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Bendtner’s pants

By Mike King

Bookmaker Paddy Power’s PR team must deserve a bonus after achieving one of the biggest PR coups of the year so far.

In what started as a minor publicity stunt, Denmark’s striker Nicklas Bendtner flashed his lucky Paddy Power underpants in the Euro 2012 match against Portugal last week.  He has now been fined €100,000 and suspended for one game by Europe’s football governing body, UEFA.   His offence, according to UEFA, is ‘improper conduct’ because Paddy Power is not an official sponsor of Euro 2012.   The irony, of course, is that the act of Bendtner displaying his branded pants would have gone largely unnoticed (much like most of his career) in the media had UEFA not decided to draw attention to it and charge him. 

If that wasn’t self defeating enough for the incompetents at UEFA, in an act of incredible idiocy they have now deemed that flashing branded pants is a much worse offence than racism and has fined the Croatian Football Federation only €80,000 for the racist behaviour of its fans.  This follows charges against the German and Russian Football Federations for fan behaviour that have seen even lower fines. 

Of course, there is a very serