Fisher-Price Asks Parents Around the World To Share A Wish for their Child's Future this New Year

 

EAST AURORA, NY – January 2, 2015 / PR Newswire / — Fisher-Price, Inc., one of the world's leading infant and preschool toy manufacturers and a subsidiary of Mattel, Inc., today released a short film entitled Wishes for Baby, marking the official launch of the Best Possible Start marketing campaign. Directed by award-winning documentarian Patrick Creadon, and filmed with real parents around the world on New Year-s Day and the final days of December 2014, this short film captures the incredible love and hopes all parents share for their children during those first moments after their baby is born.

 

Award-winning documentarian Patrick Creadon (not in image) captures Lauren Sweeney from Boston, MA holding her twin boys for the first time for the short film Wishes for Baby from Fisher-Price, Inc.

 

“We hope parents will see themselves in the film and be encouraged to add their own wish for their child to the worldwide chain,” said Lisa Mancuso, Senior Vice President of Fisher-Price Global Brand Marketing for the Baby business. She further commented, “The work of Fisher-Price has always been to enrich the lives of young families. The incredible love parents share for their children and the dreams they hold for them to reach their full potential is universal. Wishes for Baby is our way to say – ‘we-re so inspired by all you do to give your children the best possible start in life’; – and we-re here to support you in nurturing your child-s development in the most engaging and playful way!”

Created and produced in the early hours of New Year-s Day, this heartwarming short film captures the first wishes of new parents for their babies all around the world including: US, Japan, Mexico, Brazil, Kenya, Bangladesh, and Poland. The 90-second film captures real parents holding their babies for the first time, showing that the best possible start in life begins with love. To view the film, go to http://youtu.be/ai2jv9bU-VY
“The first time you hold your baby, you wish so many things for them,” said Patrick Creadon, father of three young children. “I did too,” he adds. “You-re filled with an incredible desire that they have every opportunity in life. I was drawn to this project having filmed the births of my own children and knowing that new life, combined with self-reflection brought on by a new year, would be a powerful thing to portray.” He continues, “Parents are universally connected by the same wish for our children, built upon the same foundation of love. It transcends what we think divides us.”

Wishes for Baby is launched with paid media on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, followed by a six week social media engagement campaign across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest to gather wishes and inspire genuine conversation with parents via #WishesForBaby. To see the conversation, visit facebook.com/fisherprice. #WishesForBaby

Well-known author, illustrator, and mother of two, Adele Enersen, will add a special touch to the engagement campaign by depicting the most popular wish themes from around the world in charming, artful responses. Each week, new prompts will encourage more sharing among the community and responses will be adapted into a growing catalog of beautiful artistic expressions.

The film was shot by local film crews at ten hospitals in seven countries and five continents guided by an international creative team. Filming in Kenya and Bangladesh was made possible with the help of Concern Worldwide, a 48-year-old international humanitarian organization doing what it takes in the world-s poorest countries to assist in the areas of disaster response, health and nutrition, climate resilience and more, with a particular focus on women and children.

About Fisher-Price
In 1931, Herman Fisher and Irving Price embarked on a journey to change the toy industry. Their goal: creating playthings that inspire a child-s development. More than 80 years later, Fisher-Price remains deeply rooted in the belief that play is the way children learn best. To this day, understanding the importance of play in building a child-s skills is the fundamental principle, as the company strives to enrich the lives of families with young children around the globe. United by the passion for a child-s safe care and development at each age and stage, the people of Fisher-Price work tirelessly to bring families the best toys and baby products in the world. Some of the company-s best-known brands include Laugh & Learn^®, Little People^®, Power Wheels^®, and Imaginext^®, and it-s also a leading developer of character-based toys for children-s programming such as Thomas & Friends^™, Dora and Friends: Into the City!, and Jake and the Never Land Pirates. Fisher-Price is a subsidiary of Mattel, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAT). For more information, visit www.fisher-price.com (U.S.) and www.fisher-price.ca (Canada) or connect with Fisher-Price on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest.

About Patrick Creadon
Patrick Creadon began his career as one of the youngest cameramen in the history of PBS, shooting and producing cinema-verite style stories for the critically acclaimed series The 90s. In 2006, his directorial debut, Wordplay was the breakout hit at the Sundance Film Festival. His follow-up film, I.O.U.S.A., also premiered at Sundance and was shortlisted for the Academy Awards. Patrick has served on several film festival juries including Sundance Film Festival, the LA Film Festival, and the Ashland Film Festival. In 2011, he debuted as a television director on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

About Adele Enersen
Adele Enersen is a mother of two children and an award-winning advertising copywriter and concept designer. She came to prominence with her baby blog, Mila-s Daydreams, and later established herself as an international author and illustrator of children-s books with the publication of When My Baby Dreams.

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Contacts

Fisher-Price
Michelle Chidoni
310-252-3921
Michelle.chidoni@mattel.com

Weber Shandwick
Dagmara Grabowski
212-445-8238
dgrabowski@webershandwick.com

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President Goodluck Jonathan's Camp Jittery Over His Critics in the Social Media

President Goodluck Jonathan's Camp Jittery Over His Critics in the Social Media

A reliable source close to the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) has revealed that President Goodluck Jonathan is jittery over the popularity of his critics in the social media which made him to complain about the dangers of social media in political campaigns.

The freedom of expression on social network sites and blogs is exposing many embarrassing facts on President Jonathan. The WikiLeaks' reports on President Jonathan as "grossly incompetent, corrupt and sectional" have left his social media agents at their wits end.
Source: https://cablegatesearch.wikileaks.org/cable.php?id=09ABUJA2173&q=goodluck

But Dr. Doyin Okupe, the Senior Special Assistant on Public Affairs to President Goodluck Jonathan said:
“President Goodluck Jonathan would win with or without social media. They have the social media, but GEJ has got the people.”

The worst fears of President Jonathan's camp are more terrible secrets could be exposed on the internet before the presidential election next month.

With over 67 million Nigerians using the internet from more than 127 million Nigerians using GSM phones and tablets, the social media will make a great impact on voters in the 2015 elections, because millions of people can easily make phone calls and send text messages on their popular choice of who to vote for. Word of mouth is loudest in Nigeria as people can easily use personal communication with their phones and social network sites to swing voters in favour of any contesting political candidate within minutes and also report electoral malpractices and unlawful conduct at polling units wherever they are located in Nigeria.

The neglect of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) who are now refugees in their own country since they escaped and fled from the Boko Haram terrorists has also increased the angst against President Jonathan. Many of them wonder why he has not even visited them, but has time to host and visit those far away from the troubled zones and spending millions of dollars on entertainment when thousands of victims of the Boko Haram are neglected in the IDPs' camps. And he seems to have forgotten about saving the over 200 missing Chibok school girls.

Bukky Sonibare, one of the members of #BringBackOurGirls(BBOG said:
“Only 6,500 IDPs are living in government camps, the rest, about 500,000 people, are staying with families in Yola and they are really suffering. We took relief materials to them and they were just crying. They have no clothes, no blankets; some of them sleep on bare ground.

“What happened to the billions raised for the Victim Support Fund? What happened to the Victim Support Fund? They are going through hell. What happened to billions of naira to support the IDPs? About 13 people died between September and December due to cholera. What happened to human feeling?” according to Leadership newspaper.


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Don't Sell Your Vote To Anybody or Any Political Party in the 2015 Elections

The most desperate political candidates of the two major political parties in Nigeria are already mapping their geographical strategies on how to use political bribery to pay for Permanent Voters' Cards (PVC) of poor voters at locations where they are not the popular choices of the voters. This the method of vote rigging that will replace the outdated misleading or confusing ballot papers, ballot stuffing, misrecording of votes and multiple voting by rented crowds of voters in the 2015 elections in Nigeria.

Vote buying is an electoral fraud. And desperate political contestants have amassed billions of naira to buy as my votes as they can from N1, 000 - N5, 000 per vote. And the highest bidders may end up having more votes than the opposing contestants.

States to watch for Vote Buying are the following:
1. Abia
2. Rivers.
3. Cross River.
4. Lagos.
5. Kwara
6. Kano
7. Niger
8. Jigawa
9. Adamawa
10. Kaduna
11. Borno
12. Plateau
13. Benue
14. Ebonyi
15.Anambra
16. Edo
17. Delta

In national elections, successful electoral fraud can have the effect of a coup d'état or corruption of democracy.
~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_fraud

Please, pass on this message and share it as many times as you can to all eligible voters in Nigeria.
Your vote can decide your fate and the fate of the entire nation.
Only a free and fair election will give us the best democratic leaders and representatives of our constituencies for the common good of all citizens of Nigeria. So, don't sell your vote.
Your vote is not for sale.

Source: #iVoteNigeria, a Voluntary Pro-Democracy Campaign To Promote Free and Fair Election and expose electoral malpractices by word of mouth mass communication using GSM phones and tablets, emails and social network sites to exchange messages with all the GSM users in Nigeria. Pass on the message on social network sites as you see this message - See more at: http://www.nigeriansreport.com/#sthash.5NH3dj2a.dpuf

#iVoteNigeria is the Nigerian chapter of the global #iVote Popular Democracy Campaign for the advocacy and promotion of democracy in every country in the world.
https://www.facebook.com/iVoteNigeria.

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#iVoteNigeria is a Voluntary Pro-Democracy Campaign To Promote Free and Fair Election

#iVoteNigeria is calling on all registered voters in Nigeria not to sell your votes to any political party or political contestant in the 2015 elections.
Your vote is not for sale.
it is a crime to sell your vote.

#iVoteNigeria is a voluntary pro-democracy campaign to promote free and fair election and expose electoral malpractices by word of mouth mass communication using GSM phones and tablets, emails and social network sites to exchange messages with all the GSM users in Nigeria. Pass on the message on social network sites as you see this message

.#iVoteNigeria 
is a project launched by Nigerians Report Online to promote democracy and good governance in Nigeria for peace and unity among all Nigerians. 

 


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Anthony Ujah Leads 1. FC Koln of Bundesliga Against Top Brazilian Clubs for 2015 Florida Cup

2015 Florida Cup Preview from Bundesliga USA on Vimeo.

1. FC Koln's striker Anthony Ujah (a member of the Nigerian national team) will lead the team alongside Bundesliga club Bayer 04 Leverkusen competing against Brazilian clubs Corinthians and Fluminense FC for the 2015 Florida Cup in United States of America.  See full report in the following Bundesliga press release.

FRANKFURT, Germany and ORLANDO, Fla., Dec. 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- As the popularity of soccer continues to grow in the United States, Bundesliga clubs Bayer 04 Leverkusen and 1. FC Koln will travel to the U.S. in January to compete in the 2015 Florida Cup against Brazilian clubs Corinthians and Fluminense FC. The clubs will play in a four-match tournament that will take place in Orlando on Jan. 15 and Jacksonville on Jan. 17.

The tournament will consist of double-headers at both the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando and EverBank Field in Jacksonville. To crown the tournament and national club champions, each match victory will deliver three points, with one point for a tie in regulation and one additional point for a penalty shootout victory.

Local rivals 1. FC Koln and Bayer 04 Leverkusen represent two of the most competitive clubs in German soccer. Since the club's founding in 1948, 1. FC Koln has claimed two Bundesliga championships, with an additional German Championship title prior to the Bundesliga's formation. Bayer 04 Leverkusen has a history dating back 110 years that includes a UEFA Cup championship and a Champions League final appearance in 2002.

Finishing in fourth place in the Bundesliga last season, Bayer 04 Leverkusen has carried their stellar play into the 2014-2015 season. Currently in fourth place, Bayer 04 Leverkusen is led by electrifying winger Karim Bellarabi. The squad also features American goalkeeper David Yelldell, who has spent time on the United States men's national team roster.

Coming off of a 2. Bundesliga championship in the 2013-2014 season, 1. FC Koln is relying on the youth of left back Jonas Hector (who recently joined the German national team) and striker Anthony Ujah (a member of the Nigerian national team) to lead the team as they look to re-establish themselves in the Bundesliga during the 2014-2015 season.

Tickets for the Florida Cup can be purchased online at Ticketmaster.com or at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex and EverBank Field box offices. Match dates and times are listed below:

• Jan. 15 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex (Orlando): Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs. Fluminense FC at 5 p.m. EST; 1. FC Koln vs. Corinthians at 7:30 p.m. EST.
• Jan. 17 at EverBank Field (Jacksonville): Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs. Corinthians at 1 p.m. EST; 1. FC Koln vs. Fluminense FC at 3:30 p.m. EST.

