BBC TV Shows And Radio Programmes Result In Over 400,000 Calls To Action Line
“If you were affected by this programme, please call this number or visit our website for advice.” Sound familiar? If you watched a drama, listened to a radio programme or tuned in to watch any of the soaps this year, then you probably heard a callout along these lines.

The BBC aired 456 of them in 2017 alone and has now revealed how many people got in touch with them for advice on sensitive issues including sexual abuse, female genital mutilation (FGM) and post-traumatic stress disorder.

The corporation directs viewers and listeners to its Action Line service and 431,000 people either visited the site or called in 2017, a huge increase on the 280,000 who did so in the year previous.

Of those, 127,000 were seeking for information and support surrounding sexual abuse, following dramas ‘Three Girls’ and ‘Apple Tree Yard’.

References to PTSD in ‘EastEnders’ led to 3,939 requests for information while a miscarriage storyline in ‘The Archers’ led to 7,024.

In a statement, the Controller of BBC Drama Piers Wenger has praised the corporation’s output for “really connect[ing] with audiences”.

“It’s important that we tackle difficult subject matters and I’m pleased that through the Action Line we’ve been able to give so many people vital information, help and support,” he said. “The BBC’s public service role means we’re uniquely placed to help audiences deal with these difficult issues.”

Keith Jones, BBC Audience Services, added: “It’s important that we continue to cover such difficult issues and that we can provide free off-air information to help those affected to find organisations willing to offer support and help. We hope it has helped the many who contacted us this year.”

Once on the phone, or online, the public can access advice and support from charities and organisations who are experts on the topics.

The BBC Action Line online services can be found here.

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/bbc-tv-shows-radio-advice-helpline_uk_5a4656c6e4b0b0e5a7a5fc28

California Paper Publishes Byline With Antigay Slur, Apologizes

The Santa-Barbara News-Press employee who altered the byline is no longer with the paper, officials said.

www.advocate.com/media/2017/12/29/california-paper-publishes-byline-antigay-slur-apologizes

New Year’s Honours List Doesn’t Include Heroes Of Grenfell Tower Or Terror Attacks
The government faces questions after it was revealed the New Year’s honours list doesn’t include heroes of the Grenfell Tower fire, Manchester or London terror attacks.

Those awarded gongs include Graham Brady, chair of the influential 1922 committee of backbench Tory MPs, who is given a knighthood alongside former Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg.

However, specific figures from the Grenfell fire and attacks on Westminster, Manchester, London Bridge and Finsbury Park are notably absent from Friday evening’s list.

It comes after calls from newspaper columnists and people on social media for first responders and emergency service personnel to be honoured.

“Theresa May… when you are giving out honours think of Grenfell and think of the brave London Fire [Brigade] and emergency services,” one person urged the Prime Minister on Twitter.

“I hope they all receive due recognition in the New Year honours list. A list free of celebrity froth, and civil servant careerists, wouldn’t go amiss,” columnist Tom Richmond wrote last week in The Yorkshire Post.

First responders to the terror attacks across Britain this year have been recognised elsewhere.

Heroic frontline NHS staff who helped victims were given special recognition and a standing ovation at a major health industry conference in September.

Firefighters who attended Grenfell were awarded the This Morning Emergency Services prize at last month’s Pride of Britain awards.

And the entire community around the west London tower block was given special recognition at the same event.

The New Year’s honours process can take many months to complete, with a government secretariat receiving 10,000 enquiries from the public each year, resulting in some 3,000 nominations.

As well as suggestions from the public, government departments ask schools, hospitals and other bodies for ideas on who to nominate.

A group of committees sits to consider suggestions across areas such as voluntary and community service, education, health, and the economy.

Once a list is compiled, it is sent to the Queen through the Prime Minister and Downing Street.

System ‘relies on nominations’

Those whose heroism became apparent in the days following Grenfell and recent attacks could be honoured at a later date.

Another list, the Queen’s Birthday Honours, will be announced in June 2018.

And in a press statement, the Cabinet Office said the honours system “relies on nominations” and that these remain open all year round.

And with reference to Grenfell and recent terror attacks, it said: ”[W]e urge everybody to nominate the person in their lives that they think deserves an honour.

“We continue to see inspirational action by people up and down the country – and not least in response to significant events such as the Grenfell Tower fire, or recent terrorist attacks.”

A total of 49% of the recipients on the list are women: 551 out of 1,123. A total of 9.2% are BAME and 5% are disabled.

You can find the full honours list here.

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/new-year-s-honours-list-grenfell-tower-manchester-london-attacks_uk_5a468a51e4b06d1621b88c89

White House Intern Accused of Making ‘White Power’ Salute

Intern Jack Breuer denies there were racial implications to the gesture and says he “would never make common cause” with racist groups.

www.advocate.com/politics/2017/12/29/white-house-intern-accused-making-white-power-salute

Rose Marie, British Columbia and PrEP, Demon Barber, Figure Skating, Jack Breuer, Derek Hough: HOT LINKS

RIP. Rose Marie. “Rose Marie, an actress, singer and comedian best known for portraying the wisecracking Sally Rogers in the popular 1960s sitcom “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” died Thursday, according to her agent and official website. She was 94. Marie died about 2 p.m. in Van Nuys, her agent, Harlan Boll, said. He did not release any additional details.”

