Spreading Like Wildfire: Rumours and Misinformation

As the situation in London continues, the combination of both media coverage, and online reports have allowed people to keep track of the events, and be vigilant for it's possible effects on their own area. Thanks to micro-blogging sites like Twitter, people have been able to give first-hand accounts of the situation, as it happens, on a previously unimaginable level. However, this constant stream of information has had it's downside.

While keeping people informed has undoubtedly been useful in keeping people safe, a glut of misinformation has inflamed people's fears even further. As the rioting spread to other cities, the internet was buzzing about where would be next. Whispers and rumours spread rapidly, that the violence had reached other towns. While many areas were legitimately affected, several areas where claimed to have been hit by rioting, despite thankfully being spared. Similarly, people in Hackney were claiming they'd heard of people being shoved off of bikes to be violently mugged. However, police have said there'd been no evidence of such crimes actually happening.

Taking it even further were the people using fake pictures to cause panic. As seen above, photoshopped pictures of the London Eye on fire appeared online, along with photos of Big Ben, Westminster, and religious buildings. Despite the violence not reaching anywhere near the areas the aforementioned landmarks were located, many people took then at face value, raising worries. One of the most bizarre rumours invented was that looters had broken into London Zoo, and as a result a tiger was now roaming London. The accompanying photo of a tiger wandering in the streets was actually real, but from an entirely unrelated story in Italy, three years ago.

It's a shame that, which all the chaos and fear already on the ground, that others, entirely removed from the situation seek to compound the situation.

Video: London Rioters Help Man, Then Rob Him

As riots in London spread to other cities around England, more and more videos like this one are appearing on the internet, showing that the looting isn't confined to shops.

A young man, bleeding quite heavily, is helped to his feet by a group of young men. However, what looks at first like an act of charity warps rapidly, as one of the thugs roots through the man's backpack, before walking away with his wallet, amongst other things. The victim, covered in blood, is left to find his own way. More than anything else, despicable action like this show that that the rioting is far removed from an act of protest at this point.

United States President Born In United States; Apparently This Is News.

After weeks of goading the President, Donald Trump finally got what he wanted. Obama released his "long-form" birth certificate, proving that he was indeed a citizen of the United States.

Obama referred to the claims as a 'side show' that distracted from important issues such as the federal budget.

"We don't have time for this kind of silliness." Mr Obama said. "We've got big problems to solve. We can solve them, but we're going to have to focus on them - not on this."

The claims first appeared during the 2008 election, when several conservative critics claimed that Obama had been born elsewhere, leading to Hawaiian authorities releasing a simplified form of the document. However, the issue resurfaced in the past few months, as Donald Trump repeatedly questioned if Obama was legally eligible to hold office. So, why did he do this?

In the past few months, Trump has began to position himself for an attempt at running for the office of President. Despite his lack of political experience, and lack of policies, Trump has found himself several fans in the Republican party. However, considering there are numerous other candidates, and an incumbent president likely to hold on to his position, thus Trump has found himself fighting a bit of a battle.

Hence his recent tactic of repeatedly questioning the authenticity of Obama's victory, giving several interviews solely on the subject in recent weeks, despite the fact he's yet to officially announce his intention to run. For weeks, he's attempted to undermine the office of president. So, when the falsity of his claims was revealed, was he repentant?

No. Trump said that he was "proud" of this achievement, and that thanks to him, the debate can move on from this to the real issues. Despite being the person who had dwelt on this issue for so long. Now that Obama has finally called his bluff, what else can Donald Trump actually bring to the table?

w h o k i l l Review

For her second album 'whokill', Merrill Garbus may have moved on from using second hand cassettes and hand held voice recorders used to create alter ego tUnE-yArDs, but in doing so lost none of its predecessor's charm.

Influences from African music are prevelant throughout (Merrill spent time studying music in Kenya). However, it's the way she uses them are what's interesting. In sharp contrast to her mostly straight forward, unprocessed voice, the  beats are chopped up, reversed, staggered to great effect. Tracks such as 'Killa' and 'Bizness' in particular blast through, leaving a first time listener slightly bewildered as to what's just happened.

In short, Merrill howls like a woman demented, addressing scattershots of idea over an uneven beat. And yet, these are the positives of the album. Despite the mania, it all works. The album touches on issues of race, religion, love and personal and national identity, in a way that is never less than heartfelt. On repeated plays, each song unravels ever so slightly, allowing the listener to get that bit farther into the mind of Ms. Garbus.

It may not be your traditional fare, but it's still well worth a listen.

Judas Review

Let's be honest, going by this, Gaga clearly failed Religious Education. It doesn't really matter all that much, though.

