Mike Butcher - mbites

Being a traditionally trained journalist (prior to entering the blogging world a few years ago) I have always had a healthy respect for the libel law in the UK, which is, in the main, anti-media, anti-journalism, and now out of date in the new online world. However, a recent conversation with an extremely helpful lawyer, Victoria McEvedy of McEvedy & Associates (www.mcevedy.eu), has resulted in her sending me a "Primer on Defamation for Bloggers" which (gasp!) actually points to a defence you could use in your blogging, were a libel action mounted against you and your content. It's not literally 'new news', but it's the best explanation I've come across yet about this subject.

It turns out that bloggers - along with the rest of the media - are also now able to make use of a special form of privilege, known as "The Reynolds defense of Responsible Journalism." This requires a Defendant (that's you the blogger) to show that the publication was:

(1) in the public interest

(2) that the you met the standard of Responsible Journalism on the date the blog post went live

Key to this is that the defence is not dependant on proving Truth, which is usually the defense a media outfit relies on and is often really hard to get at. That is a big deal. In other words, you don't have to prove what you are blogging about someone is true, but you have to prove you met the standard of "Responsible Journalism" before you pressed the Publish button.

So if you publish material of public interest "in any medium" then bloggers, by definition, can use this defense.

Most critical to your defense is the requirement that the subject of the blog post must be:

1. Given the precise allegations that are to be published
2. A meaningful opportunity to respond to them
3. The gist of that response should be published in a balanced way

I am re-printing below what was sent to me in a word document. Let's spread this knowledge...

Primer on Defamation for Bloggers
--------------------------------------------

The elements of a cause of action for defamation are:

1. A defamatory (pejorative) statement.
2. Published by the Defendant.
3. Reasonably understood to refer to the Claimant.

Be aware that repeating a statement makes you liable for it. It is no defense to libel that one was merely repeating the statements of another—this is the repetition rule. In addition, the republication rule means you can be liable for damages for all foreseeable republications by others who repeat it. This stems from the fact that every of a libel is a new libel, and each publisher is answerable for his act to the same extent as if it originated with him.

Once the Claimant has proved the above, the burden shifts to the Defendant to establish one of 3 primary defenses:

• Truth (justification)
• Fair Comment (honest opinion based on true facts)
• Privilege.

If the Defendant cannot make out a defense, the Claimant will succeed and the defamatory statement, if written becomes a Libel, and if oral, a Slander. The Claimant is then entitled as of right, to an award of general damages without need for proof of damage because it is presumed that some damage will flow from the invasion of the right to reputation.

The real defense is privilege. The others are too onerous.

The media now has a special form of privilege, the Reynolds defense of Responsible Journalism. This Reynolds defense requires a Defendant to show that the publication was (1) in the public interest; and (2) that the Defendant met the standard of Responsible Journalism as at the date of publication. The defense is not dependant on proving Truth. It is the main defense the media will rely on.

The courts have indicated that this will be available to anyone who publishes material of public interest in any medium. That means bloggers.

Bloggers should therefore be aware of the 10 point test below from Reynolds v Times [1999] UKHL 45. Most critical are the requirement that the subject of the article must be given the precise allegations that are to be published and a meaningful opportunity to respond to them and the gist of that response should be published in a balanced way. The table below is designed to act as a prompt or checklist.

The 10 point test

1. The seriousness of the allegation. The more serious the charge, the more the public is misinformed and the individual harmed, if the allegation is not true.

In plain English:

This affects the rest, if it's career ending then all the more important that due caution is exercised.

2. The nature of the information, and the extent to which the subject-matter is a matter of public concern.

In plain English:

The hook on which everything else will be hung, this is the reason the public should know, irrespective of the fact that the writer can’t prove its true and it might not be.

3. The source of the information. Some informants have no direct knowledge of the events. Some have their own axes to grind, or are being paid for their stories.

In plain English:

What is the quality, how reliable are they, how direct is their knowledge? Are they biased, holding a grudge or beyond reproach? Are they being paid for the story? The answers to these questions should inform the writer of the level of verification necessary. Even if the identity of the source is withheld—as may be appropriate, these questions must be asked and answered.

4. The steps taken to verify the information.

In plain English:

What or who verified the source’s information? What steps were taken to verify even if unsuccessful or did they not bother? Who did not verify?

5. The status of the information. The allegation may have already been the subject of an investigation which commands respect.

In plain English:

What is the quality? Are they uncorroborated allegations or the subject of official inquiries, investigations or findings? Rumor and speculation has no status nor does the premature allocation of blame. Care should be exercised.

