Danny Boyle's #Savethesurprise Olympics Crusade

Danny Boyle, the artistic director of the London 2012 Olympic opening ceremony, has been forced to apologise to the 10,000 volunteers who will appear in the opening ceremony on 27 July over "spoilers" that have been appearing in the press.

The email apology asks that the volunteers "stay virtuous", the BBC quotes him:

"Many of you have been dismayed by the media scrutiny on the show.

I am sorry that, despite our best efforts, we appear to be unable to stop these stories appearing in the press."

I am more than a little "bemused" at Boyle's apparent surprise/disappointment over the press interest and stories about the opening ceremony:

1 He is an experienced film director and producer, he knows full well how the media operates.

2 He himself held a media briefing last month, where he revealed that the ceremony would feature a recreation of the "British countryside" featuring country scenes and farmyard animals.

3 The London Olympics are being heavily promoted by the government, sports bodies and businesses; of course the media are interested in what will happen in the opening ceremony.

4 With 10,000 volunteers, even if they have all signed a non disclosure agreement, there will be leaks.

I cannot understand how Boyle could have been so naive about this?

Notwithstanding the apology, in an action that is guaranteed to create even more media interest in the opening ceremony, Boyle has asked that everyone involved to start Tweeting pleas to the media and others to #savethesurprise.

Even Seb Coe has joined the Tweet crusade:
"Seb Coe ‏@sebcoe

Share the frustration of volunteer performers and the public at Opening Ceremony being unofficially trailed. Let’s #savethesurprise"

Is Boyle trying to increase the media frenzy over the opening ceremony, or is this a genuine (if misguided) attempt to damp down leaks and speculation?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Picnics and Mobiles Banned

Organisers of the London 2012 Olympics, on the pretext of "security", are considering banning spectators from bringing mobile phones and picnics to Olympics events.

Flasks, thermoses and larger quantities of food will all be banned.

Liquids of more than 100ml, camera tripods, phones, flags of countries not involved in the Games along with umbrellas (no rain predicted then?) are also all banned.

"Security" may well be the fig leaf excuse used by organisers for this ban. However, the real reason lies with the money being generated by sponsors from their marketing campaigns and food/drink etc concessions at the Olympic venues.

The Olympics is not about sport, but about money!

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Spin City

The foreign affairs committee has expressed concern that the Foreign Office's overall message about what Britain is, and how it should be regarded during the 2012 Olympics is ill-defined.

Seemingly the committee wants Britain to be promoted as a "diverse, inclusive and friendly country. Or in a word ... generous."

I wonder if that doesn't slightly go against the grain of David Cameron's recent speech, in which he sounded the death knell for "multiculturalism"?

Notwithstanding that, the committee is also concerned that the Foreign Office (FCO) should squash any negative stories that appear in the media (I assume foreign media) about the Olympics.

As such a "rapid response unit" should be set up:

"We recommend that the FCO should form a 'rapid response unit', set up well before the Games, which is adequately resourced and prepared to take swift action to rebut or challenge negative stories appearing in the world media."

Who then is meant to handle negative stories in the UK media?

Surely the Olympics organisers already have a media and PR department set up at considerable cost to the British taxpayer?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Ofcom Kiboshes Olympics Radio

Ofcom have put the kibosh on plans for a DAB Olympics radio station (planned to broadcast only during the 2012 Olympics).

The reason being that it received only 10 preliminary expressions of interest.

Given that Ofcom refused to release AM and FM frequencies for broadcast this lack of interest is hardly surprising, DAB simply is far to niche to be of interest and commercially viable for such a short term project.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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We're Backing China

It is "refreshing" to see that the IOC are still helping support the Chinese Olympics, even though they ended in 2008.

The IOC has announced the allocation of accredited positions to journalists for the 2012 London Olympics. Out of the 5,600 possible positions British journalists have been allocated a paltry 500, whereas Chinese journalists have been allocated 200.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Mascot To Be Unveiled

Hold onto your hats, at 7PM (BST) tonight, the London 2012 Olympics mascot will be unveiled.

The "buzz" from the London Olympics bunker is that the mascot will be "adventurous", and won't be an animal.

Lord Coe has semi spilt the beans, he has been telling the USA media that the mascots are a child friendly creation formed from a drop of steel from the Olympic Stadium.

Seemingly the mascots are based on a story by children's author Michael Morpurgo, and are aimed aimed particularly at children.

Why would that be?

Well, the games are all about money and the mascots will be sold. Child "I want one" power is an effective marketing tool.

I wonder if it will receive the same "warm" welcome that the "Lisa Simpson Gives Head" logo received?

I'll hazard a guess that it's a couple of marbles.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Britain Wins Gold Medal

Britain seems to have won one gold medal at the Vancouver Winter Olympics, that at least is the view of ctvolympics.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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Solar Storms

It seems that holding the Olympics in 2012 may not be such an auspicious year, from the perspective of the communications and media industries.

Scientist have warned that the London 2012 Olympics Communication systems could be damaged by magnetic storms and solar flares, which hit their 11 year peak just as the Olympics kicks off.

