World Cup effect on South africa

Posted on September 23, 2009 by clockword

Mnikelo talking

In may 2004, South Africa became the first African nation to be nominated to host a football World Cup. Following that announcement, South African’s were overwhelmed by the prospect of much needed development and new business opportunities.

Since then, a lot (mainly the poorest) have been evicted or resettled as the government try to show a “clean” image of South Africa to the world.

Spectacle has recently uploaded and interview with Mnikelo and Zodwa from Abahlali baseMjondolo, the South African shackdwellers’ movement, talking about the negative effects of the 2010 World Cup on South Africans. This can be viewed on the Spectacle archive page (World Cup, South Africa) and was filmed in connection with the London Olympics 2012 and the recurring effect of mega sporting event.

Mnikelo’s interview gives an insight into the World Cup backstage and its effect on the host nation.

Torture at Guantanamo Bay: Excerpts and Extras Now Online

Posted on August 26, 2009 by clockword

Preview clips and extras from the upcoming Spectacle film ‘Outside the Law: Stories from Guantanamo’, which documents the treatment of those held in Guantanamo Bay prison and other ‘dark prisons’, are now available to view online. As a lot of the material filmed for ‘Outside the Law: Stories from Guantanamo’ will not be included in the final edit, it has been made available on the Project Page and in the Archive pages of the Spectacle website to make it widely accessible. The material includes interviews with lawyers, campaigners and ex-prisoners, plus longer interviews with ex-detainee Omar Deghayes, who describes his interrogation by British intelligence agent ‘Andrew’, and James Yee, former US Army Muslim Chaplain at Guantanamo Bay, who underwent intense investigation.

Click Guantánamo for more blogs
Or visit our Guantánamo project pages for more information and videos.

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Barnfield Estate Tour and Residents’ Meeting

Posted on August 19, 2009 by clockword

The Spectacle team visited the Barnfield Estate in Greenwich to film a tour of the area, during which two local boys gave us a helping hand with the camera! Particularly salient was the disuse of the former community centre building, a large space which is currently boarded up. Renovation of the building would create a safe environment for residents to meet and take part in communal activities.

Following the tour was a residents’ meeting during which different Well London partners presented research, ideas and opportunities to members of the community. Spectacle invited residents to take part in workshops to make a film about the Barnfield Estate and community. If you would like to get involved, visit the Well London Media Project page.

White City Fun Day and Tour

Posted on August 19, 2009 by clockword

As part of the ongoing Well London project, Spectacle visited the White City Estate in Hammersmith to attend the Fun Day in BBC Park and to film a tour of the key sites of the area. Members of the community were invited to take part in filming workshops during which a film about White City, its Olympic past, its transformation and its future will be developed. A number of interviews were also recorded with key advocates of the Well London and other local initiatives. We are uploading all the Well London activities we have filmed onto the project page of the Spectacle website, where it can be viewed. If you would like to be involved in any aspect of the film about White City visit the Well London Media Project for more details.

Poverty and the Media DVD clips online

Posted on May 7, 2009 by clockword

There are now clips of the ‘Poverty and Participation in the Media‘ DVD available to view online. Please click here to view clips of our interview with Zac Beattie, maker of ‘Rich Kid Poor Kid‘.

There is also a discussion of ‘The Tower’ with residents of the Pepys Estate.

Memory Soup

Posted on March 23, 2009 by clockword

Memory soup is project that brings together mature members of the community to make soup and discuss memories. Part of the Islington and Canonbury contribution to the Well London project, Memory soup promotes both healthy eating and community spirit.

To watch someone interviews with people involved please follow this link.

You can also download a list of recipe’s used in the sessions from our website or click below.

memsoupcards

Do you have a healthy recipe you would like to contribute? If so please add to our comments section and we will post it on the Well London blog.

London Social Forum – Katie Andrews

Posted on February 10, 2009 by clockword

An interview with Katie Andrews on the consultation process of the London Olympics taking place in east London. Katie Andrews talks about the ways in which there was a lack of communication and information being delivered to the members of the public prior to the bid being being put in for the olympics to be held in London.

To watch interview click below:

London Social Forum – Katie Andrews Interview

Spectacle to re-interview residents of The Tower

Posted on February 9, 2009 by clockword

Spectacle are planning to return to the infamous Tower on the Pepys Estate, as featured in the BBC documentary The Tower, to find out from residents what they thought of the programs representation of where they lived. We will be visiting the community centre on Monday night (9/02/09) so please come along and share your opinion with us.

Have you ever lived on the Pepys Estate?

What would you like to ask the makers of The Tower?

Do you think the The Tower is a good representation of the Pepys Estate?

For more clips from our Poverty and The Media project please visit our Archive

To find out more information about our Poverty and The Media project please visit our Project Page

When do the media get it really wrong?

Posted on December 23, 2008 by clockword

Do you have any really bad examples of representations of poverty in the media?

When does the media get it wrong?

Please post examples of really bad representations of poverty and tell us why its so wrong?

Are British children the poorest?

Posted on October 8, 2008 by clockword

A Unicef report conducted in 2007 concluded that British children were the most impoverished in the industrialised world. What does this say about our country and how reliable is this report?

For example, whilst Britain came 18th out of 21 when it comes to material wealth, the measure used by UNICEF was to classify anyone living in a household with less than the national average as in poverty. Of course, this means that whilst we may have more children living in such a state as other countries, does not necessarily mean they are poorer than some of the countries who outscored the United Kingdom in the survey. Does this figure say more about the extravagent wealth of some than the poverty of the many?

Ranking just a position above the UK was the USA, which is a matter of serious interest, with Germany’s position in the middle reaches of the table meaning three of the most vibrant world economies fail to provide an adequate basis for their children to prosper. What do you make of this report? Is it cause for concern, or a case of lies, lies and statistics? According to the BBC, to newspapers etc, we are failing our children. Do you agree?

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