on Monday when industry trade body, the PRCA, very publicly expelled Bell Pottinger for ethical misconduct.
Will the South Africa scandal force agencies to think twice about their client list?
Winchester and Eton have both been embroiled in a cheating scandal after it emerged teachers had passed information to pupils about upcoming exams. Meanwhile, St Olave’s school has been forced to back down on its decision to withdraw A-level students’ places after failing to achieve certain grades. Is our obsession with league tables and exams driving schools to bad behaviour?
Elsewhere, new research from the Children’s Society has found that 40 per cent of 10 to 17-year-olds worry about crime. What’s more, the overall level of happiness continues to fall each year. Is 24-hour news and more first-hand accounts making crime seem close to home and increasing anxiety in children?
John Lewis has ditched ‘boys and ‘girls’ labels on its children’s clothes. While many have praised the retailer for its progressive approach, others have slammed the move as political correctness gone mad. Is this a step towards greater gender equality? Or simply a very clever marketing campaign?
Tragic news from Houston this week, as the devastation of Hurricane Harvey continues to be felt. Coverage of the disaster has been inspirational in places, but perhaps too focused on President Trump’s personality in others. When our attention is drawn away from other similar catastrophes around the world by Trump, should we consider whether our obsession with the President has gone too far?
The technology press love a good Uber story, and this week has been no different with the appointment of new CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. The relative unknown has made an impression through his affable personality, but is he the man to resolve the company’s well-known cultural challenges?
Rejoice! The bakers are back! Season 8 of the Great British Bake Off debuted to critical and fan acclaim this week, despite worries about its move to Channel 4. With brands keen to get their hands on a share of 17 minutes of prime advertising space, could this quintessentially British show become a rival to the razzmatazz of the Superbowl?
Talking of big bucks, this was the week of the “Money Fight,” as Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor squared off in Las Vegas. The money generated is enough to make your head spin, but has boxing’s brand emerged unscathed from the fight?
Another year, another Taylor Swift album; but this time there’s an intriguing partnership with Ticketmaster thrown into the mix. Are controversial plans to allow fans to pay for a greater chance of attending her concerts out of tune with her die-hard fan base?
And finally, are we about to see the end to the humble pizza delivery boy? With Domino’s trialling self-driving delivery vehicles, will pizza lovers be willing to take that crucial extra step… out of the front door?
But never fear, there’s no extra effort required here! Just hit play and join Matt, Susie and Adam on this week’s edition of the Headliner.
A crowd gathered and tears were shed as Big Ben bonged for the final time before being silenced for a four-year, £29 million renovation. Were the MP’s tears real? Will the renovation stick to schedule and budget? Why has this story generated so much coverage?
Across the pond, the USA experienced its first total solar eclipse in 99 years. Millions of Americans gazed at the sky in what was an awe-inspiring moment as the sun and moon aligned. And in what has to be a contender for PR moment of the year, on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean Bonnie Tylor sang total eclipse of the heart. Despite all the safety warnings Trump couldn’t resist looking directly at the sun. Will the President’s vision be affected?
Oh no, you didn’t Jeremy! Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt and Stephen Hawking got into a public spat over the future of the NHS. With Jeremy accusing Professor Hawking of peddling a 'pernicious falsehood'. Hunt has been widely mocked for claiming the world-renowned scientist is wrong about the scientific evidence. When it comes to interpreting studies and reviewing findings who has the better track record?
What does a kilo of heroin seized by police in Catford have to do with Notting Hill Festival? That was what rapper Stormzy wanted to know after the Metropolitan police tweeted linking the raid to the upcoming Notting Hill Carnival. Were the Met wrong to link the drug bust to the upcoming Carnival?
Forget apprenticeships, never mind university, young people are looking to Instagram to build their careers. But is it a viable way to make a living? Just how many influencers can the social media platform support? When followers can be bought for as little as £3.99 just how much of their influence is real?
And finally, if you are worried about the new series of GBBO being on Channel 4 why not watch it on catch up and skip the adverts? This was the advice from new Bake Off judge Prue Leith. Yikes. As Channel 4 spent £75 million on the show, this remark may have left a bad taste in their mouths. Was Prue’s comment totally unpalatable or was she trying to ensure the show appealed to everyone’s taste buds? Either way, we can’t wait to watch the new series!
White nationalists gathered on Saturday for a “Unite the Right” march in Charlottesville, where they were met by counter protesters. Taunting led to shoving, which escalated into brawling. One person died and at least 34 people were wounded in the clashes. Governor Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency in Virginia.