BACK TO WORK. Trump golfs for fourth straight day.

I hope everyone is having a great Christmas, then tomorrow it’s back to work in order to Make America Great Again (which is happening faster than anyone anticipated)!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 25, 2017

WHITE POWER. White House intern Jack Breuer flashes White Power symbol in photo with Trump.

EXCLUSIVE: A White House intern flashed the “white power” sign while posing with Trump and the rest of his intern class last month. t.co/klhohpKQ5d via @MailOnline

— David Martosko (@dmartosko) December 28, 2017

BRITISH COLUMBIA. PrEP to be free starting next week: “Medication preventing new HIV infection will soon be available for free to British Columbians, according to a news release issued by the Ministry of Health. British Columbians who are at high risk of HIV infection will be able to get a free daily oral antiretroviral medication from January 1, 2018.The medication will be a pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), part of a suite of tools to prevent new HIV infections, including use of condoms and sterile drug use equipment, and other risk-reduction services and supports.”

WISCONSIN. Barber arrested after snipping customer’s ear during busted haircut.

DEPORTATIONS. Trump deported fewer Mexicans in 2017 than Obama did in 2016: “In total, Trump’s use of the United States’ deportation machinery resulted in roughly 152,000 Mexican nationals being deported between and January and November 2017. Obama’s use of the nation’s deportation machinery resulted in roughly 205,000 Mexican nationals being deported between January and November 2016.”

POLAR BEAR PLUNGE. Derek Hough is taking his early.

VICE. People still think it’s okay for businesses to turn away gay customers. “According to a survey by University of Indiana-Bloomington sociologists published last week—the first national public opinion survey on whether businesses like Phillips’ should be allowed to turn away same-sex couples—Americans don’t see his refusal through a prism of highfalutin ideas about freedom of speech or religious freedom. Instead, they mostly frame it as a libertarian fight for individuals’ rights. And viewed this way, many believe the baker has the right to discriminate against whomever he chooses.”

FIGURE SKATING. Gay Games lifts some restrictions on figure skaters for Paris 2018. “The Gay Games have long struggled with a fractured relationship with the International Skating Union that has threatened to punish members if they compete in the Gay Games. Now a new breakthrough between the two organizations will open up the Gay Games for all of the world’s figure skaters.”

FRIDAY FLASH. Theimus Roberson.

The post Rose Marie, British Columbia and PrEP, Demon Barber, Figure Skating, Jack Breuer, Derek Hough: HOT LINKS appeared first on Towleroad.

www.towleroad.com/2017/12/rose-marie/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+towleroad%2Ffeed+%28Towleroad+Gay+News+%29

Im Iran eskalieren Proteste gegen die Regierung und den Ayatollah

www.huffingtonpost.de/entry/iran-proteste-rohani-khamenei_de_5a46936de4b0b0e5a7a66044

New Year’s Honours List: The Best Reasons Why People Rejected An Honour

Whilst the majority of people are delighted to be mentioned in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List, scores of others have turned down an award and some have even thought twice and returned them years after making a trip to the palace.

Some of the most high profile names to do so include Roald Dahl, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown and Steven Hawking.

And from the ethical to the downright bizarre, there are many reasons why people reject gongs – here are ten of the best:

1. David Bowie

He said: “I would never have any intention of accepting anything like that. I seriously don’t know what it’s for.

“It’s not what I spent my life working for.”

Addressing fellow musician, Mick Jagger, accepting the honour, Bowie said: “It’s not my place to make a judgment on Jagger, it’s his decision. But it’s just not for me.”

2. George Harrison

he said.

“George would have felt insulted – and with very good reason.”

Every member of the Beatles was awarded an MBE in 1965, but John Lennon returned his as a peace protest.

3. JG Ballard 

Explaining in 2003 why he rejected a CBE, which he was put forward for to recognise his services to literature, Ballard said he could not accept an honour awarded by the monarch.

“There’s all that bowing and scraping and mummery at the palace.

“It’s the whole climate of deference to the monarch and everything else it represents.

“They just seem to perpetuate the image of Britain as too much pomp and not enough circumstance. It’s a huge pantomime where tinsel takes the place of substance.

“A lot of these medals are orders of the British Empire, which is a bit ludicrous.

“The dreams of empire were only swept away relatively recently, in the 60s. Suddenly, we seem to have a prime minister who has delusions of a similar kind.

“It goes with the whole system of hereditary privilege and rank, which should be swept away.

“It uses snobbery and social self-consciousness to guarantee the loyalty of large numbers of citizens who should feel their loyalty is to fellow citizens and the nation as a whole. We are a deeply class-divided society.”

JG Ballard died in 2009.

4. Carla Lane

returned her honour to then prime minister Tony Blair after a CBE was awarded to Brian Cass, the head of Huntingdon Life Sciences, which runs animal testing laboratories.

Blair told Lane she could have her OBE back any time she liked, but she never asked for it back.

Lane, who was a passionate animal rights activist and even set up an animal sanctuary from her home, passed away last year.

5. Howard Gayle

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