Panorama and the Thatcher Interviews

A discussion of broadcast interviews by Robin Day and David Dimbleby with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher for the BBC's current affairs series Panorama on the theme of the NHS

BBC’s Panorama, war coverage and the ‘Westminster consensus’

Relations between the British government and the BBC are often fraught at times of armed conflict, particularly in the absence of national consensus. A pattern of pressure on, and intimidation of, the BBC underlies efforts by successive governments to set the agenda for reporting 'in the national interest'. The effects of such pressure is considerable and, some claim, has led to over-dependence on official and 'establishment' sources in the BBC's coverage of conflicts. Such over-dependence, it could be argued, is typified by the 'flagship' current affairs series Panorama which has been accused by current affairs practitioners and media analysts of generally reflecting a 'Westminster consensus'. This paper examines Panorama's coverage of the invasion of Iraq to explore claims that Britain's longest-running current affairs series largely reflects 'elite opinion'. Textual and content analysis of an archive of Panorama programmes related to the war is used to examine the charge that Panorama draws on a limited range of 'establishment' views and perspectives in its war coverage, whilst marginalising more critical opinions and explanations

Niche breadth and overlap of Sphagnum species in Costa Rica

Niche breadth and overlap values of Sphagnum species in Costa Rica are similar to those reported for Sphagnum-dominated peatlands in North America. Sphagnum magellanicum Brid. and S. sparsum Hampe have the broadest niche breadth of the common species in Costa Rica. Although S. sancto-josephense Crum & Crosby has a relatively narrow niche breadth, it is one of the most common species along with S. magellancium and S. sparsum in the Sphagnum habitats of Costa Rica. Niche overlap is high among species with the exception of S. platyphyllum (Braithw.) Warnst. which is found in habitats that are rich in iron. The pH, conductivity, and concentrations of Ca, Fe, Mg, Mn, Na, K, and P of Sphagnum habitats in Costa Rica are similar to those reported for páramo habitats in South America

Niche diversification of Sphagnum in Bolivia

Niche breadth values of Sphagnum species in the páramo and cloud forests of Bolivia are similar to those reported for Sphagnum-dominated peatlands in North America, but niche overlap values are higher for Sphagnum species in Bolivia. The pH, conductivity, and concentrations of Ca, Mg, Na, K, and P suggest that Sphagnum habitats in Bolivia are ombrotrophic in nature. Sphagnum is limited to small, scattered carpets in the páramo and cloud forests of the Bolivian Andes between 1800 and 4200 m. Common species found in these habitats include S. alegrense Warnst., S. boliviae Warnst., S. cuspidatum Ehrh., S. magellanicum Brid., S. oxyphyllum Warnst., S. recurvum P. Beauv., S. sanctojosephense Crum & Crosby, and S. sparsum Hampe

Insights and Lessons: Community Arts and College Arts - A Report to The Kresge Foundation

This report examines two pilot initiatives, Community Arts and College Arts, launched during the 2008 economic downturn. After the completion of the multiyear initiatives, the Kresge Foundation commissioned a report on the effort. The qualitative analysis offers lessons and insights on the theme of art-based civic dialogue and community revitalization

Looked after children : observations of teacher education students on placement in secondary students

This collection of accounts is the work of students of the Professional Graduate Diploma in Education Secondary(PGDE) -a one-year teacher education programme for graduates intending to become teachers in secondary schools. These students were taking an elective module on the education of looked after children. The module was presented on either side of a full-time period of placement in secondary schools during February and March 2008. The placement provided an ideal opportunity for the students to find out more about looked after children from the school perspective. There is a series of 22 accounts representing students' observations while on placement in different schools

Vital Signs: Metro Boston's Arts and Cultural Nonprofits 1999 and 2004

Examines four "vital signs," or categories of data, to gauge the health of the area's arts and cultural nonprofit organizations in 1999-2004: a supportive environment, an innovative marketplace, an engaged audience, and the right-sized organization

Obama’s election campaign and the integrated use of social\ud media

When Barack Obama won the 2008 US Presidential election he\ud did so partly as a result of harnessing the power of social media to\ud communicate with, and enlist the support of, millions of Americans who\ud had never previously been active in the processes of an election campaign.\ud As a result of Obama‘s invitation and his use of new media, some of the\ud poorest members of the world‘s wealthiest nation found themselves able\ud to make a critical contribution through a myriad of small activities starting\ud from seemingly inconsequential choices such as the selection of a mobile\ud phone ring tone. Although ‗people power‘ is not a new force in politics,\ud the Obama campaign set a fresh benchmark for inclusive ways in which to\ud communicate to and with a holistic cross section of the American people,\ud including many who would not have been previously seen as a critical\ud ‗target market‘. This paper examines Obama‘s use of integrated\ud communications and considers the potential implications for other\ud campaigns which may have an inclusion agenda