6. The urgency of the matter. News is often a perishable commodity.

In plain English:

News is a perishable commodity but is there an urgent need for the public to be told of untested and highly damaging allegations? The writer’s own interest in a scoop is not relevant nor is their convenience or deadline.

7. Whether comment was sought from the claimant. He may have information others do not possess or have not disclosed. An approach to the plaintiff will not always be necessary.
In plain English:
A meaning opportunity to respond to the precise allegations should be given. Door stopping, calls with half an hour before print/broadcast and ambushing are not a proper opportunity to give a measured response to very serious allegations.

8. Whether the article contained the gist of the claimant's side of the story.

In plain English:

Formulaic references to a denial may not be enough nor any longer will the one paragraph at the end provide sufficient balance to an article full of allegations of the utmost seriousness laid out in great detail.

9. The tone of the article. A newspaper can raise queries or call for an investigation. It need not adopt allegations as statements of fact.

In plain English:

Sensational will cost the writer as will adopting mere allegations as facts, premature allocation of blame.

10. The circumstances of the publication, including the timing.

In plain English:

The writer’s subjective belief as to the truth of the story is important.

Where publication is continuing in an online form –once the writer/publisher is advised of its untruth or the commencement of a libel claim –they can lose the benefit of the defense if continuing to publish without correction or qualification. So a story that originally qualified for the defense can lose it later if events render continuing publication irresponsible in light of facts of matters which have changed. It is now common practice for notices to be affixed online to inform readers that the item is the subject of a libel action.

This article does not provide legal advice but rather general information. It is not a complete discussion nor a substitute for legal advice. This is general information provided on an as-is basis and no warranties are given and no relationship created.

McEvedy & Associates
www.mcevedy.eu

Last year fellow blogger and social media expert Lloyd Davis came up with an idea for something called a "social media cafe" where people working in social media (bloggers, marketing people, technologists etc) could get together in the same space and work. Sort of 'vertical co-working'. He's been looking for potential venues - I'm talking physical space here - in London. But this requires cash investment. However, it strikes me that a mashup of co-working and a flash mob might work better - or at least be a way of starting the idea without investment. What you need is a cluster of about two or three cafes within walking distance of each other, all offering free WiFi. Then simply flash-mob (all turn up at the same time) those places on one particular day, with people who are signed-up to the project. At lunchtime, try to gather in one of them to meet your fellow "workers". Then do whatever you need to do that day from your allotted cafe. Crazy?

If you are interested in current digital technology and creativity developments, or have something to contribute about the importance of good design principles in interactive media, then check out iDesign: design for life on September 18th, at London's Southbank Centre, Purcell Room as part of this year's London Design Festival. There'll be an exhibition and debates to examine the impact of digital interactive media on all of our daily lives, and how our collective digital future will pan out. Tickets can be bought here.

You may have picked this up elsewhere, but here's a brief announcement for mbites readers. I am the new Editor of TechCrunch UK & Ireland. Some may know that I helped launch the site for the first time late last year. I also resigned after what I perceived at the time to be unnecessary editorial interference from the US site in a UK editorial issue. It's hard to explain it all now, but all I can say is, hell, you had to be there...

However, after a long "time out" I am back again and happy to say that TechCrunch has decided to show its firm commitment to this market and to editorial independence. For my part, it’s great to be editing the site and I want people to be re-assured that TechCrunch UK & Ireland is here to stay.

The other sites I have been working on recently - including mbites.com - remain personal projects, but I will do all my 'news breaking' and heavy blogging about the Web 2.0, tech and startups business on TechCrunchUKI. I'll also be contributing to TechCrunch US.

To contact me:

Email: mike [at] mbites dot com
Mobile: +44 77 2029 1095
Skype: mikegbutcher
More info on me: http://mbites.com/contact

I HATE blog posts that apologise for the lack of updates. Like, who cares?! Either blog or don't blog. Just don't apologise. However, I do find that these days I update my Twitter microblog more than this blog! And I have been working on other stuff other than blogging lately. And thinking. However, I will be writing about the Brunch Bites event last week soon. This week I have been working with Seedcamp to help young Web 2.0 and Mobile 2.0 startups get off the ground and doing a lot of writing to profile the startups involved. It's been a fascinating experience. I'll publish more info later...

Thanks to the "Facebook Isn’t Private, and 7 Other Things You Should Know" post I have taken the main points about its Terms and Conditions and summarised below. It makes for gritty reading.

1. The terms can change at any time of Facebook's choosing.

2. Facebook is legally for personal use only (only actual people can create profiles. And you’re not supposed to profit from it. A profile for a business technically would be banned/deleted).

3. A single, individual user account (you can’t - under their T&Cs - have two accounts on Facebook)

4. You’re giving up a HUGE license (posting content gives Facebook a license to do whatever they want with your content).

