The media have been getting in a tizz this week, about the illicit activities of Strictly contestants Seann Walsh and Katya Jones. The pair were photographed kissing on a night out, despite the fact that they both have significant others. Walsh's girlfriend, Rebecca Humphries announced that she is leaving him, and penned an open letter telling her side of the story, which received wide support. Some have even called for Walsh and Jones to be kicked off the show as punishment.
This is where the BBC could have seen itself as facing a dilemma. The extra drama from this incident has given Strictly a huge shot of publicity, and it's likely that the next episode to air featuring Walsh and Jones will receive a boost in ratings, if only from people tuning in wanting to see what the fallout will be. However, on the other side will be those who say the BBC should have kicked them off, and that's where the damage could be done reputationally.
In my opinion the BBC would have gone too far if they had kicked the pair off. Strictly (ha) speaking, they haven't done anything illegal, or that it seems would be against the show's rules, and it's not the BBC's role to be a moral arbiter. Couples on the show have ended up together so often that it's even been called the 'Strictly curse'. No one has previously been kicked out for it, and there's no reason to set a precedent now.
It remains to be seen what action the BBC will take, if any. There has been talk of producers deciding to make sure the dance Walsh and Jones do next time is 'made less sexy'. It seems that they will also appear on the 'It Takes Two' programme tonight to explain their side of the story, which producers will be hoping will take some of the heat out of the situation, and allow some of the drama to dissipate before the weekend's show. This could be good for everyone and take some of the pressure off not just the pair themselves, but everyone else working on the show and the other contestants.
Wednesday, 10 October 2018
Tuesday, 25 September 2018
Juventus running away again?
We're five rounds into the Serie A season and the top of the table is already starting to take on a familiar look. Juventus are out in front with a maximum 15 points, ahead of nearest rivals Napoli, who have 12 points. After winning the past seven titles, are Juventus already on the way to an eighth?
This season it was hoped that some of the other traditional big clubs could make a challenge to them. Inter were tipped to by some, having made new signings such as Radja Nainggolan, but have only two wins out of the first five. They've lost against Parma and Torino, sides they would expect to beat if they want to challenge Juventus' dominance, and are now already eight points back.
Roma are another team who would have had high expectations for this season, but they've only won one of their opening games, losing twice, and have only five points so far. AC Milan also only have five points, although they may not be expected to be contending for the title yet after all the upheaval with their ownership situation over the past few seasons. Fiorentina and Lazio are doing slightly better, with ten and nine points respectively, but barring them having a spectacular season, they'll probably drop off the pace as the season goes on.
Juventus are definitely the strongest team in the league, with probably the largest budget and the best setup in the boardroom and off the pitch. This is why they've hoovered up the last seven titles. Even more worryingly for the rest of the league is that now Cristiano Ronaldo seems to be finding his groove, with a goal and an assist in their last game against Frosinone and two more goals in the game before that against Sassuolo. If he's getting on song then there really will not be any stopping them.
Midweek matches take place from tonight, we may have a better idea of how the season might work out after them. However, barring a spectacular collapse or a superhuman effort by one of the other teams, probably Napoli, it looks like we can already safely say that Juventus will be crowned again come next summer.
This season it was hoped that some of the other traditional big clubs could make a challenge to them. Inter were tipped to by some, having made new signings such as Radja Nainggolan, but have only two wins out of the first five. They've lost against Parma and Torino, sides they would expect to beat if they want to challenge Juventus' dominance, and are now already eight points back.
Roma are another team who would have had high expectations for this season, but they've only won one of their opening games, losing twice, and have only five points so far. AC Milan also only have five points, although they may not be expected to be contending for the title yet after all the upheaval with their ownership situation over the past few seasons. Fiorentina and Lazio are doing slightly better, with ten and nine points respectively, but barring them having a spectacular season, they'll probably drop off the pace as the season goes on.
Juventus are definitely the strongest team in the league, with probably the largest budget and the best setup in the boardroom and off the pitch. This is why they've hoovered up the last seven titles. Even more worryingly for the rest of the league is that now Cristiano Ronaldo seems to be finding his groove, with a goal and an assist in their last game against Frosinone and two more goals in the game before that against Sassuolo. If he's getting on song then there really will not be any stopping them.
Midweek matches take place from tonight, we may have a better idea of how the season might work out after them. However, barring a spectacular collapse or a superhuman effort by one of the other teams, probably Napoli, it looks like we can already safely say that Juventus will be crowned again come next summer.
