tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746Fri, 05 Apr 2013 13:38:08 +0000mammogramcybersexyouth centreLichfield BlogprivacyKatePhilip NitschkeAC JapantheatrecrunchwarPetite Anglaise privacyTelegraphsocial networking sitesThe ArgusMax CliffordLiz JonesJALlumpectomyABCedatingInternational Women's Dayroyal familyBlack Watchonline datingvethydrotherapyMark Williams-ThomasRay Lewisassisted suicidepeacefeminismpotholeCharlotte RavenAnthony ThorntoneroticaMySpaceStreet ViewgreetinghaikuIcesaveVirgin AirlinesJosh HallidaymoshlingsWill PerrinjournalistsIbsenletting goloveself-helpblindsightPrince WilliamSarah Hartleybreast cancer awarenessThe TimesPrivate ElliottPeter ChapmanAlistair DarlingEnglish languageBrian FrielroyalsWannabehacksdr deathJo WadsworthHelp Me Investigatesexualityvulnerable childrenbroadsheetsFox NewstabloidsJapaneseFacebookMind Powerinvestigative journalismdan jameshappy pillsExpressparentingGuy LiebenbergJohn Kehoee-booksSunday ExpresshackersGoogleCatherine SandersonMoshi Monsterspublishinglocal newspapersroyal babyBFONGwordsBig Societysocial mediaacupunctureGuardian LocalhealthHedda Gablermummy pornJacqui JanesThe Suncancerdog foulingcommerciallossSuzanne MooreDignitasAfghanistanrelationshipsmental healthpsychologyJoanna Gearyfantasycreditbreast cancerFuture of Newsconfessional bloggingadvertisementuniformbook marketingmastectomyapostropheAshleigh HallcouncilsOld Viceconomypower of wordsAnn MackminTalkAboutLocalgriefblindnessdepressionheadingschoice of wordsmannersNews:RewiredDan SleetechnolgoyThe Media BlogIcelandLewes Skeptics in the PubJapanJade GoodysuicidesubsRandall MunroeDecca AitkenheadWilliamjournalismpetAOP forummediaTwitterbreast reconstructionmake-believeProzacNatasha RichardsonBarbara EhrenreichsubbingconfessionalHenrik IbsenantidepressantscharitiesAdam Westbrook#rubyinthepubeuthanasiaearthquakeYPDWAndrew Woolnerheadlinesdebbie purdyagonal gaspchemical imbalancehyperlocalhappinessThe Northern EchoGreg HadfieldAnn SummerspsychiatryWall of Shamewomendeath nirvana mortality dogs liferecessionInternetpositive thinkingbrandspaidContentKaupthingDaily MailJames BallEXITblogging blog privacy twitter facebookKate MiddletoncommunitiesGuardianNALCdogJoanna Moncrieffmental disorderNavratilovagratitude appreciation gratefulness lifesocial issuenewspapersAmanda HoldenLandsbankihackssocial careflight attendantsvirtual realitycitizen journalismCamila BatmanghelidjhWise KidsdigitalstrokeiPadHuntingtondata#ritpdrugsSecond LifeSheridan Smithcommunity managermoneyhttp://madamedotty.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)Blogger40125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-653625583485952916Mon, 12 Nov 2012 12:12:00 +00002012-11-12T16:55:48.339ZOld VicSheridan SmithHenrik IbsenAnn MackminBrian FrielHedda GablertheatreIbsen Hedda Gabler is one of my favourite plays of all times. I have read the original Ibsen play and seen it performed many times in different countries. I simply can't get enough of Hedda for reasons I will explain in a later post. When I last saw it in a small theatre in Tokyo with the stunning Japanese actress Rei Asami in the lead role, I was so overcome with emotion, I could not move for a few http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2012/11/hedda-gabler-at-old-vic-great.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-496810902838502061Mon, 23 Jul 2012 13:33:00 +00002012-07-23T14:33:15.863+01:00royalsheadingsKateroyal babySunday Expresssubbingroyal familyKate MiddletonExpressPrince WilliamapostropheWilliam Hats off to the The Sunday Express for their front page headline in yesterday's edition, with one very cleverly placed apostrophe, which, if unnoticed, would have given the story a an entirely new meaning: Kate & Will's Hope for Children. At first glance, the heading sounds like an official confirmation, by Kate and William, that they are indeed trying to start a family – news which would havehttp://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-apostrophe-that-nearly-made-kate.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-1060930035662670963Mon, 09 Jul 2012 00:03:00 +00002012-07-26T22:40:34.426+01:00online datingMySpacedatingSecond Lifevirtual realitycybersexmoshlingsmake-believeMoshi MonstersSuzanne MooreAnn SummerseroticaFacebookrelationshipsmummy pornfantasyInternetloveThe Guardian Weekend Magazine published an interesting compilation of stories last week (The way we love now, 30.06.12) of couples who started their relationship online. This is the 21st century. Relationships that start on social media sites are no longer a novelty. Among my Facebook "friends", at least two whom I have never personally met, met their other halves on MySpace, before Facebook http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2012/07/fifty-shades-of-cyberlove-future-of.