tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5481556356758301622011-04-21T14:12:37.884-07:00Research Notes, thoughts, observations and 2-cents worth opinion on community media & education: Shawn Naphtali Sobers. Firstborn Creatives / University of the West of EnglandShawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.comBlogger311100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-58476964678135330622008-01-04T18:29:00.000-08:002009-03-09T04:47:06.316-07:00

Please see new blog at www.beyondproject.wordpress.comSorry Blogger I still Love you, but I had to move away!Thanks for everything.:-)x

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-67312131583619757052008-01-04T18:24:00.000-08:002008-01-04T18:29:29.487-08:00

Please go and visit our new website at http://www.cmsw.weebly.com/We are in the process of moving the proper cmsw.co.uk address there, but in the meantime please look at the new site at Weebly and send us your comments.Thanks! Shawn

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-65727932341492426412007-10-27T00:35:00.000-07:002007-10-27T00:41:17.898-07:00

Why do I still get shocked by stories like this? And they want us to believe that they landed on the moon! LOLFema was widely criticised for its response to Hurricane KatrinaThe US Federal Emergency Management Administration has apologised for having its employees pose as reporters at a hastily arranged news conference.No actual reporters were able to attend Fema's televised briefing on the fires

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-83553574668086043112007-09-16T05:34:00.000-07:002007-09-16T08:12:44.880-07:00

From: Shawn SobersSent: Sun 9/16/2007 13:27To: itvwestnews@itv.comSubject: Biased reporting on St PaulsI've just watched the 11.55am West Today news update and was disappointed by the highly subjective way you reported yesterday's events in St Pauls. The people of St Pauls have long complained about the biased nature of reporting about their area and this was highlighted in your broadcast this

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-78935317551278639662007-08-13T00:59:00.000-07:002007-08-13T01:02:43.236-07:00

The decision has been made to drop the charges against the French lad who translated the Potter book and posted it onto the internet. Apparently the decision was made on the back of discussions with JK Rowling. Thank god sense has prevailed. Now just give the boy a high paying job!Full story:http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6943650.stm

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-71053790634980329952007-08-08T11:53:00.000-07:002007-08-08T12:09:53.452-07:00

This story sums up a lot to me. This 16 year old French kid had the initiative, intelligence, patience and the skill to translate the whole of the new Harry Potter novel into French faster than the publishers, for no monitary gain, and he gets arrested!Many young people are doing creative things outside of schools or other institutions that are highly impressive, but because it doesn't fit neatly

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-37442673574496535402007-06-16T09:29:00.000-07:002007-06-16T10:23:02.029-07:00

Not wanting to line the pockets of Tesco any further, are we now to buy petrol from the little surviving Shells and Essos stations instead? That can't be ethical decision making. (I know, I know, I should get rid of the car altogether....but....)Not exactly the same as buying veg from the corner shop over going to the SuperMall.I guess Tesco & Sainsbury's et al get their petrol from Esso and

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-72375728691704347762007-06-08T01:43:00.000-07:002007-06-08T02:14:00.504-07:00

Another deviation from Community Media, just for another second.....I turn my back for a minute and see what happens!This is a transcript of the conversation between Emily, Charley and Nicky that led to Emily's departure from the house in the midst of another race row for the show.EMILY: (referring to Charley dancing/pushing her hips forward) You pushing it out, you n****r.NICKY: (shocked

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-45123328923780354152007-06-04T09:16:00.000-07:002007-06-08T01:48:38.801-07:00

A deviation from Communiyu Media, just for a second.....For 8 years it had me, hook, line and sinker, but not this time. Since the first series I've said "not this year", and I still end up hooked. Like Zammo, though smacked on the nose by addictive reality tv, not heroin. Much the same thing I guess.My downfall every year is that my curiosity usually makes me watch the "characters" (as they're

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-26748963743077969492007-05-24T17:51:00.000-07:002007-06-05T16:02:34.794-07:00

UPDATE: Community Media South West have published a new report:MAKING IT WORK:An Enquiry into how companies in the Community Media Sector recruit andretain skilled freelancersPublished by - CMSW / Blueboard - Jan 2007Research by Ella Bissett JohnsonEdited by Shawn Sobers, and Steve GearSynopsisThis report is a timely and original development in the analysis of social interest creative practice.

