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Tuesday 9 September 2008

The blame of film violence on Human behavior

www.cybercollege.com/violence.htm


As I was doing research for my critical research I came across an interesting article the showed to which extent Violent films have an effect on how people react and behave. One of the most extensive studies ever done on the subject of violence and TV were released in 2003. From the beginning of my research I had  a set of point of view, I believed that violence within Films/TV will have a negative effect on the person. Within the research of 2003 329 subjects over the age of 15 were followed and examined. It came to a conclusion that those children exposed to violent TV are much more likely to commit crime and get influenced by it future in life. The research also shows that boys that were exposed to violet TV are more likely to abuse their wives in future, therefore its fair to say to a reasonable extent that Violent films & TV influence the act of crime among people. The study states and proves that after tracking 700 males and female youths over a 17 year period showed a very strong relationship between violent TV & crime influence & commitment. The study showed that their is a very strong link within violence on TV/Films & the influence of it on people especially teenagers. It is a fact that children typically witness 32,000 murders and 40,000 attempted murders on the TV which to some extent becomes something part of their everyday life which is likely to conclude in being violent behavior later in life. 
Aftre the tragic school incident at the Columbine High School in 1999 many people quickly jumped to conclusions and blamed the Media for the cause of it.
In 1992 a grope of people did a research on the Tv Guide-they found 1,846 acts of violence. 

Friday 11 July 2008

What Noel Clarke Hopes For Adulthood to Achieve-Decrease Violence?

This is the article that i have read about Adulthood and what Noel Clarke hopes it will achieve.

Link:http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=196789&command=displayContent&sourceNode=196788&contentPK=20731089&folderPk=112383&pNodeId=196828&returnNodeId=196828

The Influence Street Crime Films Have On People

Noel Clarke wrote and starred in the 2005 Kidulthood, about the violent lives of West London teenagers, and now takes a directing role too for this sequel, which follows his character Sam after he leaves prison. "Kidulthood was a bit of a phenomenon, which is why we got to do a follow-up," he reflects. "Not many British films get a sequel. I can only think of Bridget Jones, Mr Bean and 28 Days Later. But Kidulthood struck a chord with the audience because it was authentic." Clarke cites Kids as a major influence. "There were never any British films that made a mark on me when I was growing up. Kids was an honest portrait of teenagers having sex, hanging out, talking rubbish, getting into scraps. My media studies teacher brought it in to show us, and afterwards we all went out to get our own copies. I think Kidulthood connected with young audiences for the same reason: blockbusters are fine, but you need to see real life reflected on screen too."
It could be argued that films such as Adulthood and Kidulthood are produced so that individuals can relate to it and have some sort of sense of meaning in life rather than looking for an influence to commit crime.

"Adulthood" has been a box office hit, taking over £1Million in the first weekend. However it opened to some very scathing reviews. Some critics question why has it been such a success and why do people actually like it? Perhaps it is because many of the film critics don't relate to this subject matter whereas for the younger generation "Adulthood" is exactly the type of film they want to see. "Adulthood" is a hard-hitting film, which portrays how a young man, Sam, copes on his first day out of prison, after serving a sentence for murdering a fellow man, Trife. Many people want revenge, and he has to face his demons as people express their anger at what he did and Trife's friends hunt him down. But Sam has had much time to think in prison, enduring tough men and tough conditions, so he is now stronger and wiser and able to use his street experience and wisdom to stem the flow of violence. The film is fast paced, exciting and full of action with a pumping sound track. The cinematography and editing is tight and polished, without being perfect. But it's not about perfection. The subject matter is definitely not about perfection - it is rough! Noel Clarke is a new breed of filmmaker, who uses his experience in life, although apparently "Adulthood" is not autobiographical, to create strong, realistic characters in a scenario which is also realistic and compelling. The film manages to convey life on the streets for many of our young people and how easy it is for one to fall into serious crime. Some reviewers have criticised the film for relying on 'stereotypes', being a 'monotonous portrait of West London depravity in which brutal beatings, muggings, drug dealing and daylight robbery are a way of life'. But, unfortunately, this is the way of life for many youngsters today. Some people may consider the plot exaggerated and sensationalised, but many young people will recognise that these situations happen all the time in many difefrent parts of London. We indeed know about the increasing violence and stabbings in British cities today. Noel Clarke manages to convey Sam as being a character who is able to handle himself on the street and can engage in this type of violence but now realises it is no good and wants it to stop. If this film can encourage other youngsters to pull away from violence then "Adulthood" will be achieving more than just being an entertaining, urban film. Perhaps, this is why "Adulthood" has been such a success - it connects with a large percentage of the cinema going audience, in a way that few British films can. Perhaps, we need to recognise that there is an audience out there that doesn't relate to quirky British humour, period drama, or sci-fi. Noel Clarke is one of the few writers/directors who has recognised this. "Adulthood" is hip, raw and honest in a way that so much of our media these days is not.

Even though Adulthood got ore praise Kidulthood had its detractors, who suggested that it glamorised violence and “happy slapping”. The only criticism that still riles Clarke came, he says, from a Daily Mail writer.

“He said that it was unrealistic and ‘pandered to middle-class voyeurism’,” he says. “So does that mean middle-class people shouldn’t watch the news, about people suffering, because it’s voyeurism? But the truth of the matter is this,” he says, leaning forward. “I used to work at a gym in Kensington, and I was this guy’s [the writer’s] gym instructor. I literally used to wipe his sweat off the machines, but eight years later, I was making films and he was in the same job.”

Some people argue that films like these portray real life experiences and their aim is to teach individuals hat to do n situations like these. Noel Clarke commented “I think the reason these things happen between young people is there’s a sort of pride. No one wants to get a slap in the face, and go, ‘OK, I’m going to walk away from this,’” he says. “These films aren’t just about violence, they’re about actions and consequences, and how if you do things at a certain age, they can come back to haunt you.”
Noel Clarke proves his point to The Times when asked that his idea was to make a film to teach people about his actions and what is right and wrong and that it is alright to lose your pride in order to keep your life. Therefore it could be argued that in a way some Street Crime films to an extent teach individuals about crime which should lower the crime rates.
It said by critics that Adulthood is the sort of film which will make you walk hastily to the other side of the street when you see a group of youths in your way. And since it reflects the teenage gang violence recently in the headlines, Adulthood would seem to encourage every hidden fear we have without suggesting any comfortable answers.
Link: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/film/film-23344193-details/Adulthood/filmReview.do?reviewId=23496615

Thursday 10 July 2008

Kidulthood Blamed

Kidulthood has been blamed for glamorizing and exaggerating levels of knife crime, underage sex and drug-taking among London's youth in Kidulthood, the shocking and startlingly popular low-budget film Noel Clarke wrote and starred in.
Kidulthood's subject matter is now the stuff of every newspaper front page and government directive, and Clarke has written and directed a sequel, Adulthood, in cinemas from today, featuring most of the same characters five years on, failing to break the cycle of violence and criminality.
He stated "I think Kidulthood was in tune with the times, reflective of the damage youths were doing back then [in 2006], but a lot of people chose to ignore it," says Clarke gloomily. "Hopefully, Adulthood could be the start of some sort of repair, because it shows young people you can actually walk away from things. Kidulthood was viewed as the glamorizing negative themes. I recall watching Kidulthood a few years back, and as I was watching it i kept thinking that the story-line is way too much exaggerated and it definatley might have some sort of bad influence on teenagers to perform the same activities within the film.
Some people argue that it is not the Media to blame for the violence and knife/gun crime in our society today. "I think Kidulthood was in tune with the times, reflective of the damage youths were doing back then [in 2006], but a lot of people chose to ignore it," says Clarke gloomily. "Hopefully, Adulthood could be the start of some sort of repair, because it shows young people you can actually walk away from things.''
The director of both Adulthood and Kidulthood, Noel Clarke believes that Adulthood will give people a more moral approach to life and that it is OK to walk away from a fight. Since Kiduthood caused such a stir with the audience he believed that Adulthood will show that it is not always about revenge and looking 'BIG' in front of your peers.
In the end, a chance remark by actress Red Madrell about her character Alisa's future development spurred Clarke and producer George Isaac into action. They kicked some ideas around, then Clarke wrote the first draft of Adulthood in a week. "I knew I wanted it to be about this guy who thought he was the top dog, was put in a place full of horrible people, and found out he was just a little boy full of bravado," says Clarke. Therefore really Adulthood could be argue to give people a clear picture of how life really is and even though you might think that you're the top man, you will change your views when you're taken out of your well-known neighbourhood.

