Gender Inequality Is A Grave Issue Throughout The History...

Gender inequality is a grave issue throughout the history of time. However, black women have gotten the shorter end of the stick, and Marita Bonner addresses this issue in her essay, â€Å"On Being Young – a Woman – and Colored.† Bonner believes that time will heal the disjunction between men and women, and more specifically the ignorance of black women’s presence in society. This essay proves that Bonner’s solution – allow time to heal – is pragmatic and history proves that it worked. Women in the 1920s are subjected to the authority of men, and the accessibility to activities that lead to freedom such as job, salary, owning property, are all restricted. Bonner states, â€Å"The one real thing that money buys. Time† (Bonner 109), as a solution to the problem that is faced by women. Women are restricted because they have pre-dispositioned roles as daughters, wives and mothers. Having a job helps women distance themselves from these pre-dispositions, however, they cannot be immediately seen as equals to men. She urges women to not sit at home and fill out the stereotypical role of a wife, because it will keep women stuck in this state, and is not a real solution. In order to make a difference, women must go out and earn something for themselves. When men were deployed during the World Wars, women got the chance to work and earn money. This also gave them the freedom to run the household and be the breadwinner while the men were away. As time went by and the w ars got over, men wereShow MoreRelatedThe Poverty Of Older Women1304 Words   |  6 Pagespoorest of all older unattached women in Canada and the group that should be the focus of public concern. In this paper I will discuss the key factors contributing to the poverty of older women in Canada, which are marital status, gender inequalities in the family, inequalities in the labour market, low rates of alimony support, and problems with the retirement income system. Marital Status And Economic Well-Being Older divorced and separated women have the highest poverty rates among all older unmarriedRead MoreFemale Stereotypes Essay1351 Words   |  6 PagesFor most of history, anonymous was a woman, quotes Virginia Woolf. (1) Throughout history, women’s lives were restricted to domesticity and family, and they were left oppressed and without political voice. Over the decades the roles of women have dramatically changed from chattels belonging to their husbands to gaining independence. Women became famous activists, thinkers, writers, and artists, like Frida Kahlo who was an important figure for women’s independence. The price women paid in theirRead MoreThe Poverty Of Older Women1415 Words   |  6 Pagespoorest of all older unattached women in Canada and the group that should be the focus of public concern. In this paper I will discuss the key factors contributing to the poverty of older women in Canada, which are marital status, gender inequalities in the family, inequa lities in the labour market, low rates of alimony support, and problems with the retirement income system. Marital Status And Economic Well-Being According to McDonald Robb (2004), older divorced and separated women have the highestRead MoreThe Economic Status Of Older Women1326 Words   |  6 Pagespoorest of all older unattached women in Canada and the group that should be the focus of public concern. In this paper I will discuss the key factors contributing to the poverty of older women in Canada which are marital status, gender inequalities in the family, inequalities in the labour market, low rates of alimony support, and problems with the retirement income system. Marital Status And Economic Well-Being According to McDonald Robb (2004), older divorced and separated women have the highestRead MoreIs It Never Done Learning?1488 Words   |  6 Pagesthe basics of our history, so I was expecting a class that resembled what I had learned in my previous classes. But, this course was the exact opposite. My mind has been expanded and fixed with knowledge that seems too controversial to be taught. Once a great Roman author, Cicero, had said â€Å"To know nothing of what happened before you were born is to remain forever a child. And going back to this quote, I feel as though I was a child as I begun this history course. Throughout this entire courseRead MoreThe Fight For Women Suffrage1892 Words   |  8 Pagesvoice within the political realm. Women’s suffrage was not a matter of instant success; it endured a prolonged time to achieve. It was not until August 1920, about 14 decades subsequent after Abigail Adam’s words that the 19th amendment which had provided everyone the right to vote regardless of a person’s â€Å"sex†, had passed. Although the 19th amendment nationalized equal voting rights throughout the country in 1920, many states ratified this amendment in even later years. The lengthy period and longRead MoreThe Cadbury Case : Changing Nature Of Csr And Its Effect On Relationship Between Business And Society1453 Words   |  6 Pagessociety throughout history. In the first allegation, although the firm’s reputation was badly damaged, no action was taken. In modern time, under pressure from the media and civil society, Cadbury needs to adopt business e thics that go beyond economic responsibility and reach out for discretionary acts as certain duties and obligation in order to be a good ‘citizen’ of society. Defensive approach such as partnership with NGOs, governments to get rid of human rights and production issues is takenRead MoreLife Of The Elderly At A Nursing Home1086 Words   |  5 Pages Trent, Lydia, and and Brooklyn. Working as a Certified Nursing Assistant, making nine dollars and forty-nine cents. Separated from her husband Jeremy, Katrina now works day in and day out supporting herself, and her children. Spending most of her time taking care of the elderly at a nursing home. I personally didn’t have experience with poverty growing up. My family was not wealthy by any means, however we were well enough off that my family was taken care of. It wasn’t until I moved out ofRead MoreWomen s Suffrage : The Long Resisted Struggle Of Equal Right Voting1905 Words   |  8 PagesThe fight for women suffrage was a movement in which women, and some men included, pleaded for equal rights regarding voting and women’s voice within the political realm. Women’s suffrage was not a matter of instant success; it endured a prolonged time to achieve. It was not until August 1920, about 14 decades later after Abigail Adam’s words, that the 19th amendment which had provided everyone the right to vote regardless of a person’s â€Å"sex†, had passed. Although the 19th amendment nationalizedRead More Middle Eastern History Essays1190 Words   |  5 Pages2)nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Absence of Clergy The absence of clergy within the Islamic faith is attributed to three causes.  §nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In the early days of Islam, Muhammad would preach in the holy city of Mecca. During this time, Mecca was filled with Christians, Jews, and Pagans. The Christian and Jewish clergymen would mock Muhammad day and night; they discouraged and embarrassed him with hopes to break his will. Its safe to assume that from the start, Muhammad has a negative

How Did My Girlfriend Run Away with My Best Friend Free Essays

Last summer my girlfriend ran away with someone else. To make things worse it was my best friend with whom she ran away. Relationship seems perfect until something like this happens to you. We will write a custom essay sample on How Did My Girlfriend Run Away with My Best Friend or any similar topic only for you Order Now I was in the 9th grade when I met my ex. She was in the same section with me. To me she was the cutest girl I could ever imagine. On the first sight I had a crush on her. I had the first chance to talk to her in a lab class. I was assigned as her lab partner. Slowly we came closer to each other. One day I proposed her in front of her friends. She accepted. That’s how it all started. Things were going too well. We used to date at least four times a week. We had a perfect relationship for more than two years. But things started to fall apart from the beginning of last year. And it all ended in a single month. The first thing that happened, we had a date in KFC. I reached there in time. But for the first time she was late. So I waited. But she didn’t come. I waited for a whole hour but there was no sign of her. Then I called her. But her number was busy. So I failed to contact her. After waiting for two hours I returned home. The following night I tried to call her again. But she wasn’t picking up. I signed in to face book and I found her online. So I send a message why she didn’t come. After a while I got a message saying I am the one who didn’t come. I was shocked. I thought it was a misunderstanding. So I tried explained everything. But I got no more reply from her that night. Next day I found her in the class. I saw her talking to my best friend Rifat. I went to them and shockingly she ignored me. I asked Rifat what was happening. But I didn’t get any clear answer. Then it was the Valentine’s Day. I planned to resolve everything between us. I knew where to find her on that day. So I went there in time. And in that particular time what I saw I wish I hadn’t seen. I saw Rifat proposing her and she accepted. Later I understood that the whole thing was a lie. From the very beginning she had a crush on Rifat. She just used me to get close enough to Rifat. I am never going to forgive her for using me like this I thought this first. But life will not stand still for me. I know I have to move on without her. Whatever she thought my feeling for her was real. I wish for her welfare wherever she is, whoever she’s with. How to cite How Did My Girlfriend Run Away with My Best Friend, Essay examples

Enhancing Relevance of Organizational Behavior

Question: Discuss about the Enhancing Relevance of Organizational Behavior. Answer: Introduction There are numerous methods for offering rewards to employees for their good performance such as bonus schemes implemented in the firm. Bonus schemes are usually an essential tool for organizations and firms that wish to have an increase in their productivity, motivate their employees and retain them as well by rewarding exceptional performance and contribution to the company or organization (Moynihan, 2010). However, the results on the intended system may filter away from its purpose leading them to be ineffective and exploitable becoming counterproductive (Need,2006). Powerful financial motivation may elude the employee moral behavior in taking risky routes to benefit from these bonus schemes. This further indicates that there still remains a key factor in many organizations on the quality and transparency of their bonus schemes, this will be analyzed and discussed by studying Ceras bonus scheme ,identifying the problems and solutions to those problems determining if the bonus schem e should be scrapped or not. Ceras bonus scheme The bonus scheme introduced in Cera was intended to reward performance of employee branched under their system of monitoring performance based on an individual level. Through the dialogue between the high-ranking members of the firm it is clear that there are mixed reactions among the members. The following are problems related to the Ceras bonus scheme link between performance results and reward Performance management is a consistent procedure of evaluating and measuring the performance of an individual and adjusting it to the organizational goals (Armstrong and Baron, 2005). When the link between performance results and reward is weak performance, management becomes absolute. Rachel points out there incentives system is not cutting the mustard as it is supposed to. She further illustrates how poor the rewarding criteria is ,due to the connection with performance management .This could solved by aligning each employees tasks with the companies objectives and classifying these objectives on a period basis. When each task objective is accomplished, the employee has a reward or identified for that task. This increases the employees morale creating a good and beneficial working environment, which will reflect on the companys short term and long-term objectives (Moynihan, 2010). Ceras bonus scheme is mostly based on profitability The bonus scheme in the firm is a profit-based system where the profits are shared between the employees. This could be problematic since it could cause frustrations when there are no profits or losses while performance of deserving employees is up to track. The could be solved by changing the rewarding methods to un-entirely based on monetary schemes .It maybe interchanged on a semiannual basis. a security measure could be implemented to safe guard the system from losses or inconveniences that may arise (Aguinis and Pierce, 2008) Access to bonus payments is uneven The uneven bonus payment is illustrated when many departments had a hard time generating revenue or keeping under the specified budget. This resulted in areas like Rachels and susumus whose best performers got little bonuses while other departments top performers got a better package deal than they deserved. A positive aspect could solve this and restructuring the bonus schemes by dividing the bonuses to all departments equally and top performers get equal share (Aguinis, 2009). Administration of bonuses in relation to expectations As one of the members illustrated that the employees are paid is not proportional to their expectations. They pay less and expect more output. This could be in fact a crucial problem in the system where employees have a sense of being overworked; in most cases this tends result in employees findings shortcuts in getting their bonuses illegally (Boselie and Boon,2005). The company could suffer increased loses or face charges from its clients. This could easily be solved by aligning the bonus directly with their expectations and goals while including transparency and dialogue between the employee and the employer. Conclusion A good and well designed bonus scheme is essential in increasing the productivity of the employees within the company, however cases of inconveniences must be addressed preventing the bonus scheme should not be absolute .The Ceras bonus scheme is fairly implemented with a few issues here and there that need to be addressed so as to attain a perfect bonus scheme .Thiswill address employee needsand loopeholes within while still accomplishing the firms objectives rather than scrapping it away. Reference Aguinis, H. (2009).Performance management. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Aguinis, H., Pierce, C. A. (2008). Enhancing the relevance of organizational behavior by embracing performance management research.Journal of Organizational Behavior,29(1), 139-145. Need, W. C. D. H. P. (2006). Human resource management: Gaining a competitive advantage. Moynihan, D. P., Pandey, S. K. (2010). The big question for performance management: Why do managers use performance information?.Journal of public administration research and theory, muq004. Paauwe, J., Boselie, P. (2005). HRM and performance: what next?.Human Resource Management Journal,15(4), 68-83. Armstrong, M., Baron, A. (2005).Managing performance: performance management in action. CIPD publishing. Boselie, P., Dietz, G., Boon, C. (2005). Commonalities and contradictions in HRM and performance research.Human resource management journal,15(3), 67-94.

