Wikinews:Audio Wikinews/News Briefs/Workspace/archive/June6-12

June 7, 2010
This is the heading for the June 7 show. All files and conversations for this show will take place here. Today's cut-off time is 22:30 UTC. If you wish to contribute to today's show, I need to know before 21:00 UTC. I will be logged in around 20:00 UTC. If you want to add links to the stories you wish to read / write, please do so.


 * I will upload the weekend show to podbean (for iTunes) tonight when I upload this show as well.

OK, seriously? 10 people killed in an explosion in Texas, SPC Bradley Manning is outed as the wikileaks whistle blower, North Korea discussing replacing Kim Yong-il, Israel kills 4 Palestinian armed militants, India convicts in the Bhopal disaster and 5 people killed by Tornados in the US but no stories here on wikinews about any of it? I'm sorry to sound like an ass, but come on! Why are we writing stories on Britain's Got Talent but neglecting major stories? Oh, sure, I could write those stories since this is wikinews, but then there would be no show and since the show is kinda what I'm good at and is my contribution (3-4 hours a day) I'd be a bit more excited to do a show if it had some better content in it. Sorry to rant, but this is frustrating. Did whatever drama that took place over the weekend make everyone gun shy or did all of our good reporters quit because just one guy was being a dick? This is why we aren't taken seriously as a news agency, I swear to fucking christ. Turtlestack (talk) 21:45, 7 June 2010 (UTC)

Chilean football team arrives in South Africa
''' Show canceled due to lack of coverage of major news stories going on in the world and petty drama taking part in IRC. Sorry all, but I'm not wasting my time while others screw around with this BS. ''' Turtlestack (talk) 22:15, 7 June 2010 (UTC)

Show is completed uploaded
Yeah, I did the show anyway but The This Day In History is about Hitler's father - seemed fitting given the drama. Turtlestack (talk) 07:20, 8 June 2010 (UTC)
 * I'll upload Rockerball's and my files to iTunes and the Internet Archive later today. Turtlestack (talk) 07:22, 8 June 2010 (UTC)
 * Files are all uploaded and archives are archived Turtlestack (talk) 17:31, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

June 8, 2010
This is the heading for the June 8 show. All files and conversations for this show will take place here. Today's cut-off time is 22:30 UTC. If you wish to contribute to today's show, I need to know before 21:00 UTC.


 * This is the sort of news we should be doing everyday. Nice job, wikinews reporters :) Turtlestack (talk) 19:59, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

(I May need to add a third music break if the other stories in the newsroom drop) (and I did) Turtlestack (talk) 01:57, 9 June 2010 (UTC)

Wow, this turned out to be the biggest show yet - nearly 30 min long! I wasn't expecting that. Turtlestack (talk) 01:57, 9 June 2010 (UTC)

Containment capsule captures 10,000 oil barrels a day in Gulf of Mexico
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Strike ballot to go ahead despite British Telecom's belated new pay offer

 * I'm concerned about the neutrality of this article. I;'m trying to edit the brief to make it work, but it's getting a bit difficult to balance things out. I made a comment on the article about NPOV and I'll see what others have to say before making a final decision on including or not including this story in the show. Turtlestack (talk) 21:11, 8 June 2010 (UTC)


 * This is what I'm going to run with for this story. I'm not 100% on this story even with my edits, but I feel a little bit better about it :

The UK's Communication Workers' Union have effectively rejected a belated revised pay offer by telecoms giant British Telecom. Their statement, released early this evening, indicates a formal ballot on strike action is inevitable – unless the company revises their two percent offer for 2010.

The deadline set by the Communication Workers' Union (CWU) had passed at noon last Friday but apparently went unheeded by BT. The unions' announcement of their intent to ballot members apparently resulted in the offer.

Last week, when their ultimatum was ignored, CWU deputy secretary general (DSG) Andy Kerr expressed deep disappointment, citing the substantial profits made by the company in the last financial year: "[w]e're obviously very disappointed that BT has not improved its pay offer of 2 per cent despite their healthy profits this year."

The turnaround from losses of £244 million to a billion-pound-plus profit has, the union claims, galvanised their membership into seriously considering industrial action. Senior BT directors have been reported to have received million-pound bonuses including former Labour minister Patricia Hewitt who landed over £50,000 extra per-year. Hewitt was suspended from her parliamentary party in March over cash-for-access accusations, and works two to three days each month on BT's remuneration committee.

The UK's Press Association described the now-rejected offer as being worth 2% this year, and an additional 3% in 2011 with staff bonuses of up to £250. The package supposedly contains pledges including the return of call centre and non-frontline work from outsource companies in India.

Wikinews called both the Communication Workers' Union, and British Telecom, seeking clarification on a number of points. Richard Knowles, a BT press officer in London, forwarded a company statement, but did not comment if the offer includes the repatriation of call centre and back-office jobs. When asked on this work being carried out in a jurisdiction with less-stringent data protection, and computer misuse legislation, the reporter was referred back to the company's statement.

