Pants to Poverty

Last night, I attended the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The event was held at the very cool Southbank Centre and the evening was made very special by (my favourite part of the evening) the eco-warriors that are the Pants to Poverty team! Upon arrival, we were invited to sit in the Front Room where a fashion show with a twist took place. Gas masks, metal chains and half naked bodies paraded through the audience before a rather provocative dance routine took centre stage. Due to my lack of artistic knowledge and the ability to take performances like this seriously, I found the spectacle to be quite random, yet at the same time, very hard hitting. Next we were ushered into the Purcell Room where I was hoping to find some answers. Luckily all made sense once I had watched the film that went along with the show. Using shocking statistics and seriously slow motion walking models, I wasn’t confused anymore. Pesticides and pollution are just two of the everyday components involved in making cotton pants in the developing world. Buy unfair trade pants and you’ll be contributing to these issues without even realising the damage it causes. This is the message Pants to Poverty is sending, and buying fair trade is their call to action.Watch the thought provoking film at http://www.morethanprettyknickers.com/

So-Long Strive!

As my time at Strive comes to an end, it only feels right to reflect on my experiences so far. I began working for Sherrilynne (picutred left) in June 2007 and I knew as soon as I got stuck in, I was about to learn more about PR than I had done from two semesters of uni put together!

At first, I was scared of making mistakes but I was reminded that I was now on a learning curve and all I could do was my best. Since my first day, I'm still on that same learning curve however with added confidence. Today, I have an increased knowledge surrounding the virtual world, social media and writing, to name a few. Accolades are what really drive me, and when I know I'm doing a good job, I become even more determined.
In terms of my future, I can't help but feel excited to delve deeper into the real world and continue on my learning curve, wherever it leads me! Strive has trained and prepared
me well for what's to come and I couldn't have asked for a better platform to send me off!

A Dark Subject

A controversial subject but none-the-less it has to be questioned... is death good PR? Following the highly anticipated opening weekend of the Dark Night (Heath Ledgers last movie filmed before he died) took a staggering $155 million JUST from Fri-Sun! A massive Ledger fan myself, I would have definitely gone to see this movie regardless however I can’t help but question other viewers motivations to hot-footing it to the cinema over the weekend. A mark of respect? Or just plain nosy? Either way, there’s no doubt this movie is, and will continue to smash all Box Office expectations unlike a former movie of Ledger’s which only managed to gross a measly $547, 425 in its opening weekend. So is it true? Does death = Oscar? We’ll soon find out..

Bad Taste!

Barack Obama faced more controversy this week as a cartoon version of himself and his wife featured on the front cover of The New Yorker yesterday. As you can see, he is dressed as a Muslim, while wife Michelle is thought to be a terrorist. With a portrait of Bin Laden hanging over a fire place burning the American flag, I think this opinion of Obama is pretty tasteless and extreme. With one in ten Americans actually thinking Obama is a Muslim (not the Christian he claims to be), this will do him no favours in his presidential campaign.

The magazine says the cartoon is intended as a "satirical comment about some of the distorted right-wing attacks on the Democratic senator." If you ask me it's just another personal attack on Obama which needs to stop now.

Confused to the Max!

What is going on with Max Mosley right now?! Having just read an article in the Telegraph that explains how he "bought jackets for his prison orgy outfits from Marks & Spencer," I can only ask WHY?! Why did the motorsport boss feel the need to have a Nazi fuelled orgy with prostitutes?! Another bizarre revelation was that he made the women talk German to him, not exactly the most romantic language but each to their own!
Mosley is currently in court this week defending himself and suing The News of the World for reporting revelations that he held sado-masochistic spanking sessions with prostitutes.
I know in the PR world they say no press in bad press but I think this is a little too far...!

Striving for Success!

Summer is again upon us (although you wouldn't know it on the Isle of Man!) ..which for me means one thing, work! Having been back at the lovely Strive PR for 2 weeks now, I feel like a part of the team once again, and have jumped back on my learning curve. Since being back, we have a new team, a new website and we're settling nicely into our new offices!
In terms of my placement for 08/09, I'm almost there! I was offered a great position at a company called Clearsilver in Leeds however I had to decline because I knew I wanted to be in London... I have recently been in contact with a lady who has some extremely impressive experience and who founded her own directional agency in 2004!
Anyway, I'm meeting her on Wednesday so I'm not saying anything else until I know more! But I'm certainly excited...!!

The End is in Sight!!

After three weeks of nothing but work, interviews and more work, I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel!! So, I had my interview with Disney last week and had to prepare a PR campaign for them to demonstrate my (amazing) skills! I THINK it went well, but I really don't know. It was a difficult situation to judge but I was pleased when I came out, so I guess that's a good thing! Will know in a couple of weeks so will keep you posted but if I never mention it again then that means I didn't get it!
So after our PPE and PACE dealdlines are over on the 25th April, that only (I use that word loosely) leaves Specialist PR, Marketing Comms and two exams! And who said uni wasn't fun?! I'm just looking forward to handing everything in and being on placement next year, wherever I'll be...!

Disney Who?!?

While I was at work last week, I received THE best email! After applying to several companies for my placement next term and after slowly losing hope due to lack of feedback, Disney Channel emailed me asking if I would like to come for an interview!! The interview is in their London offices on Wednesday so I’m flying over tomorrow night! Although I feel like it’s a bit of a long shot, I can’t stop thinking how amazing it would be to work for such a renowned company. Fingers crossed hey!

Easter Break

Although I’ve had a great semester of uni, I can’t wait to go home this Easter! As I live in the Isle of Man, I rarely go home for the weekend so I’m very excited to be at home for the first time since January! However it’s not all fun and games! I will be working at my beloved Strive PR job which is also very exciting as there’s always new happenings and things to catch up on! I am especially excited to see the new offices! I have been told they are now above Ann Summers...!

Application Time!

At first I thought it was daunting and scary but now that I have applied to a few places for my PR placement, I feel a lot more confident! I find the covering letters to be the most challenging part of applying because there are so many things I want to express! I want to be different yet professional, memorable but not over the top and most of all come across as enthusiastic without seeming desperate! I reckon my letters so far have been a fair balance of all the above, but I still feel it’s a massive stab in the dark. I mean at the end of the day, if they don’t like you, they don’t like you!

Year 2 and Decisions...

I can’t quite believe I am in my second year of uni! It’s gone so fast but all good things do I guess. At the moment, I’m trying to sort out my YEAR PLACEMENT which I must start this year. It’s definitely scary to think that I have to get out into the real world, but equally incredibly exciting! I think the beginning of the whole process is the hardest part, well for me anyway. Updating your CV, visiting the placements office, but above all trying to decide where you’re supposed to fit into the PR world! What do you most like about the course? Whereabouts do you want to work? What sector interests you the most? Would you work in house or in an agency? These are all questions which I need to answer ASAP!