Individuals Getting Influenced By Films To Perform Crime

There is a number of different gang culture films that might have a negative effect on individuals and may trigger them to perform in a certain way that is violent. The main films that may portray that picture are Life & Lyrics, Love and Basketball, Bullet Boy, Dubplate Drama, Kidulthood and most recently Adulthood.
I have recently went to watch Adulthood myself and the themes that the film contained was too violent to be a 15 certificate. To my surprise after the film ended an argument broke out between 2 groups of people, to an extent copying behaviour of the actors in Adulthood.
Kidulthood was raw, gritty and disturbingly honest. From the less than Catholic attitudes towards sex to the unavoidable
presence and influence of drugs, the film did not pause for a moment in its illustrations of street violence and a general
disregard for morals or empathy.
Another film that contains similar influencial story line is 'Bullet Boy'. Bullet Boy is located in a ‘real place’, an area of North East London sometimes reffered to as a 'Murder Mile' because of the relatively high incidence of fatal attacks, many involving guns.
The most recent film that i have watched that was based on gun and knife crime was Channel 4 Fallout(Disarming Britain Season). The film contained numerous powerful themes which in my eyes did not encourage crime but presented it in a bad light. A member of the cast was asked if he believed that films such as these is the result of why people carry weapons, is it because they feel if they don't they will not look big within the society or their area. He replied "People carry them for protection, in case something bad is going to happen to them. You have to carry them if other people do," says Paul, who lives on a nearby estate in North End Road, Hammersmith. "I know people who walk around with guns." Therefore this statement shows that the individual believes that people carry weapons because everyone is doing so nowadays for protection.
An incident of bad behaviour on public transport in the film is one scene the Henry Compton boys found particularly funny.
Teens in a large group are playing their music loudly on the bus and the policeman, Joe, grabs the phone and throws it out the window. Is this scenario familiar to them? "Yeah I play my music on the bus because I want to," says Paul. "I would just turn it up louder if someone asked me to turn it down. Maybe if a woman with a sleeping baby asked me to I might. But why shouldn’t I play my music on a bus?". This statement shows that in a way individuals do not get influenced to a high extent by films for the reason that they are already doing what is done in films such as Fallout-it is nothing new to them. It could be argued that Street Crime films portray the life of real people with some exaggerated extent. Some individual argue that it is not the Media to blame for peoples bad behavior nowadays. Others agree that they have a right to play their music loudly. Anyone trying to exert some authority by telling them off is likely to make them rebel even more. After watching Fallout a number of teen were asked about their views. The response was "I don’t know, but the film made me absolutely terrified, because it was based on stuff that happens" says 14-year-old Oleksei Yedama. "Everyone knows things like this go on every day in London and nothing is done to make it safer." This shows that to a certain extent individuals are made more aware and horrified by the violent events going on in London.

A few years back when I watched Kidulthood , a street crime film directed and based on the urban setting of England.
Teenagers nowadays are becoming more atomized individuals with more autonomous influence and control over themselves, therefore they are less likely to respond influences of Film. In fact, this movie depicts teenagers from different colours and classes, growing up in radically different styles of families with only one aspect in common: the parents simply do not know what is going on. The feeling one can simply get from watching the interaction between family members, is that although it doesn’t seem dysfunctional on the surface; there is this feeling of disconnection and discontent. Many of them are no doubt the product of working class families, with parents simply too busy and/or naïve to understand what their children are up to; who they are hanging out with; what they are doing and ultimately how they are influenced by the corrupt and violent mainstream culture that's spoon feeding them.

Thursday 3 July 2008

12 Girls Fallen Pregnant In A Catholic School A The Same Time..And No Its Not Canon Palmer



Outrageous and shocking article was published in The News Of The World. This really shows how Media has an affect on the portrayal and representation of teen mums. A staggering 12 girls got pregnant at the same time period and most of them were under the age of 16 and attended St Andrews RC School, which is quite worrying, however Media has the tendency to make events look more horrific and exaggerated than they really are.

Last night one parent blasted: “It’s outrageous — half the school must have been at it like rabbits.”

Some staff within the school blame the Media for encouraging such behavior and influencing the girls to get pregnant:''Staff at the school blamed Hollywood films such as Juno for glamorising teen pregnancies.''

This shocking story mirrors the events that happened in Massachusetts where a pact was made between 17 girls at a Catolic School to fall pregnant at the same time so that they can raise their children together. One thing that they did not think about was the havoc and the media frenzy that they have caused.

In relation to this films such as Juno may be getting negative publicity due to the girls careless actions, which to an extent may not have even been influenced by the film. It could simply be argued by many people that teenagers nowadays are out of control. Even though Media plays some sort of part in encouraging sexual behavior that leads to careless and unplanned teen pregnancy, it is really the girls decision to participate in such things.

Source:http://blogs.notw.co.uk/newsoftheworld_scotland/2008/06/shock-as-teen-p.html

Friday 27 June 2008

Just Keeping My Options Open..Teen Mum-Cream Or No Cream?

I recently read an article in The Daily Telegraph where surprisingly once again teen mum has been represented negatively within the Media. Wow. This is because she left her 5 year old in the boiling spanish sun for 10 hours. Which is ridiculous if you ask me. The little boy suffered serious sunburna nd had to be later submitted to hospital.

''According to locals, at around 10am the woman went to work at the top of the beach for five hours, but failed to collect her child when she finished her shift.''

It simply shows how careless young teen mums can be towards their young children. But I strongly believe that Media portrays teen mums in a bad light for the reason that if this happened to a mature mum, which was at least 25, then the article would not be published. Concluding, it is obvious that papers publish stories that stereotype people, which is very wrong.

Thursday 26 June 2008

Dubplate Drama-You Decide What Happens Next




This is a scene from 'Dubplate Drama'. This show is based on various number of themes and usually portray violence. Such as knifes, guns and brutal beatings. However this urban themed tv show lets the audience decide what happens next which is in a way gives the audience a chance to have a say in what a certain character should do based on their own opinions and morals. In a way this is a great advantage for the reason that it lets the audience think for themselves rather than just getting influenced by the storyline. However audience still have a a chance of following characters motives and actions for the reason that the storyline is not entirely based on audiences choice. As you can see from this Dubplate Drama clip, 2 youths are planing to rob a video set by using knifes to threaten their rivals. This could encourage youths and gangs to take on the the same approach in life to get what thy need, or in this case what they want.

Change of Topic-Still Deciding



This extract from the 'Sugarhouse'..British Urban Culture Film portrays teen gang culture in a very negative light. Teenagers who watch this may be influenced in various ways to act and behave in a certain way to achieve high status within their peer group. The constant talk of 'Guns' and swearing may give teenagers the thought that it is right to behave like that therefore crime will be encouraged within these sort of type of films.

Wednesday 25 June 2008

Change Of Subject

I am now thinking of changing the area of subject that I have chosen to do for my 'Critical Research'. My chosen topic was Children & The Media-and i was focusing on how Media represents teenage mums through the media, which is usually portrayed as a negative image.
However....After looking further into the topic I no longer find it particularly interesting and I am considering of changing it. I don't really want to know why teenagers get pregnant and why are they portrayed in such way- It simply does not interest me..Maybe because i can not relate to it, for the reason that I am not a teen mum and I do not know any teen mothers myself. Even though Teenage Pregnancy does not seem to interest me to a high extent in oder to choose it for my Critical Research-I am not entirely sure that i will discontinue researching further into the matter.
I am now thinking of picking a topic associated with Crime and the Media. If i do decide to pick this area of study I am likely to research 'How Urban British Films such as Bullet Boy, Life & Lyrics , Kidulthood/Adulthood influence or in some terms glorify deviant behavior within the teen culture. I am also interested to find out if such films have a motive behind them or are they simply broadcast to represent the 'REAL GANG CULTURE'. Anyways I am not entirely sure if I will be changing my area of study into Crime & the Media.

