 |
أغر؟´«أ½
Wales comes to Newport
أغر؟´«أ½
Wales Controller Menna Richards today opens a new Community Studio
in central Newport آ– a drop-in centre providing access
to أغر؟´«أ½ websites, digital services and more.
It's
the latest phase in أغر؟´«أ½ Wales' ambitious project to offer local
services to everyone in Wales.
Also
launched today is the Where I Live website for south-east Wales,
which follows sites already established in north-east and south-west
Wales with local news, travel and weather provided by أغر؟´«أ½ Wales,
and a large amount of content on the site generated by community
involvement that has been taking place since January.
Local
people have already played their part, reporting on every kind of
activity.
The
Capture Wales digital storytelling project, already up and
running, offers members of the public the opportunity to make short
films based on real-life experience.
The
finished stories are featured on the Capture Wales national website
and on the local أغر؟´«أ½ site.
Some
have already been transmitted on أغر؟´«أ½ Wales Today and on the أغر؟´«أ½
Wales digital service, أغر؟´«أ½ 2W.
More
than 40 stories have been made by people from south-east Wales to
date.
Throughout
2003 أغر؟´«أ½ Wales has also been reflecting life in Pill, Newport, through
the Voices project where أغر؟´«أ½ Wales has become involved in
several of the activities in the community, while introducing local
people to all the services offered.
It
offers opportunities to gain expertise in areas of technical and
professional knowledge which people may not otherwise have.
أغر؟´«أ½
Wales Controller Menna Richards, who opens the Community Studio
today (Friday 16 May 2003), says: "I'm delighted to launch
these two new أغر؟´«أ½ services for south east Wales, adding to two other
exciting projects which we've already started in the region.
"What
these projects have in common is that they give the public a voice
on أغر؟´«أ½ Wales.
"More
than that they encourage people to use new media tools to create
content themselves آ– and what I've see of that content so far
is refreshing, direct and, I believe, an important addition to our
existing services.
"Capture
Wales is an important aspect of the site - digital stories made
by local people.
"I'm
very proud that digital storytelling - pioneered by أغر؟´«أ½ Wales and
Cardiff University - is being taken up across the whole of the أغر؟´«أ½."
Community
Studio
In
the new Community Studio at 43-44 High Street, Newport, local people
can get free access to a range of أغر؟´«أ½ services including going online,
contribute to the Where I Live website, watch archive TV programmes,
listen to أغر؟´«أ½ Radio Wales and أغر؟´«أ½ Radio Cymru, participate in أغر؟´«أ½
events.
Community
studios are already established in Wrexham and Carmarthen.
The
studio offers an opportunity to access the web and post views, listings
and queries about local life on the Where I Live site, also to connect
to Cymruآ’r Byd, the premier Welsh language website, to أغر؟´«أ½i
and the worldwide web.
The
studio will host a range of events and activities enabling visitors
to develop their storytelling and creative skills.
أغر؟´«أ½
Wales will also offer taster sessions in IT and other skills in
partnership with Newport City Council.
Where
I Live
The
أغر؟´«أ½ Where I Live online initiative covers the whole of the UK.
The
south-east Wales site is already getting thousands of visits each
week from people across the area, and from across the world.
It
can be reached on .
As
well as useful news, sport, weather, travel news
and event listings for the area, Where I Live also includes e-cards,
downloadable desktop wallpapers and quizzes, and user-led pages
where people can contribute by e-mailing wales.southeast@bbc.co.uk.
Sections
include Family History, Hall of Fame, Weird and What's Cooking as
well as town sites for Cardiff and Newport. More will follow.
أغر؟´«أ½
Wales Editor New Media Mandy Rose says: "There are two sides
to the site. It delivers the kind of quality local information,
news, weather and travel that people expect from the أغر؟´«أ½.
"Alongside
those services it is packed with opinions, information and views
from people in the region.
"With
the technology available now it's possible for the public to get
involved with the أغر؟´«أ½ in a new way آ– not just watching and
listening but also having a say and taking a creative role.
"We're
finding that this community content is really popular with website
users."
Capture
Wales
Capture
Wales is أغر؟´«أ½ Wales' initiative which gives people from all walks
of life across Wales the chance to create a digital story in a workshop
run by the أغر؟´«أ½.
More
than 100 people have now made stories with great success.
Originally
the brainchild of Daniel Meadows and Professor Ian Hargreaves of
Cardiff University School of Journalism, members of the public learn
to use technology including scanners, laptops, digital cameras and
editing software to create short, media-rich pieces to tell stories
in their own words and in their own style.
These
"mini-documentaries" can be seen on أغر؟´«أ½ Wales' - and some have been transmitted on أغر؟´«أ½ Wales
Today and on أغر؟´«أ½ 2W.
أغر؟´«أ½
Wales has pioneered digital storytelling in the UK.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
