100 posts
Who’s the highest-profile European Commissioner?
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In Brussels, being a member of the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, is about as high as an official can climb in the eurocracy. But just how well are those Brussels luminaries known back in their home countries? Thanks …Contin...
Notes on Facebook
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By now everyone should be aware of Facebook’s recent stunt: introducing Timeline, which chronicles the users’ entire Facebook past on their profiles, all the way back to their actual births. Now it will be made obligatory. Needless to say...
“the top of judgment”* 2012: This year’s top telecoms and broadcasting cases at the ECJ
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Carrying on what has become some sort of a tradition (2009, 2010, 2011), I shall again take a look at pending cases in the field of telecommunications and broadcasting at the Court of Justice of the European Union (and the General Court) which we can...
Send us your video comments!
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The Debating Europe team is really enjoying experimenting with all the online tools that are out there to try and bring politicians, academics and experts together with citizens in the same conversation. There’s been a brilliant response to...
A communication disaster called ACTA
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During the negotiations of ACTA the participating states did their best to undermine public trust by secrecy and obstinate refusal to publish various documents (Techdirt). When the first batch of countries signed ACTA in October 2011, the EU Commissi...
Chilly Mili: Ed Miliband pretends it’s not freezing in Davos
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With temperatures barely above zero in the canton of Graubünden, Ed Miliband was determined that his tailoring shouldn’t go to waste earlier this afternoon — shunning a much-required coat while conducting interviews. Someone please give...
How do deal with a social media mistake (and how not to)
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The Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition were in Davos. Peter Mandelson has written a report on Globalisation and Nick Clegg wants to change our tax system (more on both of those later). But what was the Westminster village obsessing about...
I’ll be Tweet-chatting next Monday, 30 January
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I’m really positive about how the Internet helps – not just one-way communication – but genuine interaction. So I am happy to announce that I will have another tweetchat on Monday 30 January, 3pm to 3.30pm (Brussels time). Anyone ca...
The Archivist
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What’s it all about? The Archivist is a service that uses the Twitter Search API to find and archive or save tweets. By entering certain keywords or hashtags, you can monitor and store all the relevant Tweets. The Archivist then uses this data...
Information society, online media and Bloggingportal.eu
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What can you expect from a three year old? I decided to see if the new posts on Bloggingportal.eu are good for other people than those interested in how many EU institutions can dance on the head of a pin. Instead I opted for one or more policy area...
Dear Sony, so much for .eu
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The following text was just submitted to Sony Belgium. I post it here not because I think it will get me improved customer service, but to show the difference between the vision and the reality of “.eu-driven businesses” in Europe’s...
Tools Tuesday: The Archivist
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And we’re back! It’s the first review of the New Year, and we have the perfect tool to help you be better looking, better organised and an all-round better social media force in 2012! … It’s The Archivist. As the year that was 201...
anti France imagery after the genocide bill in Turkish twittersphere
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homophobic, sexist, revanchist in principle…… View the story “anti France imagery after the genocide bill in Turkish twittersphere” on Storify Storified by Erkan Saka Tue, Jan 24 2012 08:27:29 · 101 views 30 anti...
A fun movie worth watching: OSS 117
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I’m not surprised that Jean Dujardin, the lead in “The Artist”, is getting so many plaudits. I first saw him years ago in ”OSS 117:Cairo, nest of spies”, a French comedy based on the James Bond, Matt Helm, Man from UNC...
Communicating EU technocracy and science: Is it the same?
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Fellow Bloggingportal.eu editor Mathew has just published an excellent piece titled “Of technocrats, journalistic balance and telling EU stories“. His post reflects in a way what I try with this blog, that is to think about whether transl...
Royal coup de grace
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Broadcasting in Britain is controlled by the royal family – and they will force any television channel that criticises them to close down, Press TV revealed today. Ofcom has revoked Press TV’s licence, claiming that Press TV had not paid...
Great TV: Sherlock Season Two now out!
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The BBC have shown great savvy by releasing season two of “Sherlock” on DVD literally one week after the season’s dramatic final episode and its “How did he do it?” ending. This is currently my favourite show on TV, not...
Of technocrats, journalistic balance and telling EU stories
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A recent edition of The Infinite Monkey Cage, BBC Radio4′s brilliant chat show combining science and comedy, got me thinking again about the parallels between science communications and EU communications. The episode (“A Balanced Programm...
Is Apple revolutionising Academic Publishing?
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I confess to being an Apple enthusiast and I was thus keenly waiting for the company’s announcement on educational publishing yesterday. I immediately installed IBook author and played around a...
Now accepting Reader Submissions!
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E&M is not just an online magazine, but a platform for young Europeans to debate and explore the continent from a unique perspective. Sixth Sense brings E&M's transnational approach into live issue journalism and acts as a platform for these...
“The Great Gatsby” in 3D
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It is difficult for us mere mortals to take a step back and view the wider trajectory that we are on. It is much easier to relate today’s innovation back to the status quo and pat ourselves on the back amid all the excitement over the new toy. I co...
The Express, the EU and plastic bags (cont.)
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In May 2011, an Express front page headline claimed the EU had said 'ban shopping bags':The sub-head clarified that this was plastic bags, not all shopping bags. But either way the EU hadn't actually 'said' this. They had, however, launched a public...
Develop your internal network in social media
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While working with the EU as a consultant, I've learned a lot about the importance of an internal network. You can have the best ideas in the world, but if you've got no insider support for what you plan to do, you won't get anything done. Every Dire...
"Open Science And The Econoblogosphere" by Paul Krugman
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Interesting article in the Times about the push for “open science”, bypassing the traditional structure of refereed journals in favor of a sort of fluid, self-policing online community. I can’t and...
The monopoly that arch-liberaliser Monti is leaving intact
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It is being cast as the mother of all political battles: against the taxi drivers, chemists, notaries, shopkeepers and bakers and their restrictive practices and cosy ‘exclusive’ arrangements, against workers pampered by ‘over pr...
Good Reads 14/01/2012
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Each week, two E&M editors share their favourite European reads. From blog posts to essays, it can be anything that amused them, worried them or got them thinking about Europe. Rike, Sixth Sense Editor: • Ever...
EU Council presidency of Denmark in the media 2/2
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Jon Worth's earlier as well as his two latest blog posts (here and here) about his press trip to Denmark and the launch of the Danish presidency of the Council of the European Union offer both his personal impressions and references to media. He has...
BE MY PITCH* !
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Hurrah! We are Nr.4 amongst top 10 – yeah, flops, but TOP!!! – of European 2.0 communication. Brave entry into Social Media battlefield of European Personnel Selection Office** – did receive its recognition! See http://www.puisney.e...
Who said print journalism was dead?
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Whatever you think of French politics – or ratings agencies – this is a super front page:...
So that was a Presidency Press Trip. I’m feeling rather empty.
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At one level it has been a privilege to attend the Danish Presidency Press Trip for the past four days. I’m the first blogger ever to have been allowed to attend, and hopefully not the last. But the whole experience … Continue reading ...
Follow me on Twitter
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I have been blogging in Swedish for a while now, and then last year began writing here in English too. Today I’m going one step further, into the land of Twitter. Both I and my staff will post updates on what’s happening in EU Home Affa...
What's the tone of EU social media?
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In tone, successful social media is meant to engage and enlighten, the way a nice conversation with a friend (or even a random stranger) can. Such unexpected chats add value to your life. They take a concern or an idea and explore it with you, offeri...
A Journalism roundup: World’s most dangerous region for journalists; AP’s social media editor,
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Press release: World’s most dangerous region for journalists: the Arab World from Editors Weblog – all postings by Federica Cherubini Repression of uprisings makes the region the world’s most dangerous place for journalists. Sixty-f...
So who attends a Presidency press trip?
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One of my questions before arriving in Copenhagen was: who are the others who are attending the Danish Presidency press trip? Now I have the answer – albeit only on paper. This is a picture of the pages from the … Continue reading →...
Do you need new business-ish cards?
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I’ve been a long-time fan of Moo mini cards. I have business cards, which my employer gives me. That’s great in a business context. But when I’m having a chat with someone nice in a non-professional context, I just want to give them...
Rhinoplasty And Celebrities
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Has an actress Halle Berry had a nose job? Has pretty Jennifer Aniston had rhinoplasty? What about Angelina Jolie's nose surgery? All these could easily be headlines on the internet and in magazine tabloids focusing on celebrities and their lives.
Princess Caroline vs. German glossy BUNTE
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A decision in the field of freedom of expression versus personality right by Germany's highest court the Federal Constitutional Court otherwise known as Bundesverfassungsgericht or "BVerfG" has caught this Kat's eye (case reference: 1 BvR 927/08). No...
#28c3: Hack the EU or why politics should take note of a hacker congress
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Yesterday, I’ve found my way to the Chaos Communication Congress 2011 in Berlin to take a look “Behind enemy lines” at a congress bringing together German and international hackers of all kind (note: most talks are on Youtube). At...
Sir Graham to launch a new, modern, and more orange website for the new year
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The website of the region's Liberal Democrat MEP Sir Graham Watson is undergoing a revamp and is getting a fresh new lick of orange paint in time for the new year 2012. The former website, a modified form of a template used on many other Liberal Demo...
EFD end of the year posts: as TIME names “The Protester” 2011 Person of the Year, a roundup on Occupy movement…
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TIME names “The Protester” 2011 Person of the Year by Xeni Jardin Identity, consumption, and the politics of food in the Occupy Wall Street movement from FoodAnthropology by agyoung by Alyson Young An excerpt from the upcoming January 20...
Çocuğum gibi olan projelere bir yenisi: Yurttaş Gazeciliği Sertifika Programı
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En son haber burada! Yurttaş Gazeteciliği için bir sitemiz var artık. Padişahımızın 3 çocuk talebini bu şekilde karşılıyorum. Erkan’s Field Diary ve Sosyalkafa’dan sonra (tüh aslında metalkafa da sayılabilirdi) Yurttaş G...
Russia’s Protest Movement United, Divided With Twitter, Facebook
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The organizers of the wave of anti-Kremlin protests in Russia have relied on Internet services like Facebook and Twitter to mobilize tens of thousands of supporters. But the online tools have at times been a mixed blessing.
Is it uncool to say I love my job? WebCom in 2011
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What is it that really matters to most people about their jobs, once they have one that can keep body and soul together in a satisfactory manner, that is? I suppose it's about two things: (i) whether you actually believe you are achieving something,...
EU Commissioner Viviane Reding wants to scrap useless EU websites
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On the agenda of the EU Commission meeting of 30 November 2011 (meeting minutes, PDF), Commissioners discussed the rationalisation of IT in the Commission to save up to 10 million Euros until 2014. In the minutes of the meeting, there’s also al...
The Express, the EU and...fridges
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Following the bogus claim from the Express' Chief Political Commentator that 'every criticism' his paper has levelled at the EU has been 'justified', the Head of Media at the European Commission Representation in the UK has been forced to write to th...
Pink picks
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Comment, analysis and other offerings from Friday’s FT,Philip Stephens: Now the Franco-German questionGermany will have to learn leadership, and France followship. Both...
"Those Lazy PIGS: Deciphering the Euro Blame Game" by John Weeks
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As we all know from the media, the Euro crisis results from the mismanagement of public expenditures in Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain (the “PIGS”). To be more specific, we all know...
So the US military is now more open in social media than the European Commission …
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Over on edition 627 of For Immediate Release, they open their news section (timestamp 04:30) by bringing together a couple of news stories on how the US military is engaging with what could euphemistically be called their ‘challenging public...
A great way to lose customers. Today's example: 'Die Zeit'
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There are many ways to lose customers and sometimes it's surprisingly easy. The other day, I decided to subscribe to 'Die Zeit', one of Germany's leading weekly newspapers. Yes, I know it sounds strange. Who subscribes to a printed newspaper nowad...
