We've been experimenting with Google+ Hangouts for a while now on WHYS. Now more than 5,000 of you have added us to your Circles, we're going to start using them as a regular part of what we do and see what happens.

As well as posting our topics on our Google+ page - just like we do on Facebook & Twitter - we're going to start hosting a hangout every day at 4pm UK time (that's 8am US Pacific time / 11am US Eastern time / 5pm Paris & Abuja / 6pm Johannesburg / 7pm Nairobi / 9.30pm Delhi / midnight Beijing) for around 30 minutes. This is of course a couple of hours before our regular radio programme begins.

WHYS has house rules - we've had them since day one - so it's worth a reminder of what they are (click here for on air, click here for online). As with everything on WHYS, we welcome your take on them.

]]>Just like we have house rules for taking part in the radio programmes or posting comments, we thought it was only fair to start to put together some additional house rules for taking part in WHYS Hangouts, so you know what to expect.

This is our first draft as we work out how best to use Hangouts. Please let us know what you think and we'll listen! This is your programme and we want you to help us make the best of this new platform.

What are WHYS Hangouts for?

* We'll normally use them to invite you to discuss the topic for the forthcoming radio programme with each other and one of the WHYS team, a couple of hours ahead of the broadcast. We can tell you about the guests we'll hear from on the radio programme, so you might be able to suggest questions for them.

* If you've obviously got some interesting points which will add to the radio discussion, we might then invite you to take part in the programme itself.

* Sometimes, you'll be able to speak to our editor Mark, to Ros, or other members of the team to talk specifically about issues around the programme - feedback you wish to give or any topics you think we should be considering.

* Each Friday, our hangout will begin as our weekly TV programme comes to a close. You'll be able to enter the hangout to continue the conversation from the TV edition and tell us what you thought of the discussion.

Who can take part?

* Anyone with an opinion who wants to discuss global talking points - just like when we're on the radio or TV - or issues surrounding the programme. 

* However, you'll only be able to see the Hangout if we've added you to one of our G+ Circles; we'll add you once you've added us. We're open to all, but we'd never have the same people dominating every single edition of our radio or TV programme. In the same way, only opening Hangouts to our Circles means that, if you've had a good run taking part in a number of WHYS Hangouts, we might move you into a different Circle for a while, to give others a chance.

* This will also help us protect our Hangouts from anyone who doesn't respect the usual WHYS principles of courtesy and respect.

We'd love to know what you think about our approach to this: please email me if you'd like to feed back, or post in all the usual ways.

 

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2012/01/weve_been_experimenting_with_g.html#302936 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2012/01/weve_been_experimenting_with_g.html#302936 Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:24:24 +0000

I've put together this list from searching back through bbc.com/news over the last 12 months - I'm not claiming it's exhaustive, but it gives some idea of the volume of these attacks (more than 90 in this list) and the countries where they've taken place.

1 Jan - Egypt has blamed a suicide bomber with foreign links for a blast which killed at least 17 people at an Alexandria church and sparked a Christian-Muslim clash. Forty-three others were wounded in the attack, which happened during a new year's service at the al-Qiddissin (Saints) Church shortly after midnight.
7 Jan - At least 17 people have been killed in a suicide attack in a crowded public bath house in Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province, officials say.
12 Jan - At least four people were killed when a suicide attacker rammed his motorcycle into a bus in the Afghan capital, Kabul, police have told the BBC.
18 Jan - A suicide bomber has killed at least 60 people outside a police recruitment centre in the Iraqi town of Tikrit, officials say. More than 100 other people were injured in the blast in the town, some 130km (80 miles) north of Baghdad.
20 Jan - Three people have been killed and 30 injured in a suicide bombing in Baquba, the second deadly attack in the central Iraqi city in as many days. The bomber blew up his vehicle outside a police headquarters, just a few streets from Wednesday's attack on another police compound that killed 14. The bomber used an ambulance.
24 Jan - An explosion has ripped through Moscow's Domodedovo airport - the busiest in the Russian capital, killing at least 35 people (number of dead later rose to 37). Some 170 people were injured in the blast, which reports suggest was the work of a suicide bomber.
25 Jan - At least nine people taking part in a Shia Muslim procession in the Pakistani city of Lahore have been killed by a suicide bomb, police say. Three policemen were said to be among the dead, while 50 other people were injured, including women and children.
28 Jan - At least eight people have been killed in a suicide attack at a supermarket popular with foreigners in the Afghan capital Kabul, officials say.
29 Jan - The deputy governor of Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province has been killed in a suicide attack, officials have said.
31 Jan - Police in north-western Pakistan say a senior police official has been killed in a suicide bomb attack.

