Sport Relief

Lawrence Dallaglio and his friends have begun Stage Two of their epic 2,888k cycle ride across Europe to all of the Six Nations venues. Their quest is to raise £1m for Sport Relief and the Dallaglio Foundation. Read more

B-eat

I bet the above name means absolutely nothing to anyone reading this site, but it means a lot to me and millions of other people in the UK. It is time for people to sit up and take notice of this national charity that is making a difference to the small minority who know about it.

Monday 22nd of February marks B-eat’s 21st birthday and it is also the start of it’s Eating Disorders Awareness week. Yet the charity still remains unknown. And why? The sad fact is that eating disorders are still a “hush-hush” subject, just like the C-word (cancer) was ten years ago. No one wants to talk about them; nobody wants to be associated with one. This is because eating disorders are a mental health problem, which like others - depression, self-harm etc - are rarely talked about. This needs to change.

Throughout the year, B-eat is holding various events across the country in order to promote awareness, kicking off with next week, which will involve lots of interviews in the press, on television and radio with B-eat ambassadors. These are real sufferers, who are either recovered or are still in their long road to recovery.

B-eat’s help line will be open 24/7; they will be tweeting statistics and updates; on-line recovery clubs will be running; a civic reception will be held at Norwich City Hall, the town where B-eat is based. Tuesday 23rd of February will see the launch of Beat Cymru, the first ever major project in Wales to tackle the issue of eating disorders and offering support. The end of the week is campaign day, when beat supporters are urged to take a copy of the charity’s manifesto to their local MP.

A lot of people may think that we don’t have a problem with eating disorders, but with between 1.1 million and 1.6 million currently diagnosed as having an eating disorder, not counting those who have not been diagnosed yet, I think this issue is a very serious one, especially considering it has the highest mortality rate of any mental health illnesses.

There are many different eating disorders - anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, compulsive eating, EDNOS (eating disorders non specified) and many more. They are more than just having troubles with food. That is the only what is seen on the surface. Sufferers usually have low self-esteem, perfectionist values, high levels of anxiety and could have another mental health problem. Often an eating disorder is used as a coping mechanism from a distressing event in your life. Or it could be a way of disappearing to escape bullying or sexual abuse. There are many causes of eating disorders and there is no fast fix. You can’t “cure” people. They have to want to recover and it can take years, even if you look okay physically.

Although the media does not cause eating disorders, it doesn’t help matters. The size-0 trend glorifies being emaciated; when in reality it’s not all it cracks up to be. You are a walking skeleton, with no energy, brittle bones and are certainly not attractive. You can develop osteoporosis; your brain shrinks and you lose heart tissue. By starving yourself, your body starts to shut off everything that isn’t a vital organ.

I strongly believe that the media should show real people in their magazines, ones that haven’t been airbrushed. We need to learn to celebrate that we are all different.

I could go on further to explain eating disorders but there is so much to say. They are a very complex subject but that is why awareness needs to happen. So you can help friends or relatives who may have an eating disorder. So people don’t say the wrong thing to a sufferer (Never, ever say they look well. They will interpretate it that they look fat). Whatever you do to find out about eating disorders though, do not go on pro-ana websites. These are sites that see being anorexic and bulimic has a life style and not an illness. This is wrong. People with an eating disorder do not choose it; it is something out of their control. Recovery, however, is possible with supportive friends and the general public being more understanding.

So, please do read articles on eating disorders in awareness week and do visit B-eat’s website at www.b-eat.co.uk

Journalism is not Dead

David Higgerson, Head of Multi-Media at the Trinity Mirror gave a lecture to second year students yesterday about the rise of online journalism.

Journalism students are being told time and time again that journalism is going out, there is no market for it anymore, people are losing jobs all over the world. David Higgerson re-assured them - he is not out to kill newspapers.

Higgerson explained how journalism is rapidly moving to an online world but the myth that the internet is killing journalism is wrong – “it’s a very exciting time”.

People value getting news and information from one place and the skills of a journalist still matter more than ever. Accuracy being the most vital; “It only takes 5 minutes for someone to correct you on Facebook these days”. He gave the explanation of Jan Moir’s article from the Daily Mail Online, within half an hour complaints were pouring in and the Press Complaints Commission has received more complaints than ever before.

The students were told how news must be delivered the way people want it and when they want it. Active communication is a necessity, encourage people to post comments on your stories, know your audience and their reaction to you and your writing.

You will be pleased to know – the need for our talents as journalists has not declined “we’re doing what we’ve always done – providing the best coverage we can”.

Higgerson also gave the students tips on how to get a job in his company:

1) Have a blog - If somebody is blogging it’s an indication that they are creative and can already engage an audience with what    they have to say. It is not impressive when you see a blog that has been set up the week before the interview.

2) Basic video and audio skills – The online world requires more than just simple journalism, think about different ways of putting your story across.

3) Written technique – Online writing requires a different technique to print journalism. He gave the example, if there was a car crash, the area must be described in the first paragraph, unlike print journalism, because that is what people will type into a search engine. The one thing that attracts people to his site is the use of names in headlines.

4) You must know your audience – In an interview, we would look to see how they would try to connect with their audience for example Twitter is a great source of information.

He described how his Birmingham City writer talks to people on Facebook about their opinions on what they want to read about. “Don’t be afraid ask the people what they want”.

The most important advice he gave was: “Be Your Own Brand”, be visible to your potential online audience, whether through Facebook or your own blog. “It is a valuable commodity to be known online”.

Art Students Raise Money For Haitians

The earthquake which flattened Haiti over two weeks ago may have destroyed homes, buildings and lives, but the disaster has awoken something closer to home and unique in humanity.

The disaster has stirred our sense of duty to our fellow man, the natural reflex to help another human in need. We may not see it often, but it’s always there, waiting.

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Will.I.Am to remix ‘My Generation’ for Haiti

Black Eyed Peas and Solo artist Will.I.Am has said he’s been commissioned by Pete Townsend himself to remix Tho Who’s 1965 track My Generation with new lyrics to fit ‘his generation’ and will also feature former Guns ‘N’ Roses guitarist Slash. Read more

Tiger looks likely to lose sponsorship deals

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Magilton suspended by QPR after an alleged head-butt

QPR have suspended manager Jim Magilton following an alleged bust-up with Akos Buszaky. Read more

Woman taken to hospital from Tiger’s house

The Tiger Woods saga took another twist on Tuesday  as a middle-aged woman was rushed from his home to a nearby hospital.

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Man United’s injury crisis worsens

Manchester United’s injury crisis has hit rock bottom with the news that Nemanja Vidic will miss out on tonight’s Champions League tie with Wolfsburg.

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Spark FM launch: Sunderland gets a new radio station!

Thousands retuned their wireless sets this morning as Wearside got a brand new radio station. Read more

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