The Bundesliga has also released a new video featuring club backgrounds and player interviews leading into the Florida Cup: https://vimeo.com/114898691.
For more information on the 2015 Florida Cup, visit www.bundesliga.com.

About Bundesliga
One of Europe's top tier soccer leagues, the Bundesliga sits at the pinnacle of Germany's club soccer league system. With 18 member clubs and ranking first in the world in average match attendance, the Bundesliga attracts international soccer stars and fans from around the world – with broadcast television access in over 200 countries. The league was formed in 1962 and is operated by the Deutsche Fußball Liga (DFL).
Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141218/165340LOGO

SOURCE Bundesliga
CONTACT: Andrew Starr, astarr@webershandwick.com
RELATED LINKS
http://www.bundesliga.com

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Michael Bloomberg Tops CCRKBA's List of 'Top 10 Anti-Gunners' for 2014

Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York and co-chair of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG)

1. Bloomberg spent $50 million to create Everytown for Gun Safety, the anti-gun lobbying organization. He helped finance the Initiative 594 gun control campaign in Washington State and he is supporting a similar effort in Nevada. Others on the list are, in alphabetical order: 
2. Paul Allen – The billionaire co-founder of Microsoft and principle owner of the Seattle Seahawks and Portland Trailblazers, he dumped a half-million dollars into the I-594 gun control campaign in Washington State. 
3. Steve Ballmer – Another Microsoft alumni and owner of the L.A. Clippers who added more than $1 million to the I-594 effort to criminalize perfectly legal activities in the Evergreen State. 
4. Hillary Clinton – The former First Lady and Secretary of State suggested earlier this year that gun owners "terrorize" people by vigorously defending the Second Amendment. She also supported the unratified UN Arms Trade Treaty. 
5. Andrew Cuomo – The New York governor who championed that state's Draconian SAFE (for Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement) Act, which is responsible for job losses in addition to penalizing every gun owner in the state. 
6. Rahm Emanuel – The vehemently anti-gun mayor of Chicago whose administration has stubbornly resisted adoption of rational gun policies that would allow citizens to defend themselves against out-of-control violence in the Windy City. 
7. Bill Gates – This billionaire Microsoft co-founder and his wife contributed more than $1 million to the I-594 gun control effort, thus helping to pay for one of the most insidious political campaigns in the United States. 
8. Nick Hanauer – Another elitist Seattle-area billionaire who launched the I-594 gun control campaign and poured more than $1 million into the effort. His deplorable effort to exploit the Pilchuck High School tragedy by sarcastically suggesting that, "We need more school shootings" was an offensive new low in anti-gun politics. 
9. Eric Holder – The outgoing U.S. attorney general fought to stall release of thousands of documents related to the Operation Fast and Furious scandal, final losing his battle in federal court this past fall. 
10. Shannon Watts – As founder of the Bloomberg-supported Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, Watts has spread disinformation about gun crime and campaigned against laws that bolster personal protection outside the home.

Click here for more details.

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Nigerians Need to Change the Government from Abia to Abuja

 President Goodluck Jonathan shaking Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State.

 If you visit Abia state and see how the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) has messed the state, and yet President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife First Lady -in- Chief Dame Patience Jonathan are commending and applauding the worst governor in the history of the state, Mr. Theodore Orji, then you will know how evil and wicked the PDP is from Abia to Abuja.

Any reasonable person does not need any more proof to know anyone by whatever the person is doing and promoting.
When the head of state of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is promoting and supporting a shamelessly corrupt and incompetent state governor, then you are no longer in doubt that they are partners in crime.

To make matters worse, the President and his First Lady have imposed a governorship candidate on the people of Abia to succeed Theodore Orji against the wishes of even majority of the members of the PDP in Abia state.
The imposition of Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu is undemocratic and the only way the PDP can win the gubernatorial election in Abia is by rigging, because the majority of the voters in Abia will not vote for him.

First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan and Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State.
Photo credit...Abariikwu.