10 Feb - A young suicide bomber dressed in school uniform has blown himself up at an army compound in Pakistan, killing at least 31 people, officials say. The boy attacked as recruits exercised at a Punjab Regiment parade ground, inside an enclosed military area of the north-western city of Mardan.
12 Feb - A Taliban raid on the southern Afghan city of Kandahar has killed 19 people, including 15 policemen, officials say. Militants armed with suicide bombs, guns and rocket-propelled grenades struck the police headquarters in the city centre around noon.
14 Feb - Two security guards and an insurgent were killed in an attack in the Afghan capital Kabul, officials say. Reports said the blast occurred just inside a shopping complex in the city centre after an attacker carrying explosives was challenged by guards.
18 Feb - A suicide car bomber has killed at least 11 people in the eastern Afghan city of Khost, police say.
19 Feb - Eighteen people have been killed and more than 70 wounded in an attack on a bank in the Afghan city of Jalalabad, according to the provincial governor. Gul Agha Shirzay said suicide attackers armed with guns and grenades carried out the attack, according to AFP.
21 Feb - A suicide car bomber has attacked a police training camp in Somalia's capital Mogadishu, killing at least 10 people, officials say. A vehicle was full of explosives and canisters of fuel when it exploded near the Darwish Camp, which is next to a police academy.
21 Feb - A car bomb detonated by a suicide attacker in the central Iraqi city of Samarra has killed 10 policemen and wounded 16 others, police say. The victims were part of a special squad sent to Samarra, 60 miles (100km) north of Baghdad, to protect Shia pilgrims during a religious ceremony.
24 Feb - At least 24 people have been wounded in a suicide car bomb explosion in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, police said. The attack occurred in Spin Boldak town on the Pakistan border. The injured included 16 civilians.
24 Feb - A suicide bomber in the Iraqi city of Ramadi has killed at least eight people, officials say. The attack injured the deputy governor of Anbar province, Hikmet Khalaf, and killed a number of policemen.

3 Mar - A suicide bomber has targeted a bank in the northern Iraqi town of Haditha, killing at least nine people.
14 Mar - At least 36 people have been killed in an apparent suicide attack on an army recruitment centre in northern Afghanistan, local officials have said. More than 40 people were also reported to have been injured in the attack in the city of Kunduz.

3 Apr - Suicide attackers have killed at least 41 people and wounded many more at a shrine in Pakistan, police say. The explosions struck near the Sakhi Sarwar shrine in Punjab, as Sufi Muslim devotees gathered for an annual three-day festival.
4 Apr - At least seven people have been killed in a suicide-bomb attack at a bus station in north-west Pakistan.
7 Apr - A suicide bomber targeting a senior police official has killed a policeman and wounded five others in Pakistan's southern province of Balochistan. The bomber drove in a car packed with explosives and blew it up outside the home of the officer in Quetta, the main town in Balochistan.
13 Apr - A suicide bomber has killed at least 10 people in an attack on tribal elders in eastern Afghanistan, the interior ministry has said. Pro-government tribal elder Haji Malik Zarin was killed in the blast in Kunar province near the Pakistan border.
14 Apr - At least three Afghan policemen were killed when suicide bombers attacked a police training centre in the east of the country, officials say. Police said two bombers also died in the raid on the base in Paktia province where dozens of men were being trained.
15 Apr - A suspected suicide bomber has attacked a mosque in Indonesia, killing himself and wounding 28 people. Most of the wounded are police officers, as the attack happened during Friday prayers at a mosque in a police compound in Cirebon, West Java.
15 Apr - The police chief of Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province has died in a suicide attack on his headquarters. Khan Mohammad Mujahid was killed and two other police officers were injured in the blast, officials say. A suicide bomber managed to penetrate the defences of the police headquarters by wearing a police uniform, the Afghan interior ministry said.
16 Apr - Five foreign and five Afghan troops have died in an attack in eastern Afghanistan, officials say. A Taliban suicide bomber wearing a military uniform hit an Afghan army base near the city of Jalalabad, the Afghan defence ministry said.
18 Apr - Two soldiers have been killed and seven people hurt after a man in army uniform opened fire inside the Afghan defence ministry in Kabul, officials have said. The attacker, who was also wearing an explosive vest, reached the second floor, where the defence minister and the army chief of staff have offices.
28 Apr - A suicide bomber has blown himself up in the eastern Iraqi town of Baladruz, killing at least six people and injuring 15, officials say. The bomber targeted a mosque in the town, 90km (55 miles) north-east of Baghdad in Diyala province, a security official told Reuters.