Red Bulls Market free essay sample

A Bulls Market the marketing of Red Bull energy drink Red Bull, Austrias biggest export since Arnold Schwarzenegger, has methodically created and dominated the energy drink category much in the way players of the board game Risk would defeat their opponents. Dietrich Mateschitz, the owner of Red Bull International, created the highly caffeinated beverage in 1987. Five years later, the drink spread into neighboring countries like Hungary and Slovenia, followed by Germany and Switzerland. In 1997, Red Bull prepared to storm the U. S. market. Today, the slinky 8-3-OZ can has completed its invasion into nearly every cold box in the United States. (Ohio, Tennessee and the Dakotas are among the few states without it. ) In less than three years, Red Bull singlehandedly established and then lifted the booming energy drink category from a base of $12 million in (wholesale) dollar sales to $42 million in 1998 and $75 million in 1999, per Beverage Marketing Corp. We will write a custom essay sample on Red Bulls Market or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Others soon followed, building energy drinks to a $130 million business. Now Coke (KMX) and Anheuser-Busch (180) are jumping in. Last year, Red Bulls market share stood at 65%, while the company reportedly pulled in a cool $1 billion in worldwide sales. Just how Red Bull managed to accomplish so much, so quickly has become the stuff of mythology Some have written off the product by calling it a flash in the pan or derisively note that its handlers got lucky. A closer investigation of the companys strategy however, reveals that luck had little to do with Red Bulls success. The companys consistent battle plan has been to open up a market by securing unusual distribution. When Red Bull initially set up camp in Santa Monica, Calif. , it piggybacked on established distributors. Typically distributors will deliver a number of brands; a Pepsi house will handle Pepsi, Diet Pepsi and Mountain Dew, and may even pick up a non-competing rival like Dr Pepper. Sales reps even greased the wheels by paying for their accounts promotional, advertising and sampling costs for three months. But as the drink caught on, the company began taking a more narrow approach. Now, a Red Bull sales rep will contact a small distributor and insist that he or she sell only Red Bull. Otherwise, Red Bull will set up a warehouse and hire kids to load up the vans and deliver product. These start-up distributors can focus their entire energies on getting Red Bull fully stocked in stores with prominent shelf placement. They generally break even within three months and are profitable within six. They buy direct from Red Bull. Theres enough margin and volume to make it work, said one Northeastern distributor. I wish theyd give it to me, but they have the kids with the vans doing it. Im looking forward to getting Snapples Venom [a new energy drink launching June 15] so I can compete with them. Next, the sales team visits key on-premise accounts: hot clubs and trendy bars. When owners begin buying a few cases, they receive a Red Bull branded cooler and other POP items. Thats when we start doing business officially, said Markus Pichler, evp-strategic planning, Red Bull North America. We go to on-premise accounts [vs. retailers] first, because the product gets a lot of visi bility and attention. It goes faster to deal with individual accounts, not big chains and their authorization process. Plus, on-premise provides fertile ground for new drink trends. In clubs, people are open to new things, said Pichler. The most important thing about [Red Bull] is, its working. If you had a tough week and want to dance, the product works. Perhaps a bit too well. Fueling Red Bulls growth is a mystique created by outlandish rumors about its contents: it is liquid Viagra; its secret ingredient is bulls testicles; someone overdosed from the drink because it has drugs in it. (The company shoots down these and other myths in an FAQ section on RedBull. com. Pichler wouldnt talk about Red Bulls natural fit with the speed crowd that frequents raves, taking designer drugs to stay awake for days at a time. Nor does the company endorse the mixing of Red Bull with vodka, Jagermeister or tequila-a ubiquitous bar call whose roots can be traced to Europe. From a sales perspective, Pichler acknowledged, [the mixability] is a nice side effect. Theres more to the guerrilla strategy than building buzz at clubs. Sales teams will open off-premise accounts at convenience stores near colleges, gyms, health-food stores and supermarkets. The company has divided the U. S. into eight decentralized sales units, each of which is handled on a city-by-city basis. One regional office in New York, for example, services Maryland, New Jersey Pennsylvania and Virginia. The Boston office handles the New England states and upstate New York. Each unit is responsible for creating distribution, making sales calls and developing targeted marketing plans. The mission: to find out where the target demo (men and women age 16-29) hangs out and what interests them. Its their job to get the message out to the right clubs and at the right events. While Red Bull relies heavily on bars and night clubs for its sampling events, alternative sports have also proven to be a successful product-trial arena. The company underwrites a number of extreme sports competitions and sponsors about three dozen alterna-athletes. Events include the Red Bull Huckfest, a ski and snowboard freestyle competition held in January in Snowbird, Utah; and the Red Bull Flugtag (German for flying day),premiering in the U. S. this fall. At the latter event, amateur pilots will create exotic flying machines and attempt to soar off the Santa Monica pier. The brand also employs teams of consumer educators, who roam the streets and dangle free samples. With California as its stronghold, Red Bull made its way into Oregon, Settle, Texas and ski resorts in Colorado. It next moved into the Midwest, targeting urban markets like Chicago and its environs. Soon it showed up on the East Coast in Miami and New York. (The Big Apple had a head start: Europe leaked the beverage into the city) Newer markets include the Carolinas, Virginia and Washington, D. C. In the antithesis of any majors marketing plan, Red Bull buys traditional advertising last. Only when a market is deemed mature does the company begin a media push. The idea is to reinforce, not introduce, the brand. Media is not a tool that we use to establish the market, said vp-marketing David Rohdy. It is a critical part. Its just later in the development. Current ads, titled Red Bull gives you wings, focus around an animated bull character. The initial spot is set in the Renaissance era, where an artist is telling the man who commissioned his painting that he has created the perfect piece of art: Red Bull. Itll give you wings, he said. Indeed, in another ad, an energized bull is shown leaping over a city. The ads have begun airing during late-night TV in New York, and radio programs including The Howard Stern Show. A Santa Monica-based shop, Lunch, handles ads and POP materials for the entire U. S. Red Bull typically creates two new TV spots a year and runs them in mature markets. The brand spent $100 million in the U. S. last year, according to the company Measured media spending was only $18. 9 million last year, up from $9 million in 1999, per Competitive Media Reporting. Red Bulls runaway popularity had given it easy entree into mass merchandisers. It is currently the No. 1 product in Store24, where it is now a bigger seller than beer, milk, water and soda. 7-Eleven is experiencing similar results. We have seen double-digit growth [in the non-carbonated segment]. Red Bull tops the list big time, said Jim Jackson, category manager for non-carbonated beverages at 7-Eleven, Dallas. [Their success is due to] their single-product focus, major advertising dollars and distribution. They create demand before they even get it to retail. The picture may yet change, as Red Bull is now facing more than a dozen imitators, most notably Cokes KMX and A-Bs 180. Knockoffs they may be, but distributors say they have been moving extremely well. Weve done a lot of the dirty work for them, Rohdy said. Pichler was a bit more engaging. Were a fan of competition. Its a positive for us, he said. It validates the energy drink category. Red Bull has already experienced the c opycat phenomenon overseas. The company doesnt appear to be concerned, however, having hit the $1 billion worldwide sales mark. Besides, observers have said the also-rans dont have a prayer. Red Bull seems to have a cooler in every bar in every city. The sales force, thats all they do, said one new age beverage executive. The big guys will not put that much energy into it and will lose interest when they dont make any headway. After conquering the U. S. , the Red Bull army plans to move on. It is currently making headway in Brazil and South Africa, though South America and Africa as a whole remain largely untapped. If history repeats itself, it wont be long before everyone on the planet gets their wings.

Methods of presentation influence the viewers response.

Methods of presentation influence the viewers response. The methods of presentation influence the viewer's response to the people involved, events reported and the cultural beliefs of a certain topic, showing how the commercial broadcasting stations present reports manipulating the information given to influence the viewer on a certain viewpoint or opinion presented.There are many methods that influence a viewer's response such as the usage of technical and audio codes and the role of the reporter, yet the two main components in this report are the usage selection of detail and the usage of language.Current affairs and news reports all have ways of presenting a story whether it be on a critical topic such as whether the country should go to war or on a non critical one such as building a new roadway. Yet we as viewers will be drawn in to the report due to the methods that are used by presenters of the story.Norm SingletonThese stories are presented in such a way to influence your own personal response to whatever is viewed and the respons e of cultural beliefs within the community.A report uses many methods to influence a viewer's response, one of which is the selection of detail. The article presented revolved around an elderly "lolly pop person", with the addition of a name "Norm", which comes across to the viewer as someone who is a friendly old person doing his job and who is worthy of his name mentioned on national television. The report also included the information that he was fired from working at a school where he was at for more than 14 years. This selection of detail was used to make Norm sound as though he has been badly done by after his long period of devoted service. Once again with the usage of selective detail...

Adidas is one of the famous company in sporting items industry Essay Example for Free (#2)

Adidas is one of the famous company in sporting items industry Essay Program (51) , Adidas (19) company About StudyMoose Contact Careers Help Center Donate a Paper Legal Terms & Conditions Privacy Policy Complaints ? Adidas manager is requiring me to create and design a training program which will improve and develop their graduate employee existing skills. This report is going to target to non-graduate or college student and giving them chances to join this training program. This program is going to help trainee do their function in sporting industry Adidas Aim They are trying to build the relationship with their employee via passion, diversity. Adidas may find an excellent balance between life and work of the employee and more than that they provide an essential need for their employee such as food, drink, work benefit to encourage them which will increase business productivity Adidas Human Resource Strategy Adidas is one of the famous company in sporting items industry. At the moment Adidas are doing staff recruitment for their store which across all over the world and especially in the UK. In a past few year Adidas Human Resources Department decided to do Functional Training Program (FTP) in short- period time which giving opportunity for graduate student to get foundation and great educational qualification before for they start to become a functional professional career inside Adidas group also co-operate with internship and apprenticeships for non-graduate and student who want to work for Adidas company straight after school. We have developed on National Vocational Qualification that will contribute to the business and individual need. According to Olin and Tucker (1997) state that â€Å"National Vocational Qualification government and organisation figure out NVQ training program will develop specific profile of ability and basic knowledge of employee at any level which associated vocational area† NVQ training program focus on particular business industry or sector, it will help Adidas group to find the right employee for specific role in the sporting industry Demonstrate NVQ contribution to Adidas NVQ will also comfort organization or company decrease company cost, increase the competiveness and company productivity. Adidas group found putting resourcing in staff will change in work environment spirit and staff inspiration, much easier to recruitment staff and enhance communication in workplace. It will also make Adidas group look more professional and stand out compare to another business. In another way, NVQ are enabled to help Adidas proof to the world that business hired staff or employee has reach minimum standard quality. NVQ to individual needs NVQ programme provides the portfolio for learner or employee which help learner or employee able to learn-practical or work- the related task which helps them to develop their skills and knowledge to do a job more effectively. National Vocational training program intended to develop employee existing skills and that will improve business performance, NVQ is going to evaluate the staff able to carry out their job as indicated a set of rule in an organization, which rely on work performance. Adidas can adapt NVQ training program to improve their standard via examination. Main body NVQ training program overall design 164465275336000It has a variety of ways to get NVQ: succeeding a normal training program, blend of casual and informal or starting to have a learning approaches or just based on the past capability. NVQ framework are design to testing learner capacities in the working environment. To achieve a NVQs qualification the employee or learner have to demonstrate that there can do certain task which related to the roles or area that they apply to the company or business. NVQs training program are going to do the evaluation in a blend of courses by portfolios are going to confirm and proof that what you have done in training program and perception, an assessor will check and may give reference to the company that you can do the task that related to the business. Following by Malcom (1996) â€Å"NVQs framework system made as capability are created, course are movement and exchange are distinguished. Framework task is to provide a reasonable sorting for NVQs and facilities delivery and progres sion both external and internal of competence† NVQ are design for adult and young people who want to improve their skills to increase their work performance which will lead to build up business productivity. NVQ are set level for the learner from level 1 to level 5, in lowest level are going to aim at company operation and highest level for manager position. NVQ are suitable for people are working are in college and having a part- time job are at school are fulfilled apprenticeship NVQs training program delivery strategy Focus on employee and trainee ought to acclimate themselves with structure, substance and evaluation requirement of certificate previously planning a training program course NVQs training program is delivery to any trainee or learner in many ways which Meets the learner and trainee need and capabilities Pleased acquired qualification NVQs is going to provide to learner and trainee the other skills that not a part of the qualification but will help them improve the existing skills Literacy / language / numeracy Critical thinking and personal learning Individual and social advancement Employability Where pertinent, this could include empowering the possibility to get to applicable capabilities covering these abilities. 1651004191000 With these detail in overall design and delivery training of NVQs. This program will bring benefit to the Adidas group. This will include manage time to teaching so not spend much time or little time on teaching. If too much teaching due to costly and the material which delivery to training or learner can be confusing. Spend little time on training will not improve and maximise trainee skills. More over this training program is classify trainee or student what their aim in training and link back to business role they apply for. In addition, NVQs training program is measuring the employee and trainee by knowledge, attitude and skills. It’s going to be connect between organisation and employee. Moreover, Jim and Roger (2009) suggested that â€Å"Training program is providing individual chance to perform their task more effectively and it will help an organisation get the current target† Finally, NVQs training program may bring benefit to learner and Adidas group by motiva ting, group or personal to inspect current implementations and working environment. NVQs material and exercise support NVQs objective NVQs are cooperate with many practical organisations to become a leader in development skills. They are doing services to training suppliers, employers and learner over an assortment of sector to satisfy the need in workplaces. NVQs certificate or capabilities are estimated by employers all over the world, helping people to build up their talented and capacities for profession career. NVQ Training plan The NVQs is aiming to the employee of Adidas who contributes to the work performed. As, Mayo (2000) â€Å"training plan may have added by Human Resource Department purpose, weigh into the advantages of an individual group in particular organization†. It is including Personal skills: Knowledge/ skill/experience, ability to do the task and what employee will convey to the work from the other part of their social life Personal motivation: desire, goal, work inspiration. Workplace environment: The background of the business, personal respect, free to renovate. Teamwork efficiency: having a same objective and values, helpfulness, communal respect Essential material need in NVQs Assessment and homework to consider becoming the important material in NVQs. It gives speedy and basic methods for checking employee has the right stuff and abilities to work in an exchange. The specialist gets his or her NVQ Level 2 or 3 by a mix of evaluation and works environment preparing, during which time they give confirm they meet the NVQs requirement. Other material, may aid to the learner or trainee to achieve NVQs qualification such as the computer, pen, folder, tablet, video or textbook Example practical organization NVQs is co-operated with City NVQs Logistic Delivery Adidas is one of the famous company in sporting items industry. (2018, Apr 24).

