Just read the Nut Graph’s August 14 article,”Internet Censorship” today and decided to give a comment in six words.

So here’s my comments:
My business is my own business.

Do something useful for once okay?

Government rules, but not that way.

Help please,need my free Internet.

There are two Australian press releases that I am  reviewing  and  improving.

The first on is titled, “Swimming still most popular sport for kids: ABS”. The press release can be improved by:

What the press release should do is:
>Interview relevant sources for the article such as psychologists, parents, children, sports coaches,etc

>Do a little bit more research from archives, library, the Internet

>Study the trends from the past few years in Australia

How to do the press release:

>Contact local psychologists, parents, children, sports coaches,etc

>Go to the archives to gain records

A news paragraph for the story:

SYDNEY: Around 19% of Australian children prefer swimming to other sports, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

The second press release is titled, “Australian Broadband connections soar to 4.3 million: ABS”

What the press release should do is:
>Quote a figure for the introduction

>State the reasons why the broadband penetration is rising, is it due to the broadband providers in Australia?

>Capture the response of Australian, officials, and Internet clubs

>What the impact of a higher broadband penetration will do to Australia in terms of economy, communication, etc

>Do a detailed comparison between all of Australia

How to do the press release:

>Should get the related documents concerning the previous years broadband penetration

>Contact broadband providers, Internet clubs, Government officials, and ordinary users

>Do research with other more broadband-advanced countries than Australia, compare data

This is the feature intorduction paragraph of the second press release:

Broadband Internet, an essential tool in today’s Australia.It is used for all sorts of purposes from communicating, information-searching, and entertainment. In the years 2007/2008, there were 800,000 Australian households which signed up for this service, as provided by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

BFM is an independent radio station launched in September 2008.It’s a 24 -hour station which is focused on business news and current affairs,as  stated on its official website http://www.bfm.my.

It is targeted at the  25-40 year old crowd,specifically the working professionals,executives,entrepreneurs,etc.Basically peple who are already in the workforce.

The station’s programs starts at 6.00 a.m. and ends at 9.00 p.m. After that,it’s all just music.Do bear in mind that after midnight,it is all Malay music until the 6.00 a.m. program starts again for a new day.

The station aims to help the working folk,empower them as working professionals,make them well-informed.

The appeal of the station lies in in the fact that it is the only business station that addresses a broad spectrum of issues.

The music that they play is not the typical music that you hear in other music stations.

BFM is available at 89.9 FM in the Klang Valley.

I recently went on a class trip to BFM radio station.BFM (which stands for Business FM). I will admit, when I first heard of BFM, I was going BFM WHAT??!!!!! inside my head.After all, as the name connotes, the station obviosly has something to do with business,otherwise it wouldn’t be called Business FM, right.

But anyhow, about the trip. We arrived in time,a lot earlier than scheduled.The office is situated in Bandar Utama,Petaling Jaya,near One Utama Mall.The station’s founder,Malek Ali was originally scheduled to meet and guide us but had to bail as he had to go outstation. So we had one of his producers, Annie Wong as replacement guide instead.But upon arriving,she wasn’t there.It seemed that Annie had to run off on a quick errand.While waiting for Annie,one  of their Marketing guys,Christopher Sherwin gave an impropmtu introduction and a brief explanation about the station.I couldn’t help but noticed that the station was quite small compared to other stations.I must confess that prior to this,I had never actually stepped into an actual radio station but to myown general knowledge,they were supposed to be a lot bigger.I do know that BFM is supposedly Malaysia’s first independent station therefore and did not expect much.

BFM radio station occupied one floor of what could be described as a typical office space.There were desks where the staff sat. Behind the office space were where you could clearly see the recording booths.Forgive me,but I must confess that I am unfamiliar with radio jargon.There was also a sound room smack right in the middle of the recording booths where they recorded the station’s programs.There was a corner for beverages as well as a conference room.

Annie proved to be a pretty capable guide.She began by explaining to us the the origins of the station as well as its functions, programs, and the station’s workforce. She did this not by the typical Power Point but with a cardboard slide set, sort of like a desk calendar. That aspect was very interesting. During her presentation,we were allowed to interrupt by asking questions.Annie obligingly answered all our questions clearly.