From Abia to neigbhouring Rivers state, the PDP has also imposed former Minister of state for Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike as the gubernatorial candidate and in fact, the dictatorial First Lady of Nigeria has already started introducing him as the next governor of Rivers state even before the election! And she is bullying others all the way with impunity with her husband nodding in approval.
The Prince of Niger Delta politics, Prince Tonye Princewill, governorship candidate of Labour Party in Rivers State has already said the PDP will lose in a free and fair election. But heaven knows that the PDP is not planning for a free and fair election in 2015, but planning and plotting to rig the elections wherever the party is not the popular choice of the voters.
No wonder the largest donations to the presidential campaign of the All Progressives Congress (APC) came from Igbos in the south eastern states, because they are already protesting against the leadership of the PDP.
Lest we forget, the first vice presidential candidates of General Muhammad Buhari (retd) were Igbos; late Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, former President of the Senate of Nigeria in 2003 and late Chief Ume-Ezeoke, former Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 2007 presidential election that was massively rigged by the notorious PDP and in fact the winner, President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua of the PDP admitted before the United Nations Secretary General, Mr. Ban-Ki Moon, "that the process through which he became the president of Nigeria was faulty".
The PDP has never won any presidential election without rigging and anyone expecting a free and fair presidential election in 2015 will be disappointed.

There will be change of political leadership in Abuja either in 2015 or before 2019, because when the ignorant masses of Nigerians know the shocking facts of the PDP mafia, they will know how evil and wicked the ruling party is no matter the pretensions of President Goodluck Jonathan. But the sooner they reject the ruling party the better and safer they will be, because without change, the situation will become worse for majority of Nigerians as corruption and violence will increase.

The widespread violence in the Niger Delta, Middle Belt and northern states of Nigeria is caused by corruption, because a corrupt government cannot guaranty the security and welfare of the majority of the citizens of the country. That is why there are more children out of school in Nigeria than any other country in the world and the World Bank recently reported that 100 million Nigerians live in destitution with 60 percent of Nigerians living in extreme poverty, "when the nation pumps two million barrels of oil per day and that just 10 percent of the money, which the political leaders and their cronies fritter away, will reduce the poverty ratio by as much as 30 percent"

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Most Influential Ad Age Media Figures of the Year 2014

Meet Ad Age's 2014 Media Mavens

These 23 Media Creators, Sellers and Innovators Are Taking on Key Challenges and Reinventing Ways of Doing Business

 

Kirsten Atkinson, Live advertiser at Team One

Honorees
Lauren Wirtzer-Seawood
Head, Digital, Parkwood Entertainment

Lisa Weinstein
President, Global Digital, Data and Analytics, Starcom MediaVest Group

Anthony Rushton
CEO, Telemetry

Michelle Phan
the foremost beauty vlogger

Kay Madati
Chief Digital Officer, BET

Ashley Kaplan
Head, Content, Fullscreen

Cindy Holland
VP, Original Content, Netflix

Steve Hasker
Global President, Nielsen

Adam Harter
VP, Consumer Engagement, Pepsi

Todd Gordon
EVP, U.S. Director, Magna Global

Michael Engleman
EVP, Marketing, Syfy and Chiller

Gonzalo Del Fa
President, GroupM Multicultural

Andy Blau
SVP & Group GM, Ad Sales, Time Inc.

Spencer Baim
Chief Strategic Officer, Vice

Kirsten Atkinson
Media Director, Team One
Emmett Shear
CEO, Twitch

Zhu Wei
CEO, Miaozhen Systems

John Oliver
Host, HBO's "Last Week Tonight With John Oliver"

Ze Frank
EVP, Video, BuzzFeed

Ricardo Dias
Global VP, Consumer Connections, Anheuser-Busch InBev

Christene Barberich
Editor-in-Chief & Co-Founder, Refinery29

Bob Rupczynski
VP, Media and Consumer Engagement, Kraft Foods Group

Jonathan Schaaf
President, Digital Investment, Omnicom Media Group

 
NEW YORK, Dec. 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- "Join marketing and media's movers and shakers to celebrate the smartest thinkers of the year - the men and women bringing innovative ideas to life like never before and stretching the boundaries of advertising. Be there as the 2014 Ad Age Media Mavens share their secrets of success. They are building the most interesting things in media. They are moving the media business in new directions. They are confronting media's biggest challenges," The Ad Age said.
As 2014 comes to an end, "The Advertisement Age" has granted the title of "2014 Ad Age Media Mavens" to Wei Zhu, the CEO of Miaozhen Systems. Being part of the annual grand occasion for the global media, Wei Zhu is the second Chinese citizen to win the award after Huang Hong. While, for the Chinese media industry as a whole, this is not only a personal level award, but a grand honor for the entire field of China's media industry. This also represents an unprecedented level of interest that the Madison Avenue has ever given to the Chinese media.