Terrorism Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Terrorism - Assignment Example It surely leads to its participation in every activity in the world. The fact that the USA interfered greatly into the inner policy of Iraqi and Afghanistan before the terrorist attack 11/9 is obvious. The USA possesses enough military force and power to destroy any enemy on its way. The thing is that there is no justification of the attacks that took place on that blue day, but it is possible to seek for the real reasons that forced Muslim terrorists to act in such a way. It is important to find this reason in order to understand the acts of Muslims if it is possible and do something to stop terrorist attacks, which ruin the life of hundreds people all over the world. First, Iraqi has always been at feud with Israel. Israel in its turn is directly protected by the USA. That is why the USA found it possible to introduce its army on the territory of Iraq and Afghanistan. The main mistake of the USA that it considered itself to be invulnerable for the enemies’ blow. It must be m entioned, that it has always been true. The September attack is the most violent and impudent among all those attempts of the terrorists to take revenge.

Career in Financial Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Career in Financial Planning - Essay Example To be able to deliver that effectively, the scope that requires thorough understanding is listed below. A good financial planner understands investments, taxes, estate planning issues and strategies. In order to acquire adequate expertise, financial planners must be familiar with legal restrictions and laws concerning retirement plans, tax shelters, insurance, and trusts. There are several journals and other reliable sources that provide details which planners need to be aware of; few of the sources have been listed in forth coming sections. In order to succeed in financial planning one not only needs to know the details of various investments, tax law, estate planning strategies, but also needs to be an active listener, good at marketing oneself, above average interpersonal skills with an analytical mind that can work with numbers and budges, understand complicated financial and legal documents. In addition, they should be articulate, persuasive, and have fairly decent selling ability. While associating myself in knowing the significant elements of financial world, I have also kept myself engaged in developing the required skills. 4. Target Clients - High Net worth Individuals are a Key Target A growth area in financial planning and money management is targeting the high net worth individual. PSI, a financial services consultant, estimates that over 4 million US households have a net worth in excess of $1 million, which is encouraging enough to dwell more on this crowd to explore more opportunities for business and sales. 5. Sources There is benefit of attending local chapter meetings of financial planner organizations. The best way to find out the identity of a local chapter is through any of the three national financial planner organizations: (1) Institute for Certified Financial Planners (2) International Association for Financial Planning or (3) National Association of Personal Financial Advisors. I also plan to be updated from top trade magazines including Today's Realtor and Mortgage Banking Magazine and online at Inman News, the leading electronic broadcast service in real estate Informally I will also keep track of all the blogs veteran certified financial planners maintain, to develop some kind of competitive intelligence and be better facilitated with facts about the sector as a whole. Websites of leading firms that hire Financial Planners like AIG, Ameriprise Financial, Edward Jones, John Hancock. Primerica also will provide enough insights about the

Humanity Case Essay Example for Free

Humanity Case Essay Humanity.   Perhaps this is the only word that can explain the strange comings and goings of the man from Nazareth, called Jesus.   The Lost Tomb of Jesus, aired March 3, on the Discovery Channel, an amazing piece of documentary.   In the city of Jerusalem, in the midst of an apartment complex, was found a place of burial.   Perhaps the burial place of, Mary Magdalene, her son Judah, and two brothers-in-law, Simon and James.   Were these the relatives of Jesus the Christ, in the scheme of things the question seems to be irrelevant. Humanity   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although there is great emphasis placed on the Christ, the Messiah.   Very few people seem interested at all in Jesus humanity.   People are offended at the thought that Jesus may have deigned to have been with a woman, much less married to a whore.   Yet this is the very story told in Hosea.   Gods unquestioning love of even, maybe most especially, one who would be unfaithful.   It seems to me of all of Jesus disciples, Mary is the one who got it.   Only an outcast could truly understand the message of Christ.   To be offered kindness, when only suffering has come at the hands of man, is an indescribable miracle.   How Mary must have loved this man, Jesus.   The Divine, the Christ.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Jesus humanity is controversial.   And I dont know why.   If Jesus was not fully human, how could God come to know what it is to be human?   To struggle?   To be defeated?   To know unbridled joy?   To be shortsighted as man is and yet still have the ability to hope.   How God must love us for that!   Yes, all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God.   Who among us is not aware of their own shortcomings?   Everyone I know.   To be human is to be all to aware of what we are not.   Was that the purpose of Jesus coming?   To remind each of us of our all too familiar failures?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      Many others are outraged that anyone should question the Divinity of Christ, as though questioning such a thing changes the very nature of God?   Hardly.   What question could man possibly ask that could be found to be offensive to God?   Yet, this question of Divinity versus Humanity, people seem to struggle over.   Christ is all or none.   Even those who would say Jesus was both human and God, cannot admit that Jesus could have succumbed in his humanity to be human.   And what a terrible misrepresentation.   All throughout the Bible God is represented as part of humankind.   Why would humanity be denied what most Christians believe to be Gods only Son.   There is of course, great misrepresentation and misunderstanding about the chronology of the canon.    That Jesus divinity was not even declared until 300 years after his death.   By whom?   Why man of course?   I wonder if God would be pleased with all that the church, not the body, has accomplished?   Just recently, I visited a new church and although I liked the people.   I was saddened when the pastor started talking about the building fund.   Is this what Christianity has been reduced to?   Buildings?   What of the starving?   What of the homeless?   What of the person who has not known the kindness of a human touch, due to illness or simple isolation?   What of these?   Does God not plague us to be in touch with his light, his life, his children?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Lost Tomb of Jesus is a wonderful representation of the possibility that Jesus was all he said he was.   A miracle.   A blessing in disguise.   Both human and Divine.   Just like the rest of us.   A bit of God rests in us all at the heart of Gods highest creation, mankind.   Rejoice!   Awake!   God is among us!   Living when we thought he was dead!   Alleluia!   Jesus is Alive!

ASTEROIDS :: essays research papers fc

Asteroids Sixty-Five million years ago, 70 percent of life on Earth died. The most reasonable and possible reason this happened was an asteroid. An asteroid hit the Earth very hard, and in doing this, dirt and dust from the impact stayed in the air and it blocked out sunlight, that’s why the dinosaurs died. An asteroid is a rock from outer space. Asteroids have orbited the Sun along with the planets since the solar system formed about 4.6 billion years ago, but it’s only been 200 years since we first discovered them. Meteorites are small pieces of asteroids broken off on impact with other asteroids. Most meteorites are rusty brown on the outside, have rounded edges from melting as they go through Earth’s atmosphere, and contain iron. There are 3 different types of meteorites: stony, metallic, and stony metallic.92 percents of all asteroids are stone, 6 percent are made of iron and nickel, and the rest are a combination. Some meteorites also contain gold, copper, platinum, and carbon. Scientists get a good idea of what asteroids are made of by studying them through telescopes. They can tell what an asteroid is made of by the color and brightness of the asteroid. A lot of asteroids that we have discovered are very dark and made of stone, but there are shiny ones that are made of nickel and iron. Most big asteroids are ball shaped. Smaller asteroids, which are usually broken off of a larger asteroid, come in a lot of different shapes. All asteroids have craters that form when they bump or crash into other asteroids. The older the asteroid, the more times it has been hit and the more craters it has. Asteroids can be found orbiting the Sun in a belt between Mars and Jupiter; this is called the Asteroid belt or Main belt. The asteroid belt has been said to probably contain millions of asteroids that are all different. There are more than 20,000 numbered asteroids. Some times asteroids get knocked off the asteroid belt. As asteroids revolve around the Sun in elliptical orbits, Jupiter’s gravity and getting to close to Mars or another asteroid can change an asteroids path, this could send an asteroid out of the asteroid belt and into space across the orbits of other planets. An example of asteroid orbits changing is Mar’s moons Phobos and Deimos. These were asteroids that went to close to Mars and got caught in its orbit.

“A Child Called It” Reflection

child called it â€Å"A Child Called It† Reflection Jessica Budzinski Sociology 2004A Prof. S. Becker September 14, 2012 When I was presented the assignment to read the award winning novel â€Å"A Child called it† by David Pelzer I had mixed feelings. I remember last semester a couple of my friends were reading the novel for their school, family, and community class. They told me about the book they had to read and how it was disturbing and some parts were unbearable to read. They revealed it was about a boy who is abused in the worst ways, and nobody does anything about it.Once receiving the book as well as the assignment I began reading it so I could have my own interpretation about the book. While reading through the novel I felt as it I was right next to David in all the situations he goes through. I felt as if I hated his manipulating mother, spineless father, and emotionless brothers just as much as David did. â€Å"A Child Called It† was extremely helpful in understanding more of what a student may be going through outside of the school environment, that may lead to negative behavior and discipline in the classroom.For example when David’s teacher first observed David stealing food from other students lunch boxes, she believed this was because of rebellion and negative behavior. What she didn’t know was that his mother had been denying him food for such long periods of time that his only hope for survival is to steal food from other students. This makes me think as a future educator to think twice before judging a student inside of the classroom. In some cases students just don’t act out to be funny or rebel, but to send out a message that they are in need of assistance inside their home.I believe that it’s very important to analyze how manipulating David’s mother was towards everyone around her. David’s mother is excellent at making people see David as a â€Å"bad boy† so that they ag ree with her actions of not letting him play outside or having him sit in the corner as a punishment. Its unreal to me that that David’s brothers who are his own blood can walk into the bathroom and see him lying in a bathtub of ice cold water and not have a care in the world about him.Most importantly his father is an important symbol in the novel. Its obvious that towards the beginning of David’s neglection that he disagreed with the way his wife was treating David. For example, when David’s mom was in the hospital giving birth to his brother his father let him interact with her brothers and have dinner. He helped David put away the dishes after he was stabbed by this mother and forced to wash the dishes while in horrific pain. His father would also attempt to save him food and sneak it to the garage.David’s mother became aware of these actions and began fighting and arguing with her husband constantly that he began to rarely come home When he did arriv e home he was intoxicated and unable to have any contact with David. David’s father was also getting abused but in a different way, towards the middle of the novel he didn’t want to start an argument with his wife so he would just stay away from David and no longer give him food. David’s mother repeatedly told David and his brothers that David was no longer part of the family.David’s mother was very loving to her other children, but from a young age her actions of abusing David were seen by her other children, In the novel David talks about how his little brother would make up stories and tell their mother so they can watch David get beaten. David’s brothers also physically abused him, by kicking and hitting him. I found it interesting that at the time of this novel the people around David other then his family were not suspicious about the Pelzer family. For example on Christmas David was only allowed to receive one gift because he is no longer pa rt of the family.He received a pair of roller skates, even as a young boy he knew this gift would be used as a punishment. During the wintertime his mother forced him to skate around the neighborhood for hours, he would be wearing the same dirty thin clothes he always wore. He writes about passing his neighbors and people in cars, but they didn’t even think twice about this action. David tells us that he was starved for a ten-day period and had no choice but to go door to door and ask for food. The people he asked either said no or handed him a sandwich not even wondering why he was knocking on their door for food and not going home.If this were to happen in today’s society people would be suspicious and ask the boy questions. The teachers in the school would wonder why he came to school with the same clothes, missing teeth, broken bones, and starving. David presented the topic that was rarely discussed in his time. He presented the ugly side of amoral society; the one in which nobody cares about the problems of others. Its incredible to see the change in the way America handles child abuse but its also heart wrenching to think of the children who were neglected and abused during the times America was not as active.I found it baffling that after being stabbed, burnt, forced to eat his brothers feces, choked, and forced to breath a mixture of ammonia and bleach that David was still true to his mother. He always completed him chores making sure nothing was under perfection; he walked on eggshells around the house, and never told the truth about his abuse. It’s obvious that the reasoning of this is because if he disobeyed his mother he would receive a worsened punishment. When he scrimmaged through the garbage can and ate the remains of his family’s dinner his mother forced him to vomit and found the food he had consumed.He then received a punishment of sitting in the bathroom for hours with a bucket of ammonia and bleach till he almos t passed out. Its devastating to know that this young boy felt so alone that he couldn’t tell his friends, neighbors, or teachers outside of his home. I hope that as a teacher if a student in my classroom is being abused they will be open and express their emotions to others or me in my school so that we can help them. The title of the book is truly reflective as the survival of the boy required real courage.The fact that his mother refereed to him by â€Å"It† symbolizes that she was blinded by sadism without realizing or comprehending her actions because of her alcohol addiction. Dave Pelzer’s book â€Å"A Child Called it† was not at all a difficult book to read, but the knowledge was quite disturbing and emotional, especially knowing that this actually took place in the United States. I would suggest to anyone that’s planning on pursuing a career in education or as a social worker to read this book. This will help develop a better understanding for students and their needs.

