Search results for ""Author Suzanne Franks""

Book SynopsisThe media reporting of the Ethiopian Famine in 1984-5 was an iconic news event. It is widely believed to have had an unprecedented impact, challenging perceptions of Africa and mobilising public opinion and philanthropic action in a dramatic new way. The contemporary international configuration of aid, media pressure, and official policy is still directly affected and sometimes distorted by what was - - as this narrative shows - - also an inaccurate and misleading story. In popular memory, the reporting of Ethiopia and the resulting humanitarian intervention were a great success. Yet alternative interpretations give a radically different picture of misleading journalism and an aid effort which did more harm than good. Using privileged access to BBC and Government archives, Reporting Disasters ex- amines and reveals the internal factors which drove BBC news and offers a rare case study of how the media can affect public opinion and policymaking. It constructs the process that accounts for the immensity of the news event, following the response at the heart of government to the pressure of public opinion. And it shows that while the reporting and the altruistic festival that it produced triggered remarkable and identifiable changes, the on- going impact was not what the conventional account claims it to have been.Trade Review'Expertly illustrating the relationship between media, NGOs, public opinion and the developing world, the book is an essential reading for students of journalism, development, media and communications. The accessible writing style and captivating narrative make it a great read for everyone interested in media reporting of the developing world and global humanitarianism, issues that are as timely now as they were in 1984.' * Media, Culture & Society *'Franks delves beyond the face of the images found in Michael Buerk's report to address the integral role played by the realm of communications, emphasising how the degree to which a news story permeates society depends on the medium used, and the even more profound topic of the evolution of media.' * Think Africa Press *'Incorporating internal government and BBC documents with a wealth of interviews with key players, Franks highlights the changing relationship between aid charities and the media, the internal wrangles between broadcasters, and the effect of famine reporting on government policy. The result is a meticulously researched and grippingly written corrective to a widely accepted fallacy.' * Times Higher Education *'Reporting Disasters makes a powerful case for a better understanding of the causes of hunger. Franks shows how the way starving people in Ethiopia were portrayed on TV - the famous 'Biblical famine' of 1984 - distorted the world's response, inspiring aid deliveries that may have done more harm than good. The coverage failed to understand the politics of famine. This is the best kind of history - one that challenges stereotypes and asks uncomfortable questions.' * David Loyn, BBC International Development Correspondent *'The cause and effect relationship between media and policy making in crises continues to be dominated by often ill-informed assumptions more than examination of hard facts from all angles. Suzanne Franks' interviews and access to historical records reveal compelling evidence that often challenges orthodox assumptions that images and powerful TV reporting in particular drive the most appropriate, pro-active policy response. Her important analysis is not unique to humanitarian disasters.' * Nik Gowing, international broadcaster and journalist *'This is the compelling life story of a transformational news event. Famine footage from Ethiopia allied to the pop star glamour of Live Aid confirmed the predominance of television news and changed the aid business for ever. Thirty years on, with fresh revelations from inside Government and the BBC, Suzanne Franks' study takes on contemporary significance as TV news and overseas aid confront potentially disabling new challenges.' * Peter Gill, journalist and author of Famine and Foreigners: Ethiopia Since Live Aid *'This fascinating book is a must-read for anyone with an interest in the enduring effects on the aid industry of the nexus of global politics, celebrity and the media of the mid-1980s. Franks' sweeping narrative offers an unprecedented, detailed insight into events which were to define a generation's view of Africa in the wake of Michael Buerk's iconic 1984 television news report about the Ethiopian famine.' * Leigh Daynes, Executive Director of Medecins du Monde in the UK *'As we approach the thirtieth anniversary of the 1984 famine and the iconic BBC TV film by Michael Buerk and Mohammed Amin, Suzanne Franks provides us with a comprehensive and detailed analysis of how that film came to be made and its profound impacts on the various actors in the humanitarian drama - donors, humanitarian agencies, celebrities and fundraisers, and on the media itself. Using this watershed moment in the media coverage of disasters, she explores the relationship between the media and humanitarian actors, exposing the overlapping and sometimes conflicting interests of journalists and humanitarian agencies and the ways in which they are reconciled - often presenting the public with oversimplifications and occasionally significant misrepresentations. This impressive book is a significant addition to the literature and deserves to become a standard reference in training courses for both journalists and humanitarian workers.' * John Borton, Senior Research Associate, Humanitarian Policy Group, Overseas Development Institute *'A fascinating, thoroughly researched and eminently readable book which makes a major contribution to our understanding of television's impact on politics, policy-makers and audiences. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the relationship between media and politics.' * Steven Barnett, Professor of Communications, University of Westminster *'A hard-headed analysis of the famous reporting [of the 1984-5 Ethiopian Famine] by Michael Buerk, and its consequences. - Franks is able to explain why this well-crafted report made such waves, when previous TV documentary and radio reports on famine in Ethiopia broadcast as much as a year earlier did not. For students of journalism and for all those who want to understand how Africa has struggled for years to be reported properly and with the subtlety and depth we expect of Western culture, Reporting Disasters will be a rich and worthwhile read.' * Fiona Chesterton, LSE Review of Books. *'The book is analytically rigorous and does not pull its punches, taking the reader through the development of the famine and its reporting. ... This is an important book, not just for the study of the Ethiopian famine, the role of NGOs and media coverage of humanitarianism, but for the study of the framing of Africa in the media and popular opinion. It should be on reading lists for courses on foreign reporting, African studies and communications.' * Keith Somerville, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London and Lecturer in the School of Politics and International Relations and the Centre for Journalism at the University of Kent *