On first listen, it's a bit of a jumble. A deceptively joyous choir of "oh-oh-oh I'm in love with Judas" opens the song, quickly giving way to the "sledge hammering of beats" we've been promised for so long. The verses are pretty dark, which seems at odds with the euphoric upbeat chorus that follows. Then there's the "middle 8" which feels pretty subdued by Lady Gaga's standards, which is followed by it all going crazy. Like all good Gaga singles, there's a hook of random syllables, this time opting for the slightly more logical than usual "Ju-das-Juda-a-a, Ju-das-Juda-a-a, Ju-das-Juda-a-a, Judas-Gaga".

Honestly, I was a tad disappointed. First 'Born This Way', and now this.

So, I went about my business for the day. And I found myself singing the chorus without meaning to. So I listened to it again. And yes, it was still everything I described above. But it started to slot into place. Gaga's chucked a lot at us here, but it all has a reason. There's a dead-pan humour to the lyrics, such as "Love is like a brick, you can build a house or sink a dead body", that suggest she's not taking it all as seriously as one might think.

After the overly-preachy 'Born This Way', it's nice to see Gaga cutting loose a bit more. Like 'Bad Romance' before it, she takes heartbeat and betrayal, and remixes them for the dancefloor.

Despite the title, don't take the religious references too seriously. They're a metaphor obviously, but she doesn't hit us over the head with them. She's leaving that for the beats to do.

K-Pop: What Exactly Is It?

Most people have never listened to Korean Pop, or even thought about it. But as more and more big name producers queue up to work with acts from South Korea, is that about to change?

In the last few years, a musical revolution has taken place in South Korea. There was a shift from balladry and soft rock, to "K-Pop", a mesh of pop, rock, rap and dance music. In a short period of time, the music industry in South Korea was revitalised. Dozens of K-Pop acts have been successfully launched since. Debuting a new act is taken very serious by the labels, with many having years of training in singing, dancing and acting before releasing a single.

Despite the fact that the acts are usually singing in a hybrid of English and Korean, it doesn't really matter that you can't understand the words. When it's done right, like any genre of music, you can feel it and appreciate it regardless. Korean Pop as it stands combines the sheer abandon of 90's pop with a "harder" edge. Acts such as SHINee and 2NE1 combine both singers and rappers within the group, with joyful pop choruses often seguing into fast and furious raps. It all adds up to a synthy sugar rush, with many tracks having real lasting appeal.

Even without breaking the West, Korean acts are having huge success. BoA, above performing Dress Off has sold 24 million albums, figures acts in the "bigger" territories like the UK or USA can mostly only dream of. In fact, South Korea is one of the few markets to have had strong growth in sales over the last decade.

There are some frustrating aspects to K-Pop, however. Full albums are a rare thing, with most acts choosing to release singles and mini-albums largely comprised of said singles. For those importing, it's often hard to justify the costs for the amount of music you're getting. 

Although it's still largely a national phenomenon, acts are starting to push outside their borders, thanks in large part to the internet. In the last year, several groups have begun to have big hits in neighbouring countries. This includes artists such as Kara and SNSD having top ten hits in Japan (becoming the first foreign girl bands to appear in the Oricon top ten since The Nolans nearly thirty years ago). BoA has also landed the lead in an upcoming Hollywood dance film. Add to this the fact that several groups are venturing on tours to both Europe and America, and it seems less and less likely that the genre will continued to be confined to South Korea. It's unlikely to become a dominant force in Western mainstream, but it's proven that it's still possible for music industry growth.

Check out:

Go Away - 2NE1 by ikpopox

8) Bang! - After School by Tenshhi

This week, Wayne Rooney will find out if he faces a ban for his outburst during the West Ham match. After completing a hat-trick, Rooney ran towards the camera and swore repeatedly. With the threat of punishment looming, Man United manager Alex Ferguson, and a host of former players have come out and claimed Rooney is being unfairly treated.

Let's be honest, Rooney isn't being victimised in the slightest. His own actions have brought this all on. He's claimed it was spontaneous. But he didn't just let a swear word slip out, he consciously went up to the camera and let rip.

It's not even the first time he's thrown such a tantrum. Back at the World Cup, the England team were booed after a draw against Algeria that captain Gerrard admitted was "not good enough". Rooney, on the other said "Nice to see your own fans booing you, you football ‘supporters’". Hardly a mature response.

As the rules stand, players get punished for goal celebrations that are deemed "unnecessary". Taunting fans, removing your shirt, time wasting have all been punished. Why should Rooney be an exception? How can aggression like that be "necessary"?

Rooney needs to be punished. Not just because he broke the rules, but because he has so little regard for the game.