Annie describes a typical day for the staff at the station, “It depends on who we are”.

She cites presenters who have to come in early and prepare for an interview, podcast it, and then prepare questions for the next interview.

Producers like her have to make sure that what goes on air is of quality,scheduling,works closely with the preesenter and assists them.

Producers also have to source out interviewees and do this a month in advance,sometimes  two weeks in advance if time permits.

Sometimes producers will have to do the interviews themselves.

When asked if most of the staff had business background, Annie said,”Some of the guys here don’t have a business background”.

She cited some of the presenters who did not have a business background and that those who did,specifically writers had to learn each other’s craft through training.

I just had to ask how presenters were recruited and Annie said through recommendations and sending of CVs.

After both the presentation and the Q&A session,this was where the fun part started.Annie took us on a tour around the station!Because of the fact that the station was small,it was a fairly easy tour of the station’s facilities.We were introduced to almost all the staff,from the lower ranked to the upper ranked staff.What was exciting for me personally was meeting the announcers,recognising the faces from the voices.One in particular was Caroline,fromerly of Lite FM.It was a bit disappointing not to have met Shazmin,formerly of Mix FM and Red FM,who wasn’t available. There were some faces that I could have sworn I’d seen somewhere in the media such as Freida,one of the announcers.

During the tour of the station, we were also allowed to take photographs of the station.

Overall,it was enjoyable for my first trip to a radio station.

Second task,the sidebar story Part 2.Now it’s about the Spanish Flu.

Okay,in almost every news report that’s been mentioned,there will always be comparisons about this previous flu called the Spanish flu.So apparently this thing is called the predecessot to the current H1N1 flu we’ve all been hearing about.So what make this flu so special and just why does it have a link to the current strain?

Well,apparently the Spanish flu was a lot more serious than the current H1N1 pandemic.After all,this is a type of flu strain that managed to kill,according to various reports on the web,Wikipedia specifically cites that a thridof the world population which was equal to 25 million people then died.Meanwhile,another site virus.stanford.edu puts the figure between 20-40 million people.

Whichever way you look at it,that’s a lot of deaths.The world population then wasn’t even the same number of people today. 20-40 million people was a lot,one third of the world population.If the same sitauation was replayed today and say the H1N1 pandemic robbed a third of the world today,2 billion people would perish.Now think.A lot of people killed due to one single strain of virus.

Did you know that the Spanish flu didn’t even originate from Spain?It was only called that because during World War 1,Spain was a neutral country and news from there was considered the most trusted.

There was also a second strain of the pandemic back in 1918.The second strain was more deadly because the virus had mutated into a more deadly form.Therefore,for the present strain,certainly there are certain points that we can pick up to prevent a recurrence of multiple deaths.

Due to today’s technology and fast-based lifestyle,the rate the new strain of  H1N1 would spread is much more quicker.Nowadays,there’s low-cost planes where people travel easily to spread diseases at a faster rate but there is also new technology that  help develop drugs to combat this pandemic.Hopefully,there will be an end to this pandemic and pray that it  won’t be as worse as the last time.The world certainly doesn’t need another medical crisis on its hands.

Another one of those assigned tasks I was assigned to.Now there’s two of them.Preparing a prevention guide for all of you to never ever have H1NI in your lives (no guarantees here) and another one about the origins of the Spanish flu (interesting).

Now as we all know, H1N1 is just the latest pandemic to hit the world in recent years. There ares several ways of preventing this disease from ever infecting you so listen up.These are only preventive measures and not some kind of life insurance against the disease so I beg you,don’t sue me if you do get infected.

The most common preventive measure is to go to a doctor if you have any one of the classic  influenza-like ilnessess (ILI) such as cough,fever, sore throat,body ache,headache,chills and fatigue.Don’t just stand there if you display any of these symptoms.Get help!Go to the doctor immediately! Who knows what that little fever means,it could mean something.So,do get checked immedaitely.

