News Article 38

Prince, singer and superstar, dies aged 57 at Paisley Park

How BBC News represented the story:

The hugely popular, acclaimed and influential musician Prince has died at his home in Minnesota at the age of 57.

Police were summoned to his Paisley Park estate early on Thursday and found his body in a lift. An investigation has been opened.

Prince became a global superstar in the 1980s, with albums such as 1999, Purple Rain and Sign O' the Times.

No cause of death has been stated. A post-mortem investigation will take place on Friday.

His innovative music spanned rock, funk and jazz. He sold more than 100 million records during his career.

"It is with profound sadness that I am confirming that the legendary, iconic performer, Prince Rogers Nelson, has died," his spokeswoman said.

My opinion

It is truly devastating that Prince has passed away, he was extremely talented and a very impactful individual. 2016 has not been a good year so far as too many great people have left us but I wish the best for his loved ones and RIP. 

News Article 37

Alton Towers Smiler ride reopens nine months after horror crash

A rollercoaster at Alton Towers has reopened nine months after an accident which left five people with serious injuries.

Some of the first people on the Smiler ride cheered and clapped when it moved off,as crowds arrived for the new season at the Staffordshire theme park. Two women needed amputations after two carriages crashed on the track in June. The park said it had introduced "additional safety procedures" to the way the ride operates.

Jim Harvey and his 14-year-old son Liam, from Bloxwich, West Midlands, were among the first on the Smiler when it reopened.

Mr Harvey said: "It was fantastic, a bit daunting being first on - my son Liam forced me to sprint to be first. "After the terribly sad crash, you have to feel really bad for the people that got hurt but hundreds of accidents happen daily on the roads. "There's not a nice way to say it but accidents happen. Alton Towers have to move on."

Vicky Balch, who along with another passenger, Leah Washington, from Lancashire, had to have a leg amputated, told ITV: "I understand it's a business and it's what they have to do. I just didn't think it'd be so soon. It's only nine months, it's not a very long time." "It feels like the money comes before the people on the ride."

Joe Pugh, of Barnsley, South Yorkshire, Daniel Thorpe, from Buxton, Derbyshire, and Chandaben Chauhan, from Wednesbury, West Midlands, were also seriously injured. In total 16 people were hurt in the incident, which park owner Merlin Entertainments said was due to human error.

My opinion:

This was a terrible accident that happened and 9 months later, the people involved are still affected as this is unfortunately something that will impact/stay with them for life. I understand that Alton Towers re-opened the ride as they probably want to keep their business running and prove it was just down to human error. However, I personally do not agree that they did that, especially only 9 months later, because the accident was so huge and awful that I do not see why anyone would want to ride it but I guess it is the riders personal choice. 

News Article 36

Canada's National Film Board to fund more female directors to combat Hollywood's gender gap

This is how The Independent represented the story:

In an attempt to combat Hollywood's ongoing gender equality problem, Canada's National Film Board has promised that half of its films will be directed by women. The government-funded body says it’s making a 'firm, ongoing commitment to full gender parity'. The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) has promised that at least half of the films it finances will be directed by women.

The country's government-funded film body announced its new gender equality initiative on International Women's Day. 

"There have been good years and lean years for women's filmmaking at the NFB. No more," commissioner Claude Joli-Coeur said in a statement. "Today, I'm making a firm, ongoing commitment to full gender parity, which I hope will help to lead the way for the industry as a whole."

Joli-Coeur said that the NFB is already on course to meet its targets over the next two years. "In our current fiscal year, films directed by women represent half of our total spending on production. In 2016‒2017, the numbers are projected to be well above that," he explained.

The NFB's announcement sends a clear message to the global film industry as a whole, where female directors are still very much in the minority. A study published last October by San Diego State University's Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film found that of 2014’s 700 highest-grossing films, just 13% were directed by women.

My opinion on the news story:

There is definitely no where near enough female directors in the film industry and in general, the industry as a whole is mostly dominated by men. Seeing statistics such as the '13% were directed by women' is quite shocking because the number should be higher than that so I feel that what Canada is doing is a great idea. 

News Article 35

Oscars: The Revenant expected to triumph

Leonardo DiCaprio is widely expected to take home his first best actor Oscar later.