Wednesday 18 June 2008

Media Blamed For The Increase In Teenage Sexual Behavior

Nowadays it is easy to say that most teenagers are participating in sexual activities without the protection which leads to 'Teen Pregnancy'. Most people argue that the Media is to blame for this, there is so many media resources nowadays that promote sexual behavior. Magazines such as FHM convey a macho image. Even though it is possible to argue that 'why would these young kids from the age of 12-15 be reading such magazines', you would be surprised with the answer. The childhood of most children is now getting shorter and more and more children are pulled in to the media world which encourage such sexual behavior. "The number of children depending on the media as a source of sexual information has grown and grown," said Mr Raymond. This quote from the BBC News article shows just how dependant children are on the Media. It could be argue that childhood is getting shorter and the adulthood is taking over in the early years of a child's life. Some people say that the Media is not to blame for a child's sexual behavior and teen pregnancy, it could be simply explained as a teen peer culture. Teenage mums may be represented negatively within the Media but that is not always the case for the reason that there has been a various number of success stories. Lastly most teenage mums that do not have high educational aspirations feel that having a children as a way out. Films like Juno & Waitress glorify the idea of having a child at a very young age.

Teens Tell Al About The Media

I feel that am mature enough to make my own choices. Television is just entertainment--nothing is going to change my views and the way I act.
1
When you see teenagers on television messing around all the time and having sex, you forget what a healthy relationship is like
.2
Just because two television personalities are having sex doesn't mean that I have to or want to for that matter.

3
The first thing a guy points out is that stars in the movies don't have to wear a condom.
4
Some television shows are able to portray teen life in a realistic manner. A show like Dawson's Creek is intriguing to us because it shows what being a teenager is all about. We are faced with life, love and relationship decisions everyday. A situation like finally realizing that you've been in love with your best friend your whole life does happen. And deciding whether your ready to have sex is a real life issue. Sometimes seeing things on TV contributes to our own life decisions.
5
T.V. reinforces the 'it could never happen to me' illusion.
6
At eighteen, I am mature enough to realize that what I see on television isn't real, and that the choices characters make on T.V. aren't always the best choices for me in my life. Younger children though, may not be able to discern 'T.V.-land' from reality.
7
T.V. makes kids think that having sex before marriage is something that everybody does, and is the right thing.
8
Television portrays teenage girls as always being thin, beautiful, and sexual.
9
It makes you believe that you won't get pregnant or STDs because no one on television does.
10
I think it is stupid to blame T.V. for everything. There comes a time when people need to take responsibility for their actions. When it comes down to it, you have no choice but to look back and say 'Hey, that was my action and I knew what was wrong and what was right and I made my decision, no one else.'
11
We're [teens] not angels, but we're not as bad as we're being portrayed [in the media].
12
The media does have an impact on your life, regardless of what you say. You're going to make your own choice, but media makes it easier for you and makes you put aside your family values. You see teenage shows and people have sex on the show. It's easier for that person to go and have sex and feel more comfortable.
13[Sex has] always been there. It's always been there, since like our parents were young. It's just that now that the media is more comfortable showing it, now it's a more open issue.
14
Parents don't want to take the blame for it. They say it's the TV.
15

[Sex has] always been there. It's always been there, since like our parents were young. It's just that now that the media is more comfortable showing it, now it's a more open issue.14
Parents don't want to take the blame for it. They say it's the TV.15

Friday 13 June 2008

Teen mums spurred on to exam success

Article history
Charlotte Savage describes getting pregnant at 16 as the 'best thing that ever happened to her'. In less than a year, she went from a school drop-out to an ambitious teenager training to become a primary school teacher.
Charlotte is not alone. While most parents would be horrified at the thought of their school-age daughter getting pregnant, a new report says it can transform the lives of disillusioned teenagers, spurring them to return to the classroom and aim higher than ever before.

Raising Expectations, by the government's Basic Skills Agency, highlights the fact that pregnancy can be the ultimate wake-up call. 'Finding out you are pregnant at 14 is a complete eye-opener,' said Carol Taylor, executive director for national development at the agency. 'It is a wake-up call - I am responsible for a person and I have got to learn a whole new world about being an adult.'

Taylor said many girls who fell pregnant initially had low expectations, but quickly became highly aspirational. The report praises projects that help to fulfil their ambitions by offering classes on parenting and basic skills.

It was a course for young mums run under the auspices of YMCA Training that helped to turn Charlotte's life around. She hated school. Boring lessons and bullying meant she went in only once a week. In the end, she left before taking her GCSEs and fell pregnant a few months later.

'I was 16 when I got pregnant and it was a bit of a shock,' she said. 'My mum was upset.' She split up with her boyfriend when their daughter, Amelia, was one month old. But the pregnancy changed her attitude to life. 'Having a baby opened up my eyes; I realised I needed a decent job to bring her up.'

Charlotte went to classes that taught her how to be a good mum, as well as helping with traditional subjects. Her attendance was perfect and she quickly got qualifications equivalent to GCSE A to C in maths and English. She is about to go to college to start on her path to becoming a teacher: 'If I had never had a baby, I would be working in retail, but now I have found something I really want to do.'

Her story is typical of many a young woman's. While it is not only those from difficult backgrounds who become pregnant teenagers, many cases involve girls who struggle at school and play truant. That aversion to school disappears quickly after they get pregnant, according to the study.

Nona Dawson, a research fellow at Bristol University and expert on teenage pregnancy, made a study of 10 local authorities in England. She found that young mothers developed a new-found 'belief' in education - not just for their own sake but also for their child's. The most successful schemes were where teenage mothers attended pupil referral units, rather than going back to school.

'These young women are generally disfranchised before they become pregnant,' she said. 'Education was not a priority. But you have a baby and you grow up. You realise there is going to be at least one person you will bring into the world.'

Dawson's work showed that attendance levels and exam results were all excellent as soon as the girls realised they were expecting.

The reality of being a teen mum
By Sue Mitchell
Producer on It's My Story


The girls enjoy motherhood
With teenage girls now choosing pregnancy as a "career option", according to a leading charity, three young mothers talk about how they dealt with the experience.

Britain has the highest number of teenage pregnancies in Europe and they cost the country about £63m a year.

Many young girls even see having a baby as a better option than a low-paid "dead-end" job, recent research for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation suggests.

But with 40,000 teenagers giving birth in Britain every year what is the reality of having a baby so young? What challenges do such young mothers face and how do they cope?

Housewife

Zoe and Jenny were just 14 when they got pregnant and Olivia 15. The three girls met at Cyfle a special educational unit in Wrexham, north Wales, for young mothers. Cyfle provides support so they can continue with their education, while looking after their babies.

The girls are transferred to the unit in the later stages of pregnancy and usually return two weeks after the birth. An on-site creche is provided so the girls can bring their babies with them. They are usually taught at the unit for a term, before returning to their normal schools.


Zoe's twin helped her cover up her pregnancy
Zoe, from Wrexham, managed to conceal her pregnancy until just two weeks before giving birth with the help of her identical twin, Gemma. At school her sister stepped into her place when it came to sports lessons and at home the youngsters managed to fool their parents and younger sister.

"I didn't want anyone to force me into an abortion and I felt sorry for my Mum - she always tries so hard and I didn't want to disappoint her by telling her I was pregnant," she says.

"I was scared though - we were both scared. The longer you go on without saying anything the harder it is to tell someone."

Choices

Zoe's mother, Collette, finally realised what was happening during a family holiday in Spain, when it became impossible for Zoe to conceal her pregnancy with baggy clothes. Just two weeks later she gave birth to Georgia and went to Cyfle to study for her GCSEs.

The unit was set up by a former secondary school teacher, Teresa Foster Evans, who was concerned that girls getting pregnant whilst still at school are often forced to leave without finishing their education.

Olivia also attended the unit. She had been at a private girls school in Chester when, on the brink of starting her GCSE year, she told her mother that she needed to pop into a supermarket to take a pregnancy test. She came out of the store in tears and announced that the test, which she'd taken in the shop's lavatory, was positive.


Jenny wanted to be a mother and housewife
"In some ways I wasn't surprised," says her mother, Anne Malcolm. "I was shocked of course and a lot of things crossed my mind but there was no question of not keeping the baby. Some people suggested a termination - I wasn't one of them."

Olivia has no regrets about having her daughter Ayeasha at 15. "She's the best thing that ever happened to me," she says. "If I had to do the same again I would. I don't have contact with Ayeasha's Dad but I have help from my parents and there's nothing else I wanted to do with my life.

"I don't want a career - I want to bring my little girl up and I still go out and have fun."

'Better lives'

Teenage pregnancy rates in north Wales are particularly worrying. The most common scenario is for the daughters of teenage mothers to go on and repeat the same pattern as they grow up. This was the case for the third of the girls, Jenny, who set out to get pregnant when she was just 14.