Because of such an incredible honor, when Wei Zhu learned that he had won this award, his first reaction was "pride." However, this pride was not for being honored as an individual; it came from the joy caused by the progression of this industry that he has devoted himself to. Being granted this award means that "The Advertisement Age" and the entire Madison Avenue advertising community have been impressed by the rapid development of the Chinese media industry. This award also stands for the highest commendation and recognition towards the self-transcendence of the Chinese media field.

Since Wei Zhu joint the Miaozhen Systems in 2008 as the Chief Executive Officer, he is responsible for the business development strategy and operations management. He is also responsible for managing the company's core technology as well as research and innovation. He actively promoted the prosperity and development of the company's technology in data marketing. Indeed, Wei Zhu acted as a captain of Miaozhen Systems, and took care of the strategic management and business operations. With his novel concept of merging data assets and mass data assets into the overall field of marketing, Miaozhen Systems has become the leading benchmark for digital marketing in China. In the age of mass data marketing, Miaozhen Systems is the first Chinese enterprise that targets mainly on the assessment of digital advertising effectiveness, which helps the company to optimize its digital assets and market value. This is why "The Advertisement Age" has granted Wei Zhu the title of "the most influential social media figure of 2014."
Throughout the campaign history of this "most influential media figure of the year" campaign, which is hosted by "The Advertisement Age," the majority of the awards are aimed at marketing and media strategists. The candidates were all from the global media and the winners were those who had devoted themselves into key areas of this global media market, with the spirit of fostering creative innovation, facing numerous challenges and reinventing business models. Over the years, Huang Hong and Wei Zhu were the only Chinese citizens to receive this award.

According to Wei Zhu, innovation represents the new combination of old elements. And for Miaozhen Systems, the novel development is based on combining the traditional advertising field with the innovative technology industry; by making them come together, a new industrial capacity will be created. Indeed, the attention that Zhu has brought to "The Advertisement Age" represents the major influence that China's media industry and the domestic media market has on the international domain. Thanks to Wei Zhu, and many industrial experts like him who dared to reinvent new media models and promote the development of media in multiple areas, this incredible transcendence could finally be achieved.

Hence, it did not matter whether people were competitors, advertisers or representatives, the industry as a whole was genuinely pleased and proud once they heard of Wei Zhu's achievement. Both the traditional and the new media felt happy for Wei Zhu. The fact that Madison Avenue has already paid close attention to China's media market comes from the result of a rapid growth in China's domestic media industry. When asked about winning this award, Wei Zhu is seen happily talking about the industry's future and development; he says, "there is no doubt that Madison Avenue has already paid close attention to China's media market. "


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Social Media and the 2015 Elections in Nigeria

Since the popularity of social media in the nomination and election of President Barack Obama, the power of social media has been proved and also effective in the Tunisian revolution. 
See “Tweeting Out a Tyrant:” Social Media and the Tunisian Revolution by Mariam Esseghaier
http://wi.mobilities.ca/tweeting-out-a-tyrant-social-media-and-the-tunisian-revolution/

With over 67 million Nigerians on the internet and more than 127 million users of GSM phones, social media will play an influential part in dictating public opinion on Nigerian politics and politicians and should influence the 2015 elections, because the youths who are the most active users of social media are the largest voting bloc. But with majority of the youths unemployed, they will be willing pawns of the desperate political contestants who are ready to pay for their votes and in fact are already recruiting many jobless youths as "internet warriors" as reported in the international news media on the BBC and CBC.
Letter from Africa: Nigeria's internet warriors
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-29237507
Internet warriors: Fight for political sway in Nigeria goes digital
http://www.cbc.ca/q/blog/2014/10/07/nigeria-online-political-thuggery/

Some internet warriors of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) are earning as much as N100, 000 - N250, 000 monthly per person to attack and malign Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd), the presidential candidate of the opposing All Progressives Congress (APC) on Facebook, Twitter and popular Nigerian newspapers' websites like The Punch and Vanguard.

