tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89245538143942981322024-03-13T10:13:09.307-07:00Ghana Media Watch UnlimitedI have spent many months castigating both online and offline members of the Ghanaian Fourth Estate.
Thankfully, my priviledged work as member of the 14th Ghana Journalist Association Media Awards Committee (June-Aug 2009) has impelled me to walk the talk by contributing to monitoring the Ghanaian media to be the best they can be!Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-25474452699510773432015-01-21T13:17:00.001-08:002015-01-21T13:17:07.077-08:00ip. The habitaGuaymas, from where he was afterwards sent to California. It has been stated that the corpses were left in the streets for the hogs to eat, but the cure of Caborca assured me that he had a trench dug and gave them Christian interment. I never saw nor conversed with any of the leaders, but a detachment came up thEmmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-62959570525443108052014-08-31T15:25:00.001-07:002014-08-31T15:25:52.984-07:00Fwd: [Africa in Focus Blog!] WACSI Calls for Appointment of Special ECOWAS Envoy on Ebola<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote">fyi<br><br><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">PLEASE SIGN ON TO THIS CAMPAIGN</span><br style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"> <br style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/civil" style="background-color:white;color:#3b5998;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">#Civil</a><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"> </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/society" style="background-color:white;color:#3b5998;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">#Society</a><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"> Statement on the Current </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/ebola" style="background-color:white;color:#3b5998;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">#Ebola</a><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"> Crisis in </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/west" style="background-color:white;color:#3b5998;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">#West</a><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"> </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/africa" style="background-color:white;color:#3b5998;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">#Africa</a><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">:</span><br style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"> <b><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><br></span></b><div> <b><span style="font-size:large"><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;line-height:20px">A Call for Appointment of </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/ecowas" style="background-color:white;color:#3b5998;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;line-height:20px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">#ECOWAS</a><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;line-height:20px"> Special Envoy on #Ebola</span></span></b><div> <b><br style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"></b><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">In light of the current epidemic of the deadly #Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in #West #Africa, we the undersigned civil society organizations call on #ECOWAS member states to appoint a leading, influential, strong and knowledgeable West Af</span><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">rican physician or health professional as #ECOWAS Special Envoy on #Ebola.<br> </span></div><div><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><br></span></div> <div> <span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">The current epidemic, which has been characterized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the deadliest Ebola outbreak since this virus was discovered in 1976, has claimed the lives of at least 1,552 people in West Africa including many health officials. We applaud and support the brave work of the health officials who continue to put their lives at risk in the care of victims of #Ebola despite very difficult working environment. We stand in solidarity with our brothers, sisters, families, and communities who are battling for their lives and struggling to care for loved ones.<br> </span></div> <div><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><br></span></div><div> <span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">West African economies are feeling the impact of the world's worst outbreak of Ebola. Travel and trade restrictions are limiting the deployment of medical personnel, equipment and commodities adding to the deadly risk that the EVD already poses to the communities and the economies of the affected countries and the region. This epidemic has exposed the challenges of our public health system and our governance institutions.<br> </span></div> <div><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><br></span></div><div> <span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">The recently-released WHO roadmap predicts that 20,000 people may ultimately be infected in this outbreak. Therefore, the challenge ahead is steep and a lot of work has to be done to stem this dangerous situation.</span></div> <div> <span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><br>Cross-border coordination and collaboration necessary to stem the spread of Ebola has been haphazard and chaotic. While closure of borders may provide short term relief, it is also an impediment to cross-border technical support and humanitarian assistance and has given rise to new food security challenges.<br> </span></div><div><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><br></span></div> <div> <span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">The challenge of the current epidemic calls for urgent, unified and concerted efforts by ECOWAS and the international community. The emergency meeting of ECOWAS currently being held in Accra provides an opportunity to work out actionable and effective modalities to address the Ebola crisis. The regional body is uniquely positioned to champion a coordinated response.<br> </span></div> <div><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><br></span></div><div> <span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">For these reasons, <b>we urge the appointment of the ECOWAS Special Envoy on Ebola</b>. Such an envoy will help draw attention to the public health and humanitarian challenges posed by Ebola and become a regional voice and leader for a regional response plan led by African and international contributors. The Envoy could also be the voice calling for effective management and coordination of cross-border transportation and logistics. The challenge we face is extraordinary and ECOWAS needs to create a specialized platform to address this.<br> </span></div> <div><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px"><br></span></div><div> <span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">We urge all ECOWAS member States to push for this resolution and to develop a concrete plan for operationalizing effective coordination. We call on the international community to provide needed assistance in ensuring that the response to Ebola in the region is effective, humane and sustainable.<br> <br></span></div><div><span style="background-color:white;color:#141823;display:inline;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:20px">We acknowledge that the efforts of ECOWAS and the international community can only yield results if residents of the region do their part. Hence, we also urge the populations and all civil society organizations to show more solidarity and be cautious by observing the preventive measures identified by the WHO.<br> <br>Kindly sign this statement and share with <a href="mailto:info@wacsi.org" target="_blank">info@wacsi.org</a> for onward action</span><br> <br> source: West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI)</div> </div> <br><br>--<br> Posted By Blogger to <a href="http://africainfocusonradioxyz.blogspot.com/2014/08/wacsi-calls-for-appointment-of-special.html" target="_blank">Africa in Focus Blog!</a> at 8/31/2014 03:08:00 PM</div><br><br clear="all"> <div><br></div>-- <br><div dir="ltr"><div><font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana">_____________________________________________________________________</font><br style="font-family:Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif"><font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana"><font><b>E.K.Bensah Jr</b>, Head of Research & Host -- "Africa in Focus"(Radio XYZ 93.1FM)</font><br> <font><a href="http://www.ekbensah.net/" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">www.ekbensah.net</a> | <a href="http://www.twitter.com/ekbensah" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">http://www.twitter.com/ekbensah</a> | <a href="http://www.ekbensahdotnet.org/" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">www.ekbensahdotnet.org</a></font><br> <font size="4">*TEL:</font><font color="#000000"><b><a value="+233268687653">+233.268.687.653</a> / <a value="+233233311789">+233.233.311.789</a> / <a value="+233243111789">+233.243.111.789</a></b></font></font></div><div> <font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana"><font color="#1155cc">*</font><font color="#000000"><b>Telegram/Whatsapp</b></font><font color="#1155cc">:+233.311.789<br></font></font><div style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,Verdana"> <font style="font-size:8pt"><span style="font-size:13px;font-family:arial,sans-serif">________________________________________________________________________________</span></font></div><div style="font-family:Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif"> <b><font face="Tahoma">EKBENSAH DotNet:</font></b><font face="arial, sans-serif"><font size="1"> </font><font>Regional integration Intelligence| West Africa-ECOWAS | Communications | Civil society </font></font></div><div style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,Verdana"> <span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">______________________________</span><u></u><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">_________________________________</span></div></div></div> </div> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-17858480648144790212014-08-04T11:40:00.000-07:002014-08-04T11:41:16.423-07:00AFRICA IN FOCUS >> Coming up on 5 August, 2014: "Africa & Social Media: Blogging; Activism; and the Future"<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><br><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center"> <b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;line-height:115%">Africa & Social Media: Blogging; Activism; and the Future<u></u><u></u></span></b></div> <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center"> <b><span style="font-size:14.0pt;line-height:115%"><br></span></b></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%">If someone were to be documenting Ghana’s young history of its foray into Social Media, one might refer to the 1 July demonstration, which triggered the hashtag #Occupyflagstaff, as one of the examples of Ghana’s foray into activism. Activism, because many months after the so-called “Arab Spring”, many have questioned when sub-Saharan Africa would have its own Spring. <u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%"><br></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%">But long before there was even any talk of a “Spring” africaine, Ghana had begun making moves around Social Media. First it was Penplusbytes, or the ICT Institute of Journalism in 2001. Seven years later came BloggingGhana – considered the largest association of bloggers writing about Ghana. With the advent of New Media has come opportunities for training and education on New Media, which the latter two organizations have been involved in.<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%"><br></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%">That said, one could be forgiven for thinking that without being associated with these two organizations, survival in New Media is impossible. Far from it, as there remain many individuals blogging, and fully-engaged in New Media through many different initiatives they undertake.<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%"><br></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%">Then there is the case of our media houses, which are taking the New Media bull by the horns and running with it. Back in 2009, the host of “Africa in Focus” was called to national duty for the 14th GJA Media Awards. Word had it that his blogging activism was what led him to that calling. Sitting on that committee as a judge for online journalism was indeed a priviledge, but he was disheartened by the fact that subsequent GJA Media awards did not deem Blogging and New Media an important component of Ghana’s media. <u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%"><br></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%">Fortunately, New Media has managed to move beyond relying on the Ghana Journalist Association. The establishment of organizations like BloggingGhana and Penplusbytes can verily attest to this fact. But even with their respective successes, what have other countries been able to do around New Media and Blogging? <u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%"><br></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%">In this edition of AIF, we talk to Kenya’s erstwhile “King of Facebook”, and Brand Ambassador of Safaricomm to find out how that East African country has been able to revolutionise New Media. We also talk to the former Knowledge Management Officer of the UNECA who played an active role in ensuring that the rather-prosaic policy of Africa’s integration and development is translated into the more exciting and vivacious New Media channel in Facebook.<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%"><br></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%">Even more importantly, we will be using the show to explore the extent to which New Media, especially blogging, is still a good idea, and does it have validity in a space where twitter seems to be king? What does Kenya’s King of Facebook think about other forms of New Media, and does his commercial success lend weight to the fact that his template is one that can be replicated elsewhere in Africa?