大象传媒

very worthwhile and powerful.

What on earth are you doing with Newsnight?!

First you destroy the Friday Night Review by somehow managing to replace any intelligent, reflective and original minds with the fawning gibbons who mouth platitudes to whatever gcse media studies course they took and never moved beyond.

I haven't heard an original thought expressed on that show since Mark Kermode got a regular spot.

And who decided pop music was a suitable topic - so often!

And now, after I have finally decided to avoid the second half of a Friday night Newsnight in case I throw my television out of the window in the faint hope that some feedback might knock some sense into Paul Morley after hge descirbes, with such insight, how Clint Eastwood's new film is "just too 'Clint'"! How is that an opnioin? What new information does that entail? What insight? Do I need to listen to this moron-icary?

And now. Avoiding Friday's review like a plague of Turner prizes, I find that Newnight itself has turned to UTube for it's content.

What is the point of a title such as newsnight (yes, the clue IS in the title) when you offer graffiti as accompaniment.

I'M NOT INTERESTED. If I were I would be looking at UTube or that 5 minute slot after the Channel 4 news. What's wrong with your producer? Did they get turned down for a lottery grant and feel they have to inflict their bleeding community project heart on the rest of us?

Why not just replace Jeremy Paxman with a Blue Peter presenter and have done with the pretence.

Sad in Southwark

I cant belive you included Columbia when it has been around for so long. I hope you don't give the person who sent it in the credit for this film, as it would be very undeserved. And how typical to include London, which although heartwarming, is about as innovative as bread. Good call on the other three i must say, but i swear if the winner or the editors choice is bloody London, i am straight down to the capital itself to kick some Newsnight ass!!!

Carly et al

As I understood it, the winner is the film that will be shown on Friday night.

I too thought London was extremely light and actually quite annoying - not much more than an ad for London, probably backed by Red Ken. I mean who doesn't know the transient and cosmopolitan nature of London? It's not a new phenomenon, London is one of the most famous /popular capitals in the world - second after New York?

Ditto Columbia, I simply don't understand that, after what was said on the blog, and I really think the inclusion needs justifying, I reserve judgement in case there is a perfectly bona fide media-luvvy reason that I don't understand.

For the sheer simplicity of the message on Malawi, I do hope this turns up on Friday as the deserving winner. Spend 拢5 and not only feed a child for a year but get them to school where they may actually learn how to best help themselves. What a simple solution!!
The others do have their merits of course and well done to them for getting to the final week.

Having just read Media Guardian's interview with the Newsnight Editor (Barron?) I now realise why what used to be one of my favourite programmes has become such a load of rubbish that I hardly bother to watch anymore.

I couldnt agree more with Paxman that this Oh My Newsnight nonsense just isnt what Newsnight should be doing, and as for that ethical man and other similar stunts, im sorry but its just boring and not news. I can see that Newsnight is trying to become more hip and down with the kids but it just doesnt work. whats wrong with being a serious news and politics review programme, its not as if there are anyother decent ones around.

Sonny鈥檚 predictions

The Cuban film will take 1st place on Friday night.

The Colombian film will be one of the 3 runners up.

Dole and Malawi are little trickier as they are similar. I reckon Dole will take the runners up place leaving Malawi for the Editors Choice on Thursday.

Sonny

Note: I am not affiliated with the 大象传媒/Newsnight in anyway.

I think 'Oh My Newsnight' has been a very interesting exercise. There are obviously many talented young documentary makers out there who don't stand a chance of having their work looked at seriously----giving them 2 minutes of glory might be the beginning of a whole career for them. Why all the griping? Several of the topics covered were very serious.

I cannot understand Jeremy Paxman's dismissive attitude to this film competitiion. Most of the 2 minute shorts from these fledgling film makers were newsworthy (although "London" couldn't claim to be). Similarly, I am totally at a loss to understand Philip's contemptuous attitude towards "Oh My Newsnight". Has Philip taken the trouble to actually view the films? Does he consider the shots of the hurricane in CUBA not worth two minute's attention? Does he not think that MALAWI is newsworthy? And why the strong objection to Newsnight giving a platform to future film makers? Jeremy has done his best to downgrade these interesting mini documentaries. Are we not to encourage talent? Well done Newsnight production team for making this happen - just give it more of a plug will you? Congratulations to all the serious entrants, especially the 5 winners.

Malawi is a Great Video.
It is a true story and is helping so many hungry children. A bit like Bod Gildof did with live aid.
I dont thing there is a greater dead that anyone could do than to feed a hungry child.