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Book SynopsisTeenagers are tough and anyone who has their own needs help. Witty, enjoyable and genuinely insightful, Get Out of My Life is now updated with how to deal with everything from social media to online threats and porn, as well as looking at all the difficult issues of bringing up teenagers, school, sex, drugs and more. But it's the title of the second chapter, 'What They Do and Why' that best captures the book's spirit and technique, explaining how to translate teenage behaviour into its true, often less complicated meaning. One key mistake, for instance, is getting in no-win conflicts instead of having the wisdom to shut up when shutting up would be the most effective, albeit least satisfying, thing to do. Another is taking offence when the teenager views you, the adult, as idiotic. And there's advice on what to do when this happens. The message is clear: parenting adolescents is inherently difficult. Don't judge yourself too harshly!Trade ReviewReassuring, very funny and spot-on -- Michelle Hanson, author of Treasure the Teenage TerrorA handbook for parents on the front line. * Herald (Glasgow) *Funny, sound, and compassionate, Get Out of My Life will truly help you talk with your kids and not get mad -- Beth Winship * Boston Globe *Get Out of My Life has Spock's common sense, the insight of Freud, and the wit of Bombeck. I welcome this book. -- Dorothy Zeiser, Ph.D., Chairman, Department of Child StudyWolf, a clinical psychologist who works with adolescents (Why Did You Have to Get a Divorce? And When Can I Get a Hamster?), clearly has a feel for both the angst of young people who must deal with an evermore complex world and the difficulties parents face when a cooperative loving child morphs into a teenager who lies, talks back and avoids parental company. Humorous and insightful, Wolf describes what is, rather than what mothers and fathers of rebellious and thoughtless adolescents wish would be. He is forthright in stating that "you do not win the battle for control with teenagers... usually the best you get is imperfect control." Despite the best efforts of parents, today's adolescents frequently drink, experiment with drugs and are sexually active. According to the author, however, it is still important to have rules even though a teenager may break them. If parents clearly state their expectations of behavior and restate them when a teen disobeys, their son or daughter will, to some extent, internalize the rules and abide by them sometimes. In addition to providing excellent advice on particular situations, including divorce, school problems and stepparenting, he makes the often obnoxious manner in which teens communicate with their parents understandable as a rite of passage that they will eventually outgrow. * Publishers Weekly *[A] wise and comforting classic. -- Patrick O'Neill * The Oregonian *A book that friends with adolescents have sworn is their survival bible ... One friend told me, 'I swear, it's like he was sitting in my kitchen writing down our exact words.' The dialogue and analysis are completely on-target and so full of sense ... Wolf's tone is playful, astute, and made me scurry to find his [other] book[s]. * The Chapel Hill News *One of my favourites ... Not only does the title offer much-needed levity, but instead of giving out rules to fail at, the book tries to explain what is happening [to teenagers]. -- Mariella Frostrup * Observer *

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