The Revenant, which he is nominated for, is also seen as a strong contender for best picture and best director. The ceremony gets under way at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles at 20:30 PST (01:30 GMT).

But it is being boycotted by some Hollywood figures who are protesting about the lack of ethnic diversity among this year's nominees. All 20 nominees in the best acting or supporting acting categories are white.

Last week, Harvey Weinstein discouraged a boycott, reassuring those concerned that host Chris Rock would "annihilate" Hollywood in his opening monologue at the ceremony.

The black comedian is known for dealing with racial issues in his routines and it is expected he will make reference to the recent controversy.

Earlier this month, director Spike Lee - who was one of the first figures to speak publicly about the lack of diversity - said the boycott had been vindicated by the response from organisers.

The Academy, which hands out the Oscar honours, announced it would double the number of women and ethnic minority members by 2020 after the protests.

My opinion:

I also think it is very likely that DiCaprio will win the Oscar and there has been so much on social media/the news about it that I would be surprised if he didn't. More importantly though, I think it is shocking that all 20 nominees in the best acting or supporting acting categories are white because that is just pure dominant ideology and huge racial discrimination and it deserves to be equal and it makes you think what is the point of these award cermonies if it is just going to be the same every time with all the white males winning everything. The fact they said they will 'double the number of women and ethnic minority members by 2020' doesn't exactly help because they should have done that a long time ago and why wait until 2020. 

UPDATE: LEO DID WIN THE OSCAR 

News Article 34

Boys aged two and three die in house fire in Huddersfield

This is how BBC News represented the story:

Two boys aged two and three have died in a house fire in Huddersfield.

Firefighters were called to a property in Alder Street, Fartown, at about 14:00 GMT on Saturday. They spoke to a woman and a child who said the boys were in an upstairs bedroom, West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said. A fire official told the Huddersfield Examiner: "There were firefighters with tears in their eyes and they were obviously shook up."

The boys, thought to be brothers, were taken from the bedroom but were later pronounced dead in hospital. West Yorkshire Police said their next-of-kin had been informed.  A fire service spokesman said the cause of the fire was not being treated as suspicious, but investigations were ongoing.  The fire is thought to have spread rapidly upstairs in the property, he added. It is believed the property had no working smoke alarms.

'Awful experience'

Shaveta Sharma, a neighbour, said emergency services were "really doing their best" at the scene. She said: "It's been absolutely awful, I couldn't sleep last night. It's so tragic, an awful experience." 

Chris Kirby, group manager at West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, said firefighters battled to save the boys. He told the Huddersfield Examiner: "Afterwards we went back to base to talk, because they comfort in speaking to one another about incidents like this."

Labour councillor Amanda Pinnock, of Kirklees Council, said: "Because of the area, everybody knows everybody.  "They will be shocked by what has happened."

My opinion on the article:

I really find this shocking and it is devastating that incidents like this happen so frequently. It states that the property had no working smoke alarms which really highlights their importance and if they had one, then the situation may have been completely different. This is obviously a hard time for their family and friends so I wish the best for them and may the two boys RIP. Furthermore, I believe BBC News represented the story well, with relevant information, quotes, images and it was not biased. 

Adele and Jessie J

ADELE

Adele Laurie Blue Adkins was born on 5 May, 1988 in London and she is a British singer and songwriter. She graduated from the BRIT school in 2006 and after this, she recorded a demo consisting of three songs which she sent to her friend who posted it on Myspace. This resulted in a recording contract from XL Recordings. From this, her first single and also her breakthrough song, ‘Hometown Glory’ was released in October 2007. Her first album ‘19’ was released on 28 January, 2008 which was a huge commercial success; during its release, it debuted at number one on the UK charts and it is currently estimated that the worldwide sales for this album are around 10 million copies. Her world tour ‘An Evening with Adele’ for this album started in May, 2008 and ended in June, 2009 however, she cancelled the 2008 US tour dates in order to spend time with her boyfriend which she strongly regretted, in the June 2009 Nylon magazine she said “I can’t believe I did that. It seems so ungrateful”. Of course, this was a huge obstacle for her attempted break though into America but she suddenly gained a lot more recognition when she appeared as a guest on NBC’s Saturday Night Live which received 17 million viewers: the shows best ratings in 14 years. At the Grammy’s in February 2009, Adele won two awards: Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for her song ‘Chasing Pavements’.

