Sonya Barlow

Gems of Journalism ft. Deutsche Welle and Midhat Fatimah DW: How can we use caste as 'bait' in our article such that it grabs eyeballs? Fatimah: Hold my heat wave!

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Ratings and reviews have become an integral part of the decision-making process in our modern culture and digital age. How do they affect podcasts? Read in the latest blog. https://lnkd.in/e9dAB4xG #ratings #reviews #ratingsandreviews #podcastratings #podcastreviews #podcasting #podcastguest #blog #podcastblog #podcastadvice #businessadvice #podcastcreators #interviews

Listening back to the recordings from the Elsie Conference, and this statement from Yasmin Khan CF (head of Bangle Foundation) really stood out. "There's no national strategy (for reducing violence) for multicultural women. And yet we all know the statistics. You know, multicultural women won't report, multicultural women are underrepresented, and they're overly victimised. I've read all of the reports. They talk about multicultural women as a by-line, you know, and that's it. And yet we're a huge part of the population!" I've been noticing this so much lately at various consultations and expert roundtables: there is often little to no mention of women from multicultural backgrounds. As Yasmin points out in the Elsie session, South Asian people are the largest non-white population group in Australia. Where is the focus on them? Depending on their cultural background, multicultural women have diverse and specific needs that mainstream services often struggle to meet, especially regarding the abuse from extended family members and terrifying visa issues. The mainstream domestic violence sector has not been absent on this issue: many groups been advocating to change temporary visa rules to help protect women and kids for a long time. But I do think we need to listen more closely to what frontline workers like Yasmin Khan CF are saying, and direct much greater focus to addressing what women and kids from various cultural backgrounds need to achieve safety and freedom.

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Another general election done ✔️ Videos, graphics, lives, online and social content shared to over 200m+ followers on BBC News Instagram, Tiktok, YouTube, X, Facebook, WhatsApp and LinkedIn ✔️ Polling day, exit poll, overnight results content, following day aftermath and weekend coverage complete ✔️ Team = epic ✔️ #ukgeneralelection #bbcnews #bbcelection #journalism #socialmedia #digital

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Triple the Vote Find three friends. Get them to the polls. We love this film encouraging young people to vote. Full of energy, importance and impetus. For the upcoming UK elections, young voters (typically defined as those aged 18-24) play a significant role. Young voter registration has seen an uptick in recent years, driven by social media campaigns with approximately 65-70% of eligible young voters registered to vote. Historically, voter turnout among young people has been lower than the national average. In the 2019 general election, around 47% of 18-24 year olds voted, compared to a turnout of 67.3% for all age groups. However, there are indications that the turnout could be higher in the upcoming election due to increased political mobilization and issues directly affecting young people. Key issues for them will include ·      Climate change ·      Education ·      Employment ·      Housing Whatever way you vote, make sure you vote.

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The topic of Debate is about Israel, HAMAS, and #Rawanda. I wish every government in the world, including #China, allows healthy debate from the polar opposites even with the Prime Minister not spared. Because if it is not done this way, special interest groups can take advantage of non-transparent and unstructured polarization and tear apart the very social fabric that hold a society together in civil manners. One may ask well, why is that we see divisions in the so called civilized societies? The breakdown is not due to a consensus driven communication approach but the failure to preserve time honored cultural values and traditions. In the case of the United States, from my personal observation, the issues rest in the attempt to create a melting pot that every immigrant fits in but none does. If we try our hands to find “common ground” for everyone then we will find ourselves converge at the lowest denominator dictated by what looks like the bottom part of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs or “Survival of the Fittest”. Instead, we should celebrate the diversity of excellence in each culture and not force everyone to look alike. And this can only be done by allowing healthy & structured debates and a fundamental understanding that nation building is at its best when all hands are on deck in an organized manner. But I do not believe “Democracy” is equivalent to “Consensus Driven” because to me Democracy is just a number game and whoever gets to design the rules of the games win the days and that’s why I don’t feel like the Democratic System is necessary the best way to go for most societies. However, I’ve seen very successful “consensus driven” practices among some ethinicities in #Africa. The one I am most familiar with is from the #Igbo community from #Nigeria where I’ve seen children and women be given voices based on the merits on their perspectives alone. The entire community celebrates intelligence and consensus driven decision making process. There are of course some deviance to the standard practices but all in all, in spite of differences in opinions, I see a very united community moving together thus creating some of the richest Africans on the continent but this is not all, their tradition of apprentice system means no one left behind. Living in the US as immigrants often means isolations unless there is a religious bond. Seeing a diverse people moving together each competing and contributing healthily is a sight to behold and to be taken to heart. In the next millennium, I say we go back to being super learners and being boundlessly empathetic and live to the highest potential as human in Godliness we each should be. Ósìnákáchī Àkùmà Kálū Ùgò Chúkwú Ugochukwu Aloh Muoma Obinna O. Francis Adegbola Nwaibe Chidubem