<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <b><u><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt"><br></span></u></b></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <b><u><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">Guests in the studio:<u></u><u></u></span></u></b></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0.5in;text-align:justify"> <span style="font-family:Wingdings;font-size:10pt">Ø<span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:7pt"> </span></span><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">Edward Tagoe, <b><i>BloggingGhana</i></b><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0.5in;text-align:justify"> <span style="font-family:Wingdings;font-size:10pt">Ø<span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:7pt"> </span></span><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">Ato Ulzen-Appiah, <b><i>Rancard Solutions/ex-Google Ghana</i></b><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0.5in;text-align:justify"> <span style="font-family:Wingdings;font-size:10pt">Ø<span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:7pt"> </span></span><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">Kwami Ahiabenu, <b><i>Penplusbytes New Media Hub/African Elections Project</i></b><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <b><u><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt"><br></span></u></b></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"> <b><u><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">On the line:<u></u><u></u></span></u></b></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0.5in;text-align:justify"> <span style="font-family:Wingdings;font-size:10pt">Ø<span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:7pt"> </span></span><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">Golda Addo, <b><i>Renewable Energy advocate; Activist</i></b> @ <b>13h40</b><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0.5in;text-align:justify"> <span style="font-family:Wingdings;font-size:10pt">Ø<span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:7pt"> </span></span><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">Stephen Musyoka, TrInc Media/<b><i> former Kenyan “King of Facebook”/City Council of Nairobi</i></b> @ <b>13h55</b><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0.5in;text-align:justify"> <span style="font-family:Wingdings;font-size:10pt">Ø<span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:7pt"> </span></span><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">Mawuli Tsikata, <b><i>CITI fm</i></b>, @<b>14h10</b><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0.5in;text-align:justify"> <span style="font-family:Wingdings;font-size:10pt">Ø<span style="font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:7pt"> </span></span><span style="font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:10pt">Mkhu Ncube, <b><i>Young</i></b> <b><i>Zimbabwe Business Platform/ex-UNECA</i></b> @ <b>14h25</b><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;margin-bottom:0in;text-align:justify"> <span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><br></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;margin-bottom:0in;text-align:justify"> <span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt">Tune in at 13h10 GMT (1:00pm Ghana Time). We’re also streaming live </span><span style="color:#1155cc;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"> <a href="http://www.radioxyzonline.com" target="_blank">www.radioxyzonline.com</a></span><span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt">. <u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;margin-bottom:0in;text-align:justify"> <br></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;margin-bottom:0in;text-align:justify"> <span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt">Contact us Facebook on:<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:12.0pt;text-align:justify"> <span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/africainfocusonradioxyz" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/africainfocusonradioxyz</a> and radio XYZ 93.1FM. Tweet us @africainfocus14 and @ekbensah. Listen to us on #MultiTVChannel29. Thanks!<br> <br> <u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;margin-bottom:0in;text-align:justify"> <b><span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt">HOW TO CONTACT "AFRICA IN FOCUS"</span></b><span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;margin-bottom:0in;text-align:justify"> <span style="color:#333333;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt">1. Google plus BUSINESS PAGE:</span><span style="color:#3b5998;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"> <a href="http://gplus.to/contactafricainfocusxyz" target="_blank">http://gplus.to/contactafricainfocusxyz</a></span><span style="color:#333333;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><br> 2. Google plus COMMUNITY:</span><span style="color:#3b5998;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"> <a href="http://gplus.to/africaonradioxyz" target="_blank">http://gplus.to/africaonradioxyz</a></span><span style="color:#333333;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><br> 3. Google plus Profile: </span><span style="color:#3b5998;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"> <a href="http://gplus.to/africainfocusongoogleplus" target="_blank">http://gplus.to/africainfocusongoogleplus</a></span><span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;margin-bottom:0in;text-align:justify"> <br></div> <br> <div class="MsoNormal" style="background:white;line-height:11.5pt;margin-bottom:.0001pt;margin-bottom:0in;text-align:justify"> <span style="color:#333333;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt">*Email: </span><span style="color:#6699cc;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"> africainfocusonradioxyz AT <a href="http://gmail.com" target="_blank">gmail.com</a></span><span style="color:#333333;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><br> *FACEBOOK: </span><span style="color:#6699cc;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/africainfocusonradioxyz" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/africainfocusonradioxyz</a></span><span style="color:#333333;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><br> *Twitter: </span><span style="color:#6699cc;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"> <a href="http://www.twitter.com/africainfocus14" target="_blank">http://www.twitter.com/africainfocus14</a></span><span style="color:#333333;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt">, using #AfricainFocus #radioxyz</span><span style="color:#222222;font-family:"Georgia","serif";font-size:10.0pt"><u></u><u></u></span></div> <br><br>--<br> Posted By Blogger to <a href="http://africainfocusonradioxyz.blogspot.com/2014/08/africa-in-focus-coming-up-on-5-august.html" target="_blank">Africa in Focus Blog!</a> at 8/04/2014 11:31:00 AM</div><br><br clear="all"> <div><br></div>-- <br><div dir="ltr"><div><font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana">_____________________________________________________________________</font><br style="font-family:Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif"><font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana"><font><b>E.K.Bensah Jr</b>, Head of Research & Host -- "Africa in Focus"(Radio XYZ 93.1FM)</font><br> <font><a href="http://www.ekbensah.net/" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">www.ekbensah.net</a> | <a href="http://www.twitter.com/ekbensah" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">http://www.twitter.com/ekbensah</a> | <a href="http://www.ekbensahdotnet.org/" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">www.ekbensahdotnet.org</a></font><br> <font size="4">*TEL:</font><font color="#000000"><b><a value="+233268687653">+233.268.687.653</a> / <a value="+233233311789">+233.233.311.789</a> / <a value="+233243111789">+233.243.111.789</a></b></font></font></div><div> <font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana"><font color="#1155cc">*</font><font color="#000000"><b>Telegram/Whatsapp</b></font><font color="#1155cc">:+233.311.789<br></font></font><div style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,Verdana"> <font style="font-size:8pt"><span style="font-size:13px;font-family:arial,sans-serif">________________________________________________________________________________</span></font></div><div style="font-family:Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif"> <b><font face="Tahoma">EKBENSAH DotNet:</font></b><font face="arial, sans-serif"><font size="1"> </font><font>Regional integration Intelligence| West Africa-ECOWAS | Communications | Civil society </font></font></div><div style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,Verdana"> <span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">______________________________</span><u></u><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">_________________________________</span></div></div></div> </div> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-63204102103227051272014-05-03T08:33:00.000-07:002014-05-03T08:34:17.754-07:00Fwd: [Africa in Focus Blog!] Countdown to the Maiden Edition of "Africa in Focus" on 6 May: Research & Communications Team Meet<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><br><br><div style="clear:both;text-align:center"> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7urliKNqg8g/U2UDKQvYgEI/AAAAAAAAS7Q/Gkgq-Qn8EdU/s1600/africainfocus-eastgate-wacsi.jpg" style="clear:left;float:left;margin-bottom:1em;margin-right:1em" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7urliKNqg8g/U2UDKQvYgEI/AAAAAAAAS7Q/Gkgq-Qn8EdU/s1600/africainfocus-eastgate-wacsi.jpg" height="255" width="320"></a></div> <span style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px">It was with with more-than-bated breath that the Research & Communications Unit/Business Desk of Radio XYZ's "Africa in Focus" show met 2 May, 2014 at <a href="http://eastgatehotelghana.com/" target="_blank">Eastgate Hotel</a> to make final preparations for the very-first edition of the show on 6 May.</span><br> <br style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px"> <span style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px">With sponsors in <a href="http://www.wacsi.org/" target="_blank">West Africa Civil Society Institute(WACSI)</a> officially on board to take the programme to even greater heights, the Unit was happy to have interacted with key WACSI staff who paved the way on the future of the partnership. </span><br> <br style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px"> <span style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px">There was general reporting of activities, and a lot of exciting information-exchange on developments during the past week, including on the just-ended Pan-African Conference on Inequalities that was held here in Accra.</span><br> <br style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px"> <span style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px"><b><i>The Research & Comms Unit meets every week at Eastgate Hotel with the Business Desk to monitor and evaluate previous editions of AIF show; progress on the direction of the research component of the "Africa in Focus" show; the state of communication instruments (facebook; twitter; google plus community); how far weekly activities are contributing to enriching the Unit's monitoring of African integration dynamics of ECOWAS; the AU; and Africa's engagement with members of the Global South. </i></b></span><br> <span style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px"><b><i><br></i></b></span> <span style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px"><b><i>Finally, the meetings seek to undertake innovative strategies to further-educate the public on Africa's development.</i></b></span><br> <div style="clear:both;text-align:center"> <span style="background-color:white;color:#404040;font-family:Roboto,arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:18.200000762939453px"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uCmwQ4QZ91M/U2UC8nE785I/AAAAAAAAS7I/SylAbawT-K0/s1600/africainfocus-recommunit1.jpg" style="clear:right;float:right;margin-bottom:1em;margin-left:1em" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uCmwQ4QZ91M/U2UC8nE785I/AAAAAAAAS7I/SylAbawT-K0/s1600/africainfocus-recommunit1.jpg" height="40" width="200"></a></span></div> <br><br>--<br> Posted By Blogger to <a href="http://africainfocusonradioxyz.blogspot.com/2014/05/countdown-to-maiden-edition-of-africa.html" target="_blank">Africa in Focus Blog!</a> at 5/03/2014 07:58:00 AM</div><br><br clear="all"> <div><br></div>-- <br><div dir="ltr"><div><font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana">_____________________________________________________________________</font><br style="font-family:Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif"><font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana"><font><b>E.K.Bensah Jr</b>, Head of Research & Host -- "Africa in Focus"(Radio XYZ 93.1FM)</font><br> <font><a href="http://www.ekbensah.net/" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">www.ekbensah.net</a> | <a href="http://www.twitter.com/ekbensah" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">http://www.twitter.com/ekbensah</a> | <a href="http://www.ekbensahdotnet.org/" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank">www.ekbensahdotnet.org</a></font><br> <font size="4">*TEL:</font><font color="#000000"><b><a value="+233268687653">+233.268.687.653</a> / <a value="+233233311789">+233.233.311.789</a> / <a value="+233243111789">+233.243.111.789</a></b></font></font></div><div> <font style="font-family:Arial,Verdana"><font color="#1155cc">*</font><font color="#000000"><b>Telegram/Whatsapp</b></font><font color="#1155cc">:+233.311.789<br></font></font><div style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,Verdana"> <font style="font-size:8pt"><span style="font-size:13px;font-family:arial,sans-serif">________________________________________________________________________________</span></font></div><div style="font-family:Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif"> <b><font face="Tahoma">EKBENSAH DotNet:</font></b><font face="arial, sans-serif"><font size="1"> </font><font>Regional integration Intelligence| West Africa-ECOWAS | Communications | Civil society </font></font></div><div style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,Verdana"> <span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">______________________________</span><u></u><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif">_________________________________</span></div></div></div> </div> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-12530280272270187932014-03-15T03:43:00.001-07:002014-03-15T04:27:05.423-07:00A Happy World Consumer Right's Day?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ASIFoCLmfJ4/UyQ44mBeQKI/AAAAAAAASPk/hs4mHxjvLqo/s1600/purc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ASIFoCLmfJ4/UyQ44mBeQKI/AAAAAAAASPk/hs4mHxjvLqo/s1600/purc.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
*HAPPY WORLD **#CONSUMER** RIGHTS DAY*>><br />
<br />
15 March is a day to remind consumers of their right to complain for more effective and efficient public services. Are YOU aware of YOUR rights? #15March<br />
<br />
On Thursday, I had the priviledge of attending a policy roundtable on consumer rights, which was organised by CUTS--a consumer protection NGO working in areas of consumer protection, trade and development, competition policy and law, economic regulation and good governance. <br />
<br />
Present were regulatory agencies of Public Utilities Regulatory Commission; Food and Drugs Authority; National Communications Authority, and other civil society organisations. They offered frank views on the role of the regulator in protecting the consumer. <br />
<br />