"I wanted a baby, I wanted to be a housewife and I thought it would bring me and my boyfriend, Danny, closer together," she says. "He was 17 at the time and he wasn't saying I had to use contraception. But once I got pregnant he wasn't happy then and told me to get rid of it."

Jenny, however, chose to go ahead with the pregnancy and now lives alone with two-year-old Holly. She's supported by her own mother, Sara, who knows what it's like to bring up a baby young and on your own.


Foster Evans: 'Education is key'
"It's not what I would have wanted for her, she knows how hard it was for me and how poor we were but still she went ahead and did it," she says. "She so wanted it to work and she thought she'd be with Danny for the rest of her life, even though I knew it would never work out."

Teresa Foster Evans believes a large part of the work going on at Cyfle has to centre around helping these teenage mothers lead more fulfilling lives so their own children can be given more choices as they grow up.

"Education is the key to it," she says. "If we can get them through their GCSEs and help them finish their schooling we can give them and their children far better lives."

Wednesday 11 June 2008

Celebrity pregnancy is the ‘new black’ unless you’re a teen mum

Notice how everyone is talking about the possibility of a newly pregnant 16 year old giving up her baby to her mother with a kind of creepy glee? The idea that pregnant Jamie Lynn Spears, sister of another case study in motherhood moralising is ”reluctantly agreeing that giving up the baby is the right thing to do” [my emphasis] isn’t ringing alarm bells for us. In fact, we’re all a-ok with that kind of decision making because it really is for the best that this baby not be raised by a teenage mother, even one with family support and lots of cash besides. Apparently Jamie Lynn should try to put this whole silly mistake behind her and move on with her life, because teenagers don’t get attached to their babies and anyway, it is All For The Best. “Jamie Lynn will be back at work and trying to remind people of her talent and not that she is an unwed teenage mother”. This thinking is all sooooo retrograde, you’d think we still dashed pregnant teenagers off to homes for the unwed mother. But it is permanently open season for teenage pregnancy. The idea that being pregnant is tragic or a sign of stupidity and that having sex is shameful and disappointing; there is a lot you can’t say in polite company these days about your bigoted views on women’s sexuality unless you’re talking about a teenage mother.

There is always the possibility that Jamie Lynn Spears really has made a well-informed decision to give up her child to her mother when it is born (or even that the whole rumour is fabricated). But with all this talk of her pregnancy as a moral scandal threatening the purity of her young fans, and the thrill of pondering whether being the kind of girl who gets herself pregnant she might also be the kind of girl to be sleeping around (ie. who is the father-to-be of her baby) - it is disturbing to think how disempowered she might be feeling about her pregnancy and, to what degree she is responding to our intense pressure on her to do the 1950s thing.

Ariel Gore, well-known motherhood writer and previous young mother herself’, rolls her eyes thoughtfully at the media response to Jamie Lynn Spears’ pregnancy in “congratulations, Jamie Lynn”

And, you know, even if you’ve got a hundred reasons why teen parenting isn’t a good idea—don’t you think it’s rude to share your opinions with expecting moms?

The decks are stacked against teen parents. We all know that. So why not unstack the decks instead of making everyone feel bad on top of it all?

I guess I just wanted to remind everyone that when you hear that someone is pregnant, no matter her age, marital status, sexual orientation, or financial situation, the correct response is:

CONGRATULATIONS.

Monday 9 June 2008

What is the effect of media broadcasting celebrity teen pregnancy on teens?

Ever since the teen sister of pop star Britney Spears, Jamie Lynn Spears, came out with her news about being pregnant at 16, the paparazzi have gotten their fair share of photographs and headlines have been posted.

Now what is the effect of celebrity teen pregnancy on today’s teenagers? Jamie Spears is the star of Nickelodeon’s “Zoey 101,” a show made particularly for a teen audience. And with fans like this and young teen girls that adore her, it can come off as quite confusing to them when their idol becomes pregnant so early. This may make some teen girls think that getting pregnant at such a young age is not as bad is it seems. But this of course would be the wrong message.


A lot of people have been pressuring her as a negative influence to the young teen girls out there but she could actually also be a teen following the trend of teen pregnancy in 2006 and not making it. The teen birth rate in 2006 increased by 3 percent compared to the year before. It was the first increase of its kind in more than a decade according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These statistics may come as a shock to many but even the professionals in healthcare are not totally certain about their interpretations of these numbers.

According to Reuters, Stephanie Ventura, a center official remarked "It's way too early to know if this is the start of a new trend. But given the long-term progress we have witnessed, the change is notable."

But although some experts speculate that Spears may be part of the rising pattern in teen pregnancy, her pregnancy may break through the existing taboo regarding teen sex.

Child psychologist Judy Korianski told Reuters, "This is a very shocking and bad lesson for kids."

The amount of attention that Jamie is getting regarding her pregnancy could also spark a positive focus on the issue wherein the realities of teen sex and pregnancy could be discussed. Because of her popularity, counselors or teachers, even parents could use her predicament as the starting point of important conversations regarding sex education. More importantly, keeping a teenager well-informed is a good point that parents should take from Spears’ situation. Use whatever negativity that may lie in this occurrence in a positive way.

The Daily Telegraph: Keisha Castle-Hughes defends her teen pregnancy

March 10, 2008 12:00am

BECOMING the poster girl for teenage pregnancy was never on Keisha Castle-Hughes' "to do" list but then again neither was going down in history as the youngest female ever nominated for the best actress Oscar.

Stepping out in Sydney for the Australian premiere of Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger yesterday, the young celebrity mum, 17, defended her position as a role model for girls after falling pregnant at 16.

"I have a job to do and there are other things that come with it that you don't sign up for," Castle-Hughes told film writer Erin McWhirter at the Westfield Bondi Junction screening.

"I respect other people's opinions and decisions and I hope that they respect mine."

The Whale Rider actress, who was born in Western Australia and moved to New Zealand at four, admitted she was shocked at the public backlash she received over her pregnancy.

Now, happily playing mum to her 11-month-old daughter Felicity Amore with long-term boyfriend Bradley Hull, the actress says no amount of controversy could spoil her role as a mum.

"It's amazing I have learned so much and I am so much happier. The happiest I have ever been.

"I can't even imagine I existed before becoming a mother," Castle-Hughes said.

In Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger, Castle-Hughes plays effortlessly cool girl Sunni opposite big screen newcomer Danielle Catanzariti in the title role - a teenager on the quest to fit in.

Sunday 8 June 2008

Media Discussion On Teen Parent Rights

May 23, 2001



In the mid-eighties when I was growing up there was an onslaught in the media about teen moms, how horrible they were and how messed up their kids would be. Teen moms (and dads) were practically cast as the harbingers of the end of society as we know it. There were predictions that their children would be nothing but school drop-outs, criminals, and go on to breed another generation of the under-class. The whole war against teen moms was based on the fact that so many young women were keeping their babies, choosing to raise them despite the odds, often as single mothers. The world considered them selfish and greedy for not wanting to abandon their children, for loving and wanting to cherish their children in the same way that older moms do. No, it was not a war against teen pregnancy, but against teen parenthood. Had the bulk of these young moms given their children up for adoption, which by default means abandoning them up to older people, there would have nary been a ripple of news.
By the time I had by daughter in 1989, the media had backed off a bit and teen pregnancy was not spotlighted so frequently in the news. By the end of the 1990's, politicians, educators, and more were discussing the "success" of programs designed to curtail teen pregnancy and teen sexual behavior. They felt these programs were successful because the number of teens giving birth had dropped considerably since the eighties. I have no issues with any of these programs, and certainly would never encourage any teen to become pregnant on purpose or engage in sex. But I think the success of these programs depends more on teens being more consistent with condom use to avoid sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV than out of avoidance of pregnancy.

Now that we are firmly into the new century, I see the pendulum swinging back the other way. The media has stepped up once again to wage war on teen moms. Now that welfare has been reformed, no one can argue that they are leeches on society's coffers, that is, if they are, it won't be for long. The main argument today is that teens are automatically unfit to parent and should not be given any encouragement or support. They should be counseled into either abortion or adoption, depending on your political/personal view. I think this is a shame.