5 May - A suicide bomb attack in Iraq has killed at least 16 people and injured more than 40. The bomber drove a car laden with explosives into a police headquarters in Hilla, a city south of Baghdad.
7 May - Intense fighting has taken place in Afghanistan's second city of Kandahar amid co-ordinated militant attacks, including at least six suicide bombs. The Taliban said it was behind the triple assault on the provincial governor's office, the Afghan spy agency and a police station. At least two people were killed and 23 injured in the fighting, which spread panic on the streets.
13 May - Twin bomb attacks on a paramilitary force academy in north-west Pakistan have killed 80 people, police say. At least 120 people were wounded in the blasts at the training centre for the Frontier Constabulary in Shabqadar, Charsadda district.
17 May - A suspected suicide bomber has attacked a regional security services building in the northern Kazakh city of Aktobe, wounding several people. Authorities named Rahimjan Makhatov as the man they believe detonated the bomb in front of the National Security Committee office. Kazakhstan's Prosecutor General's Office alleged that the 25-year-old was a member of an organised crime group. The attacker died at the scene and two people were injured.
17 May - Pakistani security forces have killed five militants during a clash in the western city of Quetta, officials say. The militants, reportedly armed with grenades and suicide vests, attacked a checkpost but were all shot dead. The group included three women.
18 May - At least 13 people including civilians, police cadets and a suicide bomber have been killed in an attack in eastern Afghanistan, officials say.
21 May - A suicide bomb attack on a hospital in the Afghan capital, Kabul, has left six people dead and 23 wounded. The bomber detonated his device in a tent in the grounds of Charsad Bestar Hospital where medical students were eating lunch
25 May - Four people have been killed and 22 others wounded in a suicide lorry bomb attack on a police station in Peshawar, in north-west Pakistan.
26 May - At least 32 people have been killed after a suicide bomber in a car struck government buildings in Pakistan's volatile north-west. The bomb went off near several buildings and shops in Hangu, close to Pakistan's tribal areas, causing widespread damage.
29 May - The police commander for northern Afghanistan has been killed in a suicide bomb attack on the provincial governor's compound in Takhar. Gen Mohammad Daud Daud is one of at least six people killed in the attack, claimed by the Taliban.
30 May - Two AU soldiers were killed as they tried to prevent a suicide bomb attack in Mogadishu. The AU said three of the attackers had also been killed during the assault on a position guarded by it soldiers.

10 Jun - At least three policemen have been killed by a suicide bomber in the northern Afghan city of Kunduz, officials say.
10 Jun - Somali Interior Minister Abdi Shakur Sheikh Hassan has been killed in a suicide attack at his home in the capital, Mogadishu. Officials say the bomber was his own teenage niece, who had joined the Islamist militant group al-Shabab.
13 Jun - A suicide bomber in Pakistan has blown himself up and killed a guard in a bank attack in a commercial area of the capital Islamabad, police say.
14 Jun - Gunmen and suicide bombers have stormed an Iraqi provincial council building in the city of Baquba, killing at least eight people. A car bomb and a suicide bomber opened the attack the main gate.
15 Jun - A suicide bomber in a car laden with explosives has killed himself and at least seven people in Afghanistan, the interior ministry has said.
16 Jun - Two people, including a suicide bomber, have died in an explosion at Nigeria's police headquarters in the capital, Abuja.
20 Jun - Three civilians have been killed and 11 others wounded in a suicide car bomb attack on a German military convoy in northern Afghanistan, interior ministry officials say.
26 Jun - An eight-year-old girl has been killed after insurgents used her in a bomb attack on police in southern Afghanistan, the government has said.
26 Jun - A husband and wife carried out a suicide attack that killed eight people at a police station in north-western Pakistan, the Taliban has said. The pair entered the police station dressed in burkas, hiding rifles, hand grenades and suicide vests underneath.
28/29 Jun - Nato helicopters were called in to kill three militants to help end a five-hour clash by suicide bombers and gunmen on a hotel in the Afghan capital, Kabul. The attack on the Intercontinental Hotel, frequented by Westerners, left six more attackers, two police and 11 civilians, including a Spaniard dead.

11 Jul - A suicide bomber has killed at least five people and wounded 19 others at a political rally in north-west Pakistan. The blast in Battagram district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province was carried out by a young suicide bomber, dressed in white, police said.
13 Jul - At least five French soldiers and one civilian have been killed in a suicide bomb attack in the north-eastern Afghan province of Kapisa, officials say.
14 Jul - A suicide bomber has killed four people at a memorial service in Kandahar for the assassinated half-brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
27 Jul - The mayor of the volatile Afghan city of Kandahar, Ghulam Haidar Hameedi, has been killed in a suicide attack, officials say. The attacker detonated explosives in his turban as the mayor made an address at the city hall, police said.
28 Jul - Insurgents have carried out a gun and bomb attack in the south Afghan town of Tarin Kowt, Uruzgan province, leaving at least 22 dead, officials say. They said the violence included three suicide bombings followed by fighting in a market, adding that all eight attackers had now been killed. The dead include Ahmed Omed Khpulwak, a local BBC reporter.
31 Jul - Twelve Afghan policemen and a child have been killed in a suicide attack in the southern Afghan city of Lashkar Gah, officials say.

