Socia media advertising event of the year

Posted by on Aug 21, 2010 in Social Media | 2 comments It’s billed on Facebook as the  “Social Media Advertising London Event of the Year”, and I plan to be there. It is being led by online marketing guru Murray Newlands, who has impressed my blogging mentor Geoff Jones, a Cambridge geek who held one of the first social media conferences ever in the UK in September 2005. And that’s good enough for me. This is what Murray has...
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Enjoying our agricultural and environmental heritage

Posted by on Jun 15, 2010 in My videos | 2 comments If you didn’t manage to visit one of the 400-plus farms at the weekend which opened their gates to local communities during Open Farm Sunday, then you can find out more by playing this video I recorded for the NFU. It shows families having a wonderful time learning about food production, building scarecrows, riding tractors, and so much more, as Jim Paice, the amiable Minister for the...
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John Bercow outlines his vision to revive the Chamber

Posted by on Jun 11, 2010 in My videos, updates | 4 comments These are two videos I made of John Bercow, Speaker of the House, outlining his vision to revive the Chamber in the House of Commons to the Hansard Society on Wednesday. In the top video, he describes how he is keen to get more ministers back into the Chamber, provide more question opportunities for MPs, increase the number of private members’ bills, introduce shorter debates (including...
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What bloggers need to know about defamation

Posted by on Apr 11, 2010 in Social Media | 3 comments This is a guest post by barrister James Tumbridge following a report by Iain Dale highlighting the difficulties which Labour blogger Alex Hilton faces. It is a cautionary tale for us all: New media in the form of weblogs or ‘Blogs’, are subject to laws on defamation aimed more at the traditional media than the online. As authors and editors, bloggers, face a problem in the inter-active side...
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A Lib Dem vote will only help Gordon Brown

Posted by on Apr 11, 2010 in 2010 general election, video | 2 comments Robert Sturdy MEP and Trevor Ivory, Conservative parliamentary candidate for North Norfolk, explain why a Lib Dem vote is a vote for Gordon Brown. Vote for change, vote Trevor...
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One of the UK’s top 50 bloggers

Posted by on Jan 8, 2010 in Social Media | 11 comments I am stunned to find that I have been ranked among the UK’s top 50 bloggers for “politics, technology and style”, according to data analysed by the global media intelligence organisation Cision, ranked at 47. It’s particularly unexpected because my blogging has taken a back seat over the last year or so due to my other varied commitments. I am amazed to find I have squeezed in at 47...
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The Sunday Times and Belle de Jour

Posted by on Nov 15, 2009 in News, Social Media | 10 comments As intrigued as I was to learn the true identify of blogger Belle de Jour and her Diary of a London Call Girl – she is revealed as a research scientist by the name of Dr Brooke Magnanti – I am struggling to understand why the story had four pages of coverage in today’s Sunday Times. The story and picture of Brooke had more column inches on its front page than any other news item, as well as...
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Message for Joe Cheng at Microsoft

Posted by on Jul 2, 2009 in Social Media | 5 comments I am hoping Joe Cheng who helps writes the Windows Live Writer programme will read this post because I need his help again. Two years ago I wrote a post when I had problems with Live Writer and he swiftly responded after reading about it on my blog and instantly sorted out my difficulties. I was so impressed. I have just updated Live Writer, but now I can’t publish posts from the blogging...
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Our future digital world

Posted by on Jun 16, 2009 in Social Media | 8 comments I called into the Apple Store in Cambridge today where the staff are very excited about the new iPhone which will be launched in the UK on Friday. It has voice control and a compass and I am lusting after one – surely every Rambler like me should have one! And, at long last, it includes a video and improved camera. Unfortunately, the contract on my iPhone runs for another year, in which...
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Defamation and the law of blogging

Posted by on Apr 15, 2009 in Politics, Social Media | 5 comments There could well be a perception that blogging is lawless following the latest “Smeargate” sensation. In fact, that is not the case. Responsible bloggers know that they also have to adhere to the laws of libel and slander, they wouldn’t put their neck on the line. A blogger can be sued for defamation of character if he has written a post that lowers a person’s reputation...
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Top 20 Tory Twitterers

Posted by on Apr 13, 2009 in Social Media | 8 comments This is Iain Dale’s list of top 20 Tory Twitterers ranked by their number of followers: 1. Boris Johnson 24,3412. Conservative Party 5,453 3. Iain Dale 3,0254. James Cleverly 1,7015. Jonathan Sheppard 1,4826. Grant Shapps 8147. Steve Green 7938. Tim Montgomerie 7619. Craig Elder 73610. Conservative Future 70911. Michael Fabricant MP 49612. Tory Bear 46513. Louise Bagshawe 45414. Ed Vaizey...
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A video tour of the European Parliament

Posted by on Apr 10, 2009 in Headway, PR client, Robert Sturdy MEP, video | 2 comments I thought you might be interested in having a look at some scenes I recorded of the European Parliament in Brussels. When I last visited four years ago, there was much building work taking place to provide accommodation for MEPs and staff from the new eastern European countries. That has now been completed and two new office blocks are linked to the main Altiero Spinelli building on Rue Wiertz...
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The Obama social media dream, and how it happened

Posted by on Mar 30, 2009 in Social Media, video | 4 comments There is still an overwhelming fascination about Barack Obama’s unprecedented use of the social media which took him straight to The White House. He used it to raise a staggering $668 million and on the day of the election, there were 1.2 billion blog posts written about him. Crucially, Obama used YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and blogs to listen to people and respond. He even set up a special...
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Robert Sturdy urges G20 leaders to promote free trade

Posted by on Mar 29, 2009 in PR client, Robert Sturdy MEP, video | 2 comments My MEP Robert Sturdy is a key international trade spokesman and in this video he explains why we need to increase free trade across borders globally and do away with protectionism to help recover from the recession. Is that what G20 world leaders will have in mind when they meet this...
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How can charities survive?