Contrary to some earlier replies I thought Colombia was excellent.
Several others posts have labelled it "old hat" yet they still can't even spell the countrys' name correctly... Columbia??
Maybe by finally paying attention something will change.

ok so my predictions were slightly out.

Newsnight is not the appropriate platform for these amateur films - they simply add another nail in the coffin of a programme that once kept us all informed and entertained . Mr Paxman has my sympathy; it's bad enough to have this stuff intrude on the 大象传媒's flagship but he has to sit there and present it!

Please, 大象传媒, can we have our Newsnight back?

Alex Mitchell

Oops, that was me - shameful - but you're missing the point that, however good it is, the film Colombia was not made for My Newsnight, it was, according to shortlist bloggers, posted on You Tube some time ago.

I thought Havannah was wonderful and like Maria, I find it really hard to understand why quite a few bloggers feel that My Newsnight is not real reportage. Havannah was topical, clever, informative, poignant, sympathetic, questioning and then on top of that it was also excellent visually.

I think JP deliberately plays devil's advocate and in full knowledge of the rest of team - then if the anti-MN brigade reaches critical mass NN will be shielded somewhat by having had a sceptic on the team.

Missed the last two nights, anyone know which video clips have featured so far?

Thanks.

Why not reprise Video Nation? I agree with the comments about Newsnight Review. It's too Clint. Ethical Man is too Woody. And what is the point in getting the arts correspondent to take physics 'A' level - to let us know it's harder than media studies? No shit.

News in depth and current events please, or I will be driven to Insight on CNN and Inside Story and the excellent Witness on Al Jazeera English. Alternatives exist. There is an internet you know.

I would like to vote for Malawi. I have in the past donated to the Mary`s Meals cause, and think it is a fantastic concept.

How can anyone not vote for Malawi. This will be an ongoing, and very worthwhile cause. It is multiplying rapidly across the whole third world, and with the education that goes with it, it becomes self remedial. I VOTE for MALAWI.
We have donated to Mary`s Meals before, and we will be signing up again.

Why are the films not being shown in Scotland?
The work in Malawi is carried out by SIR (Mary's Meals) which is a Scottish charity.

Congratulations to the makers of both Colombia and Malawi. They are excellent, as indeed are all the runners up. I think Colombia is the better film of the two. Despite all the publicity given to the abuse of cocaine in this country I have never before seen a film showing the primitive and appalling conditions in which it is produced. It should be compulsory viewing in schools and I hope Kate Moss is a Newsnight viewer. The film must have been very difficult to make and I suspect that is why we have never, to my knowledge, seen anything similar before.

Ian 鈥� thank you for clarification, nowhere did I see these criteria before the submission deadline 鈥� intelligence was also part of the criteria? Shame! I鈥檓 just glad I didn鈥檛 submit my effort because I obviously had totally the wrong end of the stick and I鈥檓 amazed how much some of the directors crammed into two minutes. So, Your competition, Your criteria, Your selection, and not so much 鈥楳y鈥� Newsnight. The films are very watchable that I don鈥檛 deny, but I would like to have seen all five finalists reporting on political issues that directly affect the population living long-term in this country.

Tinkering with wage levels in Colombia or Afghanistan is not going to solve the social problems in this country that lead to crack and heroin addiction 鈥� even if we could in fact effect any change in those countries whatsoever 鈥� what are we going to do 鈥� send Jeremy out to negotiate with the war lords? (He鈥檚 good but he鈥檚 no Nick Cage!). All that will happen is that the likes of Pete Doherty will be further demonised - but I should think the purer variety has got up a fair few noses at the 大象传媒, it fuelled the City in the 80s, don鈥檛 know if it still does, and would our society really be richer without Kublai Khan? Aren鈥檛 those who are looking at the stars doing it for all us gutter-snipes with our noses buried? This is not the same as opiating the underclass, or are we just trying to turn Britain into a bible reading group?

Someone, I can鈥檛 remember who, said 鈥楧evelopment鈥� is poor people in rich countries giving money to rich people in poor countries. We should be focusing on social issues in our own backyard, the growing disparity in incomes, class prejudice, and under-resourced education. What we have in these films is journalistic tourism and an emergent global elitism, whilst us plebs are subjected to fundamentalist polices whether religious or secular 鈥� why has organic food become a status symbol, the scourge of honest farmers, and disappeared completely from the environmental debate, whilst the environmental debate has turned into plans for a new financial market? Why does the public purse pay people 拢800+/day to criticise the British diet simply because the influx of continentals don鈥檛 like pie and mash? What are we sustaining and for who? I defy you to find anybody on an average wage or lower (and who doesn鈥檛 have a pot of capital lurking somewhere in the family) who is in the least bit interested.