2 Aug - Three guards belonging to a private security company have been killed in a suicide attack in northern Afghanistan.
14 Aug - At least 19 people are dead and many are injured after militants in Afghanistan stormed the provincial governor's compound in Parwan. Powerful explosions followed by bursts of gunfire were heard in the provincial capital, Charikar, an hour's drive north-west of Kabul, witnesses said. The governor, Abdul Basir Salangi, told media from inside the compound that up to six suicide bombers had struck.
14 Aug - At least 29 people have been injured in a suicide car bomb attack on a police station in Algeria, officials say. They say the bomber crashed his vehicle packed with explosives into the main entrance of the station in Tizi Ouzu, east of Algiers.
15 Aug - A series of bomb attacks has hit several Iraqi cities, killing at least 60 people. The worst attack took place in the south-eastern city of Kut where police said two near-simultaneous bombs killed at least 37 people. The blasts appeared to be co-ordinated to go off in the morning and included a combination of parked car bombs, roadside bombs and suicide bombers.
18 Aug - A suicide attack at a US-run base in eastern Paktia province killed two Afghan guards.
19 Aug - Gunmen have stormed the British Council office in the Afghan capital, Kabul, killing at least 12 people and taking over the compound for hours. A suicide car bomb destroyed the compound wall and a number of heavily armed men forced their way inside.
19 Aug - At least 40 people are reported to have died in a suspected suicide attack at a mosque in Pakistan. The blast happened when hundreds of people had gathered for Friday prayers at the mosque in Ghundi village, near the town of Jamrud in the north-west Khyber tribal district.
26 Aug - At least 13 people have been killed in a series of attacks across Iraq - in Basra, Falluja and Baghdad. In the southern city of Basra, a bomber blew himself up near a Shia mosque, killing three and wounding 50 others.
26 Aug - A suicide bomb attack on a military academy in Algeria has killed 18 people and wounded at least 20, officials say. The attack took place in the town of Cherchell, about 100km (60 miles) west of the capital Algiers. One or two bombers set off their explosives just after the breaking of the Ramadan fast, reports said. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb says it carried out the attack, AFP news agency reports.
27 Aug - At least four people have been killed and many others injured in two car bombings in neighbouring provinces in southern Afghanistan, officials say. The first blast happened outside a bank in Lashkar Gah, in Helmand province, where workers were collecting salaries. It was followed by another blast in Kandahar city. Both are believed to have been suicide attacks.
27 Aug - At least 18 people have been killed in an apparent suicide car bombing at the United Nations headquarters in the Nigerian capital, Abuja. The powerful blast destroyed the lower floors of the building. Dozens have been injured, some critically.
28 Aug - A suicide bomber has killed at least 28 people and wounded at least 30 more after blowing himself up inside a Sunni mosque in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, local officials say. The attack took place during prayers in the Umm al-Qura mosque in west Baghdad, the city's largest Sunni mosque.
31 Aug - A triple suicide bomb attack has killed six police officers and two other people in the Chechen capital Grozny where Muslims are celebrating Eid. A further 22 people were injured, five of them seriously, in the bombing late on Tuesday, Russian prosecutors said. It appears the bombers used the first blast to lure police to the scene before setting off other explosives.

7 Sep - Suicide bombers have attacked the residence of a military official in the Pakistani city of Quetta, killing at least 20 people. The first attacker detonated a car bomb, and a second militant blew himself up in the house of the city's Frontier Corps chief.
13 Sep - Tuesday's attacks appear to be a complex operation. At about 13:30 local time (09:00 GMT), insurgents fired rockets on a number of targets in Kabul's upmarket embassy district. In the west of the city, another two suicide attackers detonated explosives outside a police station. A Taliban spokesman said the group was carrying out "a massive suicide attack on local and foreign intelligence facilities".
15 Sep - At least 20 people have been killed in a suicide bomb attack on the funeral of a tribal elder in north-west Pakistan, police say.
19 Sep - A bomb targeting the home of a senior police officer in Karachi has killed at least eight people, officials say. A car packed with explosives blew up destroying a large part of the home of Chaudhry Aslam Khan, the chief of the crime investigation department. The police said it was a suicide attack.
20 Sep - The chairman of the Afghan High Peace Council, Burhanuddin Rabbani, has been killed with several other people in a bomb attack in Kabul, officials say. Mr Rabbani was killed at his home by a suicide attacker who officials believe had concealed a bomb in his turban.
25 Sep - At least one person has been killed and several injured by a suicide bombing at a church in Central Java, Indonesia. Witnesses said the bomber struck as people were leaving the Bethel Injil Sepuluh church in Keputon, Solo after a Sunday service.
27 Sep - A suicide car bomber attacked a bakery popular with police in southern Afghanistan. At least five people were killed and 22 injured, officials say.