Social media will also be very effective in tracking voters and polling units and to monitor and report electoral malpractices and security updates at the various locations in Nigeria.


~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima, Author of In the House of Dogs, The Prophet Lied and other books.

Top Reports 

Dec 23, 2014

• Posted at 19:43 WAT A team from the Political Section of the High commission visited Jos

Dec 22, 2014

• Posted at 21:00 WAT GOJO Releases Annual Sustainability Report:

Dec 20, 2014

• Posted at 03:51 WAT Adopting resolution, Security Council urges fight against nexus of transnational crime, terrorism
• Posted at 01:49 WAT IMF Staff Concludes 2014 Article IV Mission to Nigeria

Dec 19, 2014

• Posted at 18:23 WAT Arrêt de la propagation du virus Ébola au Mali : le rôle de la BAD a été décisif
• Posted at 16:51 WAT Foreign Secretary condemns killing and mass abduction of civilians in Northern Nigeria
• Posted at 15:01 WAT African Development Bank has provided decisive support to stop the spread of Ebola in Mali
• Posted at 14:58 WAT Foreign Secretary condemns killing and mass abduction of civilians in Northern Nigeria
• Posted at 08:22 WAT Statement by the Spokesperson on the abduction of women and children, and killing of at least 32 in Gumsuri village in Borno state, North eastern Nigeria
• Posted at 04:12 WAT UN envoy condemns latest spate of attacks in Nigeria

Dec 18, 2014

• Posted at 21:58 WAT Bassin du Lac Tchad – La BAD aide à renforcer la résilience des systèmes socio-écologiques
• Posted at 17:00 WAT Keynote Announces Partner Program with New Alliances To Expand Global Footprint

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Will the Missing Chibok School Girls Know It's Christmas?

Over 270 Chibok school girls are still captives of the Boko Haram terrorists in north eastern Nigeria since about 300 of them were kidnapped when their school was attacked and razed at midnight on April 14, 2014.
21 of the Chibok school girls who escaped fro‎m their Boko Haram abductors have been awarded scholarships to attend the American University Nigeria Academy, AUN, Yola, sponsored by former Vice President of Nigeria and a presidential aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who is the founder of AUN. But the Nigerian government has given up hope on saving them and in fact, President Goodluck Jonathan did not remember them in his Christmas message.
Will they know it is Christmas?

Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

See As the Year Ends, Where Are Nigeria’s Kidnapped Girls?
By Alexis Okeowo on http://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/year-ends-nigerias-kidnapped-girls

See the following Girl Rising Nigeria Time Line on the Missing Chibok School Girls and join the #BringBackOurGirls campaign. 

Timeline of Events

This timeline, based on news reports, summarizes the events that followed the abduction of almost 300 girls in northern Nigeria. Check back for updates.
Monday, April 14

• Residents of Chibok received phone calls on Monday night from residents in neighboring villages, who had seen convoys of vehicles (trucks, buses, motorcycles) with heavily armed militants heading toward Chibok (The Guardian).
• They warned of an attack by Boko Haram (The Guardian).
• The militants and the convoys arrived at Chibok around 9 p.m. and headed straight for the Girls Government Secondary School (CNN).
• They engaged in gunfire with around 15 soldiers who were stationed at Chibok and the Girls Government Secondary School (The Guardian), killing two soldiers (CNN). The soldiers were outnumbered and reinforcements didn’t arrive (The Guardian).
• The militants, who were dressed in Nigerian military uniforms according to escaped girls, then entered the buildings where the girls were sleeping (The New Yorker). They told the girls not to worry, that they were taking them to safety (The New Yorker). Some of the girls thought the men were Nigerian soldiers protecting them, but then realized the men were not when they shouted, “Allahu akbar” (Sydney Morning Herald).
• Over 270 girls, who were mostly between 16 and 18 years old, were rounded up at gunpoint and loaded into the vehicles (The Guardian). According to the Guardian, the whole event lasted 5 hours, running into the early hours of Tuesday (The Guardian).
• Some girls escaped that night, jumping off of trucks, grabbing onto swinging branches (The Telegraph), or running out of vehicles that were broken down (CNN).
• The school was among the 85 secondary schools that the Borno state officials had closed since March because of attacks and threats by Boko Haram, but the girls had returned to take their final exams (NYTimes).