The next step would be that if you do have some of the symptoms,isolate yourself immediately of course.Or quarantine as they call it for up to a week.Be in limited contact with family and friends.Just let one person help you out.Remember,be separate from one another.Avoid crowds at all costs,don’t venture out of the house.Nobody wants the entire family or community to get infected with H1N1.More infections=More nuisance

Another way for early prevention is to wash your hands as frequently as possible.Nobody wants to see dirty,rough,unkempt hands.It’s not only disgusting but obviously unhygienic.So either carry a hand sanitiser at all tines or keep rushing in and out to the nearest wash basin and get scrubbing!

Notice the ‘fashion’ trend around nowadays?That’s right people,start wearing them masks.The three ply-layered ones,now they’ll protect you if you display the ILI and everybody else (of course not 100% full but it’ll do).If not,please,please cover your hands and mouth when coughing and sneezing.

The latest preventive measure?If you’re lucky and your country has stockopiled H1N1 vaccines,what’re you waiting for?Go get a shot!Like NOW!So good luck people,be safe and don’t get H1N1.

Here’s another task I was assigned to. I recently, on a college/school trips, met editor Teoh T Hoong of the Subang Jaya (SJ) Echo :

Walking into his small but messy office, you wouldn’t have guessed that it was a place where a newspaper was produced. After all, there was not a  sight of a single journalist busily typing their stories at their desks like a normal newsroom. Yet it was, as we were led into the editor’s office.

Teoh, the man in  question and Managing Editor of the SJ Echo sat in his office. Clad in his paper’s official shirt and pants, he beckons us to sit.

He admits that as Malaysia’s only community paper, there are a lot of challenges in running the paper. Among them time.

He says, “It’s just a paper. That emotionally drains you especially if you’re dealing with sick children. Time is of the essence”.

Teoh continues by saying that his paper reaches an estimated audience of 20,000 people in the township of Subang Jaya, an impressive figure for a free paper run by a one-man show.

The SJ Echo is published once a month and distributed within Subang Jaya and its surrounding areas.

Teoh, who prior to his SJ Echo gig, was an environmenetal journalist with The Star, Malaysia ‘s biggest selling English paper before switching to the WWF.

Even so, Teoh says about the switch from mainstream to working solo, “Working alone is nice. It’s more like a home away from home. Working alone means working with flexibility, to your limitations”.

The only thing he says he misses from his former mainstream days are the traveling, citing his trip in Bangladesh during the Reformasi days. He says that the conditions there were extremely poor and was so glad when he arrived home that he wanted to kiss the ground.

Teoh gives his two cents worth on the democracuy situation in the country. He says, “The country must change. In free democratic countries, there are no demonstratuions, we have plenty of food, no burning cars.

He his however politically moderate in his views, prefering to be neutral. This is also the stance that his paper takes.

Ironic, considering that Subang Jaya State Assemblyman Hannah Yeoh is just a couple of doors away from his office in SS14 Subang Jaya.

For the record, yes, she has her very own column in the paper, though Teoh is always warning her to keep the politics out of the paper.

Teoh is blunt though about his voting preferences, admitting that, after the  country’s political awakening  of  March 2008 dubbed the political tsunami last year, he did not vote for Yeoh.

“Hannah knows that I did not vote for her,” he reveals without a hint of regret in his voice.

However, he still maintains a good relation with his neighbour cum local representative joking that due to the close proximity with Yeoh’s office, some of her mail has crawled into his office.

“They think I’m DAP headquarters now,” he says,smiling.

Speaking of representatives, Teoh, in his capacity as the Managing Editor of the SJ Echo as well as resident of Subang Jaya, regards himself as a little bit of both.

“Most residents regard me as  a resident,” he reveals.

Yes,a resident albeit one who runs a paper for the community.Some might think that running the paper is for Teoh’s personal gains but he reveals that it is more than that.

“I do community work in my own neighbourhood.Just me,myself and I.I share with the community.The paper is about the people,”he says.

Teoh is an example of the modern citizen journalism who do not need the backing of large corporations behind them,with him demonstrating that he can do it himself.

He gets his stories from various sources,both young and old.Contributors make up the rest of his team.