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-2013254329733694691Fri, 06 Jul 2012 04:00:00 +00002012-07-06T05:00:06.355+01:00psychiatryhappy pillsmental healthdepressionmental disorderantidepressantsLewes Skeptics in the PubJoanna MoncrieffdrugsProzacchemical imbalance Could psychiatric drugs, such a antidepressants, cause rather than cure mental disorders? Is chemical cure a myth? This was the topic of Joanna Moncrieff's talk at the Lewes Skeptics in the Pub's monthly event this week. Dr. Moncrieff is a clinical lecturer in the department of mental health sciences at University College of London. Her book The Myth of Chemical Cure is published by Palgrave http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2012/07/dr-moncrieff-on-depression-and-drugs.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-5041856636352936753Wed, 13 Jun 2012 13:07:00 +00002012-06-13T14:08:12.607+01:00haikuloveBrowsing through a book called Haiku for the SIngle Girl (Penguin), which I found on a colleague's desk, I came across a verse that made me smile.  "He makes me happy.  If he also makes me sad,  Then I'll know it's love." My colleague snorted and thought this was meant to be cynical, I disagree. If you have ever been in love – really in love – you know the above is true.  Sadness is an http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2012/06/haiku-on-real-love.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-23176027541268604Tue, 01 May 2012 08:41:00 +00002012-05-01T09:41:37.716+01:00lossgriefloveletting go I am sure I have written before about letting go, but I will write about it again. Because for me it is a recurring theme. And no one has as yet discovered an easy way to do it. In less than a week we are moving house – from a three-bedroom house, with plenty of storage room, to a two-bedroom flat with a small second bedroom – which means a brutal clear-out has become necessary. For a natural http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2012/05/on-love-and-letting-go-revisited.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-3937760568790040974Fri, 20 May 2011 21:47:00 +00002011-05-22T07:15:38.443+01:00journalismWill Perrindog foulingWannabehackslocal newspapersJames BallGuardian Localhyperlocal Photo courtesy of Matt Callow "I don't care about local news." The bold statement 'The Chancer', one of the journalist graduates from The Wannabe Hacks blog, made in a post about local journalism failing to engage young people attracted a string of of angry comments from several journalists, who called his argument "parochial", "naive", "ridiculous and lazy". Knowing the power of the Internethttp://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2011/05/pot-holes-and-dog-poo-is-this-future-of.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-8896217265469229194Thu, 21 Apr 2011 02:47:00 +00002011-04-21T03:47:28.961+01:00greetingcommercialmannersJapaneseJapanadvertisementearthquakeAC JapanThe story of the Japanese blog that made the nation laugh so hard it caused a major stir in the Japanese blogosphere, and allegedly shot up to first place in their FC2 blog ranking last week, is too good not to be shared. Since the magnitude 9.0 earthquake in the northeast of Japan last month, much has been written in the Western media about the dignified and selfless manner the Japanese conducthttp://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2011/04/man-who-was-arrested-for-greeting.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-2152429756411016745Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:13:00 +00002011-03-26T00:13:56.929ZWall of ShameRandall MunroejournalismFox NewsAndrew WoolnerJapanearthquake Last week I wrote a piece for The Media Blog about Fox News' hilarious blunder in having included a trendy night club in central Tokyo on a map of nuclear reactors in Japan.  But examples of poor journalistic practice may not always amuse, especially when they can dramatically influence the public's sense of vulnerability or distort perception of a delicate reality, as in the case of Japan's http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2011/03/japan-quake-wall-of-shameful-journalism.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-7820298841918939836Tue, 15 Feb 2011 01:35:00 +00002011-02-15T01:35:07.195Z(This post was also published in the Help Me Investigate blog.) Freedom of Information requests should be "applicant blind" and "motive blind" but they are often not treated as such – David Higgerson, head of multimedia for Trinity Mirror Regional, points out in his blog post FOI FAQ. This means that FOI rules are being breached if a press officer, to whom your request has been passed on by thehttp://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2011/02/foi-why-who-is-requesting-shouldnt-but.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-8554053260511289577Thu, 20 Jan 2011 00:51:00 +00002011-01-20T01:40:43.890ZjournalismJosh HallidayFuture of NewsGreg HadfieldGuardianBFONG Josh Halliday at Brighton Future of News Group (photo by Sarah Booker) The Brighton Future of News Group (BFONG)'s 10th meetup registered record attendance last Monday when around 35 members gathered in the function room at The Eagle in Brighton. There was a buzz of anticipation in the air. They had come to listen to much hyped young journalist Josh Halliday talk about his success http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2011/01/from-blogger-to-guardian-reporter.