2013-05-24T02:54:34-04:00 Simon Cohen http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/author/index.php?author=simon-cohen Copyright 2008, HuffingtonPost.com, Inc. HuffingtonPost Blogger Feed for Simon Cohen Good old fashioned elbow grease. tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.3258123 2013-05-12T19:00:00-04:00 2013-05-13T05:28:53-04:00

Simon Cohen http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simon-cohen/
So here are five life lessons from my daughter Grand Master Seren, after a week of being on this Earth:

1. Respect Women - Newborn babies are perfect testimony to the miracle of childbirth, and the awesomeness of women. For anyone who has shared the sacred space of a pregnant woman, been privileged to share the labouring and delivery process, will immediately appreciate the special and spiritual realm that women take on this Earth. The fact that we do not afford women more respect, dignity and compassion for childbirth alone is one of society's greatest modern travesties.

2. Be Present - There is no greater gift than to be present, and newborn babies are the greatest teachers in what it means to be truly in the moment. The world of regret and nostalgia is non-existent for newborns. Thoughts of 'If only she dressed me in the panda outfit yesterday' simply don't exist. Ambitions and aspirations are also nonsensical in the newborn world - why reach to the future when there is so much magic to discover in the present? 'How am I feeling right now?' 'What do I need right now?' We could all do with tuning in to these powerful questions.

3. Basic Human Needs - I could write a novel called 50 Shades of Poo after this first week, but these most fundamental of functions is a reminder of how we adults have a habit of overcomplicating life. There is nothing, absolutely nothing more important than meeting our basic human needs. When these needs are met, as newborns teach us, life can be blissfully happy. If we focused less on the retina display ipads and more on the vision of a world where all people's basic needs are met, we will all be happier as a result.

4. Non-Verbal Communication - Newborn babies communicate so much without words. They are able to tell you when they are hungry, tired, or simply want a cuddle. They cry, whimper, and growl in different tones, fluent in the same language used by babies across continents - one of the few universal languages that remain. But it is when they make no sounds at all - the sound of silence - that they communicate the most. With their fixated eyes alone, they can share the secrets and mysteries of the universe. When we shut up and listen, we remember that 80% of all human communication is nonverbal, and it is where the magic happens.

5. We Were All Babies Once - It's a simple thing to forget. All of us: Sir Alex Ferguson, President Obama, and even the the Boston Bomber. We were all squiggling and squirming, staring and being sick, in need of love and other basic needs. While this doesn't excuse or explain any of the choices we make as adults, newborns remind us that at a fundamental level we are all deeply connected. Before we brand anyone as 'other', we might remember that all 7billion of us are brothers from other mothers and sisters from other misters. And when we think of our so-called enemies as wrinkly babies in need of a hug, we suddenly stop taking the world too seriously. And that's probably the greatest lesson of them all.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.3084669 2013-04-15T10:05:57-04:00 2013-04-15T11:13:42-04:00

Simon Cohen http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simon-cohen/ the Anne Frank museum, when he said he hoped the Holocaust victim would have been a 'belieber'.

With news that the police have granted protestors the right to turn their backs on Margaret Thatcher's coffin during the funeral procession, moral questions arise about how we respond to death as a society.

Having lost my best friend to a brain tumour, I find myself thinking about how I would respond to public - or even private - ridicule following the death. How would I react if someone sung 'Ding Dong the Witch Is Dead', minutes after the news came?

In the beautiful film, Griefwalker, a terminally ill lady shares her fear that her husband and children will break up as a family after her passing. Steven Jenkinson, the 'Griefwalker' and palliative care specialist, softly says 'The table you set is going to determine the food they eat now.'

All of our words and actions lay the table of our legacies. Bieber's ill thought out words say more about the young man's own journey, than that of Anne Frank. But so does his choice to visit a Holocaust museum on a Friday night in Amsterdam.

The angry voices surrounding Margaret Thatcher's death reflect that not everyone enjoyed the table laid by the former Prime Minister. And that's okay. As a friend once said to me 'all things to all people is nothing to everyone.'