Saturday, 8 September 2018
Nike and Colin Kaepernick
Nike have released their full 'Just Do It' 30th anniversary video featuring Colin Kaepernick. All week there's been outrage from certain sides about their use of the former quarterback, who's been at the centre of a storm since he started kneeling down to protest during the national anthem before NFL games he played in.
His protest started back in 2016, and many labelled him unpatriotic, including Donald Trump, who called for team owners to fire players who protested in that way. The owners seemingly listened, with Kaepernick apparently blackballed from being signed to a team, even though it appears he could still be a good option for many teams.
Those who are upset have vowed to boycott Nike, stop buying its products, and have been taking to social media to show off their defaced Nike products. In many situations, this could be damaging for an organisation, with potential reputational damage and negative effects to sales. Having the President of the United States and his supporters against you is not something most businesses would want.
However, Nike didn't become a multi-billion dollar company for no reason. Before launching the campaign they would have done their research and analysis, and would have figured out that offending Donald Trump and others like him would be outweighed by the people they could attract. They decided that their audience who support Kaepernick are more significant for now than those who don't.
From a public relations point of view, this shows that sometimes its OK to do something one audience doesn't like, if it's something which your key audience will get behind. It's not always possible to please all audiences all the time.
This can also be an important lesson when dealing with crisis communications. Many companies, especially in this age of outrage where people are often forced to apologise for causing offence, might have apologised and changed the video or the campaign. Nike haven't done so, and have kept the campaign on track.
It seems to be paying off, with reports that Nike's online sales jumped 31% after they unveiled the campaign, and if nothing else, they got people talking about them. Take a look at the full video below.
His protest started back in 2016, and many labelled him unpatriotic, including Donald Trump, who called for team owners to fire players who protested in that way. The owners seemingly listened, with Kaepernick apparently blackballed from being signed to a team, even though it appears he could still be a good option for many teams.
Those who are upset have vowed to boycott Nike, stop buying its products, and have been taking to social media to show off their defaced Nike products. In many situations, this could be damaging for an organisation, with potential reputational damage and negative effects to sales. Having the President of the United States and his supporters against you is not something most businesses would want.
However, Nike didn't become a multi-billion dollar company for no reason. Before launching the campaign they would have done their research and analysis, and would have figured out that offending Donald Trump and others like him would be outweighed by the people they could attract. They decided that their audience who support Kaepernick are more significant for now than those who don't.
From a public relations point of view, this shows that sometimes its OK to do something one audience doesn't like, if it's something which your key audience will get behind. It's not always possible to please all audiences all the time.
This can also be an important lesson when dealing with crisis communications. Many companies, especially in this age of outrage where people are often forced to apologise for causing offence, might have apologised and changed the video or the campaign. Nike haven't done so, and have kept the campaign on track.
It seems to be paying off, with reports that Nike's online sales jumped 31% after they unveiled the campaign, and if nothing else, they got people talking about them. Take a look at the full video below.
Monday, 27 August 2018
Good marketing
Last week the Guardian highlighted a restaurant in York which has begun attracting different customers to its previous clientele. Scotts Fish and Chips has seen an influx of Chinese tourists wanting to go there for a meal during their holiday. How did a relatively small restaurant on an 'A' road on the outskirts of York become such a hotspot for tourists? Some excellent marketing and seemingly knowing how to reach potential customers in the right way.
Scotts capitalised on Xi Jinping's visit to the UK in 2015, where the Chinese President shared some fish and chips and a pint with David Cameron. The restaurant launched a website in Mandarin and also started promoting itself on Weibo and WeChat, two of the biggest social media networks in China.
This goes to show the importance of using the right channels to connect with the right audience. Scotts realised the strengths of their location and cuisine, tailored some of their communications to the Chinese market and are reaping the benefits. Staff are even learning Mandarin to help communicate better with their new customers. They've gotten some good PR out of it, with the Guardian and others such as the BBC and the Telegraph covering the story.
Scotts have taken advantage of their convenient location for Chinese tourists visiting York, and the business seems to be booming as a result. Credit to whoever is in charge of their marketing.
Scotts capitalised on Xi Jinping's visit to the UK in 2015, where the Chinese President shared some fish and chips and a pint with David Cameron. The restaurant launched a website in Mandarin and also started promoting itself on Weibo and WeChat, two of the biggest social media networks in China.