Media Discussion On Teen Parent Rights

May 23, 2001



In the mid-eighties when I was growing up there was an onslaught in the media about teen moms, how horrible they were and how messed up their kids would be. Teen moms (and dads) were practically cast as the harbingers of the end of society as we know it. There were predictions that their children would be nothing but school drop-outs, criminals, and go on to breed another generation of the under-class. The whole war against teen moms was based on the fact that so many young women were keeping their babies, choosing to raise them despite the odds, often as single mothers. The world considered them selfish and greedy for not wanting to abandon their children, for loving and wanting to cherish their children in the same way that older moms do. No, it was not a war against teen pregnancy, but against teen parenthood. Had the bulk of these young moms given their children up for adoption, which by default means abandoning them up to older people, there would have nary been a ripple of news.
By the time I had by daughter in 1989, the media had backed off a bit and teen pregnancy was not spotlighted so frequently in the news. By the end of the 1990's, politicians, educators, and more were discussing the "success" of programs designed to curtail teen pregnancy and teen sexual behavior. They felt these programs were successful because the number of teens giving birth had dropped considerably since the eighties. I have no issues with any of these programs, and certainly would never encourage any teen to become pregnant on purpose or engage in sex. But I think the success of these programs depends more on teens being more consistent with condom use to avoid sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV than out of avoidance of pregnancy.

Now that we are firmly into the new century, I see the pendulum swinging back the other way. The media has stepped up once again to wage war on teen moms. Now that welfare has been reformed, no one can argue that they are leeches on society's coffers, that is, if they are, it won't be for long. The main argument today is that teens are automatically unfit to parent and should not be given any encouragement or support. They should be counseled into either abortion or adoption, depending on your political/personal view. I think this is a shame.

American Idol Success..Fantasia Barrino Single Mother Wins

May 31, 2004



This year's American Idol was filled with an array of amazing talent. It wasn't until the Three Divas, Latoya London, Fantasia Barrino, and Jennifer Hudson were at the bottom three when America knew that this competition was unpredictable.
The finale two were Fantasia Barrino and Diane De Garmo; two powerhouses soaring to become the next American Idol. Fantasia singing "Summertime," a blues melody that put a knot in everyone's throat, and Diana De Garmo singing the famous "No More Tears," originally sung by Donna Summer and Barbara Streisand.

America chose Fantasia Barrino to be the next American Idol. A young Patti Labelle, Aretha Franklin, and a voice similar to Macey Gray; this young girl was a star to be born.

But, what really burned me was when I was listening to my local radio station, a woman came on and said that Fantasia wasn't an American Idol. She felt that someone who was an unwed mother and on food stamps shouldn't get the American Idol title. This blew me away.

Fantasia, a nineteen-year old mother of a two-year old daughter, to me, did what she had to do to support herself and her child. She had a dream and she fulfilled it successfully and honestly. She earned that title and she deserves it.

There is one thing when a person depends on the government and does nothing to better themself, but this young mom went for her dream, she had talent, and it paid off. She deserves every success that comes her way.

It amazes me when people will say such negative things about other people, as if they are perfect and no one else is. But, in reality, no one is perfect; we do what we can to survive and we make the best of it.

My hat goes off to all the young moms who do make a difference, who work hard to support their children no matter what they have to do to support them. Whether a single mom waitresses for a living, sells Avon, works in a factory, and even applies for social services, they are doing the best they can to support their children and provide them shelter and food.

Teen mum-to-be finds partner hanged...Are Teenage Mums Blamed For Violence?

Jan 9 2008 by Ben Glaze, South Wales Echo

A TEENAGE dad-to-be has been found hanged just three months before the birth of his baby daughter.

The body of 17-year-old Paul Briggs, known as “Briggsy”, was discovered by his pregnant girlfriend Kyra Applin in her bedroom.

Kyra, 15, who is due to give birth in April, said today: “He was so happy looking at the scan picture, he couldn’t wait for our baby to be born.”

Police are not treating Paul’s death at Kyra’s home in Ferndale, Rhondda, in the early hours of Sunday morning as suspicious.

Today, she spoke of the young couple’s joy when they learned she was pregnant in July, three months after they began seeing each other.

Kyra said: “We were both really looking forward to it. We found out on December 19 that I was having a girl when I had a scan at Llwynypia Hospital.

“We held hands, we were both really excited. We even talked about names. I liked Michaela but Briggsy wanted Mia, so now I’m going to call her Mia.”

Doctors have given Kyra, who goes to a school for expectant mothers in Rhydyfelin, Pontypridd, two possible due dates, one of which is April 17 – the day before Paul would have turned 18.

“I’m hoping she comes on Paul’s birthday, that would be nice,” said Kyra.

Paul, a Liverpool FC fan, lived with his grandparents Tom and Patricia Jones in Ynyshir, Rhondda, while his mum Angela El-Masri lives on Anglesey.

Angela, who has two other sons, Karl, 24, and Pip, 14, said Paul was a loving, affectionate son who was excited about the pregnancy.

“He said to me, ‘I can’t wait mam, I could see the baby’s heart beating on the monitor’,” she told the Echo.

“Paul was a mammy’s boy who would tell me he loved me in a room full of people. The last words he said to me were, ‘Mam, I love you’.”

Angela, 45, learned of her middle son’s death in a harrowing phone call on Sunday.

She said: “I couldn’t stop screaming, it was as if Hiroshima had happened in my heart or somebody had stuck a dagger in my chest.

“I couldn’t take in what I was hearing, I was on my knees rocking back and forth. I was inconsolable.”

Angela believes Paul hanged himself accidentally and never meant to kill himself. She added: “He had everything to live for. Can you count how many stars there are in the sky? That’s how much I’m going to miss him.”

Paul’s best friend Nathan Applin, 17, said: “He was lovely, one of the nicest boys you could meet and he had a heart of gold.

“We used to play football together, just chilling out. He wouldn’t have done this on purpose, it was an accident. He was so chuffed about the baby, he was bouncing everyday and he loves his girl to bits.”

Paul’s grandfather Tom, 78, said his grandson’s death and had affected so many people and left a community in mourning.

“He was so full of life and would do anything for anybody. My wife and I brought him up as our own. He was a lovely boy,” he said.

A post-mortem examination was yesterday carried out at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital, Llantrisant.

Paul’s funeral will be held on Tuesday at 12.15pm at Bethany Chapel, Ynyshir.

BBC NEWS

As calls are made for sex education to be compulsory in all schools Kizzy Neal, 15, is one teenager with a lot on her plate - exams, boyfriends and looking after her seven-month-old son.
She was in her best friend's bedroom when she found out she was pregnant, in the summer of 2006. She was 13.

"I didn't stop crying for three weeks and I was really, really scared," says Kizzy, who is now 15. "I knew I'd done something wrong. Thirteen is not the ideal age to have a baby."

She had been fearful after having sex for the first time, unprotected, with Louie.

"Since I got pregnant, I've learnt so much about contraception, abortions and sex but at school I think I had so few sex education lessons."

While the father of her child rejected being a dad and moved away from Torbay in Devon, Kizzy never considered having her pregnancy terminated.




Kizzy: Mum at 14
As it went on, she became the target of abuse from people. She was spat at and her brothers were attacked because, her father Kevin believes, she chose not to have an abortion.

She lost friends because of her pregnancy, but the girls who had abused her changed their behaviour after she had baby Kaylib in May.

"When I was pregnant it was like 'You little so-and-so' but when I had the baby they were round the pram saying: 'Isn't he beautiful?'

"It was a bit two-faced. Without a baby I didn't want to go out of the house and I was scared, but as soon as I had the baby, the people I was scared of were coming up, being really nice to me."

The birth itself, in May, was the best moment of her life, she says.

"When they put him on my chest, I was so overwhelmed, you don't know whether to smile or cry or laugh or scream, you don't know what to do. It gives you a warm feeling in your tummy."

Sacrifices

From that moment on, says Kizzy's mother Kerry, who is in her 40s, the atmosphere changed. "There was so much negativity about Kizzy having the baby in the first place, then when he was born there was so much joy and excitement and everyone loves him."

Kizzy returned to college in September, leaving her mother to look after Kaylib while she studies for six GCSEs. She wants to be a member of Parliament but if that doesn't happen, to be an occupational therapist.

But although Kizzy may look like any other student in the classroom, she is constantly reminded of her responsibilities as a parent because of the sacrifices she has to make and what she describes as her lost childhood.

"I miss being able to get up and go out when I want to and doing teenage things. I can't do these things as much anymore but I do get help from mum and dad so I get the chance to be a child as well as a mum."

It's hard to let go of your childhood

Kizzy Neal

She has made a programme with BBC Three about her experience to show other teenage girls that motherhood is "not all about cute babies, it's hard work.