I believe there will be important follow-ups from this meeting, with CUTS playing an important role in sustaining the platform. Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-59446844837449880582012-10-17T09:38:00.000-07:002012-10-17T09:39:18.207-07:00Arterial Network launches the African Creative Economy websitefrom: <a href="http://www.africancreativeeconomy.org/about-ace-2012/">http://www.africancreativeeconomy.org/about-ace-2012/</a><div><br></div><div><h2 style="font-weight:normal;font-size:1.7em;margin:5px 0px 0px;font-family:Tahoma;clear:both;color:rgb(68,68,68);background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"> <a href="http://mediaupdate.co.za/?IDStory=49822" style="color:rgb(0,0,0);text-decoration:none">Arterial Network launches the African Creative Economy website</a></h2><div class="meta" style="color:rgb(68,68,68);font-family:Verdana,Tahoma;font-size:12px;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"> Published: 16 October 2012</div><h3 style="font-weight:normal;color:rgb(68,68,68);font-family:Verdana,Tahoma;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)">Arterial Network has launched <a target="_blank" href="http://www.africancreativeeconomy.org/" style="color:rgb(0,0,0);text-decoration:none">www.africancreativeeconomy.org</a>, the African Creative Economy website.</h3> <div style="color:rgb(68,68,68);font-family:Verdana,Tahoma;background-color:rgb(255,255,255);overflow:auto"><div class="divStoryText" id="divStoryBody"><span style="font-size:12px">There are just 30 days to go before the opening of the 2012 </span><i style="font-size:12px">ACE Conference</i><span style="font-size:12px"> by Youssou N'Dour in Dakar, Senegal. The conference is scheduled to take place from Wednesday, 14 to Friday, 16 November at Hotel Ngor, Diarama in Dakar. The website will provide general information about the 2012 </span><i style="font-size:12px">ACE Conference</i><span style="font-size:12px">, practical information about Senegal and real time updates of the event proceedings. </span><br> <br><span style="font-size:12px">The </span><i style="font-size:12px">African Creative Economy Conference</i><span style="font-size:12px"> is the second to be hosted by Arterial Network, a dynamic network of individuals, organisations, donors, companies and institutions engaged in the African cultural sector. The Pan African Network, currently active in 40 African countries was formed in 2007 to support the effectiveness and growth of the African arts and culture civil society and to enhance the sustainability of creative industries in Africa. </span><br> <br><span style="font-size:12px">The 2012 conference will create a platform, unprecedented for the coming together of upcoming, established and pioneering arts practitioners, intellectuals, policy makers and patrons in powerful debate and energetic collaboration. </span><br> <br><span style="font-size:12px">Commenting on the launch of the website, communications and marketing manager of Arterial Network, Nancy Onyango, said, "</span><b><font size="4">We are extremely excited about the launch of the <i>ACE Conference</i> website which I hope will give artists, cultural entrepreneurs, researchers, arts practitioners, journalists and conference delegates the opportunity to follow us every step of the way by either getting program and logistics updates during the preparation of the event or real time updates of the conference proceedings</font></b><span style="font-size:12px">. We have made the provision of interactivity on the website and relaying live updates via </span><i style="font-size:12px">Twitter</i><span style="font-size:12px"> #ace2012dakar and on </span><i style="font-size:12px">Facebook</i><span style="font-size:12px">. Finally, launching of the website would not be possible without the incredible support of Nelam Services based in Senegal. We look forward to a successful event.'' </span><br> <br><span style="font-size:12px">The first conference on the African Creative Economy (ACE) was held at AACC Conference Centre in Nairobi, Kenya in December 2011. Over 120 delegates from 35 Africa countries and internationally attended the forum in East Africa. </span><i><b><font size="4">The 2011 conference assessed and shared some of the research done on the African creative economy. It also developed advocacy strategies in support of the African creative sector with a view to rigorously interrogate the available research and the relationship between the African creative economy and development, cultural diversity and other contemporary cultural themes</font></b></i><span style="font-size:12px">. </span><br> <br><span style="font-size:12px">One of the key challenges identified at the founding conference of Arterial Network on Goree Island, Senegal in 2007 was the simple need of information on the African creative sector. In response to this need, the network has for the past five years compiled and distributed a regular monthly e-newsletter to its primary constituents – artists, cultural NGOs, creative enterprises and cultural institutions. Arterial Network also established a website <a href="http://www.artsinafrica.com">www.artsinafrica.com</a> that provides a comprehensive information on the arts, cultural heritage of each African country and published an Art and Culture information directory: an alternative to constituents who cannot access the online directory due to limited internet access owing to digital divide or poverty. </span><br> <br><span style="font-size:12px">For more information about Arterial Network, visit </span><a target="_blank" href="http://www.arterialnetwork.org/" style="font-size:12px;color:rgb(0,0,0);text-decoration:none">www.arterialnetwork.org</a><span style="font-size:12px">.</span></div> </div><div><br></div>-- <br>______________________________________<br>Emmanuel.K.Bensah Jr.<br>Communications Officer (Web Journalist)<br>COMMUNICATIONS UNIT<br>Third World Network-- Africa |9, Ollenu Street East Legon |P.O.Box AN 19452 Accra-Ghana<br> Tel:+233-302-511.189 // +233-302-503669| Fax:+233-302-511.188 |Mobile:+233-243-111.789 // +233-268 891.841<br>Web: <a href="http://www.twnafrica.org" target="_blank">www.twnafrica.org</a> | Eml: <a href="mailto:ekbensah@twnafrica.org" target="_blank">ekbensah@twnafrica.org</a><br> BLOG: <a href="http://apps.twnafrica.org/BLOG" target="_blank">http://apps.twnafrica.org/BLOG</a><br>FACEBOOK: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/twnafrica" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/twnafrica</a><br>______________________<br> **TWN Malaysia (International) Secretariat:<br> <a href="http://www.twnside.org.sg" target="_blank">http://www.twnside.org.sg</a><br> <br>**TWN Uruguay Secretariat:<br><a href="http://www.redtercermundo.org.uy/" target="_blank">http://www.redtercermundo.org.uy/</a><br> <br>**TWN Geneva Office<br><a href="mailto:info@twngeneva.ch" target="_blank">info@twngeneva.ch</a> <br><br><br> </div> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-20156469133425370902012-10-17T09:26:00.000-07:002012-10-17T09:27:09.978-07:00"Students of Social Media", or an article reminding us New Media is here to stay, and a necessary evil!from: <a href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/students-social-media">http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/students-social-media</a><div><br></div><div><div class="top-stuff" style="margin:0px 0px 2em 10px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;line-height:14px;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"> <div id="title" class="title xx3-large fancy-font" style="margin:0px 0px 0.25em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:2.5em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:LuxiSerifRegular,Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;color:rgb(34,34,34);clear:both"> <h1 style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:35px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline">Students of social media</h1></div><div id="summary" class="summary large fancy-font" style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:LuxiSerifRegular,Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif"> College should prepare us for an increasingly virtual world.</div></div><div class="aside" style="margin:0px 0px 25.78333282470703px;padding:0px 17.200000762939453px 0px 0px;border-width:0px 1px 0px 0px;border-right-style:solid;border-right-color:rgb(238,238,238);font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;float:left;width:223.60000610351563px;color:rgb(68,68,68);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;line-height:14px;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"> <div class="share aside-box" style="margin:0px 0px 1.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:both"><div class="addthis" style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:223.60000610351563px"> <div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style addthis_32x32_style" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><a class="addthis_toolbox_item addthis_button_facebook at300b" title="Facebook" href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/students-social-media#" style="margin:0px;padding:0px 2px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);float:left;line-height:32px"><span class=" at300bs at15nc at15t_facebook" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;background-image:url(http://ct1.addthis.com/static/r07/widget007_32x32_top.png);overflow:hidden;display:block;height:32px!important;width:32px!important;float:left;background-repeat:no-repeat no-repeat"><span class="at_a11y" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:1px!important;height:1px!important;overflow:hidden!important">Share on facebook</span></span></a><a class="addthis_toolbox_item addthis_button_twitter at300b" title="Tweet This" href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/students-social-media#" style="margin:0px;padding:0px 2px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);float:left;line-height:32px"><span class=" at300bs at15nc at15t_twitter" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;background-image:url(http://ct1.addthis.com/static/r07/widget007_32x32_top.png);overflow:hidden;display:block;height:32px!important;width:32px!important;float:left;background-repeat:no-repeat no-repeat"><span class="at_a11y" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:1px!important;height:1px!important;overflow:hidden!important">Share on twitter</span></span></a><a class="addthis_toolbox_item addthis_button_email at300b" title="Email" href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/students-social-media#" style="margin:0px;padding:0px 2px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);float:left;line-height:32px"><span class=" at300bs at15nc at15t_email" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;background-image:url(http://ct1.addthis.com/static/r07/widget007_32x32_top.png);overflow:hidden;display:block;height:32px!important;width:32px!important;float:left;background-repeat:no-repeat no-repeat"><span class="at_a11y" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:1px!important;height:1px!important;overflow:hidden!important">Share on email</span></span></a><a class="addthis_toolbox_item addthis_button_compact at300m" href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/students-social-media#" style="margin:0px;padding:0px 2px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);float:left;line-height:32px"><span class=" at300bs at15nc at15t_compact" style="margin:0px 4px 0px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;background-image:url(http://ct1.addthis.com/static/r07/widget007_32x32_top.png);overflow:hidden;display:block;height:32px!important;width:32px!important;float:left;background-repeat:no-repeat no-repeat"><span class="at_a11y" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:1px!important;height:1px!important;overflow:hidden!important">More Sharing Services</span></span>Share</a><div class="atclear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:both"> </div></div></div><div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div></div><div class="topics aside-box" style="margin:0px 0px 1.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:both"> <div class="aside-header" style="margin:0px 0px 0.5em;padding:0px;border-width:1px 0px;border-top-style:solid;border-bottom-style:solid;border-top-color:rgb(221,221,221);border-bottom-color:rgb(221,221,221);font-size:1em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;background-color:rgb(244,244,244);background-repeat:initial initial"> <h3 style="margin:0.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;float:left">Topics</h3><div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div></div><div class="aside-content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:0.8em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <ul class="links links-topics" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:11px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none inside"><li class="0 first" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:11px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:block;list-style-type:none;list-style-position:inside;float:left"> <a href="http://www.mndaily.com/topics/social-networking" class="topic topic-social-networking" style="margin:0px 0.5em 0.5em 0px;padding:0.5em;border:1px solid rgb(221,221,221);font-size:11px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);text-decoration:none;display:block;border-top-left-radius:5px;border-top-right-radius:5px;border-bottom-right-radius:5px;border-bottom-left-radius:5px;background-image:-webkit-linear-gradient(top,rgb(255,255,255),rgb(238,238,238))">Social Networking</a></li> <li class="1 last" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:11px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:block;list-style-type:none;list-style-position:inside;float:left"><a href="http://www.mndaily.com/topics/jobs" class="topic topic-jobs" style="margin:0px 0.5em 0.5em 0px;padding:0.5em;border:1px solid rgb(221,221,221);font-size:11px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);text-decoration:none;display:block;border-top-left-radius:5px;border-top-right-radius:5px;border-bottom-right-radius:5px;border-bottom-left-radius:5px;background-image:-webkit-linear-gradient(top,rgb(255,255,255),rgb(238,238,238))">Jobs</a></li> </ul></div><div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div></div><div class="related aside-box" style="margin:0px 0px 1.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:both"> <div class="aside-header" style="margin:0px 0px 0.5em;padding:0px;border-width:1px 0px;border-top-style:solid;border-bottom-style:solid;border-top-color:rgb(221,221,221);border-bottom-color:rgb(221,221,221);font-size:1em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;background-color:rgb(244,244,244);background-repeat:initial initial"> <h3 style="margin:0.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;float:left">Related Coverage</h3><div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div> </div><div class="aside-content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><div class="item-list" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <ul style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none inside"><li class="first" style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none inside"> <span class="title" style="margin:0px 0px 0.25em;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;color:rgb(34,34,34)"><a href="http://www.mndaily.com/2011/10/07/qa-ryan-kahn" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(34,34,34);text-decoration:none">MTV star Ryan Kahn talks jobs and internships</a></span></li> <li style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none inside"><span class="title" style="margin:0px 0px 0.25em;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;color:rgb(34,34,34)"><a href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/politics-social-media" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(34,34,34);text-decoration:none">The politics of social media</a></span></li> <li class="last" style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none inside"><span class="title" style="margin:0px 0px 0.25em;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;color:rgb(34,34,34)"><a href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/10/undocumented-students-get-deportation-deferrals" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(34,34,34);text-decoration:none">Undocumented students get deportation deferrals</a></span></li> </ul></div></div></div><div class="more-articles aside-box" style="margin:0px 0px 1.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:left"><div class="aside-header" style="margin:0px 0px 0.5em;padding:0px;border-width:1px 0px;border-top-style:solid;border-bottom-style:solid;border-top-color:rgb(221,221,221);border-bottom-color:rgb(221,221,221);font-size:1em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;background-color:rgb(244,244,244);background-repeat:initial initial"> <h3 style="margin:0.