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Chrome has just come out of beta and everything works except – yes you know who ADOBE

Roger Bolton, presenter of Radio 4’s Feedback, today called for BBC News to appoint an editor for religion, as it has for business and finance.

Bolton said the BBC needed such an appointment to improve its coverage of religious affairs but also bring a spiritual perspective to general news stories.

“I believe BBC News similarly requires a religion editor, able to appear on the networks to interpret the latest religious story at home and abroad, but more importantly to bring a religious perspective to the vast range of areas such as foreign affairs and medical dilemmas where that perspective is so often, and so bafflingly, absent, both on air and behind the scenes in internal editorial discussions,” he added, speaking at the annual Sandford St Martin Trust awards for religious broadcasting, at Lambeth Palace, where he chaired the judging of television programmes.

The judges, though delighted by the quality of entries, noted that the overall number of TV entries was down ??? from 43 five years ago to just 27.

“With no entries to the main Sandford Awards from either the ITV Network, Sky or Channel Five, it’s tempting to lay blame in the virtual elimination of public service regulation in the commercial sector as well as perhaps a lack of imagination among commissioners generally,” Bolton said.

“But even at the BBC, television (unlike BBC radio) seems to be in the hands of the secular and sceptical, who view religious coverage as a rather tiresome obligation to be minimised rather than a rich and promising area to explore One can certainly pick cherries from the corporation’s television cake, and there are often very succulent ones such as the recent series on Sacred Music presented by Simon Russell Beale, though that was commissioned by a minority channel, BBC4, which has just had its budget cut back.

“The BBC also has a relatively new commissioning editor of religion, Aaqil Ahmed, with a proven record of success in his previous job at Channel 4, but his playing field is more the size of a fives court than a football pitch.”

Rabbi Roderick Young, chairman of the radio awards, said that though there a tendency to stick to well-known topics, “the quality of all 15 (radio programmes judged) was outstanding. “To choose four was quite simply painful,” he added.

A full list of winners follows.

Rabbi Lionel Blue was presented with a special personal award for more than 30 years of contributions to Thought for The Day

Television award

Winner: The Bible, Howard Jacobson’s episode on his loss of faith (Channel 4)

Runner up: History of Christianity, episode 1 (BBC4), presented by historian Professor Diarmid MacCulloch, also the winner of the Radio Times readers’ award

Merits: 1984: A Sikh’s Story (BBC2); Did Darwin Kill God? (BBC2)

Radio award

Winner: Two Sisters: Two Faiths (Radio 4)

Runner up: The Understanding (Radio 4)

Merits: Treasures out of Darkness, from the All Things Considered series (BBC Wales); Dear God (BBC Coventry & Warwickshire); Something Understood presented by Mark Tully in conversation with Jean Vanier (Radio 4)

Does BBC TV News need a “Religion Editor” Discuss

Facebook and Google are fashionable and intriguing targets for sensational headlines. In truth, most Facebook data is meaningless and conversational ??? while most of us are still listed by our home address in BT’s online phone book.

Worried about what the public knows about you? They’ve known where you live for years – and in my case they’ve never turned up on my doorstep – not even at election time!!

Well worth a visit

The earth is the Lord???s and all that fills it,?????
the compass of the world and all who dwell therein.

It’s easy to forget who it all belongs to …….

“Media vicar” to counsel Salford movers

14 May, 2010 | By Katherine Rushton

The Church of England is to appoint a full time ???media vicar??? to help BBC staff handle the trauma of moving to Salford Quays.

The Diocese of Manchester has advertised for ???an experienced vicar??? to be based in a chaplaincy called The Anchor in the main MediaCity UK headquarters.

The successful candidate will be tasked with helping to ???shape the community, spirituality and mission??? for all MediaCity workers, including BBC staff, and providing ???solutions to meet the creative and production needs of media professionals.

He or she will be paid nearly ??30,000 and interviews are due to take place towards the end of next month.

A church source said: ???This is not the BBC employing a love-boat chaplain. The position will be paid for by the Church of England. But imagine what sort of counselling you might need for a major.???

Diocese spokesman David Marshall added: ???It comes as a great surprise that people can be traumatised by moving to the North, the home of Coronation Street.???

Another G&T vicar?

Thea Gilmore’s song in the spirit of the protest movement – campaigning for Fair Votes. It was written as the election results were coming in on election night.
Will Dave let every vote count?

Thank you Gordon

May 11th, 2010

 

Gordon Brown has done more than a good job. He guided not only the UK but also large parts of the economic world at a time when financial structures of our society were undermined by unscrupulous bankers and money dealers. He was a man who genuinely believed he could make things better for everyone through justice, fairness and good judgement. Sadly he was unable to convince enough of the British electorate that he should remain in office and at the election he failed to secure enough seats to stay at No. 10.

So tonight Gordon went to Buckingham Palace and offered The Queen his resignation, followed with almost indecent haste by David Cameron, summoned to take his place.

We don???t yet know if David Cameron can command a working majority to form a government. The Liberal Democrats have yet to ratify the deal that their leaders are believed to have brokered with the Conservatives. We will have to wait and see if Mr Cameron, the new Prime Minister, can keep the first promise he has just made to The Queen.

I???m not comfortable with the future but I am comfortable about the past 13 years of Labour rule. There have been mistakes ??? some significant ones ??? but there has also been progress. Many of our public services are in much better shape than they were when Tony Blair first stepped into Downing Street in 1997. This seems like a good place to thank Tony and Gordon for enduring the years of pressure in leadership as they stood on the bridge of the good ship UK.

 

 

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“I warn not to be ordinary. I warn you not to be young. I warn you not to fall ill. I warn you not to be old” Neil Kinnock 1983 when Labour faced defeat by Thatcher