Posted by on Mar 25, 2009 in PR, video | 7 comments This video provides advice from the experts on how charities can use communications to promote their organisations during the economic downturn. It features hot tips from Channel 4 News presenter Jon Snow; Mark Webster, Director of Communications with the Charities Aid Foundation; Ted Hart, founder of International ePhilapnthorpy Foundation; and David Senior, Director of Development with ...
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How to pitch a story to a national magazine

Posted by on Mar 24, 2009 in PR, video | 9 comments I heard Victoria Woodhall, deputy features editor for You magazine, Mail on Sunday, give this helpful advice at a charity conference, and asked her to share it via my video. Although it is aimed at the charity sector and describes how they can successfully achieve positive media coverage in a glossy mag, such as You, it is also great advice for the communications industry in general. I hope you...
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The “shame” of having cancer

Posted by on Mar 24, 2009 in PR client, Robert Sturdy MEP, video | 5 comments The “shame” and “embarrassment” some people feel about admitting to having cancer has been described in this video by Jola Gore-Booth, founder of europacolon. “There’s taboo of cancer, there’s still embarrassment. People do not want to admit that they have cancer in Eastern European countries, you are ashamed of it. It means that God thinks you a bad...
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“Deal with Brown, prepare for Cameron”

Posted by on Mar 23, 2009 in Headway, PR, video | 8 comments How should charities communicate and survive the economic downturn? Peter Bingle, chairman of Bell Pottinger Public Affairs had some sound advice – “deal with Brown, prepare for Cameron.” It was uncomfortably political for some of the audience at the conference where Peter spoke, but made sound sense to me. I was attending as chair of trustees for Headway Cambridgeshire, and...
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Jeremy Paxman and The Victorians

Posted by on Mar 21, 2009 in News, video | 4 comments There were no free parking spaces left in Ely on Thursday evening – Jeremy Paxman was in town signing copies of The Victorians in our stunning cathedral – and his fans came out in droves. Paxman was on a charm offensive and made no mention of a co-author, claiming full credit for the book. I understand from today’s papers that another author did most of the writing because...
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Introducing Jonathan and Tom from ConservativeHome

Posted by on Mar 20, 2009 in Social Media, video | 2 comments While I was in Brussels this week I met up with two great guys from ConservativeHome who have an influential role with the online political media scene, partiuclarly co-editor Jonathan Isaby. who has had quite a few scoops recently, the latest on Lynton Crosby running Libertas’ European campaign. Tom Greeves who edits the parliament page is also coming up trumps and these guys are both...
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“Trash to Cash” experts reveal best finds

Posted by on Mar 8, 2009 in Headway, video | 3 comments I spent a fabulous afternoon with my fellow Headway Cambridgeshire trustee Trina Hill and her husband Julius who hosted a “Trash to Cash” sale at their home. We were delighted by the professionalism, good nature and humour of the entire team. When the heavy, brooding Fenland skies opened and released huge pellets of rain the size of glass beads and fearsome gusts of wind, everyone...
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Comic Relief and TwitterTitters

Posted by on Feb 12, 2009 in Social Media | 8 comments Fellow scribe and twitterer Linda Jones has had a brilliant brainwave – to gather a collection of new comedy for Comic Relief via Twitter which  will then be published to raise cash. She has been thrilled with the positive response since her announcement earlier this week. Even the BBC has picked up on it. What an inspirational idea. I can see Linda going on TV on Red Nose Day,...
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Blog housekeeping

Posted by on Feb 10, 2009 in Social Media | 14 comments I have had a long overdue housekeeping session on my blog and many links have been eliminated because it was a chore to trawl through them all. If it happened to you and you would like your link reinstated, please let me know. I have also added a link for my twitter followers which you will find in the left panel – I deleted 100 or so last year when I was getting strange, anonymous phone...
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Enjoying my new iPhone

Posted by on Jan 25, 2009 in Personal, Social Media | 19 comments My new best friend is very slinky and creative and never fails to  amuse me. I’m hoping she won’t get me lost either with her satellite prowess. I’m talking about my fabulous iPhone which I have had for a week now and is simplicity itself. Apple has to be credited for providing superb customer service to tempt buyers. I booked a personal shopping session in Cambridge and...
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Could the internet help save our homeless?

Posted by on Dec 31, 2008 in Social Media | 17 comments I love this story about how an internet campaign raised $10,000 dollars within four days to save a family from being evicted from their home. It shows how creative America is with its use of the internet in rallying support and raising desperately needed funds. Under the headline, "Help a Family Keep Their Home," Jaki Greer pleaded with readers of her LiveJournal to donate just $1...
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