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;float:left"><a href="http://www.mndaily.com/opinion/editorials" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);text-decoration:none">More in Editorials <span class="arrow" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:1em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(204,0,0);font-weight:bold">»</span></a></h3> <div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div></div><div class="aside-content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <div class="view view-v3-article view-id-v3_article view-display-id-block_2 view-dom-id-1 view-display-name-More-In-Section" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><div class="view-content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <div class="views-row views-row-1 views-row-odd views-row-first" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:left"><div class="node node-75814 node-article node-promoted node-not-sticky node-published node-teaser node-not-own-page node-build-mode-normal no-primary clearfix" style="margin:0px 0px 0.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <div class="contextual-links" style="padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div><div class="content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><div class="primary-content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <a href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/still-waiting-superman" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68)"></a></div><div class="not-thumb" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <div class="title medium" style="margin:0px 1em 1em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:1.25em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:LuxiSerifRegular,Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;color:rgb(34,34,34)"> <h2 style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><a href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/17/still-waiting-superman" class="title-link" title="Still waiting for Superman" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(34,34,34);text-decoration:none">Still waiting for Superman</a></h2> </div></div><div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div></div></div></div><div class="views-row views-row-2 views-row-even views-row-last" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:left"> <div class="node node-75769 node-article node-promoted node-not-sticky node-published node-teaser node-not-own-page node-build-mode-normal no-primary clearfix" style="margin:0px 0px 0.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <div class="contextual-links" style="padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div><div class="content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><div class="primary-content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <a href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/16/time-refocus" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68)"></a></div><div class="not-thumb" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <div class="title medium" style="margin:0px 1em 1em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:1.25em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:LuxiSerifRegular,Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;color:rgb(34,34,34)"> <h2 style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><a href="http://www.mndaily.com/2012/10/16/time-refocus" class="title-link" title="Time to refocus" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(34,34,34);text-decoration:none">Time to refocus</a></h2> </div></div><div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> </div></div></div><div class="ad ad-article-aside aside-box" style="margin:0px 0px 1.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:left;overflow:hidden;max-width:100%"><div class="aside-content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <div id="block--" class="no-pad-content block region-even even region-count-2 count-2 block-no-title" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><div class="block-content" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <div id="article-aside" class="ad ad-zone-26" width="234" height="60" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;overflow:hidden;max-width:100%"><a href="http://www.oncampusweb.com/delivery/ck.php?oaparams=2__bannerid=8996__zoneid=26__cb=1c9cec381e__oadest=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mndaily.com%2Fcalendar" target="_blank" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(68,68,68);display:block"><img src="http://cdn.oncampusweb.com/22fd2323e8b6c9f810d951c8a2753253.jpg" width="234" height="60" alt="" title="" border="0" style="border: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-transition: color 0.15s ease-in; width: 223.60000610351563px; height: auto !important; display: block; "></a><div id="beacon_1c9cec381e" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> <img src="http://www.oncampusweb.com/delivery/lg.php?bannerid=8996&campaignid=6728&zoneid=26&loc=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mndaily.com%2F2012%2F10%2F17%2Fstudents-social-media&cb=1c9cec381e" width="0" height="0" alt="" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; font: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; width: 0px; height: 0px; display: block; "></div> <div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"> </div></div><div class="body" style="margin:0px;padding:0px 17.200000762939453px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;float:right;width:576.2000122070313px;color:rgb(68,68,68);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;line-height:14px;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"> <div id="authors-and-date" class="authors-and-date" style="margin:0.5em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:1.25em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><div class="authors" style="margin:0px 1em 0.5em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:0.8em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;float:left"> <span class="by" style="margin:0px 0.33em 0px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline">By</span><div class="item-list" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:inline"> <ul class="list-authors" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none inside;display:inline;overflow:hidden"><li class="first last" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none inside none;font-weight:bold;display:inline;float:none"> Daily Editorial Board</li></ul></div></div><div class="date-published" style="margin:0px 0px 0.5em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:0.8em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;float:left;color:rgb(102,102,102)">October 17, 2012</div> <div class="clear" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div></div><span class="text" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:14px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><p style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:1.1em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;line-height:1.5em"> Being a college student means different things to different generations. Many of our parents have shared stories about the trauma of writing term papers on typewriters and using real, tangible paper; whiteout is not the savior it once was in the days before Microsoft Word. For us, life at school without access to a computer would be equally traumatic. In a social world filled with statuses, tweets, blog posts, Yelp-ing, foursquare-ing and being linked in, it's a wonder our minds haven't yet exploded.</p> <p style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:1.1em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;line-height:1.5em">However, the skills we acquire as social media aficionados are important and valuable in today's job market. According to an article published online by <b>CNN, job postings seeking social media skills rose 87 percent from last yea</b>r. <b>It's only fitting that our education keeps up with the skills necessary for us to remain competitive job candidates in the "real world" — even if that world is increasingly virtual.</b></p> <p style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:1.1em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;line-height:1.5em">Social media classes should become a standard requirement in higher education; although navigating Facebook and Twitter is already second nature for most of us, there is a relatively new yet vast market of field-specific applications, networking websites and other useful online tools unknown to many students. Fluency in these tools and websites, <b>now regularly sought out by employers</b>, would be a boon to our networking capabilities and future career opportunities.</p> <p style="margin:0px 0px 1em;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:1.1em;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;font-family:Georgia,'Times New Roman',Times,serif;line-height:1.5em">The concept of social media has become so much more than a trend — it's now <b>an intrinsic part of our culture and the way we communicate</b>. As such, it deserves an anthropomorphic and qualitative examination in the classroom. Social media is here to stay, and our education needs to prepare us with the necessary skills for an increasingly social world.</p> </span></div><div><br></div>-- <br><br><br> </div> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-20589500571701584692012-10-17T09:20:00.001-07:002012-10-17T09:20:57.795-07:00Fwd: Reminder: " Who Rules the Internet? Join our Google hangout" is tomorrowfyi!<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername">Google+</b> <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:noreply-32ddec29@plus.google.com">noreply-32ddec29@plus.google.com</a>></span><br> Date: 2012/10/17<br>Subject: Reminder: " Who Rules the Internet? Join our Google hangout" is tomorrow<br>To: <a href="mailto:ekbensah@gmail.com">ekbensah@gmail.com</a><br><br><br><div style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;max-width:700px"> <table style="width:100%;border:1px solid #d9d9d9;border-collapse:collapse;font-size:10pt" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td style="border:1px solid #d9d9d9;padding:5px 20px 5px 10px"><table style="width:100%" cellspacing="10" cellpadding="0"> <tbody><tr><td style="vertical-align:middle;width:100%"><a href="https://plus.google.com/_/notifications/emlink?emrecipient=100486382858452552990&emid=CMDJn5W2iLMCFSduTAodfBEAAA&path=%2Fevents%2Fccctkbj9ldslvsm392t6mae48ac%2F113000071431138202574&dt=1350489696917&ub=43" style="text-decoration:none" target="_blank"><img style="vertical-align:middle;padding-right:8px;border:none" src="https://ssl.gstatic.com/s2/oz/images/notifications/events-icon-192574eef80330c97ef1fdc83644d634b5a92eea.png"><span style="color:#d44b38;font-size:14pt;vertical-align:middle"> Who Rules the Internet? Join our Google hangout</span></a></td> <td style="vertical-align:middle"><img src="https://ssl.gstatic.com/s2/oz/images/notifications/logo/google-plus-6617a72bb36cc548861652780c9e6ff1.png"></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr><tr><td style="padding:20px"><table style="width:100%;font-size:10pt" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tbody><tr><td style="vertical-align:top"><a href="https://plus.google.com/_/notifications/emlink?emrecipient=100486382858452552990&emid=CMDJn5W2iLMCFSduTAodfBEAAA&path=%2F113000071431138202574&dt=1350489696917&ub=43" target="_blank"><img style="border:solid 1px #cccccc" width="75" height="75" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-cpvCMjZlwt8/AAAAAAAAAAI/AAAAAAAACn0/mgNfqLNs79s/s75-c-k-a/photo.jpg"></a></td> <td style="padding:0 10px;margin:8px 0;width:100%;vertical-align:top"><div style="font-weight:bold;margin-bottom:6px">Don't forget, this event is happening tomorrow</div><div style="margin:4px 0"><img src="https://ssl.gstatic.com/s2/oz/images/notifications/events-time.png" style="padding-right:10px">Tomorrow, 18 October, 17:00 BST</div> <div style="margin:4px 0"><img src="https://ssl.gstatic.com/s2/oz/images/notifications/events-location.png" style="padding:0 11px 0 1px">Google+ hangout</div></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="display:inline-block;margin-top:20px"> <a style="display:inline-block;padding:7px 15px;background-color:#d44b38;color:#fff;font-size:16px;font-weight:bold;border-radius:2px;border:solid 1px #c43b28;white-space:nowrap;text-decoration:none" href="https://plus.google.com/_/notifications/emlink?emrecipient=100486382858452552990&emid=CMDJn5W2iLMCFSduTAodfBEAAA&path=%2Fevents%2Fccctkbj9ldslvsm392t6mae48ac%2F113000071431138202574&dt=1350489696917&ub=43" target="_blank">View event</a></div> </td></tr><tr><td style="border:1px solid #d9d9d9"><img style="width:100%;display:block"></td></tr><tr><td style="border:1px solid #d9d9d9;padding:20px;white-space:pre-line"><table style="color:#666;margin-bottom:8px;font-size:10pt"> <tbody><tr><td>276 people invited</td></tr></tbody></table>Join us this Thursday for our hangout with +Jemima Kiss following our Battle for the Internet series - looking at the challenges facing the open web and who controls the internet ahead of the International Telecommunication Union conference in Dubai this December.<br> <br>We'll be joined by experts across the world plus five selected readers, and we hope you can join us to watch the live event here on Google+. <br><br>Our panellists include: - <b>Alice Munyua</b>, Chair of Kenya's internet Governance Steering Committee <br> - <b>David Drummond</b>, Senior vice president, corporate development and chief legal officer, Google <br>- <b>Alexander Ntoko</b>, Chief, operations and planning department, Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau, ITU<br> - <b>Eleanor Saitta</b>,Technical director, IMMI <br><br>If you can't make it live, don't worry as we'll publish video highlights on <a href="http://guardian.co.uk" target="_blank">guardian.co.uk</a> after the hangout so you can watch the best bits and leave a comment.<br> <br> #hangoutsonair #hangoutonair #Googlehangout #TheGuardian #HOA #internet #technology #Google </td></tr></tbody></table></div><div style="color:#999;font:11px Arial;margin:5px 0"><a href="https://plus.google.com/_/notifications/emlink?emrecipient=100486382858452552990&emid=CMDJn5W2iLMCFSduTAodfBEAAA&path=%2Fsettings%2Fplus&dt=1350489696917&ub=43" style="color:#3366cc;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">Change</a> what email Google+ sends you.</div> </div><br><br clear="all"><div><br></div>-- <br>______________________________________<br>Emmanuel.K.Bensah Jr.<br>Communications Officer (Web Journalist)<br>COMMUNICATIONS UNIT<br>Third World Network-- Africa |9, Ollenu Street East Legon |P.O.Box AN 19452 Accra-Ghana<br> Tel:+233-302-511.189 // +233-302-503669| Fax:+233-302-511.188 |Mobile:+233-243-111.789 // +233-268 891.841<br>Web: <a href="http://www.twnafrica.org" target="_blank">www.twnafrica.org</a> | Eml: <a href="mailto:ekbensah@twnafrica.org" target="_blank">ekbensah@twnafrica.org</a><br> BLOG: <a href="http://apps.twnafrica.org/BLOG" target="_blank">http://apps.twnafrica.org/BLOG</a><br>FACEBOOK: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Third-World-Network-Africa/131072278632" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/pages/Third-World-Network-Africa/131072278632</a><br> ______________________<br>**TWN Malaysia (International) Secretariat:<br> <a href="http://www.twnside.org.sg" target="_blank">http://www.twnside.org.sg</a><br> <br>**TWN Uruguay Secretariat:<br><a href="http://www.redtercermundo.org.uy/" target="_blank">http://www.redtercermundo.org.uy/</a><br> <br>**TWN Geneva Office<br><a href="mailto:info@twngeneva.ch" target="_blank">info@twngeneva.ch</a> <br><br><br> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-82362392844030190062012-05-16T08:09:00.000-07:002012-05-16T08:09:26.169-07:00Ghana's Nuclear Energy and What the Ghanaian Media Should be Asking<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">"</span><b><span style="font-size: large;">So Ghana is set to export NUCLEAR ENERGY to the sub-region, at a time when it already exports POWER to its West African neighbours. Now, there's an ECOWAS agency--the ECOWAS Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERERA) in Accra--and in an ideal world, more of the Ghanaian media would be connecting the dots and enlightening us all on the role of ERERA in facilitating/monitoring sub-regional power!</span></b><span style="font-size: x-small;">"</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">The actual article can be found here: </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">from: </span><a href="http://www.theafricareport.com/index.php/20120515501811584/west-africa/ghana-adds-nuclear-power-to-boost-energy-export-plans-501811584.html">http://www.theafricareport.com/index.php/20120515501811584/west-africa/ghana-adds-nuclear-power-to-boost-energy-export-plans-501811584.html</a><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><br />