3 Oct - Afghanistan's minister of of border and tribal affairs has survived a suicide bomb attack in the volatile southern province of Kandahar. Assadullah Khalid was not hurt when the bomber detonated a rickshaw packed with explosives close to his convoy, but two bystanders died and 17 were injured.
3 Oct - An assault by insurgents on a local government compound in western Iraq has ended with at least nine people dead, including all six attackers. The gunmen had disguised themselves in police uniforms before attacking the compound in al-Baghdadi, 150km (90 miles) north of the capital Baghdad. Two of the six attackers were suicide bombers who detonated their explosives in the initial onslaught, officials said.
4 Oct - At least 70 people have been killed by a huge suicide blast near a government compound in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, say officials. Eyewitnesses said a truck carrying explosives was driven into a gate near a government ministry and detonated. A spokesman for the Islamist militant group al-Shabab told the BBC it had carried out the attack.
18 Oct - A car bomb has exploded outside the former foreign ministry in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, killing five people including the suicide bomber. The attack came as Kenya's defence and foreign ministers were holding talks nearby with the Somali government.
28 Oct - A suspected suicide bomber has killed two policemen and injured seven others in northwest Pakistan, police said. The attack took place in the Nowshera area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Police said one of the dead policemen, Ajmeer Shah, may have been the target.
29 Oct - A Taliban suicide bomber has rammed an explosives-laden car into a bus carrying members of the International Security Assistance Force in the Afghan capital, Kabul, killing 17 people.

3 Nov - Militants have carried out a suicide gun and bomb attack on a private construction company in the western Afghan city of Herat, officials say. Two guards were killed and four other people wounded, the officials say, with the fighting now said to be over.
6 Nov - A suicide bomber has killed at least seven people near a mosque in Afghanistan's northern Baghlan province, say officials. The bomb went off as worshippers were leaving the mosque in Old Baghlan City after prayers marking the start of the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha.
7 Nov - A suspected suicide bomber has killed a former government official and his guard and injured nine others in north-west Pakistan, police say. The attack took place in Swabi about 102 km (65 miles) from Peshawar.
10 Nov - Attackers have stormed the offices of a governor in Afghanistan's eastern Paktia province, killing at least four Afghan security personnel. Several suicide attackers, armed with bombs, rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns, stormed the offices in the Samkani district of the province. Afghan officials said all of the attackers were killed in the clash.

2 Dec - A suicide bomber has attacked a Nato outpost in the Afghan province of Logar, killing one person and injuring about 70, officials and medics say
6 Dec - Twin attacks apparently targeting Shia Muslims have killed at least 58 people in Afghanistan. In the deadliest incident, a suicide bomb struck a shrine packed with worshippers in the capital, Kabul, killing at least 54 people.
6 Dec - At least five people, including a Somali policeman, have been killed as a car exploded while it was being searched in Mogadishu, sources say
24 Dec - A suicide car bomb attack has killed six people, including five soldiers, and wounded at least 12 others in north-west Pakistan
25 Dec - At least 40 dead in series of attacks in Nigeria, including some confirmed suicide bombings
25 Dec - At least 22 including prominent MP Mutalib Beg killed at funeral in Taloqan, NE Afghanistan
26 Dec - At least seven people have been killed in a suicide car bomb attack outside Iraq's interior ministry

This may entirely change the way WHYS carryout its show. It will give unprecedented access to contributors, fans and listeners. I am joining the hangout right away!

... so posted enthusiastic Blaise in Virginia, when we announced on Facebook the first ever, pioneering WHYS Google Plus "hangout".

The picture shows some of what went on - I'm chatting to Blaise, Kimenyi in Nairobi & a silhouette representing Matt in Melbourne (with WHYS boss Mark peering in from above!)

 

]]>Resident WHYS web guru Ben Sutherland recently did all the groundwork to set up our presence on Google Plus - Google's latest social networking venture.

After Thursday's experiment, I want to get your ideas about how we can best use it - are you as excited as Blaise about the possibilities? Let me explain more ...

A "hangout" on Google Plus lets you sit and chat online on webcam with up to 10 people at once who can dip in and out as they wish.

Does it seem familiar?! In terms of look, there's something of a resemblance to WHYS on TV (see below) - which is partly why we're excited about what we can do with it. It feels like it's on the same wavelength as the programme. And, of course, the idea of a bunch of people getting together online to chat to each other is the whole point of World Have Your Say.

So yesterday, while doing the usual Facebooking, Tweeting and blog scouring of the WHYS social media producer, I sat in a hangout for 5 hours chatting to anyone who cared to drop by, as another means of feeding your thoughts into our discussions.

The fact you're "hanging out" pops up on your news feed and you can send people to a fixed URL to find you.

It was great talking to Blaise (he was there throughout!), Kimenyi (and daughter, briefly!) & Matt (until 3am Melbourne time!) - as well as Mark in Paris, Jay (who briefly popped up with his daughter too), Zoya in Karachi (sorry the connection wasn't strong enough), Kane (a WFYI listener in Indiana), Akpo in the east of England & Dan in Manchester (sorry we lost you early on!).