President Trump prompted a firestorm by initially refusing to condemn white supremacists, choosing instead to denounce violence “on all sides”. The President did not explicitly single out white supremacists until Monday, declaring in a speech that “racism is evil”. He later doubled-down on his initial statement during an extraordinary press conference at Trump Tower, claiming that there were “very fine people” among the neo-Nazi marchers.
Jaws dropped worldwide. MSNBC host Chuck Todd said he was “shaken” by what he just heard. Fox News’ Kat Timpf told viewers she was “wondering if it was actually real life”. Brands associated with the administration – PayPal, SpaceX, Tesla, Intel and Merck –publicly fled, each declaring that the hate espoused by the President had no place in their businesses.
Newspapers joined together in almost universal condemnation. And news magazines on either side of the Atlantic, The Economist and the New Yorker, released covers depicting Trump as a mouthpiece for the KKK.
Besides Thursday’s tragic terror attack in Barcelona, little else has succeeded in shoving the story off the front pages.
In the business world, there’s another bogeyman spooking the stock market. Snap Inc, the maker of GenZ favourite Snapchat opened for trading on Tuesday this week at $13.05 per share, half what it opened at in March at its high. In the following days, it made the full media journey from disruptive upstart to cautionary tale.
Snap Inc has suffered at the hands of its larger rivals Facebook and Apple which expanded their messaging services to accommodate Snapchat’s unique format. But it was poor timing that led to its rapid devaluation—according to many analysts, its IPO simply came too late.
Its first trick was making selfies disappear, wrote Fortune. “Its latest is sending gargantuan piles of cash into the ether.” Oh dear.
Finally, it was announced this week that the Palace of Westminster’s famous bell, Big Ben, will be silenced for four years to protect the hearing of builders working on a £29million renovation of Elizabeth Tower. And if you thought that was reasonable and responsible to the poor people doing the renovations within the tower, well, you’d be ‘bonkers,’ according to many MPs and more than a sprinkling of news editors.
The Daily Mail is predictably livid with a front-page lead over two consecutive days. Tuesday’s ‘Death knell for common sense’ and Wednesday’s ‘Bong! Now a Big Ben climbdown’ beat Trump, Brexit and Philip Green in a champagne shower for top billing.
The Daily Telegraph has done its usual terribly grown-up thing of reporting on a reaction rather than explicitly reacting (while also subtly agreeing with everything that’s been said).
The Sun, uncharacteristically indifferent in its morning editorial, later picked up on Twitter hysteria—its online team was soon reporting MPs’ wild-eyed statements of misplaced nationalism. Don’t bin Big Ben’s bongs, it cried. ‘Health and safety succeeds where the Luftwaffe failed.’
And lo, we were all talking about Hitler again.
When the Great British Bake Off packed up its tent and marched over to Channel 4, fans were ambivalent at best; outraged at worst.
Now, with barely a month to go until its premiere, the revamped show – minus three quarters of its treasured team (Mel, Sue and Mary Berry) – is already causing the sort of angst we used to watch it to forget.
GBBO’s latest trailer, which shows 335 different baked goods coming to life and dancing around to Paul McCartney, has been branded ‘terrifying’ by fans on Twitter. Several reported having nightmares about the edible characters, which include a vomiting caterpillar and some malicious looking pastries. We know you’re new at this, C4, but baking show trailers are supposed to make you want to eat the food, not worry that the food is going to eat you.
Elsewhere… gone are the orchids, the salmons, the cherry blossoms. All but forgotten are the hots, the tangos, the carnations. The only pink that matters in 2017 finds its name in its most powerful advocate: the millennial. Fashion houses and designers are fawning over it, journalists are ascribing a cultural significance to it and apparently nobody can agree what shade ‘millennial pink’ actually is. Sorry, but it is August, after all.
And finally, while we’d be forgiven for thinking that Google HQ is a melting pot of young progressives, this week proved that even the company famous for ‘blue-sky thinking’ has its share of reactionary idiots. James Damore, a previously unknown software engineer posted a memo which left female staff “shaking in anger”. The 10-page ‘manifesto’ criticised the company’s diversity initiatives as ‘dangerous’ and suggested that gender inequality is the result of innate biological differences between men and women. Sigh.
Despite fierce criticism from self-styled ‘advocates of free speech,’ Damore was eventually fired by Google, who claimed that the memo breached the company’s code of conduct.
So, is the famously open and inclusive Palo Alto giant really silencing anyone who doesn’t share its political views? Or is it taking a moral stand against woeful ignorance?