<br />
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
<strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;">Ghana is exploring a nuclear energy programme in its power mix strategy, as it strives to become a major net exporter of energy in the West Africa sub region, the country's deputy energy minister has said.</strong></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="img_caption left" style="border: 0px; color: #969696; float: left; font-size: 11px !important; margin: 0px 20px 0px 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase; width: 480px;">
<img alt="Photo/Reuters" class="caption" src="http://www.theafricareport.com/images/stories/nuclearreactorreuters1.jpg" style="border: 1px solid rgb(232, 232, 232); float: left; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 4px;" title="Photo/Reuters" /><div class="img_caption" style="border: 0px; clear: left; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;">
PHOTO/REUTERS</div>
</div>
Alhaji Inusah Fuseini said the government has targeted the utilisation of nuclear power to supply adequate, reliable and affordable <a href="http://theafricareport.com/index.php/20120324501807918/west-africa/ghana-secures-multi-million-dollar-west-african-power-pool-project-501807918.html" style="border: 0px; color: #d10019; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">electricity for the sustainable development within the sub-region</a>.<br />
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
The intervention is geared towards increasing the total <a href="http://theafricareport.com/index.php/west-africa/ghana-to-become-net-exporter-of-electricity-50177566.html" style="border: 0px; color: #d10019; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">installation capacity of electricity generation</a> in the country, currently at 2000 megawatts, to 5000 megawatts by 2015.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
To meet the target, Fuseini speaking at a five-day international conference in Accra on "Cooperation and Networking for Nuclear Power Programme in Africa" on Monday, said the government would also leverage on the use of its available energy sources such as gas, large scale hydro and the renewable.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
"In the long term, particularly 10 years and beyond, our energy needs are expected to far exceed the above set target as our commercial and industrial activities increase," he said.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
The conference is organised under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the African Regional (AFRA) in collaboration with the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC). It is aimed at strengthening collaboration and networking among member countries in order to maximize the use of available African infrastructure and expertise in nuclear power and related fields.</div>
<div class="frame-right" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; float: right; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 15px !important; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; width: 324px;">
<strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: underline;"><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="border: 0px; font-size: 10pt; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;">More from our March 2012 Ghana Special:</span><br style="clear: both;" /><a href="http://www.theafricareport.com/index.php/20120419501809706/west-africa/people-to-watch-in-ghana-in-2012-501809706.html" style="border: 0px; color: #d10019; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">People to Watch in Ghana in 2012</a><br style="clear: both;" /><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theafricareport.com/index.php/west-africa/agriculture-brown-gold-jackpot-501809578.html" style="border: 0px; color: #d10019; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Agriculture: Brown gold jackpot</a></strong><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theafricareport.com/index.php/west-africa/ghana-the-fight-over-state-or-market-501809154.html" style="border: 0px; color: #d10019; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Ghana, the fight over state or market</a></strong></strong><br style="clear: both;" /><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theafricareport.com/index.php/20120410501808936/west-africa/election-watch-in-ghana-the-vote-starts-here-501808936.html" style="border: 0px; color: #d10019; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Ghana's election watch: The vote starts here</a><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theafricareport.com/index.php/20120411501809006/west-africa/ghana-big-oil-stakes-for-the-little-guys-501809006.html" style="border: 0px; color: #d10019; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Ghana: Big Oil stakes for the little guys</a><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><strong style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theafricareport.com/index.php/20120403501808602/west-africa/ghana-s-mining-sector-shares-the-shine-501808602.html" style="border: 0px; color: #d10019; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Ghana's mining sector shares the shine</a></strong></strong></strong></strong></strong></strong></strong></span></strong></div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
Fuseini said the utilisation of nuclear power involves careful planning to address major issues such as financing, siting, safety and human resource development.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
Currently, he said, within the energy ministry, a nuclear power unit had been set up in collaboration with GAEC to deal with issues associated with the planning and implementation of the nuclear power programme.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
The ministry is also taking steps to establish and inaugurate Nuclear Energy Programme Implementation Organisation (NEPIO) that will coordinate the activities of all stakeholder institutions involved with the planning of the nuclear power project as recommended by the IAEA.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
The Ghana Atomic Energy Commission deputy director, Dr Kwame Aboh noted that nuclear power reactors construction worldwide had been on the increase. He said a total of 67 reactors were under construction, most of which are centered in Asia.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
Opponents of nuclear power over the years have focused on and expressed concerns on the deficiencies in areas such as the inadequate human resource base, environmental safety and high construction cost of nuclear power plants.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
But Aboh said Africa, in the era of competing development needs could overcome most of the concerns if it ensured better coordination and development of the required high level nuclear power personnel through appropriate educational programmes.</div>
<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
Dr Vincent Nkong-Njock of the IAEA stressed the need for political and technical leadership in the development of nuclear power and the importance of sustaining cooperation and networking among African member countries to harmonise inter-country nuclear power programmes.</div>
</div>E K Bensah Jrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14833512397359544828noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-21648193594175831652012-02-14T02:50:00.000-08:002012-02-14T02:38:02.109-08:00The case against Foreign Coaches for Ghana<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Icm17mOoDbg/Tzo5ipYLlCI/AAAAAAAAAqA/g91QbGTtPlU/s1600/Ekbjr-nokiae63%2528827%2529-782113.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Icm17mOoDbg/Tzo5ipYLlCI/AAAAAAAAAqA/g91QbGTtPlU/s320/Ekbjr-nokiae63%2528827%2529-782113.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708938745031136290" /></a></p>Daily Graphic's Kofi Akordor has written a profoundly-insightful piece on why we must intensify the search for local coaches. I do not think he could have put it better stating that the Ghana Black Stars went to AFCON 2012:<p>''...withou a strategy but to exhibit individual talents''.<p>We can easily speculate that there was no Team GHANA. We must and CAN do better!!<p><br>------------------Sent from ekbensah jr's nokia e63<br>*<a href="http://twitter.com/ekbensah">twitter.com/ekbensah</a><br>*<a href="http://www.ekbensah.net">www.ekbensah.net</a><br>*Contact me: +233.268.687.653// +233.243.111.789E K Bensah Jrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14833512397359544828noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-23102148286051769202012-01-23T22:59:00.001-08:002012-01-23T22:59:50.842-08:00Education minister Betty Mould-Iddrisu resigns...<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XaNmp3zY7g8/Tx5W5yMs2SI/AAAAAAAAC4M/yxam8BkTkcw/s1600/2012-01-24_06-48-01_674-790843.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XaNmp3zY7g8/Tx5W5yMs2SI/AAAAAAAAC4M/yxam8BkTkcw/s320/2012-01-24_06-48-01_674-790843.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701089729025202466" /></a></p><p><br> ...prompting speculation NDC government will not have it easy in run-up to elections in December.</p> <p>______________________________________________<br> sent from my Samsung tablet. . . <br> *<a href="http://twitter.com/ekbensah">twitter.com/ekbensah</a><br> *<a href="http://www.ekbensah.net">www.ekbensah.net</a><br> *mob: +233.268.687.653/+233.243.111.789<br> ____________________________________________________<br> Regional integration| Communications | Civil society<br> _____________________________________________________</p> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-71475160056885048632011-09-15T07:35:00.000-07:002011-09-15T07:36:58.868-07:00**Article: "DISHONESTY OF GJA AWARDS"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As someone who had the priviledge of sitting on the GJA Media Awards Committee in 2009, I have taken particular interest in these awards, and have also questioned the role of sponsors in the running of the whole show. Coming across this article was refreshing. As to whether GJA will respond, too, is another matter! Happy reading!<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>===========</b><br />
<br />
<b>Source: </b> Ghanaian Chronicle - <a href="http://www.ghanaian-chronicle.com/" target="_blank">Ghanaian Chronicle</a><br />
from: http://www.modernghana.com/news/350439/1/dishonesty-of-gja-awards.html<br />
<br />
<b>The 16 th Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) Awards ceremony
held at the Banquet Hall, State House in Accra on Friday, September 9,
2011, failed to pass the test of excellence and honesty in many
respects.</b> <br />
<br />
Apart from the poor organization of the
event, there were many critical issues that smack of dishonesty, and to a
large extent, corruption. I wish to articulate hereunder a few of the
issues that have come to my attention and hope you will publish them in
order to get answers and cure the wrongs in the system. <br />
<br />
The
first issue that ought to be addressed is about money raised for the
organization of last Friday's event. Almost everything was sponsored,
including the venue, laptops given to award winners, drinks and many
more. The only things not sponsored were, perhaps, allowances given to
award committee members, plaques given to award winners, food and
protocol service. <br />
<br />
So the question is what does the GJA executive
use all the huge amount of money they receive as sponsorship packages
for? Why is it that in spite of the huge cash sponsorship, award winners
are not given a pesewa, even when sponsors make cash donations for
winners of specific award categories? <br />
<br />
I think there is the need
for the GJA executive to account for the organization of the awards
ceremony. It's not clear whether accounts were rendered for previous
award ceremonies (I stand to be corrected). <br />
<br />
The second issue has
to do with how an award category for the best reporter on social
security was smuggled into the event. To the best of my knowledge,
social security reporting was NOT part of the award categories announced
by the GJA, when it opened entries earlier in the year, (you may want
to refer to media publications on the announcement for filing of
entries). <br />
<br />
Indeed, just about two months ago, and long after
entries for the 2010 GJA Awards had been closed, the Social Security and
National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) announced (published in the media)
that it would sponsor a GJA Award category on social security reporting
for next year. The understanding is that journalists who cover the
social security issues this year will have their stories accessed for
the GJA Awards in 2012. <br />
<br />
So how come an award was given to
someone in that category last Friday. It was no wonder that the citation
accompanying that award did not cite a specific story that the award
winning journalist did, that earned him that grand title just as in the
case of all the other categories. <br />
<br />
The citation just made
reference to the fact that the award winning journalist had been doing
follow-up stories on social security. <br />
<br />
If SSNIT wanted to show appreciation to a reporter who covers the social security beat, <br />
<br />
Management
could have simply called the reporter to the SSNIT headquarters to do
that, and not to use a GJA platform for the celebration of journalism
excellence for that purpose. <br />
<br />
The fact that the social security
award category was not opened for all to contest was very unfair, and
indeed, corruption to allow anyone to carry a GJA plaque and title for
that. The GJA must come clean on this. <br />
<br />
Another award category
that smacks of dishonesty is how someone was adjudged the best reporter
for sports, but when everything was done and the list of award winners
collated, that award winner was deprived of his hard earned prize, under
very strange and inexplicable reasons. How could the GJA on one hand
give award to a journalist for a category that was not opened for
competition, and on the other hand, deprive another who genuinely won a
competitive category. Is that how GJA celebrates journalism excellence? <br />
<br />
The
third issue that reeks of dishonesty regarding the awards is about the
education category. How can one award be given to two different winners.