Sian Jones of the CWU's Press Office, commenting prior to the union's evening statement, remarked that repatriation of call centre work was an issue that the union had prior, unrelated, discussions with BT regarding; she gave no indication to Wikinews this was, or was not, part of BT's revised offer.

The press release expressed clear intent to carry on with the process of balloting members on strike action. In the statement, Andy Kerr states, "[w]e're very disappointed that BT's revised offer remains materially unchanged for this year in terms of pay."

Continuing, he emphasised, "[...] we've made clear, 2 per cent is unacceptable for our members as it does not reflect the reward they expect given the contribution they have made to cost savings of £1.75 billion and profits of over £1bn. In addition, inflation is at 5.3 per cent and staff are comparing this offer with the large salary rises and bonuses for senior executives which expose the blatant double standards being adopted by the company when it comes to remuneration."

Any sustained action by CWU members in BT's employ could have a major impact on the country's communication infrastructure. Millions of UK households and businesses are reliant on BT for internet access – in addition to telephony services.

Following the release of their statement, the CWU's Sian Jones confirmed that the union had not, as-yet, given BT the formal seven-days notice of balloting members on strike action.

Any ballot would run for a two-week period; following such, the union would, again, be required to give seven days notice to BT; this time of their intent to take workers out on strike. She emphasised, "nobody wants to be on strike", stressing that the union last took such action in 1987, and would prefer round-table discussions and an improved offer.

When called for comment on the union's rejection of their revised offer, the BT press office declined to comment at this time.

US White House correspondent Helen Thomas retires
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 * Music credit "Budapest - Oslo - Allen" by KarmaHackeR

China says North Korea border patrol killed three Chinese
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Eight injured after train derails in Argyll, Scotland
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Urban fox 'mauls' two babies in London, England
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Nurseries not harmful to children, says new UK study
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Portugal holds first same-sex marriage
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 * Music credit "Just Another Day" by shockshadow

Human trafficking trial starts in Clearwater, Florida
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Apple unveils iPhone 4, iOS 4 at Worldwide Developers Conference 2010
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UCLA basketball coach John Wooden dies at age 99
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This Day In History
(It was a toss up today between Cassini and Italian composer Tomaso Albinoni but I'm going with Cassini since very little about Albinoni is actually known and thus does not make for interesting story telling - even though he left behind some wonderful music. Turtlestack (talk) 20:06, 8 June 2010 (UTC)


 * Music credit The Internet Archive

Giovanni Domenico Cassini is born in Perinaldo, near Sanremo, at that time in the Republic of Genova.

June 9, 2010
This is the heading for the June 9 show. All files and conversations for this show will take place here. Today's cut-off time is 23:30 UTC. If you wish to contribute to today's show, I need to know before 21:00 UTC. I will be logged in around 20:00 UTC.
 * I'm logged in kinda late today, so I'm just getting started, but today "feels" like it will be an easier show to put together. Yesterday's show took from 2:30pm to 9:00pm after all the housekeeping and extras that go along with the show - yikes! :) Turtlestack (talk) 22:09, 9 June 2010 (UTC)

Noynoy Aquino elected Philippine president

 * Music credit "Maybe Someday Blues" by oldDog (feat. duckett)

TDiH
Secretariat becomes the first horse in 25 years to win the triple crown.


 * Music credit First Call

June 10, 2010
This is the heading for the June 10 show. All files and conversations for this show will take place here. Today's cut-off time is 22:30 UTC. If you wish to contribute to today's show, I need to know before 21:00 UTC. I will be logged in around 18:00 UTC.


 * I'm recording the show now, if any new stories drop they will be in tomorrow's show. Turtlestack (talk) 22:40, 10 June 2010 (UTC)

Man dies after being shot outside his house in Lanarkshire, Scotland; murder investigation launched
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Two Norwegians sentenced to death in DR Congo
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'Dewey Defeats Truman' incident in California State Senate election
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Corrections
In yesterday's story (Noynoy Aquino elected Philippine president) about the election of Noynoy Aquino as the new president of the Philippines, Noynoy's father, Benigno Aquino, was shot while in military custody during the regime of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, not shot by Marcos himself as the story originally implied.

South Korean Naro-1 space rocket explodes after take-off

 * I reworked this story so that it reads a bit smoother :

South Korea has lost contact with its Naro-1 rocket, just 137 seconds after take-off. The rocket apparently exploded when a flash was seen from an on-board camera and communication was lost. The loss of communication occurred when the rocket had achieved an altitude of around 70 kilometers and television cameras captured a white speck, presumably part of the rocket, falling into the sea. South Korea had initially postponed a launch on Wednesday due to problems with the rocket's fire extinguisher system, but the mission was cleared and at 5:01pm local time today, the rocket lifted off from Goheung's Naro Space Centre.