America & Germany Essay

America never wanted to participate in World War 1, in fact in August 1914 when the war broke out in Europe; President Woodrow Wilson issued a declaration of neutrality. Preferring to remain isolated from the war, America tried to broker peace between the allies and the axis, the war was in Europe; America did not need to get involved. On May 7th 1915, German U-boats, patrolling in the Atlantic Ocean, fired torpedos at the British passenger ship Lusitania sinking her in 20 minutes. 128 Americans were killed. Woodrow Wilson, demanded that Germany stop attacking passenger ships, and declared that America was too proud to fight. Wilson also tried to mediate a compromise settlement but failed. He also repeatedly warned that America would not tolerate unrestricted submarine warfare, as it was in violation to American ideas of human rights. Wilson was under great pressure from former president Theodore Roosevelt, who denounced German â€Å"piracy† and Wilson’s cowardice. In January 1917, Germany announced it would destroy all ships heading to Britain. Although Wilson broke off diplomatic ties with Germany, he still hoped to avert war by arming merchant vessels as a deterrent. Nevertheless, Germany began sinking American ships immediately. On February 1917, British intelligence gave the United States government a decoded telegram from Germany’s foreign minister, Arthur Zimmerman that had been intercepted en route to his ambassador to Mexico. The Zimmerman Telegram authorized the ambassador to offer Mexico the portions of the Southwest it had lost to the United States in the 1840s if it joined the Central Powers. However, because Wilson had run for re-election in 1916 on a very popular promise to keep the United States out of the European war, he had to handle the telegram very carefully. Wilson did not publicize it at first, only releasing the message to the press in March after weeks of German attacks on American ships had turned public sentiment toward joining the Allies. Later, on 2 April 1917, Wilson asked Congress for a declaration of war and four days later all but six senators and fifty representatives voted for a war resolution. The Selective Service Act that was passed the following month, along with an extraordinary number of volunteers, built up the army from less than 250,000 to four million over the course of the conflict. General John Pershing was appointed head of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) and led the first troops to France Then, on April 6th 1917, America declared war on Germany.

buy custom Analysis of Ancient China essay

buy custom Analysis of Ancient China essay What forms did human beings interactions with the supramundane realm (including gods, spirits, ancestors, natural forces, and Heaven) take and who were the human agents of this interaction from the Shang dynasty to the Period of Disunion that followed the Han? Do you see any patterns or trends over this period? Do different modes of interaction correlate with changes in the social or political order, and if so how and why? From the Shang dynasty through to the period of disunion which followed the Han, there is a great deal of belief in the supernatural including ancestors, gods, spirits and heaven among others. This is clearly demonstrated from the beliefs and practices of the people. They therefore, used several means to communicate or interact with the supramundane realm. During these periods, there were various forms of interactions including prayers and sacrifices to different powers which were done in almost similar ways in the different periods; by leaders and on sacred places and in all the cases, the leaders were expected to morally upright and with dignity for them to obtain favor with the higher power unlike the common people. The Shang people worshipped a supreme god called Shang Di, who they believed ruled over the lesser gods of the moon, the rain, other natural forces and places, the sun and the wind. These people also worshipped their ancestors by sacrificing animals to them. These sacrifices were made by the kings who also used oracle bones to communicate with the ancestors. This was because they believed they were still connected to their ancestors and that for them not to have any problems, they had to properly worship them. The Zhou people worshipped Tian (heaven) unlike the Shang who worshipped the ancestors and Shang Di (supreme god). They believed that the ruler of their kingdom was the son of heaven and that he was governed by divine right hence losing his throne would show that he had also lost his heavenly favors and his Mandate and hence misfortunes would even befall his family. The Qin people believed in Shen (spirits), Yin (shadows) and their kingdom. They believed that the dead moved to another world that was parallel to the earth hence offered sacrifices in shrines and sacred places so as to get in touch with them. These sacrifices were to make them get blessings from the spirit world and to also to help the dead travel well and remain in their world. Sacrifices were made by a lead sacrificer who usually prepared for the ritual by fasting and meditating so as to distance himself from the worldly things. The Qin also believed in divination where they cracked bones or turtle shells to be able to foretell the future. The Han people believed in spirits, deities and ancestors hence sacrificed animals and food offerings in shrines and other holy places like temples. These offerings were meant to sustain beings in the spiritual world. These sacrifices were made by the emperor; who was also the highest priest by virtue of his position, to the spirits, heaven and the main deities (the five powers). The emperor was expected to have high moral standards. It was also towards the end of this dynasty (Eastern Han) that Buddhism was introduced to China. Some of the early followers and practices of this religion are discussed later in this paper. During the period of disunion: the era of the three kingdoms, Wei, Shu and Wu, Buddhism was the religion that was majorly practiced by the people. Followers and practices of this religion are discussed later in this paper. Below are some examples of the leaders who acted as mediums of interaction between the people and the supramundane realm during the dynasties mentioned above. Zhang Jue, a faith healer, who called himself the Great Worth Leader had his Way of Great Peace made prayers and recited spells on behalf of the people. He accepted many disciples, who would kneel, bow and confess their faults to him. He cured illnesses with holy water and prayers, and when the sick recovered, the common people came to believe in him. (Buckley 83).This great belief is further demonstrated by the great number of followers that he had. We are told that he had several hundred thousand followers scattered through the commanderies and the kingdoms. This shows that he had quite a great influence on the people who equally chose to believe in him. This was during the Yellow Turban Movement. From Zhang Jues yellow movement, he makes the rebels, Yellow Turbans, to kill people as a sacrifice to heaven. This shows belief in a higher power to which human sacrifices were made, probably to help them succeed in their endeavors and protect them. Zhang Xiu (also a faith healer) is another person who was used as a human agent to interact with the supramundane realm, in this case through prayers made in written letters. He made people meditate on their faults to be forgiven. From his Way of Five Pecks of Rice, he had wine offerers, debauchers and demon clerks serve under him. They were in charge of the five thousand characters of the Laozi, helped people in recitation and were in charge of the sick respectively. We are told, prayers were offered by writing the name of the sick person and explaining the crimes he had confessed to. Three copies would be made, one sent to heavenburied in the earth and one immersed in water. (Hansen 84). He calls these letters to the three officials which shows belief in more than one higher power. Zhang Lu, who succeeded Xiu, continued to preach the rice religion and he made those who refused to follow the religion to be offerers of wine. He therefore, was a medium through which communication could be made to the higher power through wine offering. He also punishes those who commit offences more than three times. Another form of human beings interaction with the supramundane realm was through beliefs and practices of Buddhism where one had to take refuge in Buddha, the Dharma (Buddhist teachings) and the Samgha (community of Buddhists). This happened towards the end of the Han Dynasty and period of disunion. Buddhists were to abandon their families and things of the world and live together in a Samgha where they would practice self righteousness. Men who became monks and women who became nuns are examples of Buddhists. They acted as the medium between the common people and their higher being as seen through the prayers they made for their families, relatives and for goodness to other people. Seng Du is an example of a young man who left his normal life for Buddhism. In his letter to his former girlfriend, Tiaohua who also becomes a nun after reading it, he tells her that following the Buddhist path is for the sake of all beings in the three realms (Buckley 100). This shows that joining Buddhi sm was like being there for the sake of those who did not join, praying for them and their lives. We also see that a lot of things happen through Seng Baozhi who also becomes a monk at a very young age. He communicated to people through his prophetic gift and through performing miracles, where he would say things or write poems about things that would happen in the future or he would do supernatural acts like appear in two places at the same time. This made him get many followers, both leaders and ordinary people. He makes prophecies on many occasions, for example, he told the General Sang Yan that he would be beheaded and about his chest rent and this happens after ten days. As emperor Wu says, Though the trace of master Baozhis body is within this woorld, his spirit roves in the mysteries. (Hansen 101). This just suggests that he was highly placed and viewed in the society because of his powers, gifts or communication skills with supernatural powers and acts. Baozhi also helped to direct prayers made by monk Fayun after which the long drought ended. This further demonstrates hi s connection to a higher power on behalf of the people. Buddhists are greatly used as mediums to pray on behalf of others. The Celestial king Vaisravana for example, pays a thousand ransoms to the three jewels so that they can pray for his family and him, his servants and animals. We are told, This money is used for copying sutras. It is accompanied by the prayer that the Celestial King attains Buddha hood; that the disciples family, servants and animals may be blessed with long life, (Buckley 102). This shows the kings belief in the ability of those practicing Buddhism to intercede to the spirits on their behalf. There are other followers of Buddhism who also make prayers for their families, friends and for themselves: nun Daorong prays that she neither gets sick nor suffers anymore and that her parents, present family and close relatives experience joy and that all they seek may come to pass. She also includes those with knowledge in her prayers. This shows that she wished them all well and knowing that through her faith she had the power to intercede on their behalf, she goes ahead to do so. Superintendent Song Shao prays for the spirits of his parents to reach the Pure Land and that his family members may find happiness and blessings in their lives. He also prays for the safety of his state and for the freedom of all suffering creatures, (Buckley 103). This also shows his belief that through his faith; his prayers will be answered for the sake of the people he cares about. Madame Duan also prays for the happiness of her son even after his death and that he suffers no more (Hansen 104). This also shows her belief in her ability to mediate to the spirits on behalf of her dead son because of her faith. From all these forms of interaction with the supramundane realms with all the human agents discussed above, a few things stand out including the fact that the mediums for the interactions were leaders who did the mediations on sacred places irrespective of the identity of the higher power and these human agents were to free themselves from faults and influences of the world before doing the mediation. This is seen all through from Jue, Xiu and Lu who always asked people to confess their faults before they prayed for them to be healed and even the Buddhists who lived faultless lives away from the rest of the world. Another interesting thing is the fact that all through there was a belief in the supernatural or higher power even though not exactly mentioned. This is seen through the numerous sacrifices made. The different forms of interactions discussed above including prayer, sacrifices, miracles and offerings among others correlate with changes in the social or political order in the society. This is evident from the way leaders who acted as mediums were expected to be free from faults when they did the mediation; some fasted before the ceremony to ensure this while on the other hand commoners who were being prayed for were not to be as much cleansed and prepared as the leaders. This was to help the leaders to gain favor before the higher powers. In conclusion, in Ancient China there was a belief in the supramundane and the people used several forms to communicate and interact with them to have their needs met. This was done through special beings in the society, leaders or those with similar gifts, who were expected to be well behaved and good. Buy custom Analysis of Ancient China essay

An Investigation into the Impact of Branding on Growth of Tablet Dissertation - 2

An Investigation into the Impact of Branding on Growth of Tablet Computer for the UK Market - Dissertation Example Only 18 per cent of respondents believe that tablet PC prices will be more affordable in future. Nearly 88 per cent of respondents believe that the future of the tablet PC in the UK market is bright. Perfect correlation was observed between variables V1 (Without promotion nobody would have known about Tablet PCs) & V2 (I would buy an unbranded Tablet PC, because it would be considerably cheaper than the branded ones); (‘r’ = 0.96). Perfect correlation was observed between variables V1 (Without promotion nobody would have known about Tablet PCs) & V19 (Tablet PC will replace the PC in future) (‘r’ = 0.96). Perfect correlation was observed between variables V2 (I would buy an unbranded Tablet PC, because it would be considerably cheaper than the branded ones) & V18 (‘r’ = 0.97). Perfect correlation was observed between variables V2 (I would buy an unbranded Tablet PC, because it would be considerably cheaper than the branded ones) & V19 (Tablet PC will replace the PC in future) (‘r’ = 0.95). Perfect correlation was observed between variables V3 (Advertisement have helped me to learn about Tablet PCs) & V4 (Promotion is helping the Tablet PC market in UK) (‘r’ = 0.97). Perfect correlation was observed between variables V3 (Advertisement have helped me to learn about Tablet PCs) & V15 (Tablet PCs are more useful than mobile phones) (‘r’ = 0.95). ... Perfect correlation was observed between variables V4 (Promotion is helping the Tablet PC market in UK) & V16 (Tablet PCs are more useful than laptops and PCs) (‘r’ = 0.99). Perfect correlation was observed between variables V5 (Without promotion effort, I wouldn’t have known about the Tablet PCs) & V14 (Tablet PCs are useful products) (‘r’ = 0.99). Perfect correlation was observed between variables V15 (Tablet PCs are more useful than mobile phones) & V16 (Tablet PCs are more useful than laptops and PCs) (‘r’ = 0.96). 4.1.2 Other findings of the quantitative survey Findings from GPA scorecard Respondents accorded their highest approval to variable V15 â€Å"tablet PCs are more useful than mobile phones† (GPA = 80). This is followed by the variable V4 â€Å"promotion is helping the tablet PC market in UK† (GPA = 76). Closely behind this was V16, which stated, â€Å"Tablet PCs are more useful than laptops and PCs† (GPA = 75). The next highest scoring variable was V3, which stated that, â€Å"Advertisement has helped me to learn about tablet PCs) (GPA = 71. Respondents awarded GPA score of 63 to variable V14, which states that tablet PCs are useful products. However, the respondents accorded their least approval to the variable V19, which stated that tablet PC will replace the PC in future (GPA = 45). A marginally better score was accorded to variable V1, which stated that without promotion nobody would have known about the tablet PC. 4.1.3 Findings from qualitative survey The respondents believed that branding has helped the tablet PC market to grow in general in the world and particularly in the UK market. Branding helped to brand recall by bringing the memory of the brand at the time purchasing decisions are made. The