‘21’ was Adele’s second album which was released in the UK on 24 January 2011. ‘Rolling in the Deep’ and ‘Someone like You’ were the most popular songs in the album and they were in the top 5 of the UK singles chart. ‘21’ was again a huge commercial success: it topped the charts in more than 30 countries, was the best-selling album of the 21^st Century in the UK, it spent 23 weeks at the top of the UK Albums Chart which is the longest time for a female solo artist and it had sold 30 million copies worldwide by July 2014. At the 2012 Grammy’s, she was nominated in 6 categories to which she won in all of them and she won the BRIT Award for Best British Female Solo Artist and British Album of the year. In 2012, Adele performed ‘Skyfall’ for the James Bond theme song. This was a big hit: it has sold over two million copies worldwide and for it, Adele won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and also the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

On the 20 November, 2015, Adele released her most recent album ‘25’ but the lead single of the album ‘Hello’ was released on 23 October 2015. This single alone gained huge international commercial success: it reached number one in almost every country it charted in and it broke many records such as being the first song to sell over one million digital copies in a week. It also broke the Vevo record when it achieved over 27.7 million views within only 24 hours, which was previously held by ‘Bad Blood’ by Taylor Swift which had 20.1 million views in 24 hours. Adele is very popular on social media, with 25.3 million twitter followers which ranks her at 32 on the 100 most followed people on twitter. The top three most followed people on twitter are Katy Perry (over 83 million), Justin Bieber (over 75 million) and Taylor Swift (over 71 million) which goes to show that it is dominated by the music industry. Adele has 64,338,106 likes on her Facebook page and 10,654,589 subscribers on her VEVO YouTube page.

JESSIE J

Jessie J was born on 27 March, 1988 in London and she is an English singer and songwriter. She studied at the BRIT school and was in the same year as Adele. When she graduated, she was signed by Gut Records but they went bankrupt before she released anything. However, she then got herself a song writing deal and contract with Sony/ATV Music Publishing in which she was able to write for artists such as Chris Brown and Miley Cyrus.

In 2005, Jessie J starting recording her debut studio album ‘Who You Are’ and she completed it on 19 January 2011. Late into 2010, she released her first single ‘Do It Like a Dude’ which was a success as it reached number two on the UK Singles Chart as well as winning Best Song at the MOBO Awards. ‘Price Tag’ was her follow up single and it reached number one on the UK Singles Chart. ‘Who You Are’ was successful when released: it sold 105,000 copies in its first week, debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart and sales have now reached over 2.5 million worldwide. Furthermore, this was the first album in history by a British female artist to produce six or more top ten hits in the UK. At the Brit Awards in 2012, Jessie J’s ‘Price Tag’ was nominated for Best British Single and she was also nominated for Best British Female Artist. In 2012 and 2013, Jessie J was a coach on ‘The Voice UK’ which is a singing competition programme on BBC One.

In 2013, Jessie J released her second album ‘Alive’, it reached number three on the UK Albums Chart, selling 39,270 copies and now it has sold over 180,000 copies in the UK. Then in October 2014, she released her third album ‘Sweet Talker’ which reached number five in the charts. It was led by ‘Bang Bang’ which Jessie J sang with Nicki Minaj and Ariana Grande. This single was a big commercial success as it reached number one in the UK. In 2015, her single ‘Flashlight’ was made for Pitch Perfect 2 and it was nominated for Best British Video in the Brit Awards, 2016. Jessie J is popular on social media, she is well known for charity events such as the 2013 Red Nose Day in which she shaved her hair off. She has 8.46 million followers on twitter, 19,372,663 likes on Facebook, 4.9 million followers on Instagram and 4,528,743 subscribers on her YouTube Vevo page. 

News Article 33

Revenant's Inarritu wins top directing award at DGA

Alejandro Inarritu has won the top prize at the Directors Guild of America (DGA) awards for The Revenant, adding weight to his chances at the Oscars.

The Revenant, starring Leonardo Di Caprio as a frontiersman fighting for survival, leads the Oscars race with 12 nominations, including best director. Past DGA award winners have often gone on to claim the best director Oscar and the best film category. Inarritu won the DGA award for Birdman in 2015 and then won the Oscars double.

