A week in media, the arts and academic Review

A week in media, the arts and academic Review

06.10 Saturday 10th October. David's log....
" After leaving my academic institution and introducing Masters students to blogs, I have now reverted to a student as I continue my exploratory journey along this space-time continuum.

Our Lt of the star ship SMART lab summed up our predicament in a piquant fashion: "Where as BAs and Masters students have a designed module to follow, you will be responsible for devising your own and then justifying it".

Whereupon, she also informed us that this was approach resembled an inductive epistemology.

Seven years back, I would have gurumped mildly under my breath for the evocation of such obtuse words. In my ear would ring the words: I AM A JOURNALIST. I AM A JOURNALIST. ( I AM A LECTURER TOO BUT) I use words sparingly and eschew this excessive verbal display.

Come to think of it, second para above, replace "piquant" with "clever" .

This odyssey has me marveling at what others are doing and many times drawing wry smiles or squinted eyes. In two hours time, instead of our obligatory RnR ro round of the week, we will be back in the simulator room. A two hour journey. ITS SATURDAY Grrrr

Today's lesson: "writing for your academic thesis" - the Kantian art of writing impartial, objective, attributed copy with the air of authority and chutzpah". That's my definition.

0.6.20 Saturday
The week has finished how it started, warp factor something. An intro semiotic of news was deconstructed. It can be such an elliptical thought process: "What is News?".

It holds steady in some areas, yet is steadily changing into a Humanoid-Klingon. In the background the voice of a Ferengi asks : "Where is the profit in this?"

Then it was media law, defamation, contempt and the rest. Yesterday when I listened to Yevgeny Dzhugashvili, Stalin's grandson, say he had started libel proceedings against a liberal Russian newspaper for defaming Stalin, I gestured: "In the UK, you cannot libel the dead".

The journalism that we once knew. Yes and I too once edited tape and two-machined an edit, is becoming a distance galaxy. Next week I'm sharing data with out Masters about writing for robots and google. Who would have thought?

But as the saying goes: " If you can't be found, you can't be read. You write for two audiences"


06.30
Midweek Aastrid a postdoctoral researcher from Norway sat me down for an interview. We had Caribbean food and in between the succulence of chicken she fired away. It would be unfair to disclose the nature of her interview, because its very uniqueness is why she is researching it in the first place and why her oversee ers will endorse its veracity.
But it involved some reflective questions, with me explaining an area of creativity within journalism discourse.


06.35
Lemn Sissay is to poetry what Hitchens is to journalism. It's energizing, provocative. If words could physically slay a man, then Lemn should carry a human board saying: "Don't speak to me or your dead".

I'd that morning had a shoot for a friend. Reciprocity. Berman, aka as Sitbonzo is a photographer extraordinaire. He needed me to document a shoot. I was more than willing to oblige. By 12.00 shooting vistas and perfectly formed species ie models, it was time to head off to the South Bank for National Poetry Live Day.

Did I tell you Lemn Sissay is extraordinary. In speaking to our artist in resident (AIR) coordinator Becky I have agreed I'll produce a site and accompanying films for the AIRS.

06.42
I have now lobotmised my brain: Here, you do Art, you do Journalism, and You, yes you.. were do you think you're going.. you do Academia and Research.

I'm told there is a mind melder soon to come in our midst who will help me collapse all into one.

Us plebeians cannot perform those feats where we seamlessly switch personalities. Who said you should anyway, other than I'd hate the idea of walking into a journalism class and start talking about hermeneutics.

But at some point soon I will be presenting to some at the South Bank where all three disciplines will collide. I have an idea of presenting on the day in a Pollacksion fashion".

David's log end++