Vietnam- China Conflict Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Vietnam- China Conflict - Research Paper Example The two countries have been characterized by a longstanding rivalry between regional powers. The opposition has been diminishing and at the same time escalating in different periods. The conflict has also escalated to the 21st century where the two countries have been in turmoil over the fishing territories. The continued suspicion on a number of issues is expected to escalate further in the future if issues are not addressed regionally and globally. The conflict has affected the region and world in different ways. This paper seeks to focus on Vietnam- China Conflict. Origin: Why Chinese Claim that it is Their Land or Area China continues to claim that the Paracels and Spratly islands are parts of the territory. This claim traces backs to the Yuan Dynasty in 1279. This was the period when astronomer Guo Shoujing visited the area. The original claim of the area was done by Jiang Jieshi Kuomintang government (Sieff; 1). Since then, the People’s Republic of China has followed the claim. The greatest Chinese sailors also named the islands in Chinese language and explorers as early as 1430 (Sieff; 1). Conflict The issue of the border has not been a direct source of conflict between the two territories. However, increased political involvement led to increased tension and conflict. Most of the tension has revolved around the border. Both of the countries share 700 miles of common border. This boundary was delineated by Sino-French treaties signed during the colonial period (Hung 1979; 1039). However, there were differences over the actual sites of boundary mark. This suspicion heightened as the relationship between the two countries became tense in 1978. This was due to mishandling of overseas Chinese in Vietnam (SinoVietnameseWar; 2013). At the time of war, both sides of the country tried to change the location of the stone pillars marking their sides. The other cause of tension was the division of territorial jurisdiction in the Gulf of Tonkin area. The reas on behind this strain was sufficient deposits of oil in the South China Sea. Both of the countries also claimed ownership to the Paracels and Spratly islands. In 1974, china took one of the islands after a small stint with South Vietnamese army. On the other hand, South Vietnamese laid claim of the Spartly islands. The conflict heightened as China withdrew its support. This led to collapse of financial and economic programs of these nations. These nations responded through retaliation mechanisms. This was through the management of overseas Chinese people. Consequently, the Vietnamese government decided to regulate private business managed by Chinese. There was also seizure of private properties, currency exchange, and sending people to new economic zones (Hung 1979; 1043). This affected the overseas Chinese significantly. Others were forced to abandon new economic zones, and other moved to other parts of Asian nations. This caused China to move due to mistreatment of her people. Chi na also cancelled other key projects it was financing to Vietnamese. Consequently, most of the refugees remained stranded along the border. This heightened the border tension. China viewed this outcome as a soviet conspiracy to incite china. The soaring dispute was also heightened by the Cambodia connection. This was due to the soaring diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Cambodia. However, china began to side with Cambodia. Initially, china was reluctant to join the war. However, after the

Classical and Operant Conditioning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Classical and Operant Conditioning - Essay Example The following morning, they once again decide to get their exercise (UR) by walking (US) the same route of the past two days, only this time they enter the gymnasium to look around and make some queries. The fourth morning, they once again decide to walk (US) down Leon Avenue; and as was the case yesterday, they enter the gymnasium. This time, however, they become members (CR) having decided to use this facility for their exercising. The next morning and many mornings thereafter, the gymnasium (CS) is the place they go for their exercise (CR). This student has also chosen an activity for operant conditioning; namely, studying. A psychology professor has a double period every Friday. On some of those Fridays, the professor will, at the beginning of the second period, ask the students to study (desired behavior) the material from the first period, telling them they are free to ask him questions about the material that they did not understand. Some students do as asked, while others do not. Then, approximately 15 minutes before the end of study period a quiz is given. Those who studied, invariably obtain a good mark on the quiz, which serves as a positive reinforcement for their studying behavior. As students who studied keep receiving good quiz grades (positive reinforcement), it strengthens the desired response (studying) and increases the chance that it will keep on happening (Morris, 1976). Social and cultural environments actually act as powerful classical and operant conditioners. The class is one cultural indicator (Benchmarks on Line). If a person is born into a class (e.g. upper middle class) where diligent studying and resulting good grades are highly valued, a student will be praised and often also rewarded with tangible items such as a bicycle, camp, a skiing holidays, and so forth.

Nathan Hale Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Nathan Hale - Essay Example To be able to identify a terrorist, we must be able to define the terrorist whether it is an individual, an organization, or a sponsoring state. Freedom fighters are generally defined as a local organization, possibly military or pari-military, that is fighting a military force that is believed to be illegally occupying the local territory (Ash 2001). Freedom fighters were instrumental in impeding Nazi aggression across Europe during WWII. Guerrilla warfare is fought by small bands of irregular soldiers usually against an oppressive government in their own country, and generally restricts its targets to military and government facilities. The FBI, CIA, State Department, and United Nations all agree that to attain the label of terrorist they must target the civilian population (Beres n.d.). It may be an individual, a group, an organization, or a country that funds and advocates terrorism. Terrorism must use misappropriated violence or the threat of violence against the civilian populace to alarm or intimidate a government. The Department of Defense further defines terrorism as, "...violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives" (Beres n.d.).