5. Applications are NOT guaranteed safe (In other words, “installer beware.” A malicious application developer could break through Facebook’s security protocols and expose your info. That would probably be difficult to do, but Facebook wouldn’t have to take the blame).

6. Disputes are arbitrated under Delaware law in the US (If Facebook does something horridly wrong and you want to sue you can't because you’ve already agreed to “final and binding arbitration”)

7. You surrender "all submissions" (If you give them a good idea for Facebook it becomes their property)

8. Privacy is NOT guaranteed: "[W]e cannot and do not guarantee that User Content you post on the Site will not be viewed by unauthorized persons. We are not responsible for circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures contained on the Site... ...Please keep in mind that if you disclose personal information in your profile or when posting comments, messages, photos, videos, Marketplace listings or other items , this information may become publicly available."

If somebody hacks Facebook, steals all your content and contact info you have no remedy against Facebook.

Brunch Bites 1.0, the first "salon" style event from Bites Media (the new mini-network of digital business blogs: tbites, mediabites, mobbites, musicbites) went very well today. In attendance were a wide variety of people drawn from digital media, marketing, mobile, music and the startup world of Web 2.0. These included Luke Razzell who is currently developing a Facebook application called Blog Friends; Walid Al Saqqaf, co-founder of TrustedPlaces; David Jennings, author of a book about to be published on social media and music (which I'll review soon); mobile guru Helen Keegan of Beepmarketing; Thayer Driver from Chinwag; a new startup still in stealth mode; Anthony Goh, advertising strategist; Lloyd Davis; and serial Internet entrepreneur Steve Bowbrick, who I described as the Grande Dame of the UK internet industry. (I was trying to be reverential but it came out wrong!) Look out for the next Brunch Bites on August 29 (venue to be announced) or join the Facebook group or keeping an eye on bitesmedia.com / mbites.com. There are some photos on Flickr already (thanks Thayer! and here are mine) which make me look - entirely incorrectly - like I was holding court, but which were taken during the two minutes when I just outlined what the event was about an introduced people to each other. Honest!

I am reminded of the days when Web access was banned by employers because employees would spend too much time on it. Now Facebook is getting banned by City firms. I mean you might as well ban email and the phone. Dennis Howlett has a good quote on this subject from a former CTO at Dresdner:

"I remember a time, it must have been the early 1980s, when it was common to ban phones with direct dial facilities. Why? Because people might talk to their friends and family during work time…Banning Facebook is the equivalent of banning coffee shops and water coolers and loos."

Surely education is the answer, not banning stuff? Besides it'll all settle down when people get bored with being bitten by Zombies or poked by strangers...(or will they...?)

Julian Bond at Voidstar has a great post on routing all your and your friend's Status updates from Facebook to Twitter using Mario Menti's excellent TwitterFeed service. Now, here's my question. Is this not completely insane? Keeping up with Twitter feeds is hard enough. Adding Facebook status updates would hasten my "Twitter Bankruptcy". At least with Twitter most people tend to keep in the back of their head that at least some of their key followers get Tweets sent direct to their mobiles via SMS. That means Twitter posts - which are also limited to 140 characters - tend to be much more concise than Facebook status updates, which can be even more throwaway that Tweets, if that doesn't sound like an impossibility...

To illustrate, here's is an example of my friends' facebook status updates this morning:

XXXX XXXX is swapping one kind of chaos for another.

one minute ago

XXXX XXXX is pleased that there is finally some sunshine!

7 minutes ago

XXXX XXXX is back once more like the renegade master.

11 minutes ago

XXXX XXXX is in the other only caff on the A4.

30 minutes ago

XXXX XXXX is hoping the weather at 5am this morning holdup for the rest of the week for the folks back home.

44 minutes ago

XXXX XXXX is prodding Drupal with a sensitive implement.

49 minutes ago

XXXX XXXX is in the office.

50 minutes ago

XXXX XXXX is pleased to see that Mike Reid's death is getting billed above Ingmar Bergman's on BBC Online. That will probably change. Right? Runaround!

56 minutes ago

XXXX XXXX is back in the office.

57 minutes ago

XXXX XXXX is in the office.

about an hour ago

What I call 'conversational status' is a great way of just shooting the breeze, but the added element of mobile changes the character of the conversation to be pithier and often far more relevant to location.

Which reminds me of how one Twitter friend of mine recently said he was 'pruning his Twitter friends' down to just those in London. His Twitter conversation wouldn't make any sense otherwise...