This goes to show the importance of using the right channels to connect with the right audience. Scotts realised the strengths of their location and cuisine, tailored some of their communications to the Chinese market and are reaping the benefits. Staff are even learning Mandarin to help communicate better with their new customers. They've gotten some good PR out of it, with the Guardian and others such as the BBC and the Telegraph covering the story.
Scotts have taken advantage of their convenient location for Chinese tourists visiting York, and the business seems to be booming as a result. Credit to whoever is in charge of their marketing.
Monday, 20 August 2018
Serie A returns
Serie A kicked off again this past weekend. All eyes were on Juventus for Cristiano Ronaldo's competitive debut in the league. He didn't manage to score a goal, and time will tell how much of a success he will be. He is 33 now, so is not at the peak of his powers, and Serie A is traditionally known for having some of the toughest defending in the world, but who would write him off? Once he scores one it would not be a surprise to see him go on a scoring spree. His progress will be one of the most interesting things to watch this season.
Inter started off their season with a defeat. Sassuolo are a bit of a bogey team, having won five of the last seven matches they've played against us. They are a good side, with players like Domenico Berardi and recently signed Kevin Prince Boateng, the flamboyent Ghanaian, who has recently released a rap song.
Following a very active transfer window which included intriguing signings such as Radja Nainggolan, Keita Balde Diao and Lautaro Martinez (although unfortunately not Luka Modric or Arturo Vidal), many expect Inter to make a title challenge this year. However, having been a fan for over 20 years I've seen us sign many world-class players and still under-perform greatly, so I've not raised my expectations too high. It will also take time for the new signings to gel. Perhaps the best we can hope for is to get through the group stage of the Champions League and finish in the top four in the league again. Either way, welcome back Serie A. Let's hope for a fun ride.
Inter started off their season with a defeat. Sassuolo are a bit of a bogey team, having won five of the last seven matches they've played against us. They are a good side, with players like Domenico Berardi and recently signed Kevin Prince Boateng, the flamboyent Ghanaian, who has recently released a rap song.
Following a very active transfer window which included intriguing signings such as Radja Nainggolan, Keita Balde Diao and Lautaro Martinez (although unfortunately not Luka Modric or Arturo Vidal), many expect Inter to make a title challenge this year. However, having been a fan for over 20 years I've seen us sign many world-class players and still under-perform greatly, so I've not raised my expectations too high. It will also take time for the new signings to gel. Perhaps the best we can hope for is to get through the group stage of the Champions League and finish in the top four in the league again. Either way, welcome back Serie A. Let's hope for a fun ride.
Sunday, 12 July 2015
So long Iker
Iker Casillas has left Real Madrid. 25 years after joining them as a nine year old he’s moving on to join Porto in the Portuguese Primeira Liga. Having come up through Real’s youth system, won a total of 18 trophies including five league titles and three Champions Leagues, and been club captain since 2010, Casillas’ departure shows a ruthlessness from the club which probably shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who has watched Real’s dealings for any period of time.
Casillas is widely agreed to be one of the best goalkeepers of the past 25 years. As well as the trophies he’s won with Real Madrid, he has also won multiple goalkeeping awards including the International Federation of Football History and Statistics World’s Best Goalkeeper award a record five times, been named in the UEFA Team of the Year every year between 2007 and 2012, and the FIFA FIFPro World XI every year from 2008 to 20012. He was also the captain of Spain as they began their domination of world football, winning their first European Championship for 44 years in 2008, then their first ever World Cup in 2010, and another European Championship in 2012. He has been a natural leader on the pitch for years.
However, the past couple of seasons have been rocky ones for Casillas. After winning the World’s Best Goalkeeper award again during the 2011-2012 season, Jose Mourinho did the seemingly unthinkable in December 2012 and dropped Casillas to the bench. This was the beginning of a series of reported disagreements between Mourinho and Casillas that marked the first stage on the road to the once untouchable Casillas’ exit from Real. The disagreements behind the scenes continued, even after Mourinho left the club to return to Chelsea, culminating in one of the club’s greatest ever servants now leaving.
Real are perhaps the biggest football club in the world. Rated the most valuable team in the world by Forbes magazine, ten times winners of the European Cup/Champions League, and constantly fighting for dominance over their hated rivals Barcelona. For the board, perfection is everything, and once anything seems to be getting in the way of that, it gets removed. Football fans have given up trying to guess what’s happening with the constant revolving door of managers arriving and departing just as quickly. Carlo Ancelotti, a world class coach who has won league titles in Italy, England and France was hired in 2013 and fired in 2015, despite leading Real to the tenth Champions League trophy the club had been desperate for.