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-24477594606022712792007-05-22T16:32:00.000-07:002007-05-23T01:16:36.984-07:00

Summary of programme: WiFi is bad for you. The radiation may give you cancer and is on par with mobile phone masts, but potentially more harmful due to plans to have WiFi in every school in the UK. Children's skulls are softer and thus are more prone to serious harm. The government are ignoring research from WHO which suggests harm and are pressing ahead regardless.- --The War on drugs. War on

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-70931049896237752562007-05-18T19:00:00.000-07:002007-05-23T01:17:41.398-07:00

Just giving a heads up to all at Bristol based internet radio station Salaam Shalom.www.salaamshalom.org.ukOne of the dj and member of the steering group Adnan Ahmed was an original member of Channel Zero and I also taught him at the university. (He also sold me this broadband connection, but that's another story!)I interviewed Adnan for my PhD, and I'm more than proud to see what he's doing

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-49936830485767470262007-05-18T18:39:00.000-07:002007-05-23T01:18:41.438-07:00

Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Burma/Myanmar, China, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, UAE, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Yemen.Fpr your info, these are a list of guilty countries that filter (aka censor) the internet.To read the full article click here.

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-41071101868688366282007-05-18T12:42:00.000-07:002007-05-23T01:20:18.020-07:00

10 days ago I went to the Houses of Parliament with my comrades Emma Agusita and Cathy Poole, for a seminar discussing Media Literacy, hosted Danny Alexander MP and the Associate Parliamentary Media Literacy Group. After introductions by Danny, Ian Hargreaves (Dir of Ofcom & Researcher at Cardiff Uni), and Peter Packer (Strategy Adviser to UK Film Council and UK Media Literacy Task Force), there

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-35882634535755795142007-05-14T14:13:00.001-07:002007-05-23T01:21:25.899-07:00

Handsworth Songs, 1986, 16mm film Directed by: John AkomfrahLast week I went with a group of young people from the Channel Zer0 media club and their facilitator Gary, to see the Black Audio Film Collective exhibition at Arnolfini gallery in Bristol. For me it is an important exhibition as Black Audio are part of the reason why I do what I (try and) do, which is makes films (particularly exploring

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-42003757487681712292007-05-11T18:22:00.000-07:002007-05-23T01:27:26.842-07:00

It seems the mainstream media completely underestimated the impact and importance of Toyin Agbetu's actions on 27th March 2007 when he confroted The Queen and Tony Blair at Westminster Abbey. None of them were there to document the events of him answering bail. The only media there were a few of us with cameras. TRUE COMMUNITY MEDIA in ACTION. Mainstream media were unable to twist this

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-47330565904094701542007-04-20T16:04:00.000-07:002007-05-23T01:30:12.525-07:00

.......or bridging the gap?Click here to watch a programme we (Firstborn Creatives) recently made for BBC1.http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/bristol/realmedia/032007/marvin_insideout?size=16x9&bgc=C0C0C0&nbram=1&bbram=1

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-15445097258822912882007-02-17T15:29:00.000-08:002007-05-23T01:30:32.053-07:00

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-71728797926751623262006-11-16T17:49:00.000-08:002006-11-18T03:01:37.200-08:00

I'm part of the steering group for Connecting Bristol, which is the city's bid for the 'Digital Challenge', which is a national competition to win £4million from government for the iniviative use of digital technology to enhance the services of communities and to enhance social inclusion. Bristol have been selected as one of the 10 finalists.Today we were visited by the Chair of the government’s

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-77588853100825885342006-11-12T14:43:00.001-08:002006-11-13T15:10:44.294-08:00

I don't really need to say anything, do I? 2006.Remember this? 1991.