Today I've been reading Rex Hammock's Weblog (thanks Voidstar for the link) who writes about how Facebook it's not really the Holy Grail for either social networking or being the ultimate tool for collaborative working and tracking. He calls it' "geek play", and I agree. He says:

Facebook is not even close to being what will ultimately be that thing which alters fundamentally the way in which we relate and communicate. It may show us the way, but there are some important factors related to personal identity and social interaction that Facebook — or any platform that requires us to create community that is locked inside a wall — will not be able to overcome if it is to become the next be-all, end-all.

He also mentioned Ning which was previewed last year at Content 2.0 here in London when Marc Canter got up on stage and pointed out that MySpace users couldn't own theor own profiles or move them around networks. Well guess what? here we are again with the same old issue all over again, this time with Facebook.

Meanwhile over here, "A VC in NYC" agrees with Jason Calacanis that "Facebook Bakruptcy" is where you have total overload of friend requests and incoming stuff to deal with. Plus FB is becoming so successful, startups are wondering if they should just build an application for Facebook rather than build out a whole web service.

My view is that building a site is a marathon not a sprint. If you can't control your content then you have no business long term. Sure, market your site on Facebook - but don't for pete's sake put your whole idea into it.

It seems to me that something like Wordcamp should be done in the UK. The techies have their BarCamp. Why not something around content? And it doesn't have to be just about WordPress skills.... (I use Drupal for instance).

Perhaps someone could provide a venue? People can showcase their skills/services. And I can learn how to be a better blogger!

I dare say there are a few other people we could bring together to make something happen...

Email me on mike at mbites dot com if you are interested.

Here are a few camphone snaps I took at the recent New Statesman New Media Awards. It was hosted by Rory Cellan-Jones, the BBC's technology correspondent. It was held in some rather lovely gardens next to Westminster Cathedral which I daresay not that many people get to see. The guys getting their pictures taken are MySociety who won a couple of well-deserved awards, and at the bottom you can see the red trousers belonging to Guido Fawkes, the political blogger. Much fun was had by all, especially at the pub afterwards. I was a judge on the awards, ran the dedicated blog and wrote much of the awards supplement.

I've been kinda busy with other things lately (like, having a personal life) so it's good to get back to some blogging on mbites (going since 2002, don't you know?). Here's a random list of things I've encountered recently.

• There's a good article from Business Week on blogging, but you realise it's written by an intern (it actually says this at the bottom) when they fail to check that TechCrunch UK is not running right now and implies Pete Cashmore's Mashable makes all its money from advertising, when quite blatantly - and to be fair this is made quite clear - it is a front for his consulting services, which I dare say earns a tonne more money than the ads.

• Good piece from Last 100 on Microsoft's future TV strategy: "There’s a reason Microsoft chose Mediaroom as the brand instead of simply Microsoft TV: they are looking to the future of entertainment, where TV is just one piece of the puzzle. Don’t be surprised if they eventually change “all your media in once place” to “all your media with you everywhere you go” because that’s where they are headed."

• Marketers are abandoning Second Life. Why? Because inside the game they are purchasing genitalia but not, for instance the shoes that Reebok markets inside the world. Linden Labs claims it has eight million members but actual visitors to the world clock in at about 40,000 *regular* playing members. And many of those are members who do not pay a dime to SL. Meanwhile stores like American Apparel have been attacks by members. Not fun for marketers. The alternatives are going into worlds like There and Entropia Universe which are a great deal more structured than SL and don't allow the sale of body parts. There is a long article investigating the whole issue over at The LA Times.

• This piece over at the NY Times seems to suggest Twitter is the new thing for marketers, but only today I've been reading about Twitter starting to struggle against Facbeook status updates. Conclusion? The market is in flux right now and there are no clear winners yet, especially in the realm of "expressive presence".

• Content targeting is what Google has built its business on with AdSense contextual advertising. So by working out how to capture TV sound on a PC, Google can identify the TV show being watched and use that information to immediately return personalized Internet content to the viewer. This project is still in very early R&D stages but it is almost certain to happen. Does the TV industry have ANYTHING in response to this either via traditional broadcast network or IPTV? I doubt it. And it turns out ad-skipping could actually help TV networks to improve getting their ads in front of people who actually want to view them. Who knew?

• London is the Facebook capital of the moment, with more people here on the social networking site than in any other city. But without realising it most are now being unwittingly locked into a system that is going to be very hard to leave. Facebook's locked-down approach is profoundly anti-Web 2.0 and utterly against the open standards the Web was heading towards. But as I keep telling people who wail about this stuff, this is exactly what works for the Average Joe. In just the same way Apple made digital music easy by instituting its own DRM (Fairplay) and eco-system (iTunes, iPod, Mac), Facebook is locking us all into its own application-friendly system. And we're all biting. Facebook is now a Black Hole, sucking data into its inner core. Watch and learn.