Wherein then lies competition and excellence? Excellence requires that
although many reporters might have submitted very good stories, only one
of them is adjudged the best. <br />
<br />
Consider this scenario. Five
persons work on just one story, and one person works on another story.
Now, the two stories are considered to be very good but only one must
emerge as the best. Surely, to give the award to the person who worked
alone, rather than make it a joint award with five other reporters, is a
logic that is not far-fetched. Why then should that reporter have to
share the prize with a whole team of reporters? Favouritism? <br />
<br />
It
will also be very interesting to find out from the GJA why the
Government Statistician, Dr Grace Bediako used the platform of the 15 th
GJA Awards ceremony last year to announce that the Ghana Statistical
Service would give two awards for the best journalist and media
organization that performed most creditably in the coverage of the 2010
Population and Housing Census, and yet nothing of the sort took place.
The GJA must explain. <br />
<br />
The intention to raise these issues is not
to call the integrity of the GJA executive to question, rather it is to
ensure that the GJA Awards remain a celebration of journalism
excellence and not dishonesty. <br />
<br />
Thank you. <br />
Thomas Tetteh <br />
(Freelance journalist) <br />
thomas.tetteh AT yahoo.com </div>
E K Bensah Jrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14833512397359544828noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-49997173747481780052011-09-15T07:22:00.000-07:002011-09-15T07:22:55.468-07:00Ghana's Media Practitioners Must lose Themselves to Africa's Integration March!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
</w:Compatibility>
<w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->"until Ghanaians begin to lose
themselves to the rhythm of the African integration march, they will consign their
progeny to an inexcusable fate they could have avoided. African integration
will not work without a concerted effort by all—citizens and especially media
alike—holding the policy-makers of these groupings accountable. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Much of the time, citizens are
keen to work for them because of the good money that is offered, forgetting
that the benefits and good salary are the bonus of hard work in helping make a
contribution towards the betterment of generations unborn. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
As I write this in the aftermath
of another successful GJA Media Awards, I cannot help but also bow my head down
in shame on how despite the centrality of Ghana in African integration—thanks
to Dr. Kwame Nkrumah—Ghanaian media practitioners seem to be waiting for some
external actor to sponsor an AU reporting award before they start writing about
the AU or ECOWAS! Where is civil society on this issue? Where, indeed, are the
media practitioners who need to be asking why such an award is not part of the
categories? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Ghana is much more than the
politicking of the NPP and NDC, and I daresay we do not have to wait for the
CPP to emerge as a fully-fledged third force before we start talking, and
taking seriously what the AU and ECOWAS do. The triple responsibility that
Ghanaians bear of being citizens of Ghana, ECOWAS community citizens and AUfrican
citizens ought to awaken them to the imperative and necessity of capitalizing
on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">both</i> the months of May and September
to give vent to the AUfrican personality the continent so desperately needs."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
from: <a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_432841737">http://african-union-citizen.blogspot.com/2011/09/of-9th-11th-and-21st-september-or.html</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="http://african-union-citizen.blogspot.com/2011/09/of-9th-11th-and-21st-september-or.html"><br /></a></div>
</div>
E K Bensah Jrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14833512397359544828noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-54596461567257579172011-06-13T09:33:00.001-07:002011-06-13T09:33:13.364-07:00Presentation on New Media Tools in Africa's Development (AUCC/Penplusbytes)<center> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://blip.tv/scripts/pokkariPlayer.js?ver=june062011"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://blip.tv/syndication/write_player?skin=js&posts_id=5271084&source=3&autoplay=true&file_type=flv&player_width=&player_height="></script> <div id="blip_movie_content_5271084"> <a rel="enclosure" href="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-PresentationOnNewMediaToolsInAfricasDevelopmentAUCCPenpl269.mp3" onclick="play_blip_movie_5271084(); return false;"><img title="Click to play" alt="Video thumbnail. Click to play" src="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-PresentationOnNewMediaToolsInAfricasDevelopmentAUCCPenpl269.mp3.jpg" border="0" title="Click to Play" /></a> <br /> <a rel="enclosure" href="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-PresentationOnNewMediaToolsInAfricasDevelopmentAUCCPenpl269.mp3" onclick="play_blip_movie_5271084(); return false;">Click to Play</a> </div> </center><div class="blip_description">1. why are New Media Tools so popular, and how can they used to best effect to contribute to African development?</div><br />Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-32067906740301003782011-02-09T10:14:00.000-08:002011-02-09T10:14:01.213-08:00Of Irresponsible Journalists like Joseph Appiah-Dolphyne, and ECOWAS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_c6OAXlLY-nY/TVLXTeGewaI/AAAAAAAAAbg/W1NVW63rLvM/s1600/ivorycoast.JPG" imageanchor="1" linkindex="16" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_c6OAXlLY-nY/TVLXTeGewaI/AAAAAAAAAbg/W1NVW63rLvM/s400/ivorycoast.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>It is a recondite fact that a lot of our Ghanaian media practitioners need capacity-building to be more discerning, but this has got to take the biscuit.<br />
<br />
As I was winding down things to leave the office, I come across an article on Google News, which claims "<a href="http://www.africanews.com/site/ECOWAS_recognizes_Gbagbo_as_president/list_messages/37362" linkindex="17">ECOWAS ‘recognizes’ Gbagbo as president"</a>.<br />
<br />
Now, if you have been following the story for the past three months, you would find this totally at synch against the ECOWAS option of wanting to use "legitimate force" to oust Gbagbo.<br />
<br />
The journalist uses a PDF article on the ECOWAS website (<a href="http://www.ecowas.int/" linkindex="18">http://www.ecowas.int</a>) to claim that ECOWAS supports Gbagbo. This is totally mischievous. The PDF article is dated <b>6 June, 2010</b> -- many months before the whole crisis exploded.<br />
<br />
The link he refers to can be downloaded here: <a href="http://www.ecowas.int/publications/en/ecowas_unit/Ecowas-National-Unit-Directory.pdf" linkindex="19">http://www.ecowas.int/publications/en/ecowas_unit/Ecowas-National-Unit-Directory.pdf</a><br />
<br />
An old article about a then-legitimate leader many months ago is in no way an endorsement by ECOWAS of Gbagbo as the President of Cote d'Ivoire.<br />
<br />
Joseph Appiah-Dolphyne must come again!!E K Bensah Jrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14833512397359544828noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-24392815534682805972010-11-03T10:02:00.000-07:002010-11-03T10:06:17.786-07:00The Hunt for Blue...October, or a tale of Desperately Seeking @ghanapolice on Twitter!<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/TNGWim4gXMI/AAAAAAAAC0o/-QKpmAW_umg/s1600/ghanapolice-twitter-777787.JPG"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/TNGWim4gXMI/AAAAAAAAC0o/-QKpmAW_umg/s320/ghanapolice-twitter-777787.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5535370938312318146" /></a></p><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 12"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5Cekbensah%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5Cekbensah%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"><link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5Cekbensah%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml"><style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Cambria Math"; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:1; mso-generic-font-family:roman; mso-font-format:other; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:0 0 0 0 0 0;} @font-face {font-family:Calibri; panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:swiss; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-1610611985 1073750139 0 0 159 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-unhide:no; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; margin-top:0in; margin-right:0in; margin-bottom:10.0pt; margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} .MsoChpDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; mso-default-props:yes; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} .MsoPapDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; margin-bottom:10.0pt; line-height:115%;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} /* List Definitions */ @list l0 {mso-list-id:1084380263; mso-list-type:hybrid; mso-list-template-ids:-2000936152 67698703 67698713 67698715 67698703 67698713 67698715 67698703 67698713 67698715;} @list l0:level1 {mso-level-tab-stop:none; mso-level-number-position:left; text-indent:-.25in;} ol {margin-bottom:0in;} ul {margin-bottom:0in;} --> </style><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">It all began on 26 October, when a Ghanaian tweep mentioned something about Ghana Police being on twitter. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Quizzed, I followed through a few links and realised they were on the <a href="http://www.twitter.com/ghanapolice">@ghanapolice</a> address. They had asked a question about community policing, and tips to assist. They appeared to be following only a few people. So I decided to follow.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Last week, I gave the Ghana Police Service (0302.773.900) a call, and explained my reason for calling. The lady at the other side was very empathetic, and decided to give me the number of no less than <b>DSP Kwesi Ofori, Director of the Public Affairs Department</b> (0302.761.274). When I called, he thought it was Joy FM waiting to speak with him for an interview. He suggested I call him back in 30 minutes.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I decided to send a text instead, but I got no reply.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Last Thursday morning, I heard on CITI97.3fm(<a href="http://www.twitter.com/citi973">@citi973</a>) that he was going to be live on-air to respond to a few questions about Ghana policing.<span style=""> </span>My question about TWITTER came late in the day, so I never got round to having it answered.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Unperturbed, I decided to call the Police Service's PAD again, and this time was given their direct number. Once through, the young lady was clueless about twitter, and when she asked, I heard someone say in the background "toyota??!!" !!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I was eventually put through to one <b>DSP Attah</b> who explained that he was once in a meeting in which it was mentioned that they would contract someone to set up [and manage] their twitter account. He himself was just returning from travels, so I should call back in an hour's time.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Minutes led to hours, which led to cases in the media that has involved the Ghana Police and inhibited I suspect any desire by <b>DSP Kwesi Ofori</b>-- who's been on television and the radio almost every day—to call me.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Oh well. I'm a patient man, and this very day, I have called Public Affairs Department, spoken with DSP Attah who says that in a brief chat with his colleague, it was revealed that a consultant <i>had indeed</i> been tasked to manage the @ghanapolice account. I see the Public Affairs Account really<i> is </i>on Facebook, and is looking great, thank you.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Now, the biggest test is for us Ghanaians to do several of these – and not necessarily in the order outlined below:</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span></p> <ol style="margin-top: 0in;" start="1" type="1"><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Call the Ghana Police Public Affairs Department on (landline) 0302.761.274.