Players are also moved on swiftly, even after years of service; Casillas is not the first of Real’s heroes to have left the club in less than happy circumstances. The striker Raul also came through as a youngster and spent 16 years as a club figurehead. One of my favourite ever players, he is still the club’s top scorer with 323, ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo. Raul is also still Real’s most capped player, and was captain from 2003 until he left in 2010. Like Casillas, Raul also began to suffer criticism from the fans and the board, and decided to leave a club where he had seemed part of the furniture. Fernando Hierro was a rock in defence for them from 1989 until 2003, when he was released on a free transfer with barely any fanfare, although he has now returned as part of the coaching staff.
Iker Casillas is still only 34, relatively middle-aged for a goalkeeper; with enough luck he could continue playing for the next six years. He and many others, including me, may have thought that he would be at Real until the end of his career, but somehow it never seems to end that way with this team. Real’s search for perfection will go on, leaving many football fans to ask, what will it take to satisfy a club that has won a record number of European Cups, a record 32 league titles and become the richest in the world?
Saturday, 31 January 2015
The tribulations of being an Inter supporter
Sometimes its hard being an Inter fan. I still remember some of the wilderness years between 1990 and 2004, when we failed to win much of note, and the heartbreak of the loss to Lazio on the final day of the 2002 season when a win would have won us the league and we had been 2-1 up. Then came Calciopoli, and we won five straight Serie A titles, culminating in the league, Coppa Italia and Champions League treble in 2010. The Champions League win came on my birthday, and is something I never thought I'd see.
Since those heady days though, Inter have been on a big downward curve. Going back to the ways of not winning anything, and not qualifying for the Champions League since 2011. We've been struggling to get back amongst the big time for four years now, and this season seems like we'll miss out again.
On Sunday Inter lost to 1-0 to Torino, leaving us 10 points back from third place, and probably ending our chances of qualifying for the Champions League through the league for another season. I watched the Torino game with a sense of resignation; Inter controlled the match, but as I've seen a thousand times, couldn't capitalise and then conceded in the 94th minute.
Although it looks like third place, which was our objective at the start of the season, is already out of reach this early in the year, I'm not too disappointed. Roberto Mancini's return has me feeling optimistic for next season, even though I wanted Walter Mazzari to succeed, and I'm sorry he had to be fired. We've made some interesting signings this January in Lukas Podolski and Xherdan Shaqiri and I'm eager to see how they perform given some more time, and see how the whole team does under Mancini's tactics. The loss to Torino was our first in five games and there's been a new sense of positivity around the club and from the players.
So, I'm going to look at this season as a rebuilding season. The average age of the team has been lowered and I'm hoping for good things from a team that can learn and grow. We went so long without winning anything until 2004 and winning the Champions League in 2010 was such an unexpected joy that I can wait a little longer to get back to the heights.
Tomorrow we play Sassuolo away, a match that I would hope Inter can win, but with Inter, who knows? Whatever happens though, I just want to see a good performance, and signs that things might improve next season. Forza Inter!
Since those heady days though, Inter have been on a big downward curve. Going back to the ways of not winning anything, and not qualifying for the Champions League since 2011. We've been struggling to get back amongst the big time for four years now, and this season seems like we'll miss out again.
On Sunday Inter lost to 1-0 to Torino, leaving us 10 points back from third place, and probably ending our chances of qualifying for the Champions League through the league for another season. I watched the Torino game with a sense of resignation; Inter controlled the match, but as I've seen a thousand times, couldn't capitalise and then conceded in the 94th minute.
Although it looks like third place, which was our objective at the start of the season, is already out of reach this early in the year, I'm not too disappointed. Roberto Mancini's return has me feeling optimistic for next season, even though I wanted Walter Mazzari to succeed, and I'm sorry he had to be fired. We've made some interesting signings this January in Lukas Podolski and Xherdan Shaqiri and I'm eager to see how they perform given some more time, and see how the whole team does under Mancini's tactics. The loss to Torino was our first in five games and there's been a new sense of positivity around the club and from the players.
So, I'm going to look at this season as a rebuilding season. The average age of the team has been lowered and I'm hoping for good things from a team that can learn and grow. We went so long without winning anything until 2004 and winning the Champions League in 2010 was such an unexpected joy that I can wait a little longer to get back to the heights.
Tomorrow we play Sassuolo away, a match that I would hope Inter can win, but with Inter, who knows? Whatever happens though, I just want to see a good performance, and signs that things might improve next season. Forza Inter!
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