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-4656298613058778968Sat, 15 Jan 2011 23:24:00 +00002011-01-15T23:24:11.635Z[This post first appeared in The Help Me Investigate blog] The National Health Service is about to undergo a major overhaul, with strategic health authorities and primary care trusts being abolished and GPs gaining control of the NHS budget and responsibility to commission healthcare services. Some GPs are not happy about the pressure imposed by their additional administrative duties, which http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2011/01/why-freedom-of-information-act-makes.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-7623597063812889131Wed, 05 Jan 2011 02:47:00 +00002011-01-05T02:47:53.781Zcommunitiesbook marketingsocial mediaJoanna Gearye-booksNews:Rewiredcommunity managerAnthony ThorntonpublishingbrandsdigitalThe TimesSince its launch in January this year, I have been a 'serial' delegate at the News Rewired events (hashtag #newsrw  on Twitter) aimed at online journalists and anyone working in the digital field. Last December I went to event no.3, which was about building a brand and digital products to support and share content. A link-by-link coverage can be found here, including reactions from delegates, http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2011/01/newsrewired-valuable-digital-lessons.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-8256599992785516956Sun, 07 Nov 2010 23:15:00 +00002010-11-08T23:06:04.515Zagonal gaspEnglish languagechoice of wordswordspower of wordsBizarrely, the death of my dog last month made me reflect on how a simple choice of words can make someone's day, or ruin it. Death words The first shock came a few seconds after the vet had injected our dog with the anaesthetic that would stop his heart. Even though he was physically supposed to be dead, Binks stretched his head and let out a long long breath, which totally freaked me, as it http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/11/whats-in-word.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-4892701078880241206Sun, 26 Sep 2010 02:20:00 +00002010-09-26T23:01:32.241+01:00death nirvana mortality dogs lifeBinks reminds me everyday of my own mortality. He is 112 years old. Or, he would be if he were human rather than a four-legged mutt. It amuses me to think that, had he been an old age pensioner, he might have received a birthday card or two from the Queen by now. In fact, his survival record as a starving dog in the streets of Germany, and more recently, as a victim of a string of serious http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/09/my-dog-my-shepherd-mortality-revisited.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-5886427676391516736Sun, 30 May 2010 22:29:00 +00002010-05-31T20:52:28.303+01:00dataiPadtechnolgoyhacksinvestigative journalismcitizen journalism#ritphackersdigitalBig Society#rubyinthepub('Today We're Social' cartoon by Oliver Wibber - Geek and Poke) On Friday the iPad finally arrived in the UK. If the frenzy of excitement among journalists on Twitter on the day of Apple's product announcement, and the number of hacks suffering from iPad-delivery anxiety last Thursday are anything to go by, it is possible the entire UK media community now owns Apple's new wonder gadget. As if http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/05/why-camerons-open-data-big-society-will.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-7818592539886771040Fri, 09 Apr 2010 22:00:00 +00002010-04-11T17:52:07.782+01:00Navratilovajournalismheadingsnewspaperssubsbreast cancersubbingmammogramheadlinesmediacancerThe announcement this week that legendary tennis champion Martina Navratilova is undergoing treatment for breast cancer has made headlines in practically every newspaper and website. On checking the front pages of the national newspapers and web-based reportage yesterday I couldn't help noticing almost all of them used cliched words such as "battle", "struggle", "suffer". This is exactly the http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/04/navratilovas-cancer-why-media-failed-to.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-6129872862647766752Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:20:00 +00002010-03-15T17:00:48.027ZPeter ChapmanWise KidsMark Williams-ThomasFacebookYPDWDaily MailAshleigh HallThe Daily Mail published an apology in its print edition today over an article, which originally appeared with the headline "I posed as a 14-year-old girl on Facebook. What followed will sicken you." What followed did sicken me but not for the same reasons that it did most people.Not FacebookThe hoo-ha was about an account written by Mark Williams-Thomas, a former police detective working as a http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/03/ashleigh-daily-mail-and-facebook.