News Consumption Strategic Implications Broadcasters

News Consumption Strategic Implications Broadcasters INTRODUCTION OF TOPIC Changing trends in news consumption and strategic implications for broadcasters The Indian Media environment has undergone changes in terms of news consumption trends as well as news production techniques. This has lead to contours of On demand culture for News which has been furthered by the digital revolution in the news arena. News consumption is shifting from a passive act to a proactive, interactive and participatory act. 2008 has seen some tremendous changes in the way we gather, share and interact with news.nes today is becoming less linear, less controlled, chaotic however increasingly participatory. The relationship between producers and consumers is changing. Examples of participatory news consumptions: Twitter showed its potential network to distribute raw information in almost instantly in the case of Mumbai attacks and arrest of American student in Egypt. Many media broadcasters took to using this medium as a strategy to cover the news. In early 2008 the channel CNN has built a platform called Ireport .com which permits anyone to submit and upload content from anywhere in the world and a team of journalist scours the content to look for stories. It could also sell this contributor generated created material on news wire for high margins. Another example would be Network 18 anchor Rick Sanchez used twitter to gather his story on twitter for Hurricane Gustav, showing conversations about the storm on screen. CNN even launched a daily show around it which was positioned as audience driven hour of days news and smart conversation Today in the news sector what is changing is how people interact with news , when they acquire it and thus old news deliverers must definitely adapt to it. The 24 hour television news channel in India today has become a meme. The random house unabridged dictionary defines a meme as a cultural item that is transmitted by repetition in a manner analogous to the biological transmission of genes. Today there is nothing new or different in the way news channels telecast news stories. Activism, excitement, concern, empathy all are packaged in the same way. Most channels look alive, behave alike, talk alike. There is scarcity as regards to channel loyalty in television news. Additionally with media proliferation, audiences are getting and more fragmented and thus news broadcasters are in a fight to gain new audiences. Garnering eye balls, retaining loyal customer, and targeting new segments to gain new audiences becomes extremely important in today times. But with changing consumption habits the same old strategies like breaking news, anchors, tickers may be becoming ineffective today. Thus broadcasters need to revisit these strategies to create differentiation and competitive advantage. The research plans to undertake a study on news consumption trends today the way forward and thereby look at strategies that broadcasters are using currently to tap the existing and potential news customer. The research attempts will be to predict current future news consumption trends and strategic tools used by the broadcaster. LITERATURE REVIEW The Indian news industry was for long governed uncontested by print media. Till 2008, the country consumed 100 million newspaper copies making it the second largest market in the world for newspapers. In 1976 regular broadcasting started in India and Doordarshan had monopoly. It was in 1991 that the concept of multichannel came into India with the advent of BBC, CNN, Prime sports, MTV and Star Plus. Since then with the increasing technological changes taking place there has been extreme competition in this segment as differentiators like breaking news, program choices, expertise, live coverage are slowly diminishing. Almost all news channels in India today are on the same platform / level today as far as capacity and resources available for production of news. Internet slowly entered with new technological framework and changed the rules of the game. 2/3 rds of the internet users today visit the internet atleast 2-3 times a week. Thus consumption of internet is increasing not only in terms of reach but also in terms of impressions. News broadcasters have started teaming up with digital platforms to provide news on the internet as well as mobile mediums. Social media is emerging as another platform for interactivity to take place in the news sector. More and more news is breaking first on Twitter, Facebook, blogs and Flickr today even before being livecasted on news channels. Also today, news is no longer the dull, uninteractive genre as it is associated to be. Increasing numbers of news channels are cashing in on interactivity by using citizen journalism / participatory journalism. This new competitive media landscape has lead proliferation of channels, fragmentation of audiences and lack of diversity among show formats and content. This has lead to a fight among news channels to retain and grow audience numbers. In this scenario first look at the displacement theory : Kayany Yelsma, 2000 used the displacement theory to suggests that with the advent of a new media the overall consumption remains constant and as consumption of one medium increases the consumption go another medium reduces. This would imply that as digital media grows, audiences would move away from broadcast and a change in news consumption habits would occur. However there are convergence theorists who argue that one need to look at the relationship between traditional and new media to understand how simultaneous consumption will change the way news has been consumed till now. Users and gratification theory Infante, Rancer andWomack, 1997 have used the U G theory to explain how individuals use mass media to satisfy their needs.The U G theory argues that peoples needs and interests influence their use of a particular medium and how they respond to it. The idea is that the audience is self motivated to seek the kind of gratification that they want. With the advent of internet gratifying the need of immediacy it is important to relook at the motivations of the audience to turn to broadcast news and their gratification opportunities to construct effective strategies to retain and garner new audiences. Thus although the theory suggest different needs / motivations of consumer there is no research done on the strategies undertaken by Indian news broadcasters to segment different audiences accordingly to different gratification opportunities and provide differentiated offerings to them and how this helps them gain a competitive edge with advertisers and viewers. Let us look at a few theories which seek to explain convergent media behavior and look at MEDIA CONVERGENCE as a strategy: Selective media theory Stempel Hargrove, 1996; Stempel, et al., 2000; Vincent Basil, 1997 have endorsed the selective media theory which suggest that individual direct their attention to respond to specific stimuli in their environment. This implies that exposure to different media content is an active choice and individuals will seek information regarding contents that interest them across all media platforms. That is the consumption of sports news on one platform will lead them to consume the content in the sports space on mobile, online , broadcast and other platforms if the individual is interested in that particular section. Niche theory Dimmick, et al., 2000 in the Niche theory suggest that individual derive different gratifications from using different media. These gratifications would in turn depend on the modality of the medium and as the overlap in these gratification offerings is low in the news industry, the mediums would be more complementary than displacement. Involvement theory Petty Cacioppo, 1986 in the involvement theory suggest that individuals involved in obtaining information on an area are more likely to consumer news from all mediums to optimize their resources to gain maximum knowledge. Thus highly motivated consumers will seek information across various media outlets. It is important to understand whether broadcasters today are using their multi platforms to generate interest in broadcasting medium and pull audiences from online to broadcast or they first break the news on broadcast giving out more information on other platforms. There are various opportunities for gaining audiences by using these theories and news channels today need to jump at them to create competitive edges for themselves. Convergence today has become the strategic option for many media companies although he levels of response from consumers still it make it possible to differentiate between Leaders, laggards and learner ( Denis et al , 2006 ). Thus at business growth levels convergence is linked to growth strategies in 3 ways : 1) Operational convergence 2) cross platform marketing where companies leverage their platforms and repurpose their old content for new viewers 3) developing on demand content thereby addressing viewer needs Thus there have been clearly been changes in news consumption behavior especially in metros like Mumbai where technological acceptance, lifestyles and media environment are fast changing. 2008 witnessed a phenomenal change in the way we consumer news. Participatory media formats have lead us to not only gather news but enabled us to share it and produce it. As demonstrated above, besides using convergent media to gain audiences, broadcast channels need to revisit their competitive and differentiation strategies. For decades breaking news has been used as an age old strategy to establish exclusivity and garner eyeballs. With the introduction of similar technology, real time streaming and social media all news channels are breaking news at the same. Hence there is a need to explore the relevance of breaking news as a strategy and its effectiveness. Program choice selection: Webster and Wakshlag have identified the main factor in program selection as availability. They say if viewer choices are dictated by what is available to them. Many programming strategies are designed to stop the viewer from searching for a more gratifying program based on the assumption that if their program does not annoy them they will not change them. Thus the aim of many programs is to avoid displeasure. Jeffres (1978) called such programs least objectionable programs (LOP). However digital factors make this factor irrelevant in the future. Apart from that they identified audience they watch a program with as an influencer and selection habits as another. They say if a program search is generally restricted to a particular number of channels which Heeter calls Channel Repertoire. Thus viewers may avoid certain programs because the channel or network is not in their repertoire. However there is no research done on the branding and programming Indian news channels undertake to be included in the set of acceptable channels of a viewer. Rosenstein and Grant (1997 have pointed out that habit is a factor for selecting certain mediums and offerings. However how broadcasters are tapping into this habit to develop channel loyalty is yet to be studied. Weimann, Brosius, and Wober have shown that there is little variation in consumption of news content. When two people watch the same news program, one may watch it because of the programs specific appeal, whereas the other one is simply waiting for another program to come on. This explains their finding that overall time spent with the news media is roughly the same, regardless of reported medium reliance .Beaudoin and Thorson,2004 who remarked that exposure to news is not necessarily an expression of attention to news. Given the possibility of involuntary avoidance, one should remark that the reverse also applies: Lack of exposure to news is not necessarily an expression of lack of interest in the news. Thus programming choices designed to meet needs of such audiences who express an interest can be used as a niche strategy to gain hold in such audiences. A few programming segments that broadcasters need to look at are Late night viewers and Sunday morning program choices as strategic programming decisions. The PEW research center , 2004 has undertaken studies have been conducted in the US , research needs to be done on what news channels are doing to tap gain TRPs with these audiences. Anchors as differentiators: To look at anchors as brands for the news channels we need to view them as ingredient brands. The reason why companies for adopting ingredient branding as a strategy is that it helps the host brand to improve distribution accessibility, differentiate itself from other competitors and enhance the long term equity of the host brand (Desai and Keller, 2002; Norris 1992). The ingredient brand can also build end users brand preference, stabilize consumers demand, and establish long-term relations with manufacturers (Norris 1992). Anchors / Tv show hosts can be looked in the same respect for news channels. Today Barkha Dutt ,Rajdeep Sardesai have become ingredient brands of the networks they represent. Different segments news gratifications to study strategies for gaining their attention: For youth audiences, the news consumption patterns become extremely critical as they get formed into habits for a lifetime around they time they leave for college.(e.g., Al-Obaidi, Lamb-Williams, Mordas, 2004; Barnhurst Wartella, 1998; Schlagheck, 1998). Thus many media selectively target college students as a long term strategy to gain first advantage into new generation of consumers (Barnhurst Wartella, 1998). Motivations for media usage vary by age, with motivations to escape or pass time usually highest among younger viewers (Greenberg, 1974; Rubin, 1979). College students are susceptible to depression (Rich Scovel, 1987), making them especially vulnerable to the formation of media habits that relieve dysphoria through attendance to escapist media content. Edward Huang, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, USA, 2007 has undertaken a study Studies on how do what uses do youth make of news and what gratifications they derive from it have been undertaken in the US . The following questions have been answered through this study. Have news media failed to address the youths news consumptions objectives? What role does participatory news media play in satisfying youths consumption needs What are the best strategies in serving young new consumers? To explore the question of emergent news consumption trends it becomes essential to explore the future users news consumption patterns. With myriad options of news outlets, including the Internet, college students are emerging more as news grazers, which means they check news periodically but do not have a particular time for news competitors (Pew Research Center, 2002). A new grazer are audiences which take advantage of the new media environment to check the news from time to time with no set patterns and with a passivity towards event and information. Thus they tend to follow the news on television with the remote control flipping the channel from time to time when they are disinterested. (Pew research 2004) Thus the battle among television news providers to capture the grazing audience has been heated up. Commercial success in such an environment requires the news product to cater to the interests of the news grazer. Thus news producers today cover topics that are less likely to prompt grazers to switch to another channel.( Bellamy and walker 1996) News providers have started downplaying political news to make it soft entertainment oriented news.( Patterson 2000) The strategies that present broadcasters are using to tap this audience will determine the future leaders. Senior citizens are the ones that have maximum time currency and thus strategies used to gain those eyeballs also become increasing important. Thus it is important to study this in the competitive landscape. Thus changing news consumption behavior has lead to news broadcasters to relook at their differentiators, strategies and also identity and target new audiences while retaining old ones so as to avoid becoming irrelevant or obsolete in future. NEED Gap: With the above mentioned technological and lifestyle changes there has been no study undertaken on consumption trends in 2008 2010 and thus predicting the future. Such studies have been undertaken for different segments in the US but not in the Indian context. RESEARCH OBJECTIVE/ SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH The scope of the research extends to both consumer trends in news consumption as well as broadcasters response and action to the same thereby drafting in conclusion the strategies which are used for differentiation in todays news scenario. The research objectives can be listed as below: To identify the patterns and trends in new consumption for various audiences To study the case Mumbai Terrorist blast to understand recent news consumption habits and delivery tactics. To list and rank the competitive strategies used by news channels to differentiate their offerings and gain new audiences To study the integration of print, broadcast, radio , citizen, digital , social mobile media and their working with each other to carry news in todays scenario Rationale: As literature and current news cases such as Mumbai terror blasts, 9/11, Economic Times launching a channel reveal consumption of news has changed today. Thus delivery tactics must be relooked and strategies revisited as differentiation is almost nil in the news broadcast industry today. There is a constant struggle to garner new audiences and thus it becomes important to follow the new trends. There has been no study conducted on the trends in news consumption today and in future times in the Indian scenario. Hypothesis: With the changing news consumption trends there is a need for broadcasters to align their delivery tactics and revisit their competitive strategies Research questions Are news channels truly differentiated in todays scenario? Is there any kind of channel loyalty? What are the strategies news channels are using for differentiation? What are the patterns and trends in news consumption for various audiences? How have broadcasters aligned their delivery methods to meet these news trends? How are various media integrated while provided news today? RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The study is primarily exploratory in nature. I shall be primarily using qualitative tools to identify trends from current data viable and accounting for the broadcasters perspective. Extensive Tam analysis study of viewership data already available Areas of information: Demographic and basic lifestyle information Source of news consumption Response to news Participation in news production and delivery Channel loyalty Perceptions about different brands Consumption behavior for different genre of news Impact of :Anchors, tickers, breaking news, programming choices Programming choices preferences for each segment Industry perspective In this phase after identifying the trends in consumption patterns I shall be undertaking a qualitative research for a few broadcasters to understand the tactics and strategies used by them. The different treatment given by them to these segments shall be understood. Also the need for differentiation and their action plans regarding the same shall be understood. Areas of information: Segmentation by broadcasters and different treatments of the same Tactics used by broadcasters to retain and develop channel loyalty Tactics used by broadcasters to gain new audiences Integration of traditional and new media by broadcasters Importance given to differentiation and strategies used to achieve the same Tool used: In depth interview I shall be meeting with experts in the broadcast company: Marketing, Programming Editorial. Media consultants were interviewed to understand the working of the business. The following panel of experts was used in the discussion of various aspects. Sampling: Purposeful Sampling This method allowed me to select experts based on relevant work experience and knowledge of the industry. Thus the information collected was highly credible and reliable. The method also was convenient as I was the only one involved in the selection process. This allowed me to make analysis and thereby compare different perspectives. Further snowballing was used as a method of referral sampling wherein through networks of professionals experts were reached. These experts made valuable contributions to the field. Case study method of analysis: Detailed study of 2 TV news channels- NDTV 24 x7 and CNN -IBN have been undertaken. A brief programming review, convergence strategies, differentiators, marketing branding strategies of the channels have