Tuesday, April 15

• Small reports from BBC News and Associated Press about abduction. Very little information is known at the time. Reports say only 100 girls missing.

Wednesday, April 16

• The Nigerian military stated: “Just eight of the 129 abducted school girls were still missing.” (CNN)
• Major General Chris Olukolade stated that “One of the alleged attackers has been captured, and a military search-and-rescue operation is ongoing to ‘ensure the safety of the remaining students.’” (CNN)
• “Soldiers and the Civilian Joint Task Force, as well as volunteers from the area, are now combing the forest to rescue the schoolgirls. They are aided by surveillance helicopters to locate the kidnappers' position.” (CNN)

Thursday, April 17

• Conflicting with the Nigerian military, parents registered over 230 girls missing, a number much higher than reported by the government. (CNN)
• On April 17, the Nigerian military retracted the report on the missing girls. The director of defense said the initial report was “not intended to deceive the public.” (CNN)
• On Thursday and Friday, there were conflicting reports of how many girls were still missing and those who had managed to escape. Asabe Kwambura, principal of Government Girls Secondary School, stated 14 girls escaped and returned. Musa Inuwa Kubo, the Borno state education commissioner, said 30 girls had escaped.(CNN)
• Parents made several attempts to venture into the “vast forests where militant camps are located – and where near-daily air raids by the Nigerian army have been halted since the kidnappings – many said they had little faith in the government.” (The Guardian)

April 23

• First time #BringBackOurGirls is used on Twitter. At April 23 UNESCO World Book Capital City opening ceremonies, VP of World Bank Africa Oby Ezekwesil demanded the release of the girls, saying, “Bring back the girls.” Ibrahim M. Abdullahi tweeted the statement with #BringBackOurGirls and #BringBackOurDaughters. (Mashable)

April 28

• Borno state governor said that eight more girls had escaped over the weekend, meaning a total 52 had fled. (BBC News)

April 29

• Malala Yousafzai speaks with BBC Radio 4 about the abducted girls in Nigeria, calling the girls her sisters, and saying that every girl has a right to an education, that Boko Haram is abusing Islam, and that the international community must listen and must raise their voices. (BBC Radio 4)

April 30

• New outlets reporting girls are being sold by Boko Haram for $12 and are being taken across border to Chad and Cameroon. (Washington Post)
• Spike in international tweets mentioning #BringBackOurGirls in response to girls being sold as slaves. (Mashable)
• One Million Women March in Abuja, Nigeria, including mothers and families of missing girls, women from Chibok, and hundreds of Nigerians in protest about government and military response. (The Guardian)
• Petitions on Change.Org and the WhiteHouse.gov begin appearing to pressure U.S. and UN to send aid to Nigerian military. (Mashable)

May 1

• Social media campaign takes off in U.S. with celebrities such as Mary J. Blige and Chris Brown tweeting to #BringBackOurGirls. It was tweeted 268,616 times on May 1. (Mashable)

May 3

• John Kerry states that the U.S. will help in search for missing girls during a speech in Ethiopia, beginning the first official U.S. governmentt response to Nigeria. (Washington Post)

May 4

• President Goodluck Jonathan makes statement vowing to find missing girls, three weeks after they were abducted. Jonathan is facing criticism from parents of missing girls, many Nigerians, and also international pressure. (TIME)

May 5

• Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau publishes a video saying they kidnapped the girls and will sell them on international “human market.” (The Guardian)
• Reports of 11 more girls kidnapped from two more Borno state villages, as well as reports that two girls had died of snake bites and 20 girls are ill. (Associated Press)

May 6

• President Obama makes statement that the U.S will send help to the Nigerian military and government, including small team of advisors on military, hostage situations, and law enforcement. (TIME)

May 7

• FLOTUS Michelle Obama posts to Twitter and Instagram a photo of her holding a #BringBackOurGirls sign, and it’s been retweeted 45,310 times so far. (ABC News)
• Nigerian police offer $300,000 reward for information on location of girls. (LA Times)
• As of May 7, #BringBackOurGirls has been tweeted 1.3 million times…and counting. (BBC News)
• As of May 7, there have been over 30 protests worldwide against the abduction and government’s response, and in support of the missing girls and their families. Many more are planned for following weeks, with more being added daily across the globe. (Bring Back Our Girls)

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