I would like to think that I would not be swayed by ridicule at my best friend's death. The table he left for me was so beautiful, the food so sweet - that would suffice. I would also realise that those who mock, celebrate, joke or jibe at other's deaths, are setting their own tables with their daily words and deeds. Whether they will be remembered for laying tables of dignity and respect in 70 or 700 years is yet to be seen. But I somehow doubt it.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.1293480 2012-02-23T19:00:00-05:00 2012-04-24T05:12:02-04:00

Simon Cohen http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simon-cohen/ Sun have survived the hacking scandal if the News of the World had been called the Sun on Sunday (SOS)?

Probably not. The closeness of brand The Sun to the doomed Sun on Sunday would have sounded the death knell for the daily tabloid, forever linked with the Sunday's criminality and dishonesty.

They might have tried to re-brand the daily, to The Moon perhaps, with a rethink on the Page 3 offering, but few discerning people would swallow it.

And we're more discerning than ever. If the main reason for the Sun's survival is its distance from the News of the World brand, what are we to make of the prospects for SOS? With five senior Sun journalists recently arrested on suspicion of bribing police officers and senior officials, the mighty Sun is probably relying more on the success of its Sunday publication to secure its own position, rather than the other way around.

It takes more than a week to brand and design a newspaper from scratch - this has been some time in the making. The decision to launch the SOS so soon after the arrests, and with so much pressure from News Corps shareholders in the US and UK, reflects the extent of the crisis within Murdoch's empire.

So how do we respond to Murdoch's distress call?

Firstly, with compassion. The birth of any baby, regardless of its parents, is a moment for hope and reflection. Stories of a more family focused editorial stance, and a cover up (of the positive kind) are encouraging.

Perhaps the most appropriate response to the SOS call, is to offer some friendly Sun-style advice, about how to build loyalty for the nascent brand:

• Buck up! Only improved ethical standards and quality journalism will do. Champion the dignity of all human beings, in all that you do, and you won't go far wrong.

• Fed up with being fed up. President Clinton recently said that we have entered the 'age of how'. We know there are problems in the world. We're fed up with being fed up. The plummeting circulation figures of all the national dailies tell their own story. What are the solutions? We are surrounded by amazing people doing amazing things. Tell us about them.

• Good news makes a killing. The secret is out - good news sells. Sensational, conflict-driven media never build loyalty or trust. They're simply not sustainable. It's no coincidence that The Huffington Post recently launched its Good News section, and others are following suit. Ouest France, the most read francophonic newspaper in the world, has seen its circulation rise while others around the globe falter. The paper has strict ethical editorial guidelines. Coincidence? There's real money to be made in the solutions business.

• Tweet Us Nicely! When Murdoch launched the Sun in 1969, we didn't have the same tools of discernment as we do today, because the technology and diversity of communication channels simply didn't exist for the masses. The media spoke at us, rather than with us. Today, success is predicated on two-way engagement. SOS launches at the time of Twitter, Leveson, the Arab Spring, Duck Ponds, and Citizen Journalism. Rupert Murdoch's SOS falls on deft ears indeed. Listen to the masses, or watch us walk away.

There is much riding on the response to Murdoch's SOS call. The relationship with the Sun brand means that the daily giant itself is at stake. How we, the readers, respond to the call is equally important. We are hugely powerful. Not only are we media owners, mobile phone users, tweeters, bloggers and global citizens, we are the gate-keepers to the success of SOS. Our choices to purchase papers, to speak up when we see a lack of balance or justice, is already shifting the media landscape. How we speak up is also key. We can choose to be ranting readers and bang on about the problems with our media, or we can choose to be the media we wish to see in the world, raise our voices and help drive solutions in the spirit of compassion and justice.

By setting an example, as powerful consumers, SOS and other emerging media will need to take a more solutions-driven, positive and ethical editorial approach. Positive press is where the smart money is, and anything else will simply be found out in the Age of the Discerning Reader.