There are some fascinating lessons to be learned from the closure of BackFence.com in the US. I think the most salient come in the comments to this story, namely that:

• "Hyper-local is about utility and networks of people, not citizen journalism"

• "they approached the problem from the top down rather than working to organize and shape existing natural local networks and chatter"

• "See the existing 72,000+ public ‘neighborhood’ Yahoo Groups (and who knows how many private groups) and the fast growing Facebook Regional networks as proof points of scalable hyper-local models...and the focus of these services isn’t even hyper-local!"

It's clear to me, having watched the debates about citizen journalism (effectively ordinary people acting like reporters) on the one hand and social media (like MySpace, Facebook, even YahooGroups) on the other, that in every scenario social media wins. Why? Because of time. The simple fact is most people don't have time to create content around their local area. Believe me, I've done it (professionally as a local newspaper journalist, and privately as a local activist). It's a pain!

The only thing that makes it easier is being able to do it in "gulps" as in "Here's the local phone number for this service" or "here's where you sign up for this". That's it. Most people can't do much more and those that could don't have the time. Microblogging and Facebook status updates are literally a gift from heaven in this scenario.

That's why social networks which give local people the tools to connect and create knowledge selfish/selflessley will win in this game. That's also why local newspapers are potentially screwed.

Am video blogging from the Chinwag Party in London tonight. If you want your startup to be on tbites.com, call me - 07720291095

Piece this together from my Twitter feed. The storm clouds of weather and terrorism combined.... :

15:31
technokitten getting very bored of the rain. Maybe a cup of tea will help!

16:02
Suw @drewb: I'm in N7, but there was just the one rumble. Wondering if we'll have more.

16:02
drewb Heathrow closed, all flights cancelled! All over the TV. A package has been found apparently. Got to be a big package to cancel all flights

16:21
Thayer Watching the very large fluffy and yet ominous clouds coming towards London. Woooo storm tastic!

16:33
Suw Dammit. Roofers now not coming til 8am tomorrow morning. They better bloody turn up!

16:51
Thayer Check out the storm clouds gathering over West to East London, taken from the Chinwag Roof Terrace http://www.flickr.com/photos/thayer18/

17:08
Thayer Lol, thanks for all the cloud suggestions Tweets I think the alien spacecraft wins Dog with long nose a close second! *giggle*

17:18
Suw Thunder and lightening on TV at Wimbledon; thunder outside. Funny how exciting it is. I mean, it's just weather!

17:40
drewb Watching from 22nd floor as 'planes fly through the lightning in central london. It's like night has fallen

18:13
Cybersoc Heading north from kings cross thameslink on fcc to st. albans, luton, beds? no u aren't. closed...

18:15
drewb @cybersoc: Kings Cross station going north west is closed? grt. bet Paddington's crazy again

18:41
bowbrick Rainbow in the spray right next to my car on the M25!

18:47
bowbrick A triple rainbow!

19:33
Suw ooh, a rainbow! pretty!!

19:48
Cybersoc On a bus. Not supposed to be on a bus. In Hatfield. Not meant to be there either.

As described in Wired Magazine today: “TechCrunch Blogger Michael Arrington Can Generate Buzz … and Cash”

“Michael Arrington was sound asleep in his bedroom in Atherton, California, when three men burst in. Naturally, he was startled. His first reaction, he recalls, was to tell them to “get the fuck out.” But he quickly realized they meant no harm. Clad in white business suits and speaking English with a Dutch accent, the apologetic men looked more like dandies on their way to a garden party than criminals.”

The BBC reports on research by Danah Boyd which found that Facebook users come from wealthier homes and are more likely to attend college while MySpace users tend not to have gone on to further education. While "class" in the US does not map directly to income it is more about social life and networks. Hence Facebook users tend to be white and education oriented while MySpace teenager tend to come from families from immigrant backgrounds.

This rings true in my view, and maps to my view that in the future the really powerful networks will be closed ones. You can't get to a Facebook profile unless you are registered and it's not open to the Web. On MySpace anyone - logged in or not - can reach you, and it also reflects a teenager's general "posture" to the outside world much more because of its public nature.

It's highly timely that today we learn that the BBC has sent journalist Ben Hammersley to cover Turkey's upcoming election using blogging, del.icio.us, Flickr, YouTube, and Facebook as a means of distribution. Because I'm working with two entirely independent journalists, who don't have the BBC's resources, to do almost the same thing during a three month trip to two Latin American countries.

We have dubbed the project "Letters from Latin America" “The Motorcycle Blog Diaries Project”, in a nod to the movie about Che Guevara (Update: we are still working on the project name). We are looking for a commercial partner - it might be a brand or an online service with social media services, a technology company or perhaps a media company - to sponsor the project.