Thanks for the technical trouble-shooting too - I was in safe hands when my microphone packed up.

The whole afternoon was a bit like presenting a marathon WHYS show for me ... here are some of the topics we covered:

* How best to harness Google Plus for WHYS (I'll come back to that)

* Potential personal consequences of the latest financial jitters (Blaise told me the potential movement of the dollar against the pound has big implications for his intention to come to the UK to study from next month)

* How climate change is reported

* Why it's taking Nato so long to remove Colonel Gaddafi

* The upcoming elections in Cameroon (Blaise and Mark are both originally from there)

* The effect of the 'Arab Spring' on expectations and political aspirations of young people in sub-Saharan Africa - will they demand more at election times in future?

* Whether the potential success of the Cameroon national football team is compromised by the egos of some individuals

... and so on. It was also fun to answer questions about how the programme works and what we do (although it was a shame, that when I attempted to take the laptop through to studio S.38 to show the hangout our broadcast, the wifi signal didn't quite stretch that far ...!)

 

 

So how can we use this in future? Various ideas have come up so far ...

* Exactly what we did yesterday: a "hangout" always enabled in office hours, so anyone around the world can 'drop by' the WHYS office to come and have a chat, suggest ideas, make points ... For us, that would be another great way of finding interesting people who can speak on our programmes.

* Using a hangout on-air on the WHYS TV programme, putting your faces and voices on screen in a new way. Maybe the hangout is talking in parallel about the issue on the TV programme and we can dip in to hear where the conversation is going.

* Setting up a hangout AFTER each edition of WHYS for you to chat to each other about what you heard / saw, if you didn't manage to speak on the programme proper.

* Bringing a hangout into our editorial meetings to give you even more input into the issues we cover.

Obviously we're aware of potential limitations too: not everyone has access to the technology, there's not a critical mass of people using Google Plus at the moment, sometimes the technology doesn't work smoothly, sometimes we might encounter people who don't respect the courteous house rules of WHYS, etc ... If we use it regularly in future, this will only be one of many ways you'll be able to talk to us.

But if you have any more ideas about how we could harness it, or you have points to make about your experiences using Google Plus, or if you have suggestions for other sites we should be looking into instead, I'd be pleased to read them - post below!

 

 

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/08/experimenting_with_google_plus.html#295326 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/08/experimenting_with_google_plus.html#295326 Fri, 05 Aug 2011 12:11:01 +0000

 

"Gaddafi's fate is as newsworthy as Murdoch's"

wrote Nabila Ramdani a few days ago.

She's not the only one: a number of people are pointing out that, while much coverage is being devoted to Rupert Murdoch, News Corp, phone-hacking and resignations, there's a lot still going on in the Middle East.

So - we're going to talk about the latest situations in Yemen, Syria, Egypt & Libya on the programme at 1100GMT - here are some of things happening there in the last couple of days ...

]]>* In Yemen, six deaths were reported by opposition sources after government forces opened fire on protesters in the capital city, Sanaa - the first fighting there since President Saleh left for medical treatment in June.

* In Syria, human rights activists say civilians have died in the city of Homs in apparent sectarian killings.

* In Libya, US officials held face-to-face talks with representatives of Colonel Gaddafi. Meanwhile, opposition fighters have been battling government forces in Brega, an important oil town.

* In Egypt, protesters have been back in Tahrir Square in Cairo for the last 10 days saying they're disillusioned with the way the country is being run, post-President Mubarak.

We want to hear your take on the latest situation - so if you're in any of those places, or have questions for people who are, then get in touch.]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/07/on_air_at_1100gmt_remember_the.html#294017 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/07/on_air_at_1100gmt_remember_the.html#294017 Tue, 19 Jul 2011 09:24:44 +0000 This topic was discussed on World Have Your Say on 18 July, 2011. Listen to the programme here.

 

Heads have been rolling in the phone-hacking scandal since we spoke last, with the resignations of Rebekah Brooks (who was also arrested yesterday), Les Hinton and Britain's most senior policeman, Sir Paul Stephenson.

News International, Rupert Murdoch's UK newspaper publisher posted full-page statements of apology in papers over the weekend.

A lot of you are reading and sharing this editorial from today's Wall St Journal, in which the newspaper speaks up against what it calls "Schadenfreude ... so thick you can't cut it with a chainsaw":

Our readers can decide if we are a better publication than we were four years ago, but there is no denying that News Corp. has invested in the product. The news hole is larger. Our foreign coverage in particular is more robust, our weekend edition more substantial, and our expansion into digital delivery ahead of the pack.

]]>Another blogger, Tim Montgomerie, writes about "a world of black and white, hot and cold and little perspective" in the coverage of and reaction to the hacking-scandal, including the BBC's.