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-4045699146356230162006-11-12T11:43:00.001-08:002006-11-12T14:37:43.569-08:00

As part of the Fresh 6 Film Festival, Calling the Shots, Firstborn Creatives and MicroFilm teamed up to run a day long workshop on making films for mobile phones. (As I said in an earlier post, I had man-flu so couldn't be there to help out!!!)Below are two of the six films that were produced. The makers were a mini bus of young people from Cornwall, a groups from Connexions (Bristol), and a few

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-44454634757761009662006-11-12T00:06:00.000-08:002006-11-13T13:36:12.704-08:00

....or....(Joining the Dots between Media Education and Community Engagament)Yesterday's event was excellent and a real credit to Sam Burkey and all who helped organise it from Calling the Shots, Knowle West Media Centre, Suited and Booted and Firstborn Creatives, and all the young people who made the final decisions.At various times I was on the script surgeries table - giving advice to people

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-71868368843941015272006-11-10T23:04:00.000-08:002006-11-12T00:01:01.942-08:00

Today I will be working at - and taking my children to - the Fresh 6 Film Festival, which is for young people. Includes screenings, workshops, advice surgeries and competions/commissions. The website is www.freshfilm.tvLast years went really well. I hope it has a good turn out today. Yesterday Firstborn and Calling the Shots ran a practical session on making films for mobile phones, which I hear

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-18765147990450817312006-11-09T23:02:00.000-08:002006-11-12T07:43:22.585-08:00

Today had a meeting with fellow PhD student Emma Agusita, whose subject is very close to mine. Really good to catch up with her and it was mutually benificial. Peer sharing is a good thing!Talked about many things, including the slippery ground that is PhD research, the shifting sands that is the 'research question', and the importance of theory in practice. We also agreed to write an abstract

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-43624611875850668452006-11-08T22:56:00.000-08:002006-11-10T23:01:39.779-08:00

The one day ‘Digital Communities’ conference in the Watershed in June was the first time I heard the term ‘user generated content’, and since then the phrase is everywhere. [i]In my opinion it’s just a clumsy/fancy way of saying ‘homemade videos’. [ii] To be fair it’s not just that though, as the shift in how amateur moving image work is now perceived is primarily down to 2 key factors:One – The

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-10517624255392177432006-11-07T22:52:00.000-08:002006-11-10T23:01:09.054-08:00

I came across the theorist Ivan Illich (a peer of Paulo Freire), who wrote an influential text in 1971 titled ‘Deschooling Society’. The popular perception of the text is that Illich was arguing for the elimination of schools, but in the Foreword to a 1996 book of essays titled ‘Deschooling our Lives’ [i] , Illich says his earlier book was misrepresented and that he was advocating advocating for

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-42432113107515333682006-11-02T23:50:00.000-08:002006-11-12T12:11:50.972-08:00

Was part of a good event today organised by South West Screen called Innovation Alliances, which showcased various companies work that they funded from the Alliances funding strand. Firstborn had a stall with Calling the Shots and Knowle West Media Centre to showcase our "Independent State of...." project, which we are working on together.All the other companies there were more mainstream

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-5612631626215416152006-10-07T22:33:00.000-07:002006-11-10T22:51:24.512-08:00

That was the title of an event I went to in Cheltenham this evening, part of their literature festival. The panel were a Clare Short, Libby Pervis, Jeremy Paxman, Tony Benn, a print journalist called Daniel something, a Radio 4 presenter called Nick something, and the chair was also a Radio 4 presenter but I can't remember his name either. It was quite an interesting debate bit also quite

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-69089739290050184802006-09-19T22:30:00.000-07:002006-11-10T22:32:20.426-08:00

Last Friday I went to London the Prince Charles Cinema to the Black Film Makers (BFM) awards, which closed the BFM Festival season. We (Firstborn Creatives) had a lovely film called 'Confetti' nominated for the awards, which was written & directed by Shiloh Harmitt. We didn't win anything, but it was still an inspiring event and just re-established the need of films from the African continent and

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-40259997036340692182006-09-01T01:58:00.000-07:002006-11-12T02:16:19.231-08:00

Essays and Articles written for my research - May 2004 - November 2005 (PhD began in October 2004)The following essays and articles (pdf downloads) explores some of the thoughts and issues I've been negotiating during the process of my research into the Community Media Sector so far. The main focus of the research is to analyse the cultural sustainability of educational activity within the

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-548155635675830162.post-74224499051206301732006-08-31T22:28:00.000-07:002006-11-12T07:46:44.068-08:00

I'm now 2 years into my PhD looking into community media educational projects, and it's time to lay everything out on the table and see what I have.I've decided to start this blog and [try and] update it each day - whenever I've read something useful or thought a useful thought, to push it forward.Also, to stop the research going as slow as it has been for the past 10 months.I don't care if no

Shawn Sobershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02917483809174659709noreply@blogger.com0