been studied. Each case covers interesting new emerging strategies used by that particular broadcaster during the period of 2008 -2010. A single event based case study of how twitter was used during Mumbai blasts is also studied. This is used to study the effect of new media on consumption and the extent of the impact and implications it holds on the broadcasters. This case method allows me to study changes that have happened in the last two years in Channel strategies and also news consumption. Thus it allows me to map the different strategies used by broadcasters and identify emerging trends. Advantages of case study method: The case study method is most valuable when the researcher wants to obtain a wealth of information about the research topic. Case studies provide tremendous detail. Many times researchers want such detail when they dont know exactly what they are looking for. The case study is particularly advantageous to the researcher who is trying to find clues and ideas for further research. This is not to suggest, however, that case studies be used only at the exploratory stage of research. The method can also be used to gather descriptive and explanatory data. The case study technique can suggest why something has occurred. For example, in many cities in the mid-1980s, cable companies asked to be released from certain promises made when negotiating for a franchise. To learn why this occurred, a multiple case study approach examining several cities 16 could have been used. Other research techniques, such as the survey, might not be able to get at all the possible reasons behind this phenomenon . Ideally, case studies should be used in combination with theory to achieve maximum understanding (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:156). The case study method also affords the researcher the ability to deal with a wide spectrum of evidence.Documents, historical artifacts, systematic interviews, direct observations, and even traditional surveys can all be incorporated into a case study. In fact, the more data sources that can be brought to bear in a case, the more likely it is that the study will be valid (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:156,157). Disadvantages of case study method : There are three main criticisms. The first has to do with a general lack of scientific rigor in many case studies. Yin points out that too many times, the case study investigator has been sloppy, and has allowed equivocal evidence or biased views to influence the findings and conclusions. It is easy to do a sloppy case study; rigorous case studies require a good deal of time and effort (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:157). The second criticism is that the case study is not easily open to generalization. If the main goal of the researcher is to make statistically based normative statements about the frequency of occurrence of a phenomenon in a defined population, some other method may be more appropriate. This is not to say that the results of all case studies are idiosyncratic and unique. In fact, if generalizing theoretic propositions is the main goal, the case study method is perfectly suited to the task (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:157). Finally, like participant observation, case studies are likely to be timeconsuming and may occasionally produce massive quantities of data that are hard to summarize. Consequently, fellow researchers are forced to wait years for the results of the research, which too often are poorly presented. Some authors, however, are experimenting with nontraditional methods of reporting to overcome this last criticism (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:157). Even with these limitations, the methods provide a lot of possibilities as it is very flexible. It allows deep study of a specific subject. Thus having specified the method, the unfolding chapters refer to the case in point. Expected contribution: Theoretically, through the findings of the research, the user gratifications theory, nice theory, selective theory and involvement theory will be tested. I shall use these theories in the news genre and test the application of the same in this genre. On the practical front, the testing the hypothesis shall have practical significance for the broadcasters. Additionally the trends indentified and predicted for the coming year shall have strategic implications for news broadcasters. The trends shall enable the broadcasters target their prospective audiences better and use tactics to compete, differentiate garner new audiences. NDTV 24 X 7 Founded in the year 1988, the channel was Indias first and largest private producer of current affairs, news stories and entertainment .The brand NDTV 24 * 7 is the market leader and holds an unrivalled reputation for excellence. The following strategic initiatives for growth were undertaken by NDTV . Reliance Infocomm (2004): s In 2004, the channel tied up with reliance Infocomm, Indias largest mobile service provider to provide on the hour news updates of actual newscast with streaming of videos of NDTV news. This enabled Rim customers to watch streaming videos of election updates as well as other news coverage on their handsets. Southern Edition (2006): In 2006, the channel announced the launch of a southern edition - a daily news show using opt -out telecast technology for its viewers in Tamil Nadu, Kerela Karnataka. This show is on air on weekdays at 7 30 and on weekends there is an extravaganza of region specific programming. FTA (2007) : In 2007, it was converted to a FTA channel in the CAS notified areas of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkatta.The channel is still a pay channel in Chennai. Durand Cup (2007): In 2007 NDTV decided to get into telecasting the live broadcast of Durand Cup 2007.No other news channel in India had beamed live sports before this. The reason behind this was that football viewership has been growing in India. The target audience is mostly 15 +, in SEC A+, A, B+ and B segments. PROGRAMMING Apart from news the channel also airs other programs like We the people and The big fight which are hugely popular. The channel continues to produce original content such as documentaries and special reports featuring political news, entertainment reports and cricket. The channel also has an afternoon weekday segment of the business and market news thereby encompassing all programs offering for their core viewer. The channel has an innovative approach to programming there taking the first step in news shows. Very recently it launched Newsnet2.0 which involves consumer engagement in the production of news as well as syndication of online content. It covers he hot topics which are currently exciting netizens across the world. It provides a 360 vision of all the mediums that people use to discuss their views on contemporary issues. Weekend programming: The weekend programming comprises an array of non news shows like Documentary 24 x 7, cell guru, picture this and others. There are also shows recapping and discussing the weeks news events. Weekday programming: A one stop solution for all interests of the target audience , on weekdays the channel provides news offering in sport, politics, business, national and current news. The Key shows We The People- This powerful opinion-based show, hosted by Barkha Dutt, puts eminent panelists at the mercy of an enquiring public, throwing the floor open for discussions on the issues affecting the country and its people and ensuring that the average citizen has his or her say. The Big Fight- Hosted by Vikram Chandra, the show pits those on opposite sides of an issue against each other in a lively and often heated debate. What emerges from the sometimes controversial opinions is a thorough 360Â ° view of the key national or global issue at hand. India 60: Verdict- NDTVs flagship news programme, India 60 Minutes, is complemented by this special debate segment on the major controversy of the day. Designed to be interactive, it lets viewers have the final word on the big issue in that days news, be it from politics, sports, entertainment or business Bombay Talkies- Sreenivasan Jain takes a walk with Mumbais renowned personalities, through an area that is especially significant to him or her. The freewheeling chat format of the show touches upon a range of issues, showcasing new facets of their persona. The show has featured people from all walks of life, including the likes of Amitabh Bachchan, Raj Thackeray, Nusli Wadia, Shatrughan Sinha and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Walk the Talk- One of the flagship programmes of NDTV 24X7, it is a technical first in the Indian television industry, being the only programme in the country to be shot in one take. For four years and with over two hundred episodes, Indian Express Editor-in-Chief, Shekhar Gupta, has travelled and questioned every eminent national personality at a place of special relevance to the guest. Amongst the stellar guests the show has had, were all three of Indias recent Nobel Prize winners Dr. Amartya Sen, VS Naipul and the Dalai Lama. www.ndtv.com CONVERGENCE NDTV Convergence the new media arm of NDTV encompasses an array of digital media and mobile media services to provide a complete solution to advertisers and tap into the mobile/net savvy audience of todays times. NDTV ACTIVE : NDTV active is packaged with various mobile sites consisting of text based content like news, movies, astrology, music, lifestyle and stocks powered by NDTVs online content. The portal is monetized through ads, sponsorships, plus offering some sections of the portal on a subscription basis. He channel is looking at content syndication and they want to tie up with mobile operators to provide content for their mobile portals. NDTV convergence launched a free SMS service with July systems in partnership. The service called MISMS will enable mobile users to access multimedia content via sms. Users of this service can get the latest news, videos, stocks, and cricket scores by sending the short code to NDTV. The content is hosted on NDTV active which is NDTVs existing mobile portal. NDTV active receives about 15000 visitors a month. From its mobile services NDTV is targeting to achieve Rs. 4. 3 crore in revenue which comprises 15 % of their total revenue. OTHER PORTALS: NDTV website looks more like a general interest website than a serious ne News Consumption Strategic Implications Broadcasters News Consumption Strategic Implications Broadcasters INTRODUCTION OF TOPIC Changing trends in news consumption and strategic implications for broadcasters The Indian Media environment has undergone changes in terms of news consumption trends as well as news production techniques. This has lead to contours of On demand culture for News which has been furthered by the digital revolution in the news arena. News consumption is shifting from a passive act to a proactive, interactive and participatory act. 2008 has seen some tremendous changes in the way we gather, share and interact with news.nes today is becoming less linear, less controlled, chaotic however increasingly participatory. The relationship between producers and consumers is changing. Examples of participatory news consumptions: Twitter showed its potential network to distribute raw information in almost instantly in the case of Mumbai attacks and arrest of American student in Egypt. Many media broadcasters took to using this medium as a strategy to cover the news. In early 2008 the channel CNN has built a platform called Ireport .com which permits anyone to submit and upload content from anywhere in the world and a team of journalist scours the content to look for stories. It could also sell this contributor generated created material on news wire for high margins. Another example would be Network 18 anchor Rick Sanchez used twitter to gather his story on twitter for Hurricane Gustav, showing conversations about the storm on screen. CNN even launched a daily show around it which was positioned as audience driven hour of days news and smart conversation Today in the news sector what is changing is how people interact with news , when they acquire it and thus old news deliverers must definitely adapt to it. The 24 hour television news channel in India today has become a meme. The random house unabridged dictionary defines a meme as a cultural item that is transmitted by repetition in a manner analogous to the biological transmission of genes. Today there is nothing new or different in the way news channels telecast news stories. Activism, excitement, concern, empathy all are packaged in the same way. Most channels look alive, behave alike, talk alike. There is scarcity as regards to channel loyalty in television news. Additionally with media proliferation, audiences are getting and more fragmented and thus news broadcasters are in a fight to gain new audiences. Garnering eye balls, retaining loyal customer, and targeting new segments to gain new audiences becomes extremely important in today times. But with changing consumption habits the same old strategies like breaking news, anchors, tickers may be becoming ineffective today. Thus broadcasters need to revisit these strategies to create differentiation and competitive advantage. The research plans to undertake a study on news consumption trends today the way forward and thereby look at strategies that broadcasters are using currently to tap the existing and potential news customer. The research attempts will be to predict current future news consumption trends and strategic tools used by the broadcaster. LITERATURE REVIEW The Indian news industry was for long governed uncontested by print media. Till 2008, the country consumed 100 million newspaper copies making it the second largest market in the world for newspapers. In 1976 regular broadcasting started in India and Doordarshan had monopoly. It was in 1991 that the concept of multichannel came into India with the advent of BBC, CNN, Prime sports, MTV and Star Plus. Since then with the increasing technological changes taking place there has been extreme competition in this segment as differentiators like breaking news, program choices, expertise, live coverage are slowly diminishing. Almost all news channels in India today are on the same platform / level today as far as capacity and resources available for production of news. Internet slowly entered with new technological framework and changed the rules of the game. 2/3 rds of the internet users today visit the internet atleast 2-3 times a week. Thus consumption of internet is increasing not only in terms of reach but also in terms of impressions. News broadcasters have started teaming up with digital platforms to provide news on the internet as well as mobile mediums. Social media is emerging as another platform for interactivity to take place in the news sector. More and more news is breaking first on Twitter, Facebook, blogs and Flickr today even before being livecasted on news channels. Also today, news is no longer the dull, uninteractive genre as it is associated to be. Increasing numbers of news channels are cashing in on interactivity by using citizen journalism / participatory journalism. This new competitive media landscape has lead proliferation of channels, fragmentation of audiences and lack of diversity among show formats and content. This has lead to a fight among news channels to retain and grow audience numbers. In this scenario first look at the displacement theory : Kayany Yelsma, 2000 used the displacement theory to suggests that with the advent of a new media the overall consumption remains constant and as consumption of one medium increases the consumption go another medium reduces. This would imply that as digital media grows, audiences would move away from broadcast and a change in news consumption habits would occur. However there are convergence theorists who argue that one need to look at the relationship between traditional and new media to understand how simultaneous consumption will change the way news has been consumed till now. Users and gratification theory Infante, Rancer andWomack, 1997 have used the U G theory to explain how individuals use mass media to satisfy their needs.The U G theory argues that peoples needs and interests influence their use of a particular medium and how they respond to it. The idea is that the audience is self motivated to seek the kind of gratification that they want. With the advent of internet gratifying the need of immediacy it is important to relook at the motivations of the audience to turn to broadcast news and their gratification opportunities to construct effective strategies to retain and garner new audiences. Thus although the theory suggest different needs / motivations of consumer there is no research done on the strategies undertaken by Indian news broadcasters to segment different audiences accordingly to different gratification opportunities and provide differentiated offerings to them and how this helps them gain a competitive edge with advertisers and viewers. Let us look at a few theories which seek to explain convergent media behavior and look at MEDIA CONVERGENCE as a strategy: Selective media theory Stempel Hargrove, 1996; Stempel, et al., 2000; Vincent Basil, 1997 have endorsed the selective media theory which suggest that individual direct their attention to respond to specific stimuli in their environment. This implies that exposure to different media content is an active choice and individuals will seek information regarding contents that interest them across all media platforms. That is the consumption of sports news on one platform will lead them to consume the content in the sports space on mobile, online , broadcast and other platforms if the individual is interested in that particular section. Niche theory Dimmick, et al., 2000 in the Niche theory suggest that individual derive different gratifications from using different media. These gratifications would in turn depend on the modality of the medium and as the overlap in these gratification offerings is low in the news industry, the mediums would be more complementary than displacement. Involvement theory Petty Cacioppo, 1986 in the involvement theory suggest that individuals involved in obtaining information on an area are more likely to consumer news from all mediums to optimize their resources to gain maximum knowledge. Thus highly motivated consumers will seek information across various media outlets. It is important to understand whether broadcasters today are using their multi platforms to generate interest in broadcasting medium and pull audiences from online to broadcast or they first break the news on broadcast giving out more information on other platforms. There are various opportunities for gaining audiences by using these theories and news channels today need to jump at them to create competitive edges for themselves. Convergence today has become the strategic option for many media companies although he levels of response from consumers still it make it possible to differentiate between Leaders, laggards and learner ( Denis et al , 2006 ). Thus at business growth levels convergence is linked to growth strategies in 3 ways : 1) Operational convergence 2) cross platform marketing where companies leverage their platforms and repurpose their old content for new viewers 3) developing on demand content thereby addressing viewer needs Thus there have been clearly been changes in news consumption behavior especially in metros like Mumbai where technological acceptance, lifestyles and media environment are fast changing. 