The DGA is the industry's leading group of film and TV directors and its opinion carries a lot of weight. To date, there have been only seven occasions when the DGA winner has not then won the subsequent Academy Award.

For Inarritu, Saturday night's accolade makes the Mexican the first director to win back-to-back DGA awards. Inarritu has already won the Golden Globe for best director for the Revenant and he is nominated for the directing Bafta.

My opinion:

It it great for Inarritu to win such a well respected prize and this definitely puts him in a good place for the Oscars. BBC News represented the story well, with a good amount of information but they didn't overdo it so the viewer knew what they needed to and there were also pictures to break it down. I have watched The Revenant and all people seem to be talking about is whether it will finally win Leo an oscar but I personally believe that although it was really good, the main thing that stood out to me was the cinematography and not necessarily the performance although it was very effective. I think people are making assumptions that this will win all the Oscars and they want it to but I think films such as Room had better performances and deserve it more. 

News Article 32

Sir Terry Wogan: Veteran broadcaster dies, aged 77

This is how BBC News represented the story:

Veteran BBC broadcaster Sir Terry Wogan has died aged 77, after a short illness, his family has confirmed.

In a statement, they said: "Sir Terry Wogan died today after a short but brave battle with cancer. "He passed away surrounded by his family. While we understand he will be missed by many, the family ask that their privacy is respected at this time."

BBC director general Tony Hall said: "Terry truly was a national treasure." Sir Terry leaves wife Lady Helen and their three children. The couple also had a daughter who died in infancy.

He presented the breakfast show from 1972 to 1984, as The Terry Wogan Show, and then from 1993 to 2009 as Wake Up To Wogan. He built up a firm fanbase, dubbing his audience the TOGs, or Terry's Old Geezers and Gals. When he broadcast at breakfast for the final time, he told listeners: "The years together with you have not only been a pleasure but a privilege. You have allowed me to share your lives with you. "When you tell me how important I have been in your lives it's very moving. You have been every bit as important in mine."

My opinion:

This is just a small part of how the BBC represented this story and I think they did a really good job because they included pictures, videos, information about Terry's life, responses to his death and facts and statistics. Yet again this is another very sad story and it is devastating that yet another important figure is no longer with us. Terry was amazing at what he did and he also will be missed hugely by everyone. RIP. 

News Article 31

Schools ranked by raw GCSE results for last time

Schools in England are being judged on the basis of raw GCSE results for the last time, heralding the end of school league tables in their present form.

Head teachers are welcoming changes that means from next year, schools will be measured on a broader range of results across eight subjects.

The government says schools have risen to its moves to toughen standards.

The number of schools falling below the current floor standard has remained stable at 312.

Secondary schools are "underperforming" if fewer than 40% of pupils get five GCSEs at grade A*-C, including English and maths, and if the school has a below average score for pupils' progress.

The data is based on examinations taken last summer.

MY OPINION

When I was doing my GCSE'S, I found they were more of a memory test rather than testing your genuine knowledge and they didn't really help because I quickly forgot a vast majority of it. I think it is a good idea that they are going to start not using GCSE's alone anymore because success rates will go up and levels of education will improve. BBC News represented the story well, they had interactive diagrams and loads of information so I understood the story very clearly.

News Article 30

ALPS AVALANCHE DEATHS: TEACHER FACES MANSLAUGHTER CHARGE 



How BBC News represented the story:

A French teacher is under investigation for manslaughter after he apparently led schoolchildren onto a closed ski run shortly before a deadly avalanche.

Police are waiting to take the teacher into custody. He was seriously injured in the disaster and remains in hospital. Two pupils and a Ukrainian tourist were killed when the avalanche struck in the Les Deux Alpes on Wednesday.

Warnings were in place after heavy snow in recent days. The two students who died were a boy of 14 and a 16-year-old girl from Saint-Exupery high school in Lyon. The Ukrainian man who was killed was not part of the school group.

"We have to interview the hospitalised teacher as soon as we can," Grenoble prosecutor Jean-Yves Coquillat told reporters on Thursday. "The question is: Why were they skiing on a closed piste?"