"It's hard to let go of your childhood, you have to break away from that, you have grow up really fast, you have to mature quickly. It's hard getting to grips with being a mum and how to look after your child the best you can."

It's even harder without a father, and earlier this year Kizzy took Kaylib to Southend to meet his dad. On her way home, it struck Kizzy that the two probably wouldn't meet again.

"I was thinking about the baby growing up without a dad and thought I'd let him down. It's ideal to have a mum and a dad and to have a proper environment but it's very different for me. He's got as much love as he needs, even without a dad."

Giving out condoms

Kizzy's story is not uncommon in the UK, which has the highest teenage pregnancy rate in western Europe.

There were 46,215 girls under 18 who became pregnant in 2005, according to the Family Planning Association.

On average four out of 10 pregnant girls have the baby. But the teen conception rate is falling and sexual education is working, says Brook sexual health charity's chief executive Simon Blake.


Kizzy's parents help look after Kaylib
"It is reducing. We've got a teenage pregnancy strategy that is working. Good quality sexual education and access to services is a real part of the solution."

Last week, campaigners called for sex and relationships education to be made compulsory in all schools. The Terrence Higgins Trust, the NSPCC and the National Union of Teachers said no schools should be able to "opt out of delivering good sex and relationships education to their pupils".

Kizzy believes her school takes the wrong approach by too readily giving out condoms and "promoting sex".


It is claimed 11 other girls at the school also became pregnant, which the school strongly denies.

The school says it devotes considerable resources to sex education and says part of its message is to teach youngsters to delay having sex until in a stable, loving relationship. It also has a confidential drop-in centre called Tic Tac that offers advice on sexual health, abortion and contraception.

Tic Tac has been held up by the government as a model of good practice but Kizzy's father Kevin believes its work undermines a parent's efforts to instil abstinence in a child. His daughter accepts it was her mistake but her fears that having Kaylib meant the "end of fun" have not been realised.

"Every day that goes by," she says, "there's something he does that makes me laugh."

Friday 6 June 2008

The Observer: Violence blamed on teenage mums

Study claims that immature young parents with poor discipline techniques are creating aggressive children
Mark Townsend
The Observer, Sunday October 16 2005 Article history
Britain's high rate of teenage pregnancies is a principal factor in the cause of violent crime, according to a controversial report by a leading criminologist.

Speaking before the launch of one of the largest ever studies into violence, its author George Hosking said that parents under 16 were contributing to 'a cycle' of aggression that meant people were 25 times more likely to be a victim of violence than 50 years ago. His comments were denounced by many as demonising young parents.

Hosking referred to evidence that a person's propensity to violence is determined by the age of three. He said that teenage parents can lack 'emotional maturity' and misjudged attempts at discipline could lead to their children developing violent tendencies. A strong, healthy relationship between parents and babies is vital to reducing aggression, he said.

'More and more children are being born to younger parents who have no reference to draw on in how to handle a baby,' said Hosking, a clinical criminologist and chief executive of the Wave Trust, a charity dedicated to tackling the root causes of violence and which this week will unveil its nine-year study into the issue.

He added: 'Lower emotional maturity, lower emotional reserves and experience or maturity that people can draw on as parents play a role. People treated particularly badly under the age of three were more likely to go on and abuse as adults. Early intervention is required to stop a cycle of violence from developing.'

Despite government attempts to tackle teenage pregnancies, Britain still has one of the highest rates in Europe. Latest figures reveal that the rate of under-16-year-old pregnancies in England and Wales has increased.

Although Hosking said he wanted to avoid being seen as critical of parents, his views will be interpreted by some as yet another attack on teenage mothers and fathers.

Catherine Evans of the Brook Centre said: 'There is a real risk of demonising teenage parents who are doing their very best for their children. They need support rather than being undermined or criticised. Teenage parents themselves are likely to have fewer educational opportunities and that is likely to have a knock-on effect on the outcomes of their children, but I am not aware of any evidence on the effects of teenage pregnancies.'

However Norman Wells, director of Family and Youth Concern, a research group that looks into the causes of family breakdown, said: 'It certainly could be a factor. It shows the importance of addressing the high rates of out-of-wedlock teenage pregnancies that we have in this country.'

The Wave Trust report, which analysed scores of academic studies into the causes of violence, claims that people are 25 times more likely to be a victim of violent crime now compared to the Fifties. Based on official police statistics, the study calculated that in 1950 there were 47 violent offences per thousand people compared to 1,158 for 2003/2004.

Hosking, who is 61, added: 'When I was walking around in the Fifties compared with walking around now we are looking at levels of risk and violence way beyond what was present at that time.

'Comparisons are now being made using the Nineties as a yardstick, yet violence then was many, many times higher than in the Fifties. We should be looking to that decade for a normal, acceptable level of violence,' said Hosking.

The increasing risk of violence contradict the findings of the British Crime Survey, which indicates that violent crime is going down. A spokesperson at the Home Office would not comment without having seen the methodology used by the Wave Trust.

However, he said: 'The British Crime Survey is regarded internationally as the most reliable measure of trends of crime. It shows violent crime is actually falling and has reached its lowest point since 1981.'

Critical Research

For my critical research i have came to a decision that I will be doing a critical research study surrounding the issue of 'Children and the Media'. I am mostly interested in finding out the answer and reasons to why teenage mums are presented so negatively within the media. However there is a likely chance that I might choose to look into the issue of how violence is blamed on teenage mums through poor upbringing. I am planning to evaluate the different stereotypes of teenage mums that are being portrayed through the media and how most teenage mum are blamed for the society not functioning right due to the poor upbringing of the next generation. I want to look into documentaries and focus on how the teenage mums challenge their stereotype or do they simply tend to comply with it.

Sunday 4 May 2008

Defeat Your Myspace ADDICTION

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This Is How You Do It...
Admit you have a problem. This may be hard, but accepting that MySpace has taken over your life is an important step into overcoming your addiction. If you simply can't resist the urge to check your home page, then it's clear that MySpace is controlling you and not the other way around.
Stop communicating with people through MySpace and correspond with only those you know, as fellow addicts only contribute to your problem. If you don't want to cut them off completely, consider just taking the friendships that you value off of MySpace. Get their phone numbers, email addresses, AIM screen names, ICQ numbers, or any other information that may be a way of contacting them outside of MySpace.
Print out your page. You've probably personalized it and tweaked it to reflect your personality. In a way, it's a work of art that you created. You don't want it to be lost forever, so save a copy in print. Having a hard copy will make it easier to let go of your profile online.
Start deleting all of the images, comment boxes, background settings, songs, videos, and anything else you put on the page that didn't come with it. Make it into a plain MySpace profile, like it was when you started it. End all blog subscriptions that you have signed up for. Turn off all email notifications.
Post several bulletins announcing that you will be no longer available on MySpace. Delete your main pictures, blog, comments, friends, etc. If your profile is set to private, set it back to normal. Reset the information about yourself.
Change the headline to "No Longer Available" or some other indicator that you no longer use MySpace. Stop using MySpace. Get an e-mail filter and set it to block MySpace, Facebook, or any other similar sites.
Find other creative activities to do. Try to find activities that both amuse you in the short-term and benefit you in the long-term. MySpace only provides a short-term pleasure (usually). Keep in contact with your friends through phone, e-mail, or messenger! Not talking to them may make you want to return to MySpace. After waiting a good month and re-establishing your life, go back and delete your MySpace. It shouldn't, at this point, rip your heart out to do so. Never go back to MySpace, as it will possibly trigger a relapse into the addiction again.
Take a cold shower. And find a relaxing thing to do, eg. take a nap
Return to your wonderful life of impelling arcane and affinity.



TIPS
People who hardly know you may not want to give you personal information and may feel uncomfortable interacting with you outside of MySpace.
Find other activities to do with your time. Learn to program, write a book, etc.
If MySpace is your homepage, change it to another informational homepage such as Google, wikiHow, Yahoo, etc.
If your real-life friends and family members use MySpace, inform them that you're trying to stay away from it, and ask that they don't sign on when you're around.
It may be really hard to keep in touch with some people, especially if they are MySpace addicts. If you want to talk to them outside of MySpace, but they don't sign onto AIM or you feel awkward calling them, you may want to try weaning them off MySpace as well. Remember, real friends don't let friends be MySpace addicts.
If you're like most people, MySpace will lose its appeal after a few weeks of steady or perhaps heavy use. Eventually the grandness will fade away and you will get sick of playing the waiting game for your friends to respond to your over-simplistic comments or messages. If you're like me, nothing beats simply picking up the phone and calling your friends to see how they're doing. Eventually, not only will you have no interests in signing on to MySpace, you will have no need to.
Change your password by closing your eyes and randomly typing. This may require you to copy and paste to confirm your new password. Just be diligent in not peeking or writing this down.
Think about all the time you wasted on MySpace and how it could have been spent wisely elsewhere.
One alternative method is to use a less addictive social networking site, such as xanga or livejournal, and posting there, but not actively seeking out friends.
Another alternative is to just cancel/delete your current myspace account.