As Buddha himself said, "Three things cannot be long hidden: the Sun, the Moon, and the Truth."]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2011:/theblog//3.956333 2011-09-10T19:00:00-04:00 2011-11-10T05:12:03-05:00

Simon Cohen http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simon-cohen/ Citizen's log 09/11/11

As the search for General Terror continues, Citizens begin to question the decision to wage war against him ten years ago.

Victory, like General Terror, is nowhere to be seen. According to a Gallup poll, Americans' views today on who is winning the war are the same as they were in October 2001.

Major Confusion, a key member of General Terror's senior command, is largely blamed for the setbacks. From the crackdown on the Uighurs in China, to the controversial anti-terror legislation in the UK and the US, Major Confusion continues to blur the battle-lines of the War on Terror.

The whole search for General Terror has been plagued by controversy from the outset. The United Nations Office on Drugs & Crimes and the former head of British Intelligence service MI5 are among the sources to criticise the whole concept of a War on Terror, and the subjectivity surrounding General Terror's identity.

Now, 10 years after the tragic events of 9/11, concerned Citizens around the world are renouncing our roles in the War on Terror. It has emerged that it is neither General Terror nor Major Confusion who is the real enemy, but a low-ranked officer, Private Error.

Private Error has has been spotted thousands of times since 9/11, but he continues to fuel the fire of fear between us.

Citizens, it is now time to declare our own war, The War on Error. The War on Terror, which President Bush once said was 'a task that does not end', is finally over.

The War on Error is a non-violent campaign to rid the world of media and political misinformation. It is a war against the mistruths of Weapons of Mass Destruction, a battle against Dodgy Dossiers, a fight against General Terror's terms 'Muslim Terrorist' and 'Axis of Evil.'

Our strategy must be sound - Private Error is a dangerous enemy. He will willingly use our lack of knowledge against us, feeding on our apathy to further his own specious agenda.

Sun Tzu in 'The Art of War', stated that the most effective strategies are ones that transform our enemies into allies.

The War on Error will have a strategy based on facts: to search out different perspectives to our own: to question, discern and discriminate. Before we face the enemy, we must first have the tools of discernment to make informed decisions about the issues that effect our lives.

But the War on Error will also have a non-violent strategy. Mohandas K Gandhi, said

'Non-violence is the greatest force at the disposal of mankind. It is mightier than the mightiest weapon of destruction devised by the ingenuity of man.'

Gandhi's Satyagraha, 'the force of love or truth which is born out of non-violence,' was born on September 11th in 1906. This non-violent movement, born on 9/11, has helped free over 3.3 billion people in the last 100 years. A noble strategy for the War on Error.

By arming ourselves with these weapons - Weapons of Mass Instruction - we strengthen our capacity to find and confront Private Error. We will not defeat the enemy, we will listen to him, confront his mistruths, transform his heart with love and compassion, and embrace him as our ally.

But first we must find him. We need to enlist more soldiers to join the War on Error. If you think you spot any signs of Private Error - on Twitter, in the classroom, the board room, or the mirror - arm yourself with Weapons of Mass Instruction, and share your corrections with the hashtag #WarOnError. Join the War on Error: Your Citizens need you!]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2011:/theblog//3.913207 2011-07-29T17:42:29-04:00 2011-09-28T05:12:01-04:00

Simon Cohen http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simon-cohen/ If Superman lived today, would he still choose to be a journalist?

It would be a tough decision. For a profession that is supposed to be about the fight for truth and justice, it has taken an almighty battering in recent weeks.

The revelations around The News of the World's criminal activities would have been like Kryptonite to the Man of Steel. This is not what Clark Kent, or thousands of his fellow journalists around the world, signed up for.

The closing down of the paper would hardly have appeased our shrewd superhero friend. After all, when super-villain Lex Luthor came under fire by the Daily Planet, he took over the paper and subsequently shut it down. Superman knew all about the difficulties involved with media ownership.