</span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Ask to speak with DSP Attah</span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Query him about the <a href="http://www.twitter.com/ghanapolice">@ghanapolice</a> twitter account</span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Query him again…</span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">…and again.</span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">So much so that the PAD of GhPolice will be compelled to inform the MEDIA and the PUBLIC about the twitter account, and how it can help complement the police service's work.</span></li></ol> <br><br>labels:ghanapolice; mid-week madness; ghanapolice on twitter; twitter<br clear="all"><br><br><br> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-10795140643927459052010-04-13T09:41:00.001-07:002010-04-13T09:41:56.221-07:00Why an ex-BBC Journalist-Blogger's Was Censured for his Racist Comment<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8Se1ALRTJI/AAAAAAAACrk/7pwh6kUp4oo/s1600/nmc-ghana-716222.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8Se1ALRTJI/AAAAAAAACrk/7pwh6kUp4oo/s320/nmc-ghana-716222.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459663281697410194" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8Se1bu5oLI/AAAAAAAACr0/IO9uCzVRrYI/s1600/Rodliddle-717746.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8Se1bu5oLI/AAAAAAAACr0/IO9uCzVRrYI/s320/Rodliddle-717746.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459663289094611122" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8Se17JKi3I/AAAAAAAACsI/lYT8E2OXw28/s1600/presscc-719485.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8Se17JKi3I/AAAAAAAACsI/lYT8E2OXw28/s320/presscc-719485.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459663297526270834" /></a></p><div class="gmail_quote"><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); padding-left: 1ex;">There have always been racists among us, and like crime, I don' think it is ever going to go away. <br> <br>I can understand how the democratisation of the e-space (read:the Internet) has enabled voices of all slants establish themselves through blogs.<br> <br>But when we get experienced journalists -- like <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8594097.stm" target="_blank">Rod Liddle</a>, former BBC Radio 4 "Today" programme Editor make racist comments, without even realising it is racist, and thinking that his "pedigree" would sanction his comment, then the blogosphere becomes all that bit more murkier.<br> <br>Still, we have to thank God organisations like the UK's <a href="http://www.pcc.org.uk/" target="_blank">Press Complaints Commission</a> exist, for they were able to censure Liddle, explaining that his blog entry<br> <br><div style="margin-left: 80px;"> "<i><b>...had not been able to demonstrate that the 'overwhelming majority' of crime in all the stated categories had been carried out by members of the African-Caribbean community</b></i>".</div><div class="gmail_quote"><div><br>Now this is the UK, and I am not surprised someone's complaint brought the PCC's attention to bear on the matter. But I cannot help but wonder what would happen if something similar had been done in Ghana, where no agency exists to deal with such issues?<br> <br>Not that in Ghana, anyone would necessarily write a racist comment (!), but given the degree of our political polarisation, where almost every issue is politicised, who would censure any blogger who might write a highly-biased entry that was written through the filter of (excessive) partisan politics? <br> <br>Would it be the rather-pusillanimous <a href="http://www.ghana-anticorruption.org/gja" target="_blank">Ghana Journalist Association</a>? or the ever-more timerous <a href="http://www.nmcghana.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=32&Itemid=68" target="_blank">National Media Commission</a>(NMC). <br> <br>I am encouraged that GJA information can be found under the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, and that people can complain to the NMC, but how about a <a href="http://www.pcc.org.uk/complaints/form.html" target="_blank"><i><b>form</b></i>--like that of the UK's PCC</a>?<br> <br>The way the NMC site is set up is great, but if it were made <i>easier</i> for citizens to complain--as is done with the better-performing Ghana's <a href="http://www.purc.com.gh/complaint_form.php" target="_blank">Public Utilities Regulatory Commission</a>, then more people would <i>feel, in my view, </i>compelled<i> </i>to complain and make the Commission more meaningful.<br> <br>Ghana still has a challenge with blogging--not enough of our journalists are blogging, and that cannot augur too well for our fledgling democracy as the guardians of the Fourth Estate seem to linit themselves to the 9-to-5 journalism.<br> <br>Perhaps, given the state of play of non-blogging journalists, citizen journalists can begin to put sufficient pressure to ensure that the agencies that need to have teeth to make necessary censures can begin to think a bit more about working!<br> <br><br><br><br>*<i><b>This entry can also be found on <a href="http://ghana-mediawatch.blogspot.com" target="_blank">http://ghana-mediawatch.blogspot.com</a>*</b></i><br><br><br> </div></div></blockquote></div> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-46619361328477701492010-04-12T08:17:00.001-07:002010-04-12T08:17:39.964-07:00Nice-Looking websites for GRAPHIC MIRROR; SPECTATOR, Shame About the Uploads!<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8M5lJWS6EI/AAAAAAAACq8/Ta6SIHAQsno/s1600/gh-mirror-759965.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8M5lJWS6EI/AAAAAAAACq8/Ta6SIHAQsno/s320/gh-mirror-759965.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459270483630549058" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8M5lmdBpWI/AAAAAAAACrE/6PJD4C5XQ-s/s1600/gh-spectator-762445.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S8M5lmdBpWI/AAAAAAAACrE/6PJD4C5XQ-s/s320/gh-spectator-762445.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459270491443406178" /></a></p>The highlights of my Saturday reading include the very informative <a href="http://www.graphicghana.com/mirror/index.php">"GRAPHIC MIRROR"</a>; and the Times Corporations' even-better <a href="http://spectator.newtimes.com.gh/">"WEEKEND SPECTATOR"</a>. I have always had a problem with "weekend spectator", which I think is a misnomer, because it suggests that there is a paper out there--called "The Spectator"--which comes out regularly? Perhaps, if they changed it to "Weekly Spectator", that might be more appropriate?<br> <br>But, that's just by-the-bye!<br><br>Point is: missing these two instrumental papers was going to screw up my Saturday reading--and screw it did. Having the relatively good METRO TV news and the just-okay TV3 was fine, but nothing beats a good reading on a wide range of subjects.<br> <br>So, it's a bit strange that with all the electronic resources (beautifully-crafted website), which I suspect uses JOOMLA (open source technology), we cannot get regular updates of the papers online!<br><br>A few weeks ago, I noticed that the "Spectator" paper was now available at <a href="http://SPECTATOR.NEWTIMES.COM.GH">SPECTATOR.NEWTIMES.COM.GH</a> -- news I gave a silent punch in the air to. <br> <br>Sadly, it has not lived up to expectation. <br><br>Instead of catching up on the weekend's news I missed over the weekend, I was subjected to a hodge podge of articles--some dating two weeks ago; some a few weeks; some even two months old! All useful information alright, but not quite the weekend reading of Saturday I was hoping to enjoy!<br> <br>The less said about "Graphic Mirror", the better! <br><br>It was no better!<br><br>There are many unemployed youth -- graduate and otherwise -- looking to be employed. <br><br>If these two media outlets are unable to have their weekend material uploaded <i>ahead of time, since Saturday is certainly not the day they gather the material!!, </i>then they should perhaps start putting out vacancies?<br> <br><br><br><i>This post can also be found on <a href="http://ghana-mediawatch.blogspot.com">http://ghana-mediawatch.blogspot.com</a></i><br><br clear="all"><br><br> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-67674013895606940632010-04-07T08:04:00.001-07:002010-04-07T08:04:08.200-07:00Re: Mid-Week Madness: "Great with the Podcast, CITIfm97.3, but How about a Downloadable file?"<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S7ye6NzDmQI/AAAAAAAACpU/2thJ_tn02EI/s1600/citifm-podcast-2-748201.JPG"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S7ye6NzDmQI/AAAAAAAACpU/2thJ_tn02EI/s320/citifm-podcast-2-748201.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457411571439606018" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S7ye63e8sjI/AAAAAAAACpc/TOxP7OF0QHM/s1600/citifm-podcast-751306.JPG"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S7ye63e8sjI/AAAAAAAACpc/TOxP7OF0QHM/s320/citifm-podcast-751306.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457411582629556786" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S7ye7Ay8OpI/AAAAAAAACpo/OZ5a-UUatXU/s1600/bbc-podcast-752760.JPG"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S7ye7Ay8OpI/AAAAAAAACpo/OZ5a-UUatXU/s320/bbc-podcast-752760.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457411585129331346" /></a></p>As I write this, I am <a href="http://www.citifmonline.com/site/citifm/audio_on_demand/index/286" target="_blank">listening to a very good recording </a>of an interview by CITI Breakfast Show Host Bernard Avle and Minister of Trade and Industry Hannah Tetteh, which was conducted this morning. I missed some of it, so I am very glad to be listening to the whole thing. <br> <div class="gmail_quote"><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); padding-left: 1ex;"> <br>That is all well and good, but what is not is the fact that I could simply have downloaded it! What if my internet connection was--alas--not as stable as it is today? Would it mean that I am indefinitely incapacitated? Would a <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/today" target="_blank">podcast (à la BBC)</a> not simply have done the trick?<br> <br>Whilst I am the first to commend CITIfm97.3 and what I call its "pseudo-podcast", which it calls "<b>audio on-demand</b>", I will also be the first to criticise it.<br><br>It is great that one can re-listen to radio clips, but how about being able to download it -- as exemplified by the inimitable BBC?<br> <br>Back in 2008, I wrote an article for the erstwhile "Sunday World" newspaper, entitled "(Pod)Casting Aspersions on the Ghanaian Media". You can access the article here: <a href="http://penplusbytes.blogspot.com/2008/03/podcasting-aspersions-on-ghanas-media.html" target="_blank">http://penplusbytes.blogspot.com/2008/03/podcasting-aspersions-on-ghanas-media.html</a>.<br> <br>In it I gave the <i>raison d'être</i> for podcasts, which I quote here:<br><br><div style="margin-left: 40px;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';" lang="EN">Let's face it: podcasts are not only supposed to educate us; they are supposed to make our lives easier. Issues with internet connectivity notwithstanding, last time I looked, most internet cafes enabled you download from the 'Net and even from and unto your storage devices. Even without a connection at work or in your home, if you knew you could re-listen to your popular breakfast, or lunchtime show, by way of a podcast, I could imagine you would end up feeling both sated and dedicated to your station of choice—knowing they not only care about the kind of programmes they produce, but want you to be further interested in giving you the opportunity to listen again. To boot, your productivity would inevitably be boosted knowing you would not make too much effort to listen to a programme on the hour, especially when you can catch it again—albeit without contributions by text and email you might want to make.<br><br></span></div><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';" lang="EN"></span>So, when I get to the very much-improved <a href="http://www.citifmonline.com" target="_blank">CITIfm97.3 website</a>, yet it requires me -- in a <i>developing country like Ghana</i> where the internet connectivity through broadband is unpredictable -- I cannot quite figure it out. <br> <br>Please give me a <i>downloadable</i> radio clip, which I can download from any computer in the country, so I can die happy!<br><br><br>*<i>This post can also be found on <a href="http://ghana-mediawatch.blogspot.com" target="_blank">http://ghana-mediawatch.blogspot.com</a></i>*<br> <br><br><br><br>labels: mid wk madness, mid week madness, citi fm, ghana radio, ghana podcast<br><span style="font-size: 10pt; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';" lang="EN"></span> </blockquote></div><br> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-10936019965036287122010-04-06T10:33:00.001-07:002010-04-06T10:33:20.042-07:00Why Ghana's TV3 Consistently Disappoints<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S7twYFrVQUI/AAAAAAAACo4/1kFa62S7D8c/s1600/TV3nu-700043.