British Prime Minister David Cameron is now only spending a couple of days on his first trip to South Africa, in order to go back to the UK to handle the hacking story.

So here are a few questions to get our teeth into on the 1100GMT programme ...

1. Do the resignations of the senior News Corp executives and the top policeman, plus the apologies from Rupert Murdoch, draw any sort of line under the affair?

2. Is journalism - in particular, investigative journalism - damaged by newspapers turning on other newspapers in the wake of this scandal?

3. Is this story being covered at the expense of other important issues? Or does it raise such important issues that the coverage is warranted?

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/07/on_air_at_1100gmt_three_resign.html#293955 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/07/on_air_at_1100gmt_three_resign.html#293955 Mon, 18 Jul 2011 08:53:58 +0000

Another day, another high profile hack attack - this time a Fox News Twitter feed was the target, with hackers posting false messages claiming President Obama was dead.

A supposed member of the group behind the hack told a US University magazine the action was a continuation of the targeting of big corporations carried out by people previously calling themselves Anonymous:

"There will always be a group of people that need to stand up for everyone else and attempt to keep the government in balance with it's people. Without groups like Anonymous, what is there to prevent corruption?"

]]>Can hacking ever be justified in this way? Can hackers carry out a useful role in our online society? (these are some of the other ways they justify their actions)

Or is any unauthorised attack on someone else's computer or website unquestionably wrong - whatever the consequences happen to be

We're hoping to have a cross-section of hackers on the programme with Ros at 1700GMT who will tell us about what they do and why they do it. Leave your comments and questions for them here.

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/07/on_air_at_1700gmt_is_hacking_e.html#293281 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/07/on_air_at_1700gmt_is_hacking_e.html#293281 Mon, 04 Jul 2011 13:52:48 +0000

 

This topic was discussed on World Have Your Say on 10 June, 2011. Listen to the programme.

Here's the spectacular venue where Ros, Simon, Krupa and Naveena from the WHYS team - with colleagues from the BBC Arabic Service - are preparing for today's programmes on the Arab Uprisings.

We're on air at 1600GMT on BBC World News TV (one hour later than normal) and 1700GMT / 1800GMT on BBC World Service radio (usual times) and we hope you can join in.

We're going to focus on these areas, as they seem to be much discussed at the moment ...

1. Why the difference in the response from the UN in Syria compared to the response in Libya?

2. How do you fix economies slowed down by the Arab Uprisings? If economies are taking a serious hit - was it worth it?

3. The role that capitalism and Islam should play in future Arab societies.

]]>And of course, if there are any other points you'd like to discuss, you can post them here.

You can get involved in the conversation on Twitter with #bbccairo and #whys.

By the way - if our team in Cairo is glistening on your screens a little more than usual, here's why:

@rosatkins I'm looking at what I'll call a 'three-shirter'. A colleague just asked me if I'd been in the pool. If only...

I'm with the team in London (where it certainly isn't 34C / 93F!) reading your contributions and we'll be taking your calls during the programme too. Speak to you later.

See listeners' comments about this programme

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/06/on_air_from_cairo_arab_uprisin.html#292193 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/06/on_air_from_cairo_arab_uprisin.html#292193 Cairo Fri, 10 Jun 2011 14:31:28 +0000

 

UPDATE:  Ex-Bosnian Serb army chief Ratko Mladic has been declared fit to be extradited from Serbia to face trial in The Hague.  Gen Mladic's legal team say he is in poor health and that they will appeal on Monday. They have requested that he be admitted to hospital over concerns about his health.

Do you think Mr. Mladic's health should be taken into consideration in relation to this trial? We hope you'll get in touch.

 

ORIGINAL POST:

Our first glimpse of Ratko Mladic following his arrest were TV pictures of him shuffling into court in Belgrade, apparently stooping and somewhat withered.

According to the BBC's John Simpson - who met him while covering the Bosnian war - he looked like an 'old, old broken man'.

Doctors are now assessing his physical and psychological condition as part of the extradition proceedings.

]]>This is some of what his lawyer, Milos Saljic, says ...

 

The investigative judge tried to interrogate Ratko Mladic but he failed because he (Mladic) is in a difficult psychological and physical condition. It is difficult to establish any kind of communication with him.

If he's unable to communicate, and therefore to testify, is it possible to get any sort of satisfactory justice from proceedings against Ratko Mladic?

Or do you agree with smiling_suze, who tweets

 

Why on earth should it make any difference how old / ill Mladic is?! Sometimes human rights just goes too far! This man has to pay regardless of health!

Perhaps you think his physical state is symbolic of the fact that the authorities failed to catch up with him for 16 years.

Proceedings at the UN War Crimes Tribunal in the Hague were never completed against former Serb President Slobodan Milosevic because he dropped dead in his cell - more than 4 years after his arrest.

Richard Dicker from Human Rights Watch assesses it like this ...