We have no voice left in the electoral system, we are reduced to over-eating to retain any sense of control in our lives (illusory though it may be), veils are OK (because they keep women tamed) but hoods are not (because they give the working class an identity to mobilise around), the trades sector is flooded with cheap labour (miscalculation of number likely to enter? 鈥� do me a favour, redress for the inadvertent empowerment of the trade sector that resulted from market liberalisation, more like 鈥� where were builders employed before? 鈥� In the public sector where they knew their place, of course). And why do NHS 鈥榩rofessionals鈥� talk to us as if we are either ESL or low IQ while the State bangs on about us not taking responsibility for our health? Why have GP鈥檚 salaries rocketed when they are totally reliant on us reporting symptoms 鈥� in exactly the same way as a car mechanic 鈥� a process of elimination of possible causes? If intellectuals want to do something useful they could be debating matters of complex political philosophy 鈥� what does a liberal democracy mean and who is included in it?

The main targets of environmentalism are cheap flights, cars, fish and chips, and of social 鈥榲alues鈥�, socialising outside private residences, alcohol and smoking 鈥� all iconic cultural behaviours of the working class. Not to the taste of the self-aggrandising and self-congratulatory intellectual class, but so what 鈥� different shakes etc. At least the working class can make their own entertainment and not rely on sitting like stuffed (albeit overdressed) dummies in a row passively being entertained. How can we possibly go down the route of trying to calculate the impact of each, and every, behaviour? 鈥� More jobs for the idle intellectual?

Scotland and Wales want to leave the UK as soon as possible but instead of asking why; we pick a film about a Scottish charity and don鈥檛 show the films in Scotland. And why not investigate the 鈥榮ecret world鈥� of the Guardian? (But get Polly out first, she鈥檚 about the only one over there who makes any sense). How does it happen that the law abiding follow Government advice and pay from meagre wages into a pension for an entire lifetime and then society turns round and says 鈥極h sorry, the money鈥檚 gone鈥�? How does the Farepak scandal happen, company directors pay themselves millions whilst those on low income have to go without their Christmas savings? How does it happen that those in the City get Xmas bonuses bigger than the average yearly income? How does it happen and why don鈥檛 we care enough to stop it? At times Jeremy seems like the last outpost of free speech in the UK and I for one don鈥檛 feel able to complain anymore for fear of being 鈥榣isted鈥� 鈥� 鈥楢nd then you say, 鈥淒on鈥檛 do it to me, do it to someone else鈥︹�濃�ll you care about is yourself.鈥� (Julia, p235). We are no longer an Empire, we cannot solve the problems of the rest of the world, and if we don鈥檛 start trying to solve our own we will merely destroy those who built this nation - including all immigrants who rolled up their sleeves and got stuck in - because they believed we were a team. If the intellectual class are so bothered about conditions elsewhere let them give up their fat salaries to help, stop bleeding us dry.

And then you look at the presenters 鈥� OK four out of six are women, very good but if you鈥檙e serious about multi-culturalism why not put Jeremy out to grass, he looks tired and surely doesn鈥檛 need the money 鈥� I鈥檝e a patch at the back he鈥檚 welcome to 鈥� or better still give him his own chat show and then we can see more of his whimsical smile and hear more of his wearisome wit, and he could really stretch his impossibly long legs 鈥� and instead poach the woman who presents the Press Review on Sky straight after Newsnight鈥� she鈥檚 self-composed, droll, smart, young, beautiful, and very capable of wiping the floor with the more bigoted and superficial journalists, with a semi-sotto voce and delightfully understated comment as she moves onto the next item.

Blogging on Newsnight is like a cross between storming the Bastille and baying at the gates of Heaven / Hell (delete to taste).

Happy Xmas!

I was born in London 65 years ago. Cant afford to live there now. The average price of a house in London is, I understand, about #300k. How do those interviewed manage to live there? Social Housing? When I was young you had to have lived in a borough for a long time before you could even be considered for Council Housing? Have the rules changed? Or what?