Perhaps Rupert Murdoch is no Lex Luthor, but the hacking scandal, and more recent events, raise serious questions about media ethics. For example: where are they?

Mr. Murdoch's flagship paper was closed down for unethical and illegal behaviour. As the tragic events unfolded in Norway, his new British flag-bearer, the Sun carried an unforgivable front-page headline:

"'Al Qaeda' Massacre -- Norway's 9/11:"

The headline was positioned next to a person with a bloody face being shepherded to safety. For the more discerning reader, the photo is not too dissimilar to an iconic image taken in the aftermath of 7/7. The message was clear, but the facts were not.

We all now know that an individual, Anders Behring Breivik, and not al Qaeda, has since claimed responsibility for the 76 deaths. Have we learned nothing from Hackgate?

The Wall Street Journal, another Murdoch-owned publication, posted an editorial that clumsily connected the Oslo killings with the controversy over a Danish cartoon of the prophet Muhammad:

"When cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad appeared in a Danish newspaper in the fall of 2005 and sparked a full-blown jihadist campaign against Denmark, then-Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen responded with a telling remark. 'We Danes feel like we have been placed in a scene in the wrong movie."' After reading this as part of an editorial about the Norway tragedy, I know exactly what Mr. Rasmussen means. Wrong movie indeed.

Of course, there are many within the mainstream media that gave voice to impassioned and unhelpful speculation from so-called experts who claimed the hand of al Qaeda was clear to see. But in the midst of one of the greatest scandals to ever hit the media, Mr. Murdoch's empire warrants extra scrutiny. Now that the 'renegade reporter' line in the News of the World seems to have fallen down, and more phone hacking accusations sweep across the media, it is only a matter of time before the editorial and governance decisions of other NewsCorps media are under the spotlight.

Can you imagine if Lois Lane published a misleading, misinformed, sensationalist headline like "'Al Qaeda' massacre -- Norway's 9/11"? She would be sacked straight away. So why is the Sun any different? Sensational headlines fuel the 'us and them' mentality, and risk igniting incendiary campaigns like the burning of the Koran.

The major Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen once said, "The worst enemy of truth and freedom in our society is the compound majority."

Ibsen was referring to those who act foolishly by blindly following their elected leaders. The media, which should be fighting for truth, justice and freedom, is an enemy unto itself. By blindly giving voice to so-called experts, including some of its columnists, the media further damages the effect of the compound majority.

In a world in which over 5 billion people have a mobile phone, nearly all of us are media owners and have a responsibility to think before jumping on the bandwagon of the day. But how are we to reject some of the pseudo-truths within the blogging world, if our professional journalists don't hold themselves to higher editorial standards?

So where is hope amidst this fiendish world of deception? Alas, it doesn't come with a cape or blue tights. It comes in the form of accountability. Free speech and the first amendment are essential, but we also need to be held accountable if our views fall short of the ethics and balance we expect of others. Speculation has no room in the newsroom. Fact.

We live in hope that the Murdoch and other mainstream media raise editorial standards, and become part of the solution, rather than the problem. Clearly distinguishing between news and commentary and providing audiences with tools of discernment need to be minimum standards of performance for the modern media. But there is also a question of proportionality.

At the height of the hacking scandal, we just about learned that the UN had announced a famine in Somalia. Around 3.7 million people -- around a third of the population -- are on the brink of starvation. Millions more in Ethiopia, Kenya and other African countries have been hit by soaring food prices and the worst drought to hit the region in 60 years.

This is a moment for superhero journalists to show their true colours. This is a moment for journalists to stop serving the compact majority, and start leading towards saving lives. Too long have many in the media hidden behind sound-bites about 'public interest' and 'reflecting demand,' instead of focusing their lenses where it is needed the most. When our children are dying, moral courage is required.

A broader debate is needed around media values: from regulation, censorship and ownership, to freedom of speech and spin. Only when media owners and editorial decision-makers start leading us into the fight for truth and justice will we become part of a profession that Superman would be proud of. ]]>