EU social media and online public space
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What if the European public sphere owes its existence to social media, asks Michael Malherbe (Décrypter la communciation européenne blog), continuing the interesting presentation by Mathew Lowry on the EU online public space (although reading a Pre...
New website: so that was the easy bit…
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It's blue, it's new and it's online - the redesigned official institutional website of the EU's directly elected democratic lawmaking institution! And, speaking personally, I now know why you don't do this kind of thing too often.
Honoring innovative digital journalism in Paris
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Journalism is is in the midst of moving onto the Internet and Google is committed to helping ease this transition. We drive millions of readers to media sites every day and we split billions of dollars each year in advertising with publishers. We als...
Simple feedback loops in EU social media – an example
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Using social media can be so simple for EU institutions and those working in these institutions if they understand that all that is needed is to listen and to (inter)act. An example: Today, a patent law blogger complained about dysfunctional parts of...
Key question 1 for panel X today/tonight/tomorrow
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I’m going to try to break the habit of a lifetime this [morning/lunchtime/evening] and actually attend a physical [conference/workshop/seminar/PRpissup] about the EU and social media, something so self-evidently oxymoronic that I’ve often...
Newspeak, the €142 billion budget and the EU’s “communication problem”
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The European Union has a “communication problem”. This is allegedly caused by things like the fractured nature of European public opinion, the dull work of Brussels or maliciously sensationalist journalism. No doubt these are often the p...
EU Online Public Space – the PreziCast (updated)
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A few weeks ago I was asked to give a training on the EU online public space to a group of political science PhDs taking part in the EXACT Marie-Curie training programme (pre-session discussion here). Being a sucker for flattery I agreed, but being s...
Bridging the gulf between social media and traditional media in light of today’s tragic news about Gary Speed
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“Gary Speed is dead” I read on Twitter late morning today. What dreadful news, what can possibly have happened? I turn to BBC News; that carried just a ‘breaking news’ statement. I turn back to Twitter and I read all … C...
Express: 'every criticism we levelled against the EU has been justified'
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On Wednesday 23 November, Patrick O'Flynn of the Daily Express penned an article that ran under the optimistic headline 'A year in and our EU crusade is on course for victory'. Flynn told his readers how wonderful the Express' campaign to withdraw fr...
Short guide to lazy EU journalism
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The unofficial rulebook for lazy EU journalism. 20 invaluable guide tips for the career in EU journalism. Read the article.
Commission website and its online survey analysis
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Early this year, the team in DG Communication launched a survey to find out who was using the European Commission website and what they were looking for from the site. The European Commission site is designed to help individual citizens and other sta...
Reporting Europe 2012
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Nominations are open for the UACES – Thomson Reuters Reporting Europe Prize 2012. There have been some interesting winners in the few years I’ve been going along. It’s very far from a hagiographic prize, as a brief glimpse at some &...
Kosmopolito's Völkischer Beobachter School of Journalism (Updated x 5)
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Always remember a (not too) subtle reference to the war. A war trophy in full swing, the Völkischer Beobachter School of Journalism is alive and well on a remote island off Europe. Only fair, if the Americans got Dr. Strangelove. Kosmopolito's guide...
Short guide to lazy EU journalism
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The unofficial rulebook for lazy EU journalism. 20 invaluable tips for your career in EU journalism. 1. Not sure how the EU works or what institutions are involved? –> Just write “Brussels”. 2. Germany is generally seen as impor...
Trespassing on the turf of the mainstream media
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I’ve had the good luck to happen to be in Copenhagen today and hence to be able to attend “What Professional Journalism Means for Democracy“, run by Berlingske Media – the mainstream media group behind broadsheet Berlingske an...
When will the EU institutions embrace the mobile revolution?
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We’ve been hearing about the three revolutions that are currently altering the Web a lot, and not the least in this year’s LeWeb conference baseline: SO (social) LO (local) MO (mobile). EU institutions have always had « local&#...
