![]() Deutsche Welle | Greece mulls demands for war reparations Deutsche Welle Greece is evaluating asking Germany for reparations for the destruction of Greek villages and towns as well as for Nazi crimes during World War II and for the repayment of a loan worth billions of dollars the Bank of Greece was forced to make to ... |
Welcome, 77 artists, 40 different points of Attica welcomes you by singing Erotokritos an epic romance written at 1713 by Vitsentzos Kornaros
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Greece mulls demands for war reparations
Japan, Britain, Greece, Spain And France All Join us in The Ring Of Fire
![]() iStockAnalyst | Japan, Britain, Greece, Spain And France All Join us in The Ring Of Fire iStockAnalyst Bill Gross of Pacific Investment Management Co. (Pimco) is known as the "Bond King." PIMCO's flagship Total Return Fund has $260.9 billion dollars under management, making it the largest bond fund in the world. He was famously wrong last year, when he ... US's $60 Trillion Debt Burden Rivals That of Greece: Gross PIMCO's Gross says indebted US to resemble Greece US could start to look like Greece if it doesn't act, Pimco's Bill Gross warns ... |
'Confident' Spurs eye further Greek tonic
'Confident' Spurs eye further Greek tonic The Star Online PARIS: Tottenham will head into their second Europa League group match away to Panathinaikos brimming with confidence after notching up a first Premier League victory over Manchester United in 27 attempts on the weekend. After a slow start to Andre ... |
Big Fat Gypsy Weddings poster 'endorsed negative stereotypes'
Ad watchdog criticises Channel 4 campaign, also ruling that another poster depicting a child in a sexualised way
The advertising watchdog has criticised Channel 4's controversial Big Fat Gypsy Weddings poster campaign, ruling that it depicted a child in a sexualised way and reinforced negative stereotypes.
Channel 4's four posters, promoting the second series of Big Fat Gypsy Weddings which aired early this year, featured the words "Bigger. Fatter. Gypsier" over images of Gypsy boys and girls.
The Advertising Standards Authority ruled on Wednesday that the campaign was irresponsible, offensive and reaffirmed negative stereotypes and prejudice against the Traveller and Gypsy communities.
"As a result of this decision, Channel 4's Big Fat Gypsy brand has been held up to be morally bankrupt," said Yvonne MacNamara, chief executive of the Irish Traveller Movement in Britain. "Channel 4 should hang its corporate head in shame."
The Irish Traveller Movement in Britain, and several co-complainants, successfully appealed against the original decision made in March by the ASA not to investigate the campaign, despite almost 400 complaints about the ads.
Channel 4's posters included a one of young boy with an aggressive look on his face, two young women in low-cut tops and three girls elaborately dressed for their first communion.
The ASA found that one of the girls in a low-cut top, wearing heavy makeup and with part of her bra visible, was 15 – a year below the legal age children are allowed to appear in ads.
Channel 4 said that the girl had turned 16 before the image was used, adding that the poster was "not more revealing than any number of other ads, for example, swimwear products".
"Although we understood that the girl was depicted in her own choice of dress we considered that, in choosing that image for use in a poster, Channel 4 had acted irresponsibly by depicting a child in a sexualised way," said the ASA.
The ASA was equally critical about Channel 4's use of the image of the aggressive-looking young boy.
"He was depicted in a way that was offensive and endorsed negative stereotypes about him and his community," the watchdog ruled. "We considered that the ad reaffirmed commonly held prejudices about Gypsy and Traveller children in a way that was likely to cause distress and mental harm to children from those communities, including to the boy featured in the ad, by suggesting that was an acceptable way to portray him."
Channel 4 said that the ad campaign used "real and intimate" photographic portraits in a "journalistic, reportage style that reflected the journalistic intent of the series".
The broadcaster said in its submission to the ASA that the campaign was approved at the highest level, which would imply it was signed off by the Channel 4 chief executive, David Abraham.
"It was not Channel 4's intention for these adverts to cause offence but we are sorry this was the case among some members of the Gypsy and Traveller community," said a Channel 4 spokesman. "All responsible action was taken pre-publication: the posters were voluntarily submitted to the industry's independent CAP copy advice team who advised that they believed they complied with the advertising code; consent was obtained from contributors; and the posters were shared with those featured, who had no objections."
Channel 4 has been backing away from its hit franchise, which derives its name from the hit movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding and has delivered massive audiences for the broadcaster.
In August, the Channel 4 chief creative officer, Jay Hunt, told the MediaGuardian Edinburgh International Television Festival that the broadcaster would not be making any more series of Big Fat Gypsy Weddings. However, there will be six "Gypsy-themed" one-off specials next year.
In March media regulator Ofcom dismissed complaints that the TV campaign for the show breached any aspects of the broadcasting code.
"The ASA's powerful findings represent a fundamental turning point in how Travellers and Gypsies can be portrayed in the media in the future," said David Enright, a parner with law firm Howe & Co, which represented ITMB.
• To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editor@mediaguardian.co.uk or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".
• To get the latest media news to your desktop or mobile, follow MediaGuardian on Twitter and Facebook
US an addict on 'budgetary crystal meth,' Pimco's Bill Gross warns Add to ...
![]() Telegraph.co.uk | US an addict on 'budgetary crystal meth,' Pimco's Bill Gross warns Add to ... Globe and Mail Pimco's Bill Gross has a humiliating warning for the United States: America will soon go the way of Greece if it keeps on this path. "If we continue to close our eyes to existing 8-per-cent of GDP deficits, which when including Social Security, ... Bill Gross: Bonds Could Be 'Burned to a Crisp' The Best Bond Fund Manager You've Never Heard Of US's $60 Trillion Debt Burden Rivals That of Greece: Gross |
Smoked salmon blamed for salmonella outbreak
Associated Press
Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Updated 1:44 p.m., Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Harald Wychgel, a spokesman for the Dutch public health institute, said the institute got its information on Americans becoming ill from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Company spokesman Bart de Vries said that since the company set up a public information phone line two days ago, some 1,400 people had called and around 350 of the callers "reported symptoms consistent with a salmonella infection."
Roel Vincken of the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority, which carried out tests confirming the salmonella outbreak, said he had no information on a U.S. recall.
"The investigation into the cause is under way and has been narrowed down to one production line at one factory (in Greece)," De Vries told The Associated Press.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
The Greek Rules
![]() New York Times | The Greek Rules Wall Street Journal Inspectors from the International Monetary Fund are disputing €2 billion of the €13.5 billion savings package that the Greek government unveiled Monday. The budget police say that Athens's plan for laying off civil servants is too vague. They've asked ... Greek Government Proposes Deep Cuts in Bid to Please Foreign Lenders Greek 2013 budget sees sixth year of recession Greek Budget Predicts Economy Will Shrink for Sixth Year |