A huge rescue operation was launched after the avalanche struck the group of 10 teenagers, their teacher and the Ukrainian, 57, on the Bellecombe piste at about 15:45 local time (14:45 GMT) on Wednesday. The piste, which has the most difficult black rating, had been closed since the beginning of the ski season because of a lack of snow, a manager at Les Deux Alpes told local media.

My Opinion:

I think this is truly shocking and I've heard so many stories about deaths or major injuries occurring during school skiing trips. I think this definitely says something about the safety of them and more precautions need to be taken when planning and on these trips to ensure all the pupils are completely safe. Stories like this may be especially impactful for parents who are considering sending their children on skiing trips because they may find themselves re-thinking the safety of the decision. If it is true what they say and it is manslaughter, then that is absolutely horrible and again, just shows the lack of trust there is in this world. 

News Article 29

DAVID BOWIE DIES OF CANCER AT 69

This is how BBC News represented the story:

Singer David Bowie has died at the age of 69 from cancer.

His son, film director Duncan Jones, confirmed the news and a statement was issued on his social media accounts. "David Bowie died peacefully today surrounded by his family after a courageous 18-month battle with cancer," it said.

"While many of you will share in this loss, we ask that you respect the family's privacy during their time of grief."

His hits include Let's Dance, Space Oddity, Starman, Modern Love, Heroes, Under Pressure, Rebel, Rebel and Life on Mars. He was also well known for creating his flamboyant alter ego Ziggy Stardust. The singer only released his latest album Blackstar on his birthday on Friday. The album, which includes just seven songs, has been well received by critics.

Tributes have been paid to Bowie from across the world of entertainment.

Brian Eno, who collaborated with Bowie on his albums Low and Heroes, said: "Words cannot express... rest in peace David Bowie".

Rapper Kanye West said: "David Bowie was one of my most important inspirations, so fearless, so creative, he gave us magic for a lifetime."

Comedian and actor Ricky Gervais, who convinced Bowie to star as himself and ridicule Gervais in an episode of 2006 sitcom Extras, wrote simply: "I just lost a hero. RIP David Bowie."

Comedian and writer Eddie Izzard said: "Very sad to hear about the death of David Bowie but through his music he will live forever."

Bowie collaborator Rick Wakeman wrote on Twitter: "As I'm sure you can imagine I'm gutted hearing of David's passing. He was the biggest influence & encouragement I could ever have wished for."

My opinion:

I think it is very sad that David Bowie has passed away, he was a talented man and I still find it absolutely devastating that there is no cure for cancer. BBC news represented the story really well, with relevant information, audience responses and on the website, they had included both videos and pictures which was useful. Clearly, Bowie will be missed greatly. RIP.

WOW- Disney and Sony

News Article 28

Star Wars topples Spectre to become UK's biggest film of 2015 



This is how BBC News represented the story:

Star Wars: The Force Awakens has become the UK's biggest film of 2015 after just 16 days of release, with takings of £94.06m beating Spectre's £93.5m.

JJ Abrams' film has also overtaken Avatar (£94m) as the second most successful film in history in the UK. But Skyfall still reigns supreme as the UK's highest-grossing film of all time with £103m in 2012. The Force Awakens sees the return of original cast members Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill. It also introduced audiences to British actors Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, who have starring roles in the seventh movie in George Lucas's franchise.

At the end of December, Star Wars: The Force Awakens also became the fastest film to take $1bn (£674m) at the global box office. It achieved the feat in 12 days, beating the previous record of 13 days set by Jurassic World in June. But while Jurassic World had the benefit of record takings in China over the period, The Force Awakens had yet to open there when the figures were released.

It still has a way to go before it can compete with the two films which took more than $2bn worldwide - 1997's Titanic ($2.18bn; £1.45bn) and 2009's Avatar ($2.78bn; £1.85bn).

My opinion on the news story:

I expected that Star Wars would do extremely well in the box office because it is a franchise that is greatly loved by so many people and it was anticipated for a long time in the build up to Christmas and the way it was marketed also meant that wide audiences were attracted. I did go to see it and after not really watching Star Wars before, I surprisingly really enjoyed it and I think they made it in a way that it will tend the needs of old fans as well as create a great film for people just watching it as a one-off. However, I have seen better films but I believe the reason it has been hyped up so much is because its an old, famous franchise.