Here is the brief:

Using words, pictures and video, journalist Deborah Bonello and photojournalist Tom Parker will combine reportage with ‘bearing witness’ in an odyssey around Latin America, updated, virtually live, as they travel. Initially, the pair is proposing this as a trial project running from July until the end of September, taking in Mexico and Guatemala.

- What will the project do?

Bonello and Parker plan to use every social media and blogging tool available to them to tell the stories and record the experiences of both the human narrative and the real-life stories from Latin America. They will showcase the incredible new potential of the newest forms of new media. In fact, The BBC just launched a similar project.

- What will the project's content be?

Using words, pictures and video, Bonello and Parker will combine reportage with ‘bearing witness’. Armed with a laptop, microphone and digital video and camera, the pair will tell stories via the experiences of individuals to show a global audience how people in the region live and are affected by the situation in their countries.

What is it really like to live in Mexico City, one of the most populous and polluted cities on earth? Why is Guatemala the adoption capital of the world, where British couples get their babies? What is life like for the refugees of the conflict in Columbia?

Reflecting the changing nature of journalism in today’s world, their blog posts and photo essays will cover the stories that the main media channels miss, wandering off the beaten track to record the lives and experiences of people in the region.

The editorial focus will be on honest, in-depth and insightful pieces covering everything from human rights issues, through to music and culture. Taking a primarily journalistic approach, the content will be transparent and factual.

- Who is it aimed at?

The site will generate a conversation with its audience and encourage others to blog about their lives. The team will also will also take requests from audiences who want the team to investigate particular issues or areas in the region, in a collaboration with the online audience.

- What a partner will get out of this project?

The site will generate a conversation with its audience and encourage others to blog about their lives. Any site offering a social media application, such as blogging, photosharing, video or audio would benefit from the PR and press attention around this project and thus communicate the possibilities of online media. Also, a site which wanted to highlight what life is like to live in the South America of today would also benefit.

- Who are these guys?

Deborah Bonello has been a journalist for the last decade, working for UK business magazines as well as the Guardian and the FT. She spent eighteen months working as a freelance foreign correspondent in South America, filing for the BBC, CNN Traveler and the Guardian, amongst others. She is currently studying for a Masters in Human Rights, and continues to work as a journalist.

Tom Parker has contributed to TIME, Marie Claire, Living etc, The Times, The Independent, The Independent on Sunday, the Mirror, Emirates Open Skies, Portfolio Magazine, BBC, Sri Lankan Airlines Magazine, Etihad. He has undertaken commissions for Redux Pictures and NGOs Action Aid, TUC, Save the Children and Aid Sri Lanka.

Mike Butcher, a social media expert and online journalist, is acting as an advisor on the project and will help with online support from the UK.

- What will the site look like?

The team is modeling the project roughly on the “Kevin Sites Hotzone” project with Yahoo But generally speaking it will be a blog web site with photos, video, RSS feeds, widgets and content which is shareable across the web.

- Where does it get posted?

This depends on the partner the team secure. This trip will happen anyway, the question is simply do they build their own blog or do they offer the opportunity to a sponsoring partner? This is an opportunity for a partner to be involved from the start.

- How much does it cost?

The team is budgeting for a figure to cover the costs involved and the time of the two main journalists and one support person in the UK to oversee the site daily. When compared to what it costs for a site to create buzz online via SEO, PR and marketing the costs are significantly lower. This project could generate significant traffic and press attention for its exploits.

CONTACT DETAILS:

Deborah Bonello
Email: dbonello[at]gmail.com
Mobile: +44 (0) 7904 079929

or Mike Butcher

Suddenly it's all about trying to be nice to bloggers and get them on your side. Do I smell the whiff of fear amongst media and brands? Trailing in the wake on an event I ran recently are two further events on the subject. A seminar on "Blogger Relations" to help PR types to understand engagement with the blogosphere better is being run this Friday, May 25th. There is more detail here and the booking form is here. Meanwhile BIMA is running an event this week on Online PR and social media. If your business is marketing, PR or involves any kind of engagement with opinion formers then I suggest you go to these events which are both pretty affordable and run by people I consider to be experts on the subject.

I'm flattered to be one of the judges for this year's New Statesman New Media Awards which focus on the use of new media in nonprofits, government, engagement with MPs etc. Anyone interested needs to nominate projects that they admire here by May 31. You can see last year's winners, and entries so far this year. You can also nominate your own project and enter more than one category. Oh, and the awards covers any tech platform, so Web , mobile interactive TV, you name it.

The categories are:

Contribution to civic society award
This award will go to the project that best uses new media technology to contribute to civic society.

Modernising government award
This award will go to the most innovative use of new media technology to improve and modernise services at any level of government.

Elected representative award
This award will go to the elected representative who best uses new media technology to communicate with the electorate. This award is open to councillors, MEPs, MPs, MSPs and Members of the Welsh Assembly, etc.

Education award
This award will go to the body or project that has made the most significant contribution to education through the use of new media technology.

Information and openness award
This award will go to the individual or organisation that best uses new media technology to provide an alternative, informative voice enhancing democratic debate.

Advocacy award
This award will go to the individual or organisation that has most effectively influenced opinions and behaviour through the use of new media technology. Pressure groups, lobbying firms, charities, corporate public affairs departments and campaigning organisations are all eligible.

Young Innovator award
This award recognises the impact of young innovators in our society. The winner will be involved with new media innovations that improve public life or contribute to civic society. They could have contributed to, created or run a project. These may include websites, blogs, online radio or any other new media project. There is a £500 cash prize for this category. Entrants must be under 26 on 01 Jan 2007.

This month I'll be on the judging panel for the New Statesman New Media Awards. I'll also be chairing The Dark Side of Social Media panel at Chinwag Live in June. I'm currently providing blogging services for the New Statesman and a new conference, details to be announced.

I'll be at Internet World, London Wednesday, attempting to do some video interviews with a few leading lights of the scene.

Here's me (far left) moderating the Chinwag Live: PR UnSpun event on Tuesday. The panel and audience Q&A was the best I've witnessed yet. I look forward to the "Dark Side of Social Media" event I'll chair on 19 June (details to be announced).

As per using the wisdom of the crowds, if anyone knows of a great place to have a breakfast meeting in London which also has free WiFi, then email me on mike at mbites dot com, thanks! :-)

FYI: As I said here, from now on mbites.com will become my personal blog (stuff about me, what I'm doing what I'm thinking out loud etc) while tbites.com will be where I write in a more professional manner about tech startups, Web 2.0 and social media. End transmission...

I'm helping to create the content for the NMK Forum 07 conference on June 13th (Vecosys.com is a media partner, and you can book here). Now, I'm going to make a totally outlandish claim for this event now, which is this: this conference will be unlike any new media / digital / web conference you have ever been to. Why am I sticking my neck out you ask yourselves?

Well, here are 10 Reasons To Come To NMK Forum

First: Great keynote speakers and panels. We have managed to great some very well known names involved:

Jason Calacanis needs almost no introduction. He is an internet entrepreneur from the old days who ran Silicon Alley Reporter magazine in New York, then went on to found and later sell Weblogs Inc (publisher of Engadget.com) to AOL for a reputed $25m. Since then Jason has relaunched Netscape.com as a competitor to Digg and is now "Entrepreneur in Action" at Sequoia Capital in LA. Recently he started the CalacanistCast video/audio podcast. Jason is an amazing speaker and an often controversial voice. He is well worth coming along to hear.

Dan Gillmor is the director of the Center for Citizen Media, a project affiliated with Harvard University. He currently works with Backfence.com and is the author of We the Media: Grassroots Journalism by the People, for the People (2004; O'Reilly Media). He is also a former technology journalist with The San Hose Mercury News. Dan literally wrote the book on social media and will be a fascinating speaker on where it's headed next.

Nic Brisbourne is a partner with venture capitalists Esprit Capital Partners. Why are we getting Nic to speaker at an NMK event you ask? Well Nic also runs the respected Equity Kicker blog where he has been giving a venture capitalist's eye-view of were digital media is heading. It's rare to see VCs so free with their thinking and Nic will be giving us his view about the web business models currently setting the world alight - or not as the case may be.

Jyri Engeström is co-founder of jaiku.com, currently being touted as the "European" competitor to Twitter. A veteran of the Helsinki mobile scene he is also a founder of the Aula Network, a nonprofit to advance the vision of a creative society. His blog at zengestrom.com will tell you more, but his vision of the social mobile web will be fascinating to hear at the conference itself.

The panels themselves will be big, with lots of expert voices up there to challenge each other and be challenged by the delegates. This is going to be a 'two-way' debate, not the 'gospel from on high' so come ready to ask and pose lots of questions!

Second: Wi-Fi and Power! I've been to too many events where the Wi-Fi is either not working or, when you ask about it, the event organisers look at you as if you've just asked for a pint of Yak's milk. We'll attempt - please God! - to make the Wi-Fi the best and fastest you've ever had at an event. And what's a new media conference these days without somewhere to plug in the laptop and re-charge the mobile? We'll be rolling out the extension leads and plugs, which leads me to...

Third: A "Blogger's Bullpen". Do you blog? Do you plan to come to the conference? Then we'll have special places for you to sit and blog you heart out.

Fourth: A great venue in an eighteenth century restored church in the heart of London's digerati-filled Clerkenwell, with its myriad of bars and clubs nearby.

Fifth: Lots and lots of opportunity to network and meet your peers both during the day and at the evening party. We’ve even decided on circular tables because there will be more room for delegates (more room for your laptop, notebooks, cameras, camcorders etc) and it's easier to meet new people. We have literally built this conference around networking, discussion and debate, so even if - heaven forbid - you don't get excited by the panels, you'll love the networking.

Sixth: A live back-channel: Too many conference seem to either have no online backchannel (like a chat room or IRC channel) where people can debate the issues being discussed on stage or, when they have one, it's all unofficial and rather frowned upon by the organisers. NMK Forum will have an official backchannel, live during the panels and we have even set up a Twitter presence as well. If you can think of any other ways we can increase the level of digital interaction, then let me know - we're up for it.

Seventh: Widgets! Ok, so not strictly speaking a Widget, but if you put the NMK Forum logo on your blog you get an easy 5% discount on your qualifying admission ticket price!

Eighth: Discounts & freebies: Apart from the 5% discount for the above, sponsor Jiglu.com is offering all delegates free MailSpaces software worth £200 a pop. (The first 50 people to book will get 5 licences each).

Ninth: A South By South West festival atmosphere: NMK organisers want to hear from individuals and companies that want to promote their activities. In many cases there are affordable sponsor packages they can take, but we are trying to work out how individuals, small firms or startups can have a presence too. Ideas welcome - please contact NMK's PR & Product Manager Rebecca Fitzgerald (email: Rebecca.Fitzgerald(@)NMK.co.uk Tel: +44 20 7915 5412) about having a presence at the conference. There is also more information here.

Tenth: A showcase of startups and "projects". This is still in formation, but basically we'll be giving a handful of organisations (startups, technologists, or just interesting "projects") the opportunity to give a 2 minute presentation of their work. This is not a dumb "pitch for venture capital money" but an attempt to showcase interesting projects which could disrupt the digital media arena in the future. Contact me if you think you are the next Last.FM or Skype.

Eleventh: Er, that's it. What are you waiting for? GO BOOK A TICKET

I'm organising a panel discussion provisionally titled "The Dark Side Of Social Media". This is going to be about how Social Media (MySpace, YouTube etc etc) has a 'bad' side, and it is not quite the new media nirvana some make it out to be. The Kathy Sierra incident is just once recent, extreme example.

For instance consider these issues surrounding social media which remain unresolved:

• Child safety remains an issue
• Anonymity can promote bullying and a distopian environment
• The ability to "game" social media (Asking people for Diggs, begging for Myspace links for a crap pop band etc) means the currency of social media is falling
• Identity theft - Anyone can create be anyone's MySpace page
• Privacy - if you expose yourself to the world via blogs/twitter, doesn't the world bite back? What about Government invasion?
• Google - gradually it will know everything about us and our relationships - does this 'hard wire' out reputations? Your mistakes, your accusations are always there to haunt you, and worse still, they don't date. Are Life Streams and Life Caching really a good idea?
• Brands and their reputations in the social media space - are they playing with fire?
• Online campaigning, lobbying and hi-jacking of political websites - how it can backfire

If you have some thoughts on these matters or are gagging to be on the panel (more later on who it's for) then get in touch (see mbites.com/contact) and I'll have a think.

Meanwhile, if you have a more positive outlook than me, check this out:

"Goodness 2.0: How can wikis, blogs, social networks, virtual worlds and other web 2.0 tools create new and innovative ways for charitable and campaigning organisations to work internally, to communicate and to engage?"

Being a journo, for some reason people seem to think I know about content. This means that increasingly I get asked to help the odd organisation out with ideas, content and speakers for events. I don't do this ALL the time, but once in a while I am tempted to help out, such as with NMK Forum in July.

So here are a couple of other events I am programming this year. Feel to free to get in touch if you think you might be able to contribute in some way.

Event 1: Working title "The Dark Side Of Social Media: How MySpace, Bebo and the rest went bad" (I'm really looking forward to doing this one)

Event 2: "Mososo: Mobile Social Software and the future of social media" (Another topic close to my heart. Yes, I know, keep taking the pills... etc)

Next week I'm chairing an event for Chinwag.com called PPC Earthquake, which is more interesting than it sounds, considering Pay-Per Click advertising is the source of Google's billions...

Today I'm off to cover CeBit in Hannover, Germany, (the big electronics trade show) for a few days.