Korea had hoped to use a Naro-1, South Korea's first carrier rocket, to launch a STSAT-2B scientific research satellite. The payload was intended to demonstrate technology for future spacecraft and carried an instrument called the Dual-channel Radiometer for Earth and Atmosphere Monitoring, or DREAM, which would have measured the brightness temperature of the Earth in an attempt to examine climate change and its effects..

This would have been the first Naro-1 launch to reach orbit and the launch cost South Korea an estimated US$400 million. The incident is seen as a major setback for South Korea's space program, which had been aiming to become the 10th country to achieve the capability to launch satellites, and the fourth Asian country, after China, Japan, and India. A successful launch would have helped South Korea to become a player in commercial space launches, an industry valued at around US$250 billion.

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Football: Chelsea confirm Joe Cole and Michael Ballack departure
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On this day in history

 * Music credit Thatched Villagers

Maurice Bernard Sendak, an American writer and illustrator of children's literature, best known for his 1963 book Where the Wild Things Are, is born in 1928.

Sendak was born in Brooklyn, New York to Polish Jewish immigrant parents Sarah and Philip Sendak, a dressmaker. He decided to become an illustrator after viewing Walt Disney's film Fantasia at the age of twelve, however, his love of books came at an early age when he developed health problems and was confined to his bed. In addition to Disney, Sendak has said of his other influences, "My gods are Herman Melville, Emily Dickinson, Mozart. I believe in them with all my heart." Elaborating further, he has explained that reading Emily Dickinson's works helps him to remain calm in an otherwise hectic world.

One of his earliest memorable influences was actually his father, Philip Sendak. According to Maurice, his father would relate tales from the Bible - however, he would embellish them with racy details to jazz them up. Not realizing that this was inappropriate for children, little Maurice would frequently be sent home after retelling his father's "softcore Bible tales" at school.

One of his first professional commissions was to create window displays for the toy store F.A.O. Schwarz and his illustrations were first published in 1947 in a textbook titled Atomics for the Millions by Dr. Maxwell Leigh Eidinoff. He spent much of the 1950s working as an artist for children's books, before beginning to write his own stories.

Sendak gained international acclaim after writing and illustrating Where the Wild Things Are, although the book's depictions of fanged monsters concerned some parents when it was first released, as his characters were somewhat grotesque in appearance. Sendak's seeming attraction to the forbidden or nightmarish aspects of children's fantasy have made him a subject of controversy. The monsters in the book were actually based on relatives who would come to weekly dinners. Because of their broken English and odd mannerisms, they were the perfect basis for the monsters in Sendak's book.

His book In the Night Kitchen, first published in 1970, has often been subjected to censorship for its drawings of a young boy prancing naked through the story. The book has been challenged in several American states including Illinois, New Jersey, Minnesota, and Texas. In the Night Kitchen regularly appears on the American Library Association's list of "frequently challenged and banned books." It was listed number 21 on the "100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-1999."

In an interview on NPR's Fresh Air, Sendak said that his depiction of the cooks in In the Night Kitchen (they had Hitler-esque mustaches) and the fact that they tried to cook the boy in their ovens were references to the Holocaust, a subject high in his thoughts especially due to his Jewish heritage.

Sendak was also an early member of the National Board of Advisors of the Children's Television Workshop during the development stages of the television series Sesame Street. He also wrote and designed an animated sequence for the series, Bumble Ardy, based on his own book, and with Jim Henson as the voice of the main character.

In terms of influencing others, Sendak has been a massive influence over the decades. While his books certainly have roused much controversy, on the other hand they have also charmed scores of parents and children alike with their unique illustrations and lovable characters.

June 11, 2010
This is the heading for the June 11 show. All files and conversations for this show will take place here. Today's cut-off time is 23:30 UTC. If you wish to contribute to today's show, I need to know before 21:00 UTC. I will be logged in around 20:00 UTC.
 * Getting a late start on today's show. It's been raining here in CO and I've been listening to Tom Waites so I'm not super motivated :) Turtlestack (talk) 21:52, 11 June 2010 (UTC)

Wikinews interviews Chiaki Hayashi, Asian Projects Coordinator at Creative Commons
FYI Saki has an audiorecording of the interview. Benny the mascot (talk) 21:59, 11 June 2010 (UTC)
 * Really? Sweet! Lemme hop on IRC and see how I can maybe get a copy of it for the show. Turtlestack (talk) 23:04, 11 June 2010 (UTC).
 * I left a message on Saki's talk page about the audio. What I'll do is wait to run with the story until I hear back since it would be fantastic to have audio. Turtlestack (talk) 23:16, 11 June 2010 (UTC)


 * LOL, I'm going to be even later with the show now since I just found a great listing for a Wii on Craigslist and am gonna go look at it now. Turtlestack (talk) 00:26, 12 June 2010 (UTC)

NCAA Football: USC banned from bowl games for two seasons, wins vacated
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Nelson Mandela's great-grand daughter dies in car crash
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Turkey sets the price to lift the ban on YouTube and Google services
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World's oldest shoe found in Armenia
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UN Security Council imposes more sanctions against Iran
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