The solar storms can affect satellites and power grids on Earth.

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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The Olympics Stormtroopers

Baroness Valentine, CEO of London First, has put the boot into Locog by referring to them as "stormtroopers" wrt the zealousness with which they protect the Olympic brand and its associated names eg "2012", "London" etc.

Baroness Valentine says that small companies were being targeted by aggressive "brand police", and asked for Locog to show more leniency.

Lady Valentine said:

"Even mentioning London and 2012 in the same sentence can result in a shot across the bows from the brand police of Lord Coe.

We should be building excitement.

My worry is that the reputation earned by Locog's stormtroopers threatens to undermine the potential for London."

Always remember, the Olympics is about money not sport!

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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The Building With No Name

There seems to be something of a problem brewing with the O2 Arena (no longer called the Millennium Dome because of it's association with white elephants).

AEG, the owner of the O2 arena, has had to remove the O2 branding from the building for the duration of the London 2012 Olympics as a result of a sponsorship clash with 2012 telecoms sponsor BT.

The building will be unbranded during the games, as AEG will not allow another brand to sponsor the venue.

Olympics organiser LOCOG is now in a flap, because the O2 Arena is to be used to host badminton and basketball events. Clearly it will look quite ridiculous to host the events at a building that has no name!

Needless to say this issue has been known about for several years. It is rather puzzling that it has only just come to a head.

As ever, the Olympics are not about sport but are about money and corporate image.

Feel free to make suggestions as to what to call the O2 Arena (Millennium Dome).

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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A Blight on The Landscape

Cabe, the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (the government's architectural adviser), has vented its spleen on the £355M Olympic media centre (where the journalists covering the London 2012 Olympic Games will sit).

Cabe describes the building as being "monolithic", and notes that the building will be a blight on East London's already ugly landscape:

Paul Finch, chairman of the London 2012 design review panel, is quoted in The Times:

"People could be forgiven for wondering why sheds have been removed from the Lower Lea Valley in the name of high-quality urban regeneration, only to be reinstated at a much larger scale."

Money well spent then!

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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The Perils of Advertising

The Guardian warns that the rules governing the use of words in advertising associated with the Olympics are draconian.

Quote:

"Under the 2006 London Olympic Games and Paralympics Games Act, normally innocuous words such as 'Game', 'Medals', 'Gold', '2012' and 'Summer' cannot be combined in any form of advertising around the Olympics, with anyone flouting the law facing a fine of up to £20,000."

How did it come to pass that words such as "game" and "summer" are forbidden?

Olympic Medals won during the Beijing 2008 Olympics

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British Government Incapable

Approximately 90% of Britons do not think that the government is capable of managing the 2012 Olympics. That at least is according to a survey taken by Opinion Research.

Only 12% of the 2,000 people surveyed believe that the Games will come in on budget, or within 10% of the budget. The budget currently stands at £12BN (including £2BN running costs), but it could in my opinion hit £20BN.

A government, unsurprisingly, does not quite agree with the opinions of its citizens.

A Department for Culture, Media and Sport spokesman said:

"We have in place the experience and expertise - both within government and The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and The Olympic Delivery Authority to deliver a fantastic Games and long term legacy that will benefit millions of people for decades to come."

Why has the budget ballooned from the original tender of £3BN then?

Olympic Medals Won at Beijing Olympics

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China Bashing

The hypocrisy of some parts of the western media appears to know no bounds when it comes to having a go at China.

On Friday, reports emerged that the children who carried the Chinese flag in a show of national unity at the Beijing opening ceremonies were not from the 56 ethnic groups they were purported to represent.

Given the lies and distortions published by the media in the West, to criticise the Chinese for this is hypocrisy of the highest level.

Olympic Medals Won

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Verbal Punch Up at Press Conference

Wei Wang, the secretary general of the Beijing organising committee, expressed his displeasure about the behaviour of some members of the international media for coming to China "to peek, to be critical, to dig into the small details and find fault" in the country's human rights record".

He vented his spleen during the IOC-Bocog press conference, as journalists pressed him to reveal how many Chinese citizens had been granted permission to use the three Protest Parks set up for the Games. Wei Wang claimed twice that he had not been given figures from the Office of Public Security.

"After 30 years of reform China has developed greatly. People enjoy more freedom. People are living a good life. Everyone is happy. That's a fact. Of course there are exceptions, like in any other country. But they need to take the legal process and procedures to resolve any issues. We cannot allow this country to be in chaos.

There are a few people who have come here to peek, to be critical, to dig into the small details and find fault. This does not mean that we are not fulfilling our promises [over human rights to the IOC]. The whole country can see how can China has developed; how China has genuinely welcomed the world to enjoy everything with us."

The IOC was given a rough ride by Alex Thomson, a Channel 4 journalist, who asked as to whether it was "in any way embarrassed" by the Chinese government "lying through its teeth" about keeping its promises to improve human rights and press freedom.

