Iran blocks international media amidst raging protests. A tech reporter rates the new iPhone operating system. How did a woman mistakenly receive 56 tattoos on her face? These are the top stories gaining attention around the world.
Digital Journalists were hungry to report on a wide selection of news, from travel to entertainment to tech.
In the arts, Jason Li interviewed an aspiring actress, Amy Walker. She has gained fame for YouTube videos demonstrating her talent at perfecting foreign accents. The Q&A showed a different side of Amy and also displayed Jason’s prowess for asking intriguing questions. The video is definitely worth a look (and a chuckle).
Also, Michael Cosgrove wrote about the marketing campaign behind the new Harry Potter film, as seen through the eyes of a resident of Lyon, France.
“Potter wasn’t here in Lyon himself today of course,” he wrote, “but that didn’t stop thousands of people visiting his train to get a glimpse of what’s to be seen in the next film. From 6 to 60, all age groups turned up to walk through the three carriages of a specially fitted out train in order to see first hand the weird and wonderful objects on display.” Noteworthy photos accompany the article so the reader can get a comprehensive view of this inventive advertising campaign.
And Cosgrove got playful in his coverage of “National Joint Day” in Lyon. The pro-cannabis fest brought out all kinds of marijuana lovers, and interviewed key people behind legislation to push for decriminalization. Some powerful photos in that article, too.
Apple recently released the new operating system for the latest iPhone, and Digital Journalist Brenton Currie was on top of the launch. He reviews the iPhone 3.0 OS with all the careful detail of a Wired reporter, making sure to highlight the best and worst of the OS. He even uploaded some handy screenshots in case any hesitant iPhone customer wasn’t sure what the new interface looks like. Well done, Brenton.
Two-thumbs up to one of our Sydney correspondents, Christine Lucas. She published a stunning travel article on Sydney’s Vivid Lights Festival, also complemented with evocative photos. We learned about the many exhibits dotting the fest, from bicycles pedaled to provide lighting around a tree to the changing colours of the Sydney Opera House. Readers almost felt like they were there in Australia’s capital, enjoying the wondrous exhibits Christine brought to life.
Many other stories are popular on DigitalJournal.com, including:
• BBC radio and television are being jammed from inside Iran: The protests in Iran brought about some other stories, such as media censorship occurring in the region. Michael Cosgrove told us about that BBC “TV and radio broadcasts to Iran and other parts of the Middle East and Europe are experiencing heavy electronic jamming.” Also, Al-Arabiya, the major Saudi TV news channel, has had its Tehran offices shut down for a week. But the Twitter feeds from Iranian residents continue to pour out of the country.
• Investigators believe flight AF447 may have broken apart mid-air: The sad saga of Flight AF447 continues to unravel. Recent news reported on how the Airbus A330 likely fractured in mid-air, judging by the autopsies of the recovered bodies. We learned there were no signs of drowning because the victims’ lungs were not filled with water.
• North Korea upset over UN Security Council sanctions: In other world news, North Korea plans to weaponize its stockpile of uranium in response to sanctions imposed on the country by the UN. As Stephanie Dearing reported: “North Korea’s warnings raised concerns of a military confrontation as additional threats were made.”
• The Pirate Bay launches VPN: In tech news, readers were told about Pirate Bay”s latest venture — a VPN service that blocks IP addresses and encrypts data that could incriminate file sharers. Starting at $7 per month, the VPN system is a handy tool for file-sharers but a thorn in the side for music industry execs. Pirate Bay is playing with fire here, especially after already being fined for offering a service that supports illegal downloads.
• Teen wins texting championship title and $50,000 US: Imagine taking home $50,000 for texting. Well, texting a lot. Kate Moore of Des Moines, Iowa won the grand prize at the LG U.S. National Texting Championship after judges confirmed her 450-texts-per-day habit. The prize money will likely help her pay for her expensive obsession.
• She fell asleep and woke up with 56 stars on her face?: In one of the quirkier stories we’ve seen, a Belgium woman claims a tattoo artists mistakenly inked 56 stars on her face, instead of the three she requested. She said she fell asleep during the procedure, but as ispy8 pointed out, could someone really fall asleep when their face is enduring such pain? We’ll keep watch on this story to see how it unfolds.
• Glastonbury Festival 2009 stars Neil Young, Spinal Tap, Prodigy: A highly anticipated festival got a thorough preview treatment in an arts piece music fans shouldn’t miss. We learned about the headliners at Glastonbury, the less renown bands rocking the stages and the long-awaited reunions (Blur, Spinal Tap). Anyone planning to check out this star-studded music fest?
• Alaska’s Rat Island: Rat-Free After More Than Two Centuries: You know something is wrong when an island is named Rat Island. But Alaskans can relax knowing that their Rat Island is now free of rodents after 200 years of dealing with the pesky rats. As M Dee Dubroff explained: “The Rat Island eradication project represents one of the world’s most ambitious attempts to remove pestilence from an island. It came at a cost of $2.5 million dollars and was a joint effort between the U.S. federal government, the Nature Conservancy and Island Conservation.”
• Bob Arum Appears to be a Sure Winner in a Pacquiao-Cotto Match: Boxing promoter Bob Arum is enjoying some decent press attention with the celebrity wattage of Manny Pacquiao. Leo Reyes wrote about the benefits Arum can get with the Pacquiao-Cotta fight in November, and offered us some more important details about this anticipated match. Great reporting, Leo, and we expect you’ll be working hard on this story in the coming months.
TopFinds Awards
The honourees of this week’s TopFinds Awards attracted impressive attention and widest readership. Digital Journal thanks the following Digital Journalists with Awards for their passion for covering the top issues of the day: Matthew Moran (the rookie is making waves!), Mark Kersten, M Dee Dubroff, Stephanie Dearing, Christine Lucas, Leo Reyes, Nikki Weingartner, Brenton Currie, Michael Cosgrove, KJ Mullins, Stephanie Dearing, Bob Ewing, and Carol Forsloff.
The Top Blog Post of the Week is awarded to Rob Campbell. He told us about websites focusing solely on consumer complaints, giving rise to protests on everything from restaurants to maid services to wireless carriers. Many Digital Journalists enjoyed learning about various websites catering to customer queries, but will the attacked companies listen to these complaints? That’s a whole other blog post.