Have to disagree with "No. 6", Guy Rowland ... regardless of the content of the "Oh My Newsnight" films - and not detracting from them because those that I've seen have been really very good - this exercise - as others that may be deemed lighthearted DO pull people into the programme and ANYTHING that makes people more aware of News and Current Affairs has to be good. Of course, if you're going to be terribly uppity about it, loosen up and just enjoy the looks on Jeremy's face!

I have donated to this charity recently as Christmas gifts and think it is an inspired idea. It deserves a vote of confidence - it gets mine anyway.

Re Columbia, I have to say it was all news to me. I have never had any desire to put white powder up my nose and most of my "intell" is garnered from Hollywood (how sad am I?. So I was truly amazed at the processing process and feel if this was more widely known it would work far beytter than any "just say no campaign". So before anyone assumes that everyone knows the same just remember it's a big world and we don't. One last point leave London alone. I like it even though I don't live there and why shouldn't a city with 10 million people be represented?

My goodness, it sounds as if Philip (sad in Southwark) might have been at the same party as the Bishop. The only difference seems to be that P has retained his very sad memory.

Get real Phil, these film clips are all worthy of being shown. The only sadness is that they have been shown so late in the evening. Both of the remaining finalists have important messages for us all and we really should listen instead of being sniffy.

For my money, the Colombia short film carries a very strong message that needs to get through. Whether it comes first or second, the maker deserves the credit he will undoubdtely receive for attempting to bring to our attention the crudeness of the cocaine manufacturing process.

Sometimes to reflect is more productive than to rant, Phil.

I completely agree with Chris. The Colombia film ought to be shown in all schools as evidence that cocaine is not a smart drug for sophisticates but a noxious combination of chemicals produced in primitive squalid conditions. I have enjoyed the Oh My Newsnight series - certainly more interesting than dreary interviews with evasive politicians.

Been away travelling lately, so low bandwidth to review all entries - but interesting selection of shortlisted candidates.

OVERALL COMMENT:

A thought provoking bunch of submitted content in the Final 5

My criteria was, what did it reveal to me which I did not know/appreciate previously, irrespective of production worth (looking beyond amateur nature of most UGC - since majority of creators devoid of comparable resources & experiences)

MY PLACINGS:

1st - MALAWI (nice amateur mix of everything)

2nd - DOLE (interesting perspective, but drop attempt at humour/funny voices it did not work & distracted)

3rd - CUBA (thoughtful snapshot of local problem, a housing crisis repeatable unfortunately worldwide)

4th - London (provoking reminder for those outside London, of diversity here)

5th - COLUMBIA (particularly interesting, hope it put people off taking the thing (esp the way in which measures of lethal chemicals added) *

* but its re-cut materials I understand for Newsnight competition as opposed to being esp created for).

UGC - VIDEO:

Its plainly early days & the first step in UGC-video on Newsnight.

Q. is it worth the effort?

ANS - yes, its not just about keeping up with the NCA Jones's, its about engaging audiences (existing, potential & future) in innovative ways **

** as well as providing potential rich pool of research, views/angles & future stories. Also suggest you allow users to express opinion & 'offshoot' comments related to the stories being carried, by generating user threads.

Read Peter Barons Guardian interview - agree that Beeb & esp Newsnight does not need to be left behind, it can be a 'pathfinder' in this respect & set the agenda in this area, like it does in others. Ironic give Jeremy Paxmans objections, harshly represented in this interesting GU article [1]

Opportunity to start developing a NCA taxonomy & lexicon (as part of UGC Knowledge Management initiative) with public & private faces - i.e. link & map the content, blogs & threads & which users/posters - similar linkage & idea behind 大象传媒1 Connections [2]

MERRY CHRISTMAS - ONE & ALL :)

vikingar

SOURCES:

[1]
[2] /comedy/comedyconnections/

What an utter waste of air time "Oh my Newsnight" was. When I turn to Newsnight I want to see professionally produced items.All the entries had something to say but not on Newsnight. They were more suited to the likes of "You Tube" which probably get a bigger worldwide audience any way.
Just a thought why not put Jeremy, Kirsty and Martha incharge of programme content or is that to radical.

The COLOMBIA film does not work. Please fix it.

Without wishing to trivialise the excellent work being done in Malawi,I believe that money to the third world is best spent on essential infrastructure,such as mechanised irrigation, which can boost crop growth, and so provide food and water in a realistic long term fashion.A community risks becoming nomadic without a predictable source of water.

When we are all expected to contribute to so many charities,is it any wonder that we are getting compassion fatigue?