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-7970061516844024084Mon, 08 Mar 2010 01:26:00 +00002010-03-08T17:20:10.416ZwomenInternational Women's DayJALflight attendantsuniformcitizen journalismVirgin AirlinespublishingfeminismToday is International Women’s Day, a day for remembering and celebrating the achievements of women past, present and future. The fact that there isn’t an International Man’s Day seems like an indication that women have always had it much harder than men to get to the same places. Men certainly seem to dominate the upper echelons of print and broadcast journalism and although some of my http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/03/international-womens-day-some-random.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-8204407130975673706Thu, 25 Feb 2010 23:40:00 +00002010-02-26T11:30:57.754Zjournalistscitizen journalismpotholelocal newspapershyperlocalAn article I wrote appeared in one of the local papers this week. And for the first time I didn't cheer.Instead of the usual elation in getting a byline, the sight of my story in print brought on the type of anticlimax you get when you have fought a battle for so long and so hard, victory feels anything but sweet.This is the story of that battle.The priority queueMy article was about ineffective http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/02/hyperlocal-vs-local-how-about-truce.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-8949587792363809219Sun, 17 Jan 2010 16:13:00 +00002010-01-22T10:26:59.353Zself-helpBarbara Ehrenreichbreast cancerpositive thinkingpsychologyMind PowerHuntingtonhealthCharlotte RavensuicideJohn KehoeDignitasI have always believed in the power of positive thinking as a propelling force in life. But Andrew Marr's interview on Radio 4 with an anti-positive thinking writer last week made me stop in my tracks and review my position on where to draw the line between healthy optimism and sheer delusion.Barbara Ehrenreich (above), author of Smile or Die: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Hashttp://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/01/not-so-sunny-side-of-positive-thinking.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-2709908956195173076Wed, 06 Jan 2010 20:37:00 +00002010-01-07T14:56:27.784ZAOP forumNALCAdam WestbrookpaidContentLichfield Blogcitizen journalismDan SleeTalkAboutLocalhyperlocalvar gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://ssl." : "http://www.");document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E"));try {var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-12354124-1");pageTracker._trackPageview();} catch(err) {} New Year is here. Media pundits have been busily trying to forecast the future http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2010/01/hyperlocal-2010-roundup-of-predictions.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-6630356642691518040Fri, 25 Dec 2009 22:42:00 +00002009-12-26T14:51:26.514Zgratitude appreciation gratefulness lifeIf you follow my other blog On the Dole, On the Ball, where I share experiences and tips on surviving unemployment, you may already know that every Thursday I play a game with a handful of good friends called "TILT"– Things I Love on a Thursday.TILT works like this: every Thursday you jot down in an email all the things you feel grateful about in the past week and send them to the friends on yourhttp://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2009/12/my-seven-things-to-be-grateful-for-in.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-1002428307714704330Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:48:00 +00002009-11-11T11:49:26.143ZjournalismJacqui JanesThe SunThe Media Blogtabloids Will Sturgeon's post in The Media Blog (The Sun's sympathy for a grieving mother... or simple exploitation?) on The Sun's treatment of the story of a young dead soldier's mother, who received a handwritten letter of condolence from Gordon Brown, struck a chord with me.Blind bereavementAs I have blogged before, my husband's 24-year-old nephew was also killed in Helmand only a couple of months agohttp://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2009/11/its-sun-wot-lost-plot.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7670843524780597746.post-21401784268939615Sun, 08 Nov 2009 23:49:00 +00002009-11-09T23:40:33.736ZThe Northern EchoThe ArgusHelp Me InvestigatecouncilsJo Wadsworthcitizen journalismSarah Hartleylocal newspapershyperlocalAs an enthusiast for investigative journalism and a believer in the power of crowdsourcing, I volunteered as an investigator on Paul Bradshaw's Help Me Investigate platform. The topic I chose to investigate was "How much local council news coverage is there in your local newspaper?", led by The Guardian's local launch editor Sarah Hartley.I picked one daily, The Argus, and one weekly, the Sussex http://madamedotty.blogspot.com/2009/11/why-hyperlocal-is-here-to-stay-help-me.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Madame Dotty)3