The IOC communication's director, Giselle Davies, did not answer the question but instead said:

"We have to note that there have been enormous steps forward in a number of areas".

Thomson kept pressing and asked how the IOC felt about the "manifest failure of the Chinese government to keep their promises." Davies refused to answer, saying that the IOC was "very proud about how these Games are progressing".

Thomson kept up the attack:

"I'm not asking about how well the Games are being run, or how wonderful the Games are.

Are you embarrassed by China?

I don't think anyone thinks you have answered the question."

Davies said:

"The Olympic Games is largely about the athletes and they have given us extremely strong feedback about how things are going."

Thomson was by now fending off two volunteers, who were trying to take the microphone from him. However, he soldiered on:

"We're not getting anywhere are we?

Are the IOC embarrassed about the Chinese governments record on human rights? One more chance?"

Davies ignored the question and said:

"We have to note the enormous steps in the wider area.

The world is watching and the IOC is appraising."

Olympic Medals Won

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The Sweet Smell of Bullshit

The IOC would have the world believe that internet access in China, for the period of the Olympics, is more or less free and unfettered for the foreign journalists who are camped en masse there.

The IOC released a statement:

"The media should be seeing a noticeable difference in accessibility to websites that they need to report on the Olympic Games.

Open Internet access has always been assured by [Beijing Organising Committee] and the Chinese authorities, and the IOC is pleased to see these reassurances being upheld."

All very nice, except for one small problem.

It is bullshit!

Thousands of sites remain unavailable to both journalists and Beijing residents; including TypePad, LiveJournal, Philadelphia Inquirer, Technorati, parts of Wikipedia and the Huffington Post.

WebSitePulse.com has a "China Firewall test" tool, which lets users input a site's address to see if it's working in Beijing. Why not try it out for yourself?

Free Website Test tools by WebSitePulse

The IOC does not come out of this very well at all.

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Web Access in Beijing

The IOC have announced that Chinese and international organisers are working on a compromise to unblock censored websites for the foreign media.

Despite the fact that Beijing has unblocked a number of banned sites, including Amnesty International, there are others that remain blocked.

IOC President Jacques Rogge has promised free and unrestricted net access for foreign journalists during the games.

The IOC and the Beijing Organising Committee for the Olympic Games, have set up a working group to determine which remaining censored websites can be opened up to reporters.

With nine days to go, they will have their work cut out!

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Terrorists Detained

Chinese police have so far this year detained 82 suspected terrorists, in the Muslim populated northwest of China, who have been accused of planning to attack the Beijing Olympics in August this year.

Chinese state media say that the 82 belong to five groups that "allegedly plotted sabotage against the Beijing Olympics."

Yesterday Chinese state media announced that police had shot dead five Muslims, who allegedly wanted to launch a "holy war".

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Boris Looks To The Legacy

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has given an interview to The Independent in which he outlines his determination to cut back on the costs of the 2012 London Olympics, and to ensure that there will be a lasting legacy.

Quote:

"We are looking at ways of saving.

Everybody is worried we are going to waste squillions on projects that are going to have no lasting benefit for east London. That is why I want to make sure that there is a proper legacy. I'll be using my position on the Olympic Board to make sure that we deliver value for money not only for London, but the whole country.

We are going to see some action. We need a master plan and we must get our skates on. While we pour all this money into an Olympic stadium, aquatic centre, media centre and all the rest, we've got to think:

'What's it going to be in five years' time?'

We don't want to sink billions into east London without a long-term benefit, and keeping a cap on the costs. Regeneration is wonderful but the Olympics are about sport."

I hope that he and Kate Hoey, his appointment as Commissioner for Sport, can make a genuine impact on the Olympics budget and legacy.

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The Private Militia

Whilst the media and journalists get themselves into a lather over alleged reporting restrictions in China, in the run up to the 2008 games, they may care to take a look at what is happening in the UK as we prepare for the 2012 games.

Organisers of the 2012 Olympics being accused of running "private militia", in their desire to provide security for the 2012 games and to protect the construction site.

It seems that a couple of amateur photographers were targeted by heavy-handed security guards at the stadium building site in East London, this also happened a year ago when photo enthusiast Dr Patrick Green clashed with two security guards at the site.

Louis Berk and Steve Kessel claim that they clashed with four security personnel while on a 'public pavement' outside the construction area in early May.

Guards were under the impression that they had been taking pictures of the construction site through a hole in the fence.

Mr Berk was quoted in Amateur Photographer:

"The interrogation then turned to the content of our cameras,' said Louis, who lives in north London.

The leader of the pack told us we were not allowed to photograph security staff and demanded we show him the pictures. Neither I nor my friend had taken any pictures – in fact, my friend was using a film camera so it would have been impossible to comply with this illegal request."

In a letter to Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) chief executive David Higgins, Mr Berk accused the authority of operating the equivalent of a "private militia".

The ODA are investigating.

China has only recently started to open up, therefore there will still be issues wrt press freedom etc; Britain is one of the world's oldest democracies, there is no excuse for this kind of heavy handed behaviour.

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