2008 witnessed a phenomenal change in the way we consumer news. Participatory media formats have lead us to not only gather news but enabled us to share it and produce it. As demonstrated above, besides using convergent media to gain audiences, broadcast channels need to revisit their competitive and differentiation strategies. For decades breaking news has been used as an age old strategy to establish exclusivity and garner eyeballs. With the introduction of similar technology, real time streaming and social media all news channels are breaking news at the same. Hence there is a need to explore the relevance of breaking news as a strategy and its effectiveness. Program choice selection: Webster and Wakshlag have identified the main factor in program selection as availability. They say if viewer choices are dictated by what is available to them. Many programming strategies are designed to stop the viewer from searching for a more gratifying program based on the assumption that if their program does not annoy them they will not change them. Thus the aim of many programs is to avoid displeasure. Jeffres (1978) called such programs least objectionable programs (LOP). However digital factors make this factor irrelevant in the future. Apart from that they identified audience they watch a program with as an influencer and selection habits as another. They say if a program search is generally restricted to a particular number of channels which Heeter calls Channel Repertoire. Thus viewers may avoid certain programs because the channel or network is not in their repertoire. However there is no research done on the branding and programming Indian news channels undertake to be included in the set of acceptable channels of a viewer. Rosenstein and Grant (1997 have pointed out that habit is a factor for selecting certain mediums and offerings. However how broadcasters are tapping into this habit to develop channel loyalty is yet to be studied. Weimann, Brosius, and Wober have shown that there is little variation in consumption of news content. When two people watch the same news program, one may watch it because of the programs specific appeal, whereas the other one is simply waiting for another program to come on. This explains their finding that overall time spent with the news media is roughly the same, regardless of reported medium reliance .Beaudoin and Thorson,2004 who remarked that exposure to news is not necessarily an expression of attention to news. Given the possibility of involuntary avoidance, one should remark that the reverse also applies: Lack of exposure to news is not necessarily an expression of lack of interest in the news. Thus programming choices designed to meet needs of such audiences who express an interest can be used as a niche strategy to gain hold in such audiences. A few programming segments that broadcasters need to look at are Late night viewers and Sunday morning program choices as strategic programming decisions. The PEW research center , 2004 has undertaken studies have been conducted in the US , research needs to be done on what news channels are doing to tap gain TRPs with these audiences. Anchors as differentiators: To look at anchors as brands for the news channels we need to view them as ingredient brands. The reason why companies for adopting ingredient branding as a strategy is that it helps the host brand to improve distribution accessibility, differentiate itself from other competitors and enhance the long term equity of the host brand (Desai and Keller, 2002; Norris 1992). The ingredient brand can also build end users brand preference, stabilize consumers demand, and establish long-term relations with manufacturers (Norris 1992). Anchors / Tv show hosts can be looked in the same respect for news channels. Today Barkha Dutt ,Rajdeep Sardesai have become ingredient brands of the networks they represent. Different segments news gratifications to study strategies for gaining their attention: For youth audiences, the news consumption patterns become extremely critical as they get formed into habits for a lifetime around they time they leave for college.(e.g., Al-Obaidi, Lamb-Williams, Mordas, 2004; Barnhurst Wartella, 1998; Schlagheck, 1998). Thus many media selectively target college students as a long term strategy to gain first advantage into new generation of consumers (Barnhurst Wartella, 1998). Motivations for media usage vary by age, with motivations to escape or pass time usually highest among younger viewers (Greenberg, 1974; Rubin, 1979). College students are susceptible to depression (Rich Scovel, 1987), making them especially vulnerable to the formation of media habits that relieve dysphoria through attendance to escapist media content. Edward Huang, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, USA, 2007 has undertaken a study Studies on how do what uses do youth make of news and what gratifications they derive from it have been undertaken in the US . The following questions have been answered through this study. Have news media failed to address the youths news consumptions objectives? What role does participatory news media play in satisfying youths consumption needs What are the best strategies in serving young new consumers? To explore the question of emergent news consumption trends it becomes essential to explore the future users news consumption patterns. With myriad options of news outlets, including the Internet, college students are emerging more as news grazers, which means they check news periodically but do not have a particular time for news competitors (Pew Research Center, 2002). A new grazer are audiences which take advantage of the new media environment to check the news from time to time with no set patterns and with a passivity towards event and information. Thus they tend to follow the news on television with the remote control flipping the channel from time to time when they are disinterested. (Pew research 2004) Thus the battle among television news providers to capture the grazing audience has been heated up. Commercial success in such an environment requires the news product to cater to the interests of the news grazer. Thus news producers today cover topics that are less likely to prompt grazers to switch to another channel.( Bellamy and walker 1996) News providers have started downplaying political news to make it soft entertainment oriented news.( Patterson 2000) The strategies that present broadcasters are using to tap this audience will determine the future leaders. Senior citizens are the ones that have maximum time currency and thus strategies used to gain those eyeballs also become increasing important. Thus it is important to study this in the competitive landscape. Thus changing news consumption behavior has lead to news broadcasters to relook at their differentiators, strategies and also identity and target new audiences while retaining old ones so as to avoid becoming irrelevant or obsolete in future. NEED Gap: With the above mentioned technological and lifestyle changes there has been no study undertaken on consumption trends in 2008 2010 and thus predicting the future. Such studies have been undertaken for different segments in the US but not in the Indian context. RESEARCH OBJECTIVE/ SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH The scope of the research extends to both consumer trends in news consumption as well as broadcasters response and action to the same thereby drafting in conclusion the strategies which are used for differentiation in todays news scenario. The research objectives can be listed as below: To identify the patterns and trends in new consumption for various audiences To study the case Mumbai Terrorist blast to understand recent news consumption habits and delivery tactics. To list and rank the competitive strategies used by news channels to differentiate their offerings and gain new audiences To study the integration of print, broadcast, radio , citizen, digital , social mobile media and their working with each other to carry news in todays scenario Rationale: As literature and current news cases such as Mumbai terror blasts, 9/11, Economic Times launching a channel reveal consumption of news has changed today. Thus delivery tactics must be relooked and strategies revisited as differentiation is almost nil in the news broadcast industry today. There is a constant struggle to garner new audiences and thus it becomes important to follow the new trends. There has been no study conducted on the trends in news consumption today and in future times in the Indian scenario. Hypothesis: With the changing news consumption trends there is a need for broadcasters to align their delivery tactics and revisit their competitive strategies Research questions Are news channels truly differentiated in todays scenario? Is there any kind of channel loyalty? What are the strategies news channels are using for differentiation? What are the patterns and trends in news consumption for various audiences? How have broadcasters aligned their delivery methods to meet these news trends? How are various media integrated while provided news today? RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The study is primarily exploratory in nature. I shall be primarily using qualitative tools to identify trends from current data viable and accounting for the broadcasters perspective. Extensive Tam analysis study of viewership data already available Areas of information: Demographic and basic lifestyle information Source of news consumption Response to news Participation in news production and delivery Channel loyalty Perceptions about different brands Consumption behavior for different genre of news Impact of :Anchors, tickers, breaking news, programming choices Programming choices preferences for each segment Industry perspective In this phase after identifying the trends in consumption patterns I shall be undertaking a qualitative research for a few broadcasters to understand the tactics and strategies used by them. The different treatment given by them to these segments shall be understood. Also the need for differentiation and their action plans regarding the same shall be understood. Areas of information: Segmentation by broadcasters and different treatments of the same Tactics used by broadcasters to retain and develop channel loyalty Tactics used by broadcasters to gain new audiences Integration of traditional and new media by broadcasters Importance given to differentiation and strategies used to achieve the same Tool used: In depth interview I shall be meeting with experts in the broadcast company: Marketing, Programming Editorial. Media consultants were interviewed to understand the working of the business. The following panel of experts was used in the discussion of various aspects. Sampling: Purposeful Sampling This method allowed me to select experts based on relevant work experience and knowledge of the industry. Thus the information collected was highly credible and reliable. The method also was convenient as I was the only one involved in the selection process. This allowed me to make analysis and thereby compare different perspectives. Further snowballing was used as a method of referral sampling wherein through networks of professionals experts were reached. These experts made valuable contributions to the field. Case study method of analysis: Detailed study of 2 TV news channels- NDTV 24 x7 and CNN -IBN have been undertaken. A brief programming review, convergence strategies, differentiators, marketing branding strategies of the channels have been studied. Each case covers interesting new emerging strategies used by that particular broadcaster during the period of 2008 -2010. A single event based case study of how twitter was used during Mumbai blasts is also studied. This is used to study the effect of new media on consumption and the extent of the impact and implications it holds on the broadcasters. This case method allows me to study changes that have happened in the last two years in Channel strategies and also news consumption. Thus it allows me to map the different strategies used by broadcasters and identify emerging trends. Advantages of case study method: The case study method is most valuable when the researcher wants to obtain a wealth of information about the research topic. Case studies provide tremendous detail. Many times researchers want such detail when they dont know exactly what they are looking for. The case study is particularly advantageous to the researcher who is trying to find clues and ideas for further research. This is not to suggest, however, that case studies be used only at the exploratory stage of research. The method can also be used to gather descriptive and explanatory data. The case study technique can suggest why something has occurred. For example, in many cities in the mid-1980s, cable companies asked to be released from certain promises made when negotiating for a franchise. To learn why this occurred, a multiple case study approach examining several cities 16 could have been used. Other research techniques, such as the survey, might not be able to get at all the possible reasons behind this phenomenon . Ideally, case studies should be used in combination with theory to achieve maximum understanding (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:156). The case study method also affords the researcher the ability to deal with a wide spectrum of evidence.Documents, historical artifacts, systematic interviews, direct observations, and even traditional surveys can all be incorporated into a case study. In fact, the more data sources that can be brought to bear in a case, the more likely it is that the study will be valid (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:156,157). Disadvantages of case study method : There are three main criticisms. The first has to do with a general lack of scientific rigor in many case studies. Yin points out that too many times, the case study investigator has been sloppy, and has allowed equivocal evidence or biased views to influence the findings and conclusions. It is easy to do a sloppy case study; rigorous case studies require a good deal of time and effort (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:157). The second criticism is that the case study is not easily open to generalization. If the main goal of the researcher is to make statistically based normative statements about the frequency of occurrence of a phenomenon in a defined population, some other method may be more appropriate. This is not to say that the results of all case studies are idiosyncratic and unique. In fact, if generalizing theoretic propositions is the main goal, the case study method is perfectly suited to the task (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:157). Finally, like participant observation, case studies are likely to be timeconsuming and may occasionally produce massive quantities of data that are hard to summarize. Consequently, fellow researchers are forced to wait years for the results of the research, which too often are poorly presented. Some authors, however, are experimenting with nontraditional methods of reporting to overcome this last criticism (Wimmer Dominick, 1983:157). Even with these limitations, the methods provide a lot of possibilities as it is very flexible. It allows deep study of a specific subject. Thus having specified the method, the unfolding chapters refer to the case in point. Expected contribution: Theoretically, through the findings of the research, the user gratifications theory, nice theory, selective theory and involvement theory will be tested. I shall use these theories in the news genre and test the application of the same in this genre. On the practical front, the testing the hypothesis shall have practical significance for the broadcasters. Additionally the trends indentified and predicted for the coming year shall have strategic implications for news broadcasters. The trends shall enable the broadcasters target their prospective audiences better and use tactics to compete, differentiate garner new audiences. NDTV 24 X 7 Founded in the year 1988, the channel was Indias first and largest private producer of current affairs, news stories and entertainment .The brand NDTV 24 * 7 is the market leader and holds an unrivalled reputation for excellence. The following strategic initiatives for growth were undertaken by NDTV . Reliance Infocomm (2004): s In 2004, the channel tied up with reliance Infocomm, Indias largest mobile service provider to provide on the hour news updates of actual newscast with streaming of videos of NDTV news. This enabled Rim customers to watch streaming videos of election updates as well as other news coverage on their handsets. Southern Edition (2006): In 2006, the channel announced the launch of a southern edition - a daily news show using opt -out telecast technology for its viewers in Tamil Nadu, Kerela Karnataka. This show is on air on weekdays at 7 30 and on weekends there is an extravaganza of region specific programming. FTA (2007) : In 2007, it was converted to a FTA channel in the CAS notified areas of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkatta.The channel is still a pay channel in Chennai. Durand Cup (2007): In 2007 NDTV decided to get into telecasting the live broadcast of Durand Cup 2007.No other news channel in India had beamed live sports before this. The reason behind this was that football viewership has been growing in India. The target audience is mostly 15 +, in SEC A+, A, B+ and B segments. PROGRAMMING Apart from news the channel also airs other programs like We the people and The big fight which are hugely popular. The channel continues to produce original content such as documentaries and special reports featuring political news, entertainment reports and cricket. The channel also has an afternoon weekday segment of the business and market news thereby encompassing all programs offering for their core viewer. The channel has an innovative approach to programming there taking the first step in news shows. Very recently it launched Newsnet2.0 which involves consumer engagement in the production of news as well as syndication of online content. It covers he hot topics which are currently exciting netizens across the world. It provides a 360 vision of all the mediums that people use to discuss their views on contemporary issues. Weekend programming: The weekend programming comprises an array of non news shows like Documentary 24 x 7, cell guru, picture this and others. There are also shows recapping and discussing the weeks news events. Weekday programming: A one stop solution for all interests of the target audience , on weekdays the channel provides news offering in sport, politics, business, national and current news. The Key shows We The People- This powerful opinion-based show, hosted by Barkha Dutt, puts eminent panelists at the mercy of an enquiring public, throwing the floor open for discussions on the issues affecting the country and its people and ensuring that the average citizen has his or her say. The Big Fight- Hosted by Vikram Chandra, the show pits those on opposite sides of an issue against each other in a lively and often heated debate. What emerges from the sometimes controversial opinions is a thorough 360Â ° view of the key national or global issue at hand. India 60: Verdict- NDTVs flagship news programme, India 60 Minutes, is complemented by this special debate segment on the major controversy of the day. Designed to be interactive, it lets viewers have the final word on the big issue in that days news, be it from politics, sports, entertainment or business Bombay Talkies- Sreenivasan Jain takes a walk with Mumbais renowned personalities, through an area that is especially significant to him or her. The freewheeling chat format of the show touches upon a range of issues, showcasing new facets of their persona. The show has featured people from all walks of life, including the likes of Amitabh Bachchan, Raj Thackeray, Nusli Wadia, Shatrughan Sinha and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Walk the Talk- One of the flagship programmes of NDTV 24X7, it is a technical first in the Indian television industry, being the only programme in the country to be shot in one take. For four years and with over two hundred episodes, Indian Express Editor-in-Chief, Shekhar Gupta, has travelled and questioned every eminent national personality at a place of special relevance to the guest. Amongst the stellar guests the show has had, were all three of Indias recent Nobel Prize winners Dr. Amartya Sen, VS Naipul and the Dalai Lama. www.ndtv.com CONVERGENCE NDTV Convergence the new media arm of NDTV encompasses an array of digital media and mobile media services to provide a complete solution to advertisers and tap into the mobile/net savvy audience of todays times. NDTV ACTIVE : NDTV active is packaged with various mobile sites consisting of text based content like news, movies, astrology, music, lifestyle and stocks powered by NDTVs online content. The portal is monetized through ads, sponsorships, plus offering some sections of the portal on a subscription basis. He channel is looking at content syndication and they want to tie up with mobile operators to provide content for their mobile portals. NDTV convergence launched a free SMS service with July systems in partnership. The service called MISMS will enable mobile users to access multimedia content via sms. Users of this service can get the latest news, videos, stocks, and cricket scores by sending the short code to NDTV. The content is hosted on NDTV active which is NDTVs existing mobile portal. NDTV active receives about 15000 visitors a month. From its mobile services NDTV is targeting to achieve Rs. 4. 3 crore in revenue which comprises 15 % of their total revenue. OTHER PORTALS: NDTV website looks more like a general interest website than a serious ne