 

"From any prosecutor's perspective, the passage of time is not a good thing. Witnesses die. Witnesses disappear. Memories fade. And in those ways the passage of time makes the prosecutor's burden heavier ... But in this instance, the office of the prosecutor at the Yugoslav tribunal undoubtedly made a tenacious effort to nail down everything that it felt it would need for an eventual trial."

Is it too late for justice in the case of Ratko Mladic?

 

See listeners' comments about this programme

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/05/is_it_worth_prosecuting_an_old.html#291375 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/05/is_it_worth_prosecuting_an_old.html#291375 Fri, 27 May 2011 11:30:00 +0000

 

You might have heard us touch upon this subject on Tuesday's programme - we'll talk about it at more length on Wednesday.

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg wants younger children to use his site.

We'd love you to join us if you're a family who can talk to us with your kids at 1700GMT / 1pm EDT about how you use the internet  ... or maybe you're a teacher who might be able to get your class involved in speaking to the programme? (if you're either, please email me)

]]>This is some of what Mark Zuckerberg has said ...

My philosophy is that for education you need to start at a really, really young age. Because of the [legal] restrictions we haven't even begun this learning process. If they're lifted then we'd start to learn what works.

The age limit at the moment is dictated by a Federal Law in the US passed in 1998. Facebook warns users when signing up not to continue if they're under 13.

We've already had a big response to the story on our own Facebook page ...

Joy in Nairobi posts

No, I wouldn't let them have one because I want them to learn how to maintain relationships in real life before they start using social networking sites and other stand-ins.

Khaleb in Kampala

I would agree with Mark Zuckerberg provided he can assure the rest of us that the usage of Facebook by kids under 13 can be regulated by Facebook.

David in Brazil

If you believe in liberty, equality, and fraternity, you believe access to information should be universal. Freud wrote in his "The Future of an Illusion" that "...it is better (...) not to withhold from them (children) a knowledge of the true state of affairs commensurate with their intellectual level."

And maybe you know under 13s who are already on Facebook anyway (apparently, 7.5 million of them are) - so is this a redundant debate?

Should children under 13 be on Facebook? Or are there good reasons to keep them away? If they do access the site, should anything be done to control what they view? And whose responsibility is that? Facebook? Parents? The government?

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/05/should_children_under_13_be_on.html#291205 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/05/should_children_under_13_be_on.html#291205 Tue, 24 May 2011 19:18:44 +0000

 

How do you feel if you're a Sony PlayStation gamer today?

Around 70 million people around the world use an online network to play games with each other - but the company has revealed the network has been hacked.

This topic was discussed on 27 April 2011. Listen to the programme.

The network was suspended a week ago, but it was only yesterday that the company blogged details of exactly what had happened on the PlayStation blog.

It's one of the most talked about stories around the world at the moment and you're raising a number of points.

]]>Whitewind has posted on BBCnews.com

This entire situation should never have happened, it's the equivalent of leaving a bank vault door open! ... I don't know how a company so big with a database of millions could take such risks.

Opl1990 posts

I think this case highlights the insecurity of technology and people need to be aware this can happen to anyone who has details stored by any company electronically that is connected to a network.

@tylertvnet on Twitter

A little frustrated that @Sony took six days to let me know my#playstation account info might have been compromised. Gee thanks.

The company says the following details could have been accessed in the attack: name, address, country, e-mail address, date of birth, PlayStation Network/Qriocity passwords and login Handle/PSN online ID.

It says it has no evidence that credit card data was stolen - but it can't rule out the possibility.

Nick Caplin, spokesperson for PlayStation says

Please note that we are as upset as you are regarding this attack and are going to proceed aggressively to track down those that are responsible.

The company's telling people to follow @PlayStationEU on Twitter for updates.

Tell us your response to this story - do you put too much trust in technology companies with your data? Are you disappointed in the company or happy with their response to the attack? Do you feel vulnerable? How are you going to respond to the news?

See listeners' comments about this programme

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/04/on_air_at_1100gmt_sony_playsta.html#289514 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/04/on_air_at_1100gmt_sony_playsta.html#289514 Wed, 27 Apr 2011 08:46:46 +0000

 

 

This topic was discussed on 25 April 2011. Listen to the programme.

The Indian guru Sri Sathya Sai Baba has died at the age of 84.

 

His million of followers around the world have been paying their tributes to a man revered across the religious divide, with both Hindu and Muslim followers.

But he also attracted controversy, with some accusing him of being a charlatan, faking his so-called miracles.

How will you remember him? If he funded free hospitals and inspired people, do his alleged faults matter?

]]>

]]> Ben James Ben James https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/04/on_air_1100gmt_sai_baba_-_holy.html#289390 https://bbcbreakingnews.pages.dev/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2011/04/on_air_1100gmt_sai_baba_-_holy.html#289390 Mon, 25 Apr 2011 09:27:59 +0000