Whenever there’s a story regarding  Subang Jaya,Teoh will be there.For those stories that do not make it,Teoh will squeeze them in the online edition.

SJ Echo has done remarkably well with advertisers in such as supermarket Mydin contributing space in his paper.

Teoh has to wear two hats in this case,that of publisher and marketing executive presenting proposals to get advertisers’ backing.

When asked about the future of his paper,on whether there were plans of expansion than the usual monthly.

Teoh says there are no urgent plans as of now.He likens Subang Jaya to a kampung.

“Bring back the kampung feeling,where everybody knows each other,” Teoh reveals his wish.

He further advises, “One thing about trying to bring  change is a fact that it never stops.It is an infinite role to accomodate what you want to do”.

He ends the interview with this piece, “At the end of the day,what drives us in journalism is curiousity.The curiousity in you drives you.What is it I want to read?”.

Wise words, indeed.

Here’s another task I was assigned to, review a chapter of Dan Gillmor’s book “We,the media”.As I  was required to review only one chapter,I chose Chapter 4 titled “Newsmakers Turn the Tables”.

Basically,the chapter talks about blogs and the impact they have on the news environment today.It also explains at length how blogs are now very much a part of the mainstream and that the  journalism fraternity have to embrace it or get left behind.

It also points out that now even CEOs are on the blogging trend,illustrating  the point that blogging is a way to communicate to the ordinary man on the street.Other than that,there is also a part in the chapter where it mentions that RSS is now more acceptable at gaining information than say,Googling.Just subscribing to a particular information on RSS and it’ll deliver in real time,with your specific information all watered down according to your liking.

All in all,blogging is about getting close to the common man,maintain a normal touch,so to speak.The chapter ends with some tips for PR and marketing practitioners.Overall,a useful chapter for those curious about blogging and the likes.

As everybody is aware by now, there seems to be an increase in the number of H1N1 cases recently.

In today’s (26th August 2009) New Straits Times  paper, the latest fatalities toll show that it has risen to 71 deaths after a 3 day lull.There are also 324 people curently in hospital because of H1N1.This goes to show you would never know when the disease would strike.Just beacuse it’s been silent does’t mean that it’s still not lurking somewhere.

Not trying to be a preacher or anything,but we should all defininitely keep our heads up and watch out for this disease.There’s definitely no need to keep on harping about how the number of cases rising are being reported and people dying of it.It is obvious that it’s infectious and spreading rapidly (Hello??!!).

Why,I have now experirenced first-hand the seriousness of this disease seeing my own college closed for a week  due to three H1N1 infections.Though I’m sure there are some people who are probably overjoyed at this ‘holiday’,the fact that there even is a holiday probably a mere three weeks after college reopened just goes to show you that we are being robbed of a chance to learn.

I’ve noticed a lot lately that more people seem to be wearing masks to protect themselves against the disaese.Not making fun or anything,people are just trying to be safe.I myself am thinking of getting a mask.

Said schoolboy Zain Z. ,”The Government should provide medical kits to school children”.

As every minute passes,a new case and a new death is occuring everywhere around us.So don’t be too passive,protect yourself.

Just a little reminder though, don’t take this disease too lightly.You can never be too safe to be sure.Better be safe than sorry.

This is  an assigned task,but I was asked to look up my country’s (Malaysia) Government sites and compare them to others like America’s and Australia’s.

This is a comparison of the Whitehouse and Malaysia’s PM Dept.Another pair, both Statistics Departments of Malaysia and Australia.To see who will triumph…Anyhow, here goes:

First off,the White House vs Malaysia’s PM Dept

The White House                                           Malaysia’s PM Dept

* More clearer (i.e more space)             * Cluttered space

* User-friendly                                              * A little too formal in tone

* Simple and easy layout                          * Too complicated layout

And now for the second comparison, the Australian Bureau of Statistics vs Department of Statistics Malaysia:

The Australian Bureau of Statistics           Department of Statistics Malaysia   

* Layout is simple                                            * Layout is more formal

* Relatable to the layman                             * More academic in nature

* Quite dull                                                         * Has more interactive features