Photobucket
Myspace Addict

Wednesday 30 April 2008

The BIG Success With Myspace

In little more than a couple of years MySpace.com has gone from zero to being a top five website which no self-respecting US teenager can ignore. Now, it's gaining ground in Britain.

As any creative thinker knows the best ideas are always the most obvious. The rise of MySpace.com from nowhere to almost the top of the internet tree in just 36 months does nothing to change that maxim.

MySpace is simplicity itself - a site that enables anyone to build their own homepage for free, listing their likes, dislikes, favourite bands, top books, best movies, general interests, relationship status etc, and then hook-up with other like-minded folk.

As 25-year-old Briana Dougherty, a MySpace devotee, puts it, "it's a casual way to stay in contact without appearing weird".

When Briana, who works in the music industry, hits the town, goes to a gig or a party and meets someone interesting, they trade MySpace profiles and stay in contact.



It's a central meeting point to stay in contact with friends all the time
MySpace user Briana Dougherty
Asking for someone's e-mail address can be "creepy", says Briana, who is from California and works in London, because it's "personal, one-to-one contact".

She has 224 "friends" on MySpace. Some are good friends from back home in the US, some are just people "you occasionally see around parties" and some are not actually individuals, but bands she likes.

Music, always a lively topic of conversation among the young, is a great common denominator on MySpace, and fertile ground for emerging bands - the Arctic Monkeys' owe much of their success to the site.

These days the time-honoured teenage conversational gambit "What music are you into?" will likely be met with a response along the lines of "Can I refer you to my MySpace page."

MySpace is what's known as a social networking site. It's by far the biggest, claiming about 57 million registered users, and is currently ranked the fifth most popular English language site on the net by the Alexa ratings service. Others of the same genre include Facebook, Bebo, MSN Spaces, Friendster and Yahoo 360.


The new man behind MySpace - media mogul Rupert Murdoch
All work in a similar way, offering users a host of conventional internet functions - blogging, user forums, instant messaging, personal profiles, online photo albums, visitor comment spaces - in one place.

See someone who's into the same music as you, similar films, is a compatible star sign, or you just fancy? Send them a message and if they're interested, bingo, you've made a friend. Although MySpace wouldn't confirm its UK audience, it has been cited at between two and four million. The launch of a UK-specific site is thought to be imminent.

The success of MySpace has not gone unnoticed by commercial operators who have seized on it as a handy way of targeting potential customers. For example, anyone who proclaims their interest in kite-surfing, should steel themselves for a torrent of e-mails from companies trying to sell them the latest kit.

And with millions of users, social networking sites, which make money out of advertising, are potential goldmines. MySpace was bought last year by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation for $580m (£332.85m).

But while Mr Murdoch, 75 this week, is clearly hip to the appeal of MySpace, many people even half his age will never have heard of it.


DANGERS OF NETWORKING SITES

The safety of people, particularly children and women, using MySpace is a growing concern
Rachel O'Connell, who leads the Home Office taskforce on internet safety, is anxious that pages are so easily searchable
Displaying photos of oneself helps stalkers, she says
MySpace's Chris DeWolfe says 'This isn't a MySpace issue, it's an internet issue'
"The appeal of these sites lies in the crucial part of the adolescent socialisation process which we all go through... finding your identity, voice, place and status - the tribe with which you most identify," says Jo Twist, senior research fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research.

The ideas behind these sites are not new, says Dr Twist, but what is characterising the trend now is the "ease with which people can upload and share their own 'digital assets' - motifs that say something about who they are."

Some parents will doubtless gaze at their offspring busily cultivating friendships online - rather than in the real world - with an air of despair. But, says Dr Twist, it can be hard for them to understand because "many of us have our social networks in place".

The ease with which relationships can be forged online is changing the nature of friendship too. After all, how common is it to have upwards of 200 friends?

MySpace user Stella Sims, 26, sees a clear, but unspoken, competitive streak among users.

"It's a place to show off your personality and how many friends you have. It's a bit of statement of how popular you are," says Stella.


The site is said to have 57 million registered users
Any philosopher or psychologist will tell you that close friendships with more half-a-dozen people is not possible, says Mark Vernon, author of the Philosophy of Friendship.

MySpace friendships are more akin to "audience reach... like Richard and Judy" than traditional social reach.

"Friendship takes time to develop. The person who says they have hundreds of friends wants our compassion not our envy. The heart of friendship is wanting to know someone and be known by them. This is not the same as knowing about someone which is what you get if you never meet your online pal face to face."

Some will find the idea of setting out one's personal life to a potential audience of millions perplexing. Yet MySpace users show little sign of being intimidated by their extensive friendship networks, or indeed by the inevitable threat posed by dishonest, even predatory, users.

Despite a spate of paedophiles and stalkers targeting the site - two men were charged in the US on Tuesday with assaulting girls they met on MySpace - most users simply ignore unwanted communications, according to a recent academic study in the US.

Perhaps the biggest headache anyone with a couple of hundred mates needs to get their head around is how to manage their Christmas card list.

Wednesday 23 April 2008

Social Networking

While the influence of social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace on firms’ sales and marketing initiatives continues to grow, some experts predict that their impact will soon be dwarfed by that of another Web 2.0 technology - ­ virtual worlds.

Online virtual worlds geared towards entertainment are commonplace nowadays, the
best known being Blizzard’s World of Warcraft, MindArk’s Entropia Universe and Linden Labs Second Life. Users are immersed in an online three-dimensional interactive environment where their characters ­ - usually known as avatars ­ - can get up to just about anything. The fact that life in these virtual worlds often revolves around money, which in some cases can be converted to and from real currency in the physical world, is obviously enticing to businesses.

Ways in which enterprises might use virtual worlds for everyday business range from setting up a virtual meeting place to aid employee collaboration, to a business-to-consumer model where firms maintain a virtual store selling items that are delivered in the real world.

Quocirca principal analyst Fran Howarth is a firm believer in the promise that virtual worlds hold for enterprises. “These worlds have huge potential in terms of the ability to build brand awareness and do PR in the web site’s community and, in some cases, to sell or advertise products to potential customers,” she said.

Topics under discussion at the recent Virtual Worlds 2008 conference in New York reflected the growing interest enterprises are showing in virtual worlds. For example, the theme of one of the best-attended sessions was the need for virtual world developers to focus more on promoting the business benefits of their technology.

Gartner fellow and vice president Steve Prentice believes the past six months have seen a surge in interest from enterprises wishing to explore the potential of
virtual environments.

However, Prentice added that companies are wary of various complications, such as identity management, and reliability and scalability issues that have plagued public virtual worlds such as Second Life. There is also the risk of brand damage if anything should go awry, as well as the ever-present security issues.

One of the major worries is the risk of security flaws that might expose business-critical information. These are not restricted to virtual worlds, of course, but apply to many other publicly accessible social network sites.

“Having employees access a public service such as Second Life, which is out of their control, is not very attractive to enterprises,” Prentice explained.

Quocirca’s Howarth said that enterprises were also worried about the drain on productivity that might be caused by employees spending too much time at work immersed in these sites.

“There is a range of security issues. For example, users placing too much personal information online that could be compromised, or even giving away corporate information, such as email addresses, or chatting about sensitive corporate issues,” Howarth said.

Corporations allowing employees access to these sites “must educate users and put policies in place as to what constitutes acceptable behaviour, as well as ensuring that those policies are enforced through technology, such as content filtering technologies,”she added.

David Lavenda, vice president of marketing for Web 2.0 security specialist WorkLight, said most enterprises are likely to remain wary of virtual worlds for some time to come.

“I think companies have a problem about adopting things that they don’t necessarily buy or deploy or fully control. It’s a cultural change, and it’s been brought on by things like Google Apps, Salesforce.com and SaaS products,” Lavenda said.