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Meta on Wednesday announced the creation of an AI advisory council with only white men on it. What else would we expect? Women and people of colour have been speaking out for decades about being ignored and excluded from the world of artificial intelligence despite them being qualified and playing a key role in the evolution of this space. /cc Lauren Ingram Katie King, MBA, Thomas Power https://lnkd.in/ehyc7iqH As I said before AI is the perfect tool for the few to control the many. We will be taught to trust LLM's and never question our new black box overlords. The power will reside in the hands of a few big companies and goverments. Google's algorithm was more secret than the recipe for Coca Cola. We just had to accept that what Google gave us was the best answer, no questions asked or you would be de-ranked. Social media gave companies like Meta the chance to use algorithms to give us a red pill or blue pill and feed us whatever social response they deemed we needed to maintain our attention. .e make us happy, sad or angry. And if you answer back or question them, then you are shadow-banned or worse just simply banned. AI using secretive LLM's will be trained to give us the answers they want but now on steroids. Two people using the same AI prompt will be given a different answer based on criteria we will never know about. Digital Apartheid is a possibility. All the "ism's" today are now being programmed into LLM's of the future overseen by a council white men to ensure they stay on top of the social pyramid. William Gibson once said "The future is here it's just unevenly distributed [because its controlled by the rich elite]" Nothing says progress like repeating the mistakes of the past. This article about Arati Prabhakar gives me hope. https://lnkd.in/eE9GtTjZ

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Today The Film and TV Charity publishes a new report into the mental health of Jewish Arab & Muslim people working in film and TV since October 7th. The report not only incovers some sobering facts but also has some important recommendations for broadcasters, streamers and media employers. Here are some highlights. Survey findings: •94% of respondents experienced a deterioration in their mental health since 7th Oct 2023. •Only 23% felt supported by their employers. • 51% believe the industry is structurally and/ or systemically discriminatory towards their community. • 57% believe that views and behaviours hostile to their community are common in the industry. • Only 22% think the industry is safe and welcoming for them. Recommendations: • Industry-wide training on both antisemitism and Islamophobia, and in religious and cultural literacy. • Antisemitism and Islamophobia each to be recognised within EDI programmes and unconscious bias training. • Employers to adopt a zero-tolerance approach to antisemitism, Islamophobia, and anti-Muslim/Arab hate. •Facilitation of staff networks for Arab, Jewish & Muslim people with an Exec sponsor from outside the relevant communities. •An independent review of news coverage of the Israel-Gaza war, primarily in terms of its impacts on mental health of staff with a stake in the conflict. Read the full report here https://lnkd.in/gEzchgnV