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S7twYFrVQUI/AAAAAAAACo4/1kFa62S7D8c/s320/TV3nu-700043.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457078932632584514" /></a></p><br clear="all">So TV3 has just ended a season of its "Mentor " series. I have friends, colleagues and acquaintances who have told me of their profound disappointment with the show because of increasing lack of quality on the show. The lack of quality has little to do with the contestants--after all, they start as novices with a view to improving--and everything to do with the quality of the show. <br> <br>The biggest thorn in the "Mentor" flesh resides in the judges who are awarded only 30%, with the remaining allotted for the voting public. Despite complaints of earlier seasons of Mentor that proved to have winners that effectively cheated by buying units for their friends and family to vote them to the highest spot, the producers seem to be still operating on the blind side of quality, by retaining a good 70% for the public who vote in with their credits!<br> <br>But, really, this is not just about "Mentor". <br><br>If we were in the UK, there would certainly be lots of noises about TV3 "<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/dumb/">dumbing down</a>". <br><br>I accept that there is no culture of regularly assessing the media in the manner that is done in the West, but I think it is never too late. <br> <br>I often wonder where lie the statistics that show that the majority of Ghanaians seem to prefer TV3 to the infinitely-better METRO TV, who I feel are far more professional and dedicated in the quality of their reports??<br> <br>Then there is their news. <br><br>The other day, they had a "three facts" about AUTISM. After the facts, I was more confused than ever; the information was culled from <a href="http://autism.com">autism.com</a>, but I humbly submit that they should have consulted WIKIPEDIA, because the definition offered was more abstract than simple! Forget even the fact that TV3 consistently has unforgiveable typos that want to make you scream!<br> <br>Still on their news, there is something that irks me about their news: it just does not interest me. Sure, you have the passion of good presenters like Nana Aba Anamoah and Basuwa Hammond who make a great effort to make the news interesting. In my humble opinion, if the news is scripted poorly, the news will continue to be poor.<br> <br>We like in this country to emulate the West in many aspects, but I wonder why we don't like to emulate the <i>quality</i> of the West. Look not too far form your dial, and you can easily tune to BBC Worldservice on 101.3FM.<br> <br>Are Ghanaian newscasters--especially on TV3--tuning in at all? <br><br>The day I learn a new word than a badly-pronounced one while watching TV3 news is the day I know mediocrity will be a thing of the past.<br><br>TV3, wake up!!<br> <br><br> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-27270242366068678622010-03-02T09:11:00.001-08:002010-03-02T09:11:28.567-08:00Some Snapshots of Ghana's Front pages<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GwVTqDDI/AAAAAAAACg8/yLbrYbr8dx8/s1600-h/Samsung-ekb-0690-788568.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GwVTqDDI/AAAAAAAACg8/yLbrYbr8dx8/s320/Samsung-ekb-0690-788568.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444085320728054834" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41Gw_E5mqI/AAAAAAAAChE/H3cEetIGnQI/s1600-h/Samsung-ekb-0691-790895.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41Gw_E5mqI/AAAAAAAAChE/H3cEetIGnQI/s320/Samsung-ekb-0691-790895.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444085331940448930" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GxZh3KfI/AAAAAAAAChM/FOy__qV3KX0/s1600-h/Samsung-ekb-0692-793294.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GxZh3KfI/AAAAAAAAChM/FOy__qV3KX0/s320/Samsung-ekb-0692-793294.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444085339041245682" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GxwAQmjI/AAAAAAAAChU/o_uW7DXa80g/s1600-h/Samsung-ekb-0693-794869.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GxwAQmjI/AAAAAAAAChU/o_uW7DXa80g/s320/Samsung-ekb-0693-794869.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444085345074321970" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GyXMZsTI/AAAAAAAAChc/cqvOc3VZ8SA/s1600-h/Samsung-ekb-0694-796619.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GyXMZsTI/AAAAAAAAChc/cqvOc3VZ8SA/s320/Samsung-ekb-0694-796619.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444085355594232114" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GyvQVWwI/AAAAAAAAChk/gBHXWnETmq0/s1600-h/Samsung-ekb-0695-798313.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GyvQVWwI/AAAAAAAAChk/gBHXWnETmq0/s320/Samsung-ekb-0695-798313.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444085362053176066" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GzBBPuuI/AAAAAAAAChs/g62lYepl2es/s1600-h/Samsung-ekb-0696-799895.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GzBBPuuI/AAAAAAAAChs/g62lYepl2es/s320/Samsung-ekb-0696-799895.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444085366821731042" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GzT3qy9I/AAAAAAAACh0/MU0gn2pXupM/s1600-h/Samsung-ekb-0697-701295.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/S41GzT3qy9I/AAAAAAAACh0/MU0gn2pXupM/s320/Samsung-ekb-0697-701295.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444085371881835474" /></a></p>I know it has been a while, but I do not think it is ever too late to offer an "overview" of some of the front pages of Ghana's dailies.<br><br>EnjoY!<br clear="all"><br><br> Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-54875196678915034862009-09-14T09:37:00.000-07:002009-09-14T10:26:37.850-07:00Last Week in Frontpages--"Daily Graphic" versus "Daily Guide"<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://apps.accradailyphoto.com/gallery/album.cfm?a=8164"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 169px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/Sq55qBevC9I/AAAAAAAACT0/USZkl3vJQ-c/s400/ghana-mediawatch.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381372367613135826" /></a><br />As the week winds down to a close, we can only feel that the week has just flown by with tremendous celerity. Some of us might have been too busy buried in work; others might have just managed to catch bits of news here and there.</p><p>In order to respond to those who might have missed the frontpages (cocaine / paedophilia) that competed with the average crime thriller, I'm posting the frontpages of the two widely-read papers in the system--Daily Guide and Daily Graphic. <br /></p><p>This post is also appearing on my new blog Ghana Media Watch Unlimited, which you can access here: <A href="http://ghana-mediawatch.blogspot.com">http://ghana-mediawatch.blogspot.com</a><br /></p><br /><br />Click on the image to view the images of the papers.Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-29089579486317205772009-09-11T08:45:00.001-07:002009-09-11T08:45:57.061-07:00Daily Guide's Inglorious Front Page<center> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://blip.tv/scripts/pokkariPlayer.js?ver=2009070701"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://blip.tv/syndication/write_player?skin=js&posts_id=2610764&source=3&autoplay=true&file_type=flv&player_width=&player_height="></script> <div id="blip_movie_content_2610764"> <a rel="enclosure" href="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-DailyGuidesIngloriousFrontPage786.jpg" onclick="play_blip_movie_2610764(); return false;"><img title="Click to play" alt="Video thumbnail. Click to play" src="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-DailyGuidesIngloriousFrontPage786.jpg.jpg" border="0" title="Click to Play" /></a> <br /> <a rel="enclosure" href="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-DailyGuidesIngloriousFrontPage786.jpg" onclick="play_blip_movie_2610764(); return false;">Click to Play</a> </div> </center><div class="blip_description">Ghana Daily Guide newspaper enraged many Ghanaians this week when they published excerpts of a video of an alleged paedophile, living in Tema, engaged in explicit sexual acts. That they published it on their front page was sufficient to cause necessary ire by all and sundry on the continually-egregious standards that some of</div><br />Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-21998138216501778992009-08-26T06:38:00.000-07:002009-08-26T08:49:48.462-07:00Why Ghana Media Watch?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/SpU8Tqp4riI/AAAAAAAACRk/QXFyQ8eiZag/s1600-h/Photo-sms-0098.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_zqpA7o7qIBI/SpU8Tqp4riI/AAAAAAAACRk/QXFyQ8eiZag/s400/Photo-sms-0098.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374268038901706274" /></a>I have written quite a number of blog entries about the media, but my <a href="http://ekbensahinghana.blogspot.com/2009/07/curious-case-of-kojo-media-aka-ghanaian.html">most recent</a> is perhaps the most incisive. In that post, I explain that:<br /><br /><blockquote><br /><font face=comic size=2><br />The practice of journalism is in a very sorry state--despite the astronomical rise of the private press (yes, you could say that our press is free! (even too liberal at times!!) ), what with papers aligning themselves to political parties. Though that is nothing new, it went o the increase, especially in the second term of the NPP.<br /></font><br /></blockquote><br /><br />I do not think I have to say any more than that--except to say that we need to do a <i>systematic</i> monitoring and evaluation of the media. Initially, I believed that a monitoring of <b>front pages</b> of the newspapers was sufficient, but I believe that a more important thing to do is to also monitor the (morning) radio stations to listen <i>how</i> they report issues. I am challenged by the fact that I cannot listen to over twenty morning shoes every day, so I might have to do occasional monitoring.<br /><br />Given that I cannot division myself into twice or more for that reason, I am going to limit the objective of this blog to three major points:<br /><br /><br /><li>monitor & evaluate front pages / stories of both the private and state-owned newspapers, with a view to establishing which stories have <i>impact</i> on the development of the country</li><br /><li>monitor & evaluate selected radio (morning) shows for content </li><br /><li>provide regular media analysis of the extent to which journalists are using New Media (such as Facebook / twitter / blogging) to improve reporting for their news outfits.</li><br /><br />So you might be wondering why this picture? It's from this week's <i>Graphic Business</i>, and is a story about some steps the government want to take to combat crime. It's not a bad article, and goes some way to explain what government has in store for Ghanaians. Many stories have done that--and will continue to do so, but the reason why I thought this was worthy of consideration was for the clarity and impact it will have on society. It's not a story just about a launch of some such things here or that, but a good feature piece.Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8924553814394298132.post-34608127916437013142009-08-20T07:19:00.001-07:002009-08-20T07:19:36.965-07:00This is Not How the First Blog Entry Starts!<center> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://blip.tv/scripts/pokkariPlayer.js?ver=2009070701"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://blip.tv/syndication/write_player?skin=js&posts_id=2516439&source=3&autoplay=true&file_type=flv&player_width=&player_height="></script> <div id="blip_movie_content_2516439"> <a rel="enclosure" href="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-NewspaperFrontpagesPages504.jpg" onclick="play_blip_movie_2516439(); return false;"><img title="Click to play" alt="Video thumbnail. Click to play" src="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-NewspaperFrontpagesPages504.jpg.jpg" border="0" title="Click to Play" /></a> <br /> <a rel="enclosure" href="http://blip.tv/file/get/Ekbensah-NewspaperFrontpagesPages504.jpg" onclick="play_blip_movie_2516439(); return false;">Click to Play</a> </div> </center><div class="blip_description"><p>It's merely an attempt to use blip.tv to enhance synergy between posting and blogging. I wittingly used frontpages as they tend to say a lot about a paper. </p></div><br />Emmanuel.K.Bensah IIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18425904642659360906noreply@blogger.com0