However, Web 2.0 advances have a habit of riding roughshod over such pragmatic concerns about issues such as control. To illustrate this point, Lavenda recalled a recent security forum his firm held in London, where a chief finance officer from a large bank commented, “We don’t allow employees to use Facebook at work, but I don’t want to be the guy holding his finger in the dam, because at some point this is going to overtake us. We have to find a way to allow people to use these tools, because they are going to find a way to use it whether we block it or not.”

One of the more prominent announcements at the Virtual Worlds 2008 conference was the partnership between IBM and Linden Labs, creator of Second Life, who demonstrated how some portions of the virtual environment could be hosted behind a firewall on IBM blade servers. This arrangement has the potential to allay some control and security concerns.

Anyone looking to incorporate virtual world technology into their business strategy should tread cautiously, according to Prentice. “I am firmly of the belief that virtual worlds are a great technology for enterprises, but my attitude is that initially they ought to consider it as an internal tool, before they start worrying about opening it up to the external world,” he said.

As an example, IBM plans to pilot its solution internally, allowing its employees to explore the main Second Life environment and cross the firewall into IBM’s custom-built world without having to log on and off.

An alternative, according to Prentice, is for businesses to create their own small-scale virtual worlds, instead of joining a large-scale public one.

“This could be something like Sun’s Project Wonderland, which is a Java-based set of engines and technology to allow you to build what I would describe as an avatar-enabled collaboration environment,” he said, adding that all firms really needed to get started is a few virtual conference rooms and perhaps a presentation theatre.

Enterprises, however, need to install a system that can be relied on, which IBM could offer. “There’s no doubt that IBM can deliver a stable, 24x7 platform, that is scalable and keeps running ­ that’s their bread and butter,” Prentice said.

Sunday 3 February 2008

Magazine Design Tips

First-time publishers will, through inexperience, make a few technical mistakes building their magazine. Many magazines come through MagazinePublisher.com, some look great, others, lets say... could use some help. The following tips for magazine design can make your magazine a real "page turner."

Get Inspiration
Before you start your magazine, go to a newsstand and purchase a few magazines that catch your eye. Take them home and try to decide WHY they caught your eye. What is it?... the photos? the layout? the subject of the magazine? Use elements you like in other magazines to inspire your magazine's layout. And do your best to not let the computer dictate your layout. The software works for you not the other way around.

Use a Great Masthead
The masthead is your magazine's logo. It is most often located at the top of the cover and should be the first thing your reader sees. It must be legible and tell people about your magazine. You have looked at your magazine thousands of times but your readers have not. If the masthead is developed with illegible fonts, people won't view it as you intended.
If your magazine is on the newsstands, there are other considerations of which you need to be mindful. Unless your magazine is on the front row, readers will see only the top 2" of your magazine. Does that area in your design lock in the reader's attention? Try testing your magazine by printing out the cover and putting another magazine in front with the top 2" showing. Now take a look from across the room. This is how future purchasers will be seeing it.

Remember, your cover design will be fighting the other covers for attention. A well-designed masthead visually entices the buyer to choose one magazine over others in its category.

Use a Great Cover Photo

DON'T try to save a few bucks on the cover. A well-designed cover can get your magazine noticed and even more importantly, picked up! Therefore, all cover photos must be of a good, high quality photo (in the proper resolution).
Choose a photo that is interesting to your potential readers or which tells a story. Showing the unexcited face of an unknown person will not do much to get the potential customer to reach for your magazine. Choose a photo that is recognizable to your target readers or shows action, unusual colors, taken from unusual angles, or combinations of all these.

Remember, your magazine only gets one chance to make its first impression. Photos are powerful in making a good first impression.

Multi-column Layouts


One trick for having your stories look professionally built is to use a multi-column grid to the page. For regular sized magazines try using three columns, digest sized mags use two. Not only does it look more professional but text will flow better on the page and you will have more options for placing photos.
Don't Be Afraid of "White Space"

Although it can be difficult, consider leaving some areas of the page blank. Stuffing as much as you can onto a page is visually overwhelming to the reader. Experiment with leaving some column white space in your new multi-column layout. Try running text in one of the columns only with a photo or graph covering the other two columns. Try starting your article halfway down the page with the top half being reserved for a photo. Experiment - computers make that easy.
Stay Away from the Edge

Many magazines that come through our facilities have layouts with text too close to the edge of the page. Again, don't try to fill up the entire space. 1/4" margin is the minimum suggestion but better 1/2" or even more, page margin is suggested. Again, it looks more professional adding more white space and you will not worry about the possibility that text might be cut off when the magazine is cut down to size after printing.
Avoid Clip Art

Market research has shown that cartoons do not sell to adults. In this case you are selling the story to the reader. He has not read the story and is deciding whether to or not based on the graphics. If hokey, cheap clip art is used there is a good chance he will not read the article.
Of course if your article deals with child-related subjects then clip art MAY be acceptable.

Remember...It's Only a Magazine

You have invested a great deal of time, creative energy and perhaps money in your magazine. Because of this, you will be dismayed to have your work judged harshly BUT it still won't be perfect when your time deadline comes around. Keep in mind - you may be the only one that ever notices minor imperfections. You don't hyper-analyze other peoples' magazines - your readers won't hyper-analyze yours! It is only a magazine...not a work of art.
Other Magazine Tips

Below are a few other tips that will make your magazine a little more successful. Don't Forget Contact Info
Now that you have a reader you of course would like them to be a long-term reader. We see many magazines come in that forget to tell readers how to subscribe. Your contents page is a good place to list the following info:
your physical address
your web and email address
subscription price
how to subscribe


Introducing the New Kid on the Block

Chelsea Moody isn’t your average teenager or your average publisher. At 17 years old, Chelsea started her first publication, Etc. Art & Surf Magazine in January of 2007. In only a few months, she’s made waves in magazine publishing, no pun intended. She’s an inspiration for anyone starting – or anyone who already has – a publication. With her second issue out on April 4th, Chelsea’s proved that hard work and belief in your publication is the key to success.

Chelsea recently talked with MagazineLaunch.com about her experiences starting a new magazine, handling the growth after the first issue, and her grassroots marketing techniques. She also designed the entire publication.

How did you come up with Etc. Art & Surfing Magazine?
I started the magazine because I am constantly around the surf scene, since I live in Virginia Beach, and love the surf industry. I love the surf contests, and the magazines and everything to do with it. In Virginia Beach, it seems that art and surf fit hand in hand and that this idea, for an art & surf magazine, was totally overdue. I just started the magazine and I love it!

What made you want to enter the publishing world?
I love graphic design. I knew that what I wanted to do was magazine layout, but had got rejected (for info on internships) by many magazines in the field. I sat down and thought about it and wanted to make a magazine that fit, but was not limited to, Virginia Beach. A lot of people may think print is dead, but for me, there is nothing compared to having a hard copy in your hand.

How has the Internet helped you with your publishing venture?
The Internet hasn't really done that much for me simply because it is a free publication and our website is not set up for ordering. It has been a great tool for networking and easier for more people to send in submissions. It has let more people know about the magazine, but hasn't got them that hard copy that I talked about before.

What kinds of marketing and advertising have you done to promote your magazine?
I have stickers all around Virginia Beach and try to make it out to all the contests and events. I sent some to the surf expo and give them to all the surf brand reps to take whenever they are traveling. I had a surf contest back in November to kick off the whole idea of the magazine and am planning to do a little surf series in the summer.

How are you managing your circulation and distribution?
I send them out with anyone and everyone who travels up and down the east coast. I do most of the distribution myself... It's fun going to drop them off everywhere because you get to see people's reaction and how much they like the magazine. Every time I go into a shop the workers are always like "Is this the next issue? We are ready for it!" I am hoping to print 2,000 more copies with every issue and cannot wait to expand!

What tips can you give others on getting their first issue produced?
Network, network, network! Any and every tip someone gives you - write it down. It will all add up and help you in the long run. And just love what you do. It’s so cliché, but so true. If you love publishing this magazine, you will never give up and that's what's important.

Saturday 2 February 2008

Top 20 Teen Magazines










1. Teen
2. Cosmo Girl
3. Seventeen
4. Girl's Life Magazine
5. Teen People
6. YM
7. Elle Girl
8. J-14
9. Teen Voices
10. What!
11. Boy Crazy
12. Alloygirl
13. Adorable Magazine
14. Dazed & Confused
15. American Cheerleader
16. Guideposts Sweet 16
17. American Girl
18. Filles d'aujourd'hui
19. Dolly
20. Ragazza