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This week sees one of my regular gigs as Voice Of The Questions for a very high-profile hybrid meeting. They were one of the first back when lockdown started to ease, and encountered for the first time this very modern problem: How to get the written questions from the online viewers into the meeting in audio form? Simple - get someone to read them. But who? The Producer (may his name be forever blessed) had heard me on a previous online event. He called me. Problem solved. It works like this. A backstage room full of client's people fields the questions, selects one and puts it on my screen. The chair says 'next question', I press my red button and read it. The panel answers. Simple, no? Well, yes. Except that... The questions are long and complicated and often resemble statements rather than requests for information. They have to be read exactly as written, and mean exactly what the writer meant. And they'll be listening. If a 'better' question comes in (not my decision), the screen in front of me can change to something utterly different as I'm taking breath to read. The entire meeting and webcast is listening to me reading it. Doesn't seem so easy now, does it? All very different in tone and pressure from my usual awards shows. This week it'll be the fourth time I've done this event and it's flattering that this mega-corporation now ask the Producer to make sure he books me. I'd love to solve this problem for you, too. DM me!

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🎙️ Exciting News! Our latest episode of "Do the Thing" podcast is now LIVE! 🌟 🔗 Episode Title: "Mo Fathelbab: Bridging Finance and Fellowship in the Pursuit of Personal Triumph" 🔊 Join us as we dive deep into an inspiring journey with Mo, a former finance professional who found his true calling in fostering powerful peer mentorship. Discover how he went from navigating Wall Street to weaving a network of heartfelt connections and shared wisdom. 👥 In this episode, we explore: - The metamorphosis of mentorship in entrepreneurial spirits - The art of vulnerability and peer support - How to cultivate growth by building communities 💡 Gain insights from the likes of Brené Brown and "The Body Keeps Score" as we discuss the healing potential of being vulnerable in safe spaces. 🌐 We also reveal how peer mentorship transcends the corporate world, impacting personal lives, aiding college students, supporting spouses, and empowering minority groups within organizations like Google. 🚀 Don't miss out on this heart-to-heart conversation that might just spark your next step towards connection and personal triumph. 🎧 Watch, learn, and let us know how peer mentorship has played a role in your life! #PeerMentorship #CommunityBuilding #PersonalGrowth #DoTheThingPodcast 👉 https://lnkd.in/gMdRterU #PodcastAnnouncement #Leadership #Entrepreneurship #Mentorship #Networking #CareerTransition #GrowthMindset

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Big up to Convenzis Group for the honour of chairing the 6th Virtual Wards Summit. It was an excellent event filled with insightful panel discussions and equally brilliant speakers. It was fantastic to link up with francesca markland Sophie Green and Ben Webber Looking forward to more collaborative efforts in the future! Key Takeaways💡 1. Develop a workforce skilled through re-education. 2. Create a culture that is lanyard-agnostic – it's not about the title, but about capability. Jen Tomkinson 👌 3. Addressing inequalities and technological issues is crucial. 4. Scaling Virtual Wards is vital to address the population's need for choice in care. 5. Actively seek patient feedback and act upon it! 6. Integrated approaches across all sectors – social care, education, housing, etc. – with a single version of the truth. 7. Address trust in the use of citizen data – it's never been more important for the Equality Charter. 8. Challenge the hospital first status quo with evidence supporting care in the home. Give the people the care they want, NOW! #VirtualWards #HealthcareInnovation #ConvenzisSummit #Collaboration #nhs #digitaltransformation #populationhealth

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So pleased to see the exceptional media coverage and support of the Raheem Sterling Foundation over the weekend highlighting our work with the #UniversityofManchester and #KingsCollegeLondon. The continuation of our fully-funded London and Manchester scholarship program is now in its second year. The initiative is designed to level the playing field by offering equal access to higher education, in direct response to the underrepresentation of black students from London and Greater Manchester areas who constitute just 8.5% of first-year undergraduate entrants in the UK. We are committed to alleviating financial strain, enabling young persons from under-represented backgrounds to truly maximise their talent in a chosen field. Our full-time mentorship programme also guarantees a vital support system across the 3-year terms. Guided by our #PowerOf7 strategy, we aim to inspire and support young people through education, employment, enterprise, community, creativity, leadership and social mobility Why This Initiative Matters #SocialMobility: We believe that every young person, regardless of their background, should have the chance to improve their opportunities, careers, and quality of life. Our initiatives are designed to remove obstacles and create pathways for success. #Community: From our collaboration with local schools to our international projects, we are dedicated to building safer, supportive communities. For example, our Community Kitchen at Ark Elvin Academy in Brent has brought families together, providing meals and fostering a spirit of togetherness. #Creativity: The ‘Making of Me’ project, in partnership with the National Portrait Gallery, has given young people the chance to explore their creativity and develop skills for future careers in the arts. #Leadership: Through initiatives like #BrentGoesGlobal, we are equipping the next generation with leadership skills and global perspectives, preparing them to become the leaders of tomorrow. #TheBoyFromBrent #SocialMobility #YouthEmpowerment #Education #Community #Creativity #Leadership #Enterprise #PowerOf7 For more details on our projects and impact, please visit https://lnkd.in/eT_eYSNz or contact me here chris@raheemsterlingfoundation.org

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With a few days to go before the UK’s General Election polling day, "Women’s voices and issues are not being heard in the UK general election”. That's the finding of Luba Kassova's article published in the industry leading Press Gazette at the end of last month. Amongst other resources, Luba used the newly developed AKAS UK General Election Media Tracker that has monitored the UK media's use of nearly 700 terms in this general election campaign compared to the 2017 and 2019 election campaigns. The tracker is powered by The GDELT Project and developed by Petar Todorov and myself. Luba explained that "Overall, GE [General Election] coverage featuring a raft of gender-related terms of importance to women has declined from 0.63% of all GE-related coverage during 2017’s campaign to 0.37% currently.” And she makes a number of recommendations on how to improve coverage in relation to the structural disadvantages that women face in health, safety, pay and leadership/power. This advice is relevant for this general election campaign and for the coverage of the next government. Women’s voices and issues should be heard in our politics. Please read the article and share this post. #generalelection2024 #genederequity #genderequality #dei #newsmedia #politics #womeninpolitics Article link: https://lnkd.in/euNxxqJp

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Really proud (and privileged) to have worked with Johny Cassidy FRSA on this important accessibility project. As Naja Nielsen has said, delivering this alt text descriptions guidance is all part of our BBC strategy - Value For All. When I first met Johny, I thought I knew all about alt text descriptions. After all, I was a communications professional and had had to input alt text many times. But listening to Johny talk about his experience being both a screen reader user and journalist, I quickly learned a lot more about the nuances that exist. What is the image being used for? What's the wider context? How can we make sure someone using a screen reader is coming away with the same information as anyone else? Repeating the mantra of 'Progress over perfection', and working with a massive cohort of people at the BBC to make this happen, we've finally been able to publish this guidance today so that not only our colleagues at the BBC, but any journalist can use it. Special thanks to Romana Pugh and Shilpa Ganatra along with the working group who have contributed so much to this project. But most of all, congratulations to Johny Cassidy FRSA for pushing this along and making it happen. You can read Johny's article today in the Press Gazette here: https://lnkd.in/eYxRgHyF #progressoverperfection #alttext #alttextdescriptions #accessibility #journalism

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I shared some input on UTV in relation to some of the consequences when posting on social media in particular Facebook groups. You can watch the full piece on the link below https://lnkd.in/dAXbvJJY #SocialMedia #Wellness #eSafety #OnlineSafety

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THE SIDE HUSTLES I DO ALONGSIDE FREELANCE JOURNALISM. While freelance journalism takes up most of my work week, I also do a bit of supply work in primary schools and run a project for a modern slavery charity in Cardiff. It's been work that gets me out of the house, allows me to interact with live human beings, and gives me a bit of extra income. But I'm looking to start copywriting for charities and businesses, and would love to hear if this is something other freelance journalists have done. If so, how have you found it? How did you go about learning the craft of copywriting? How did you find work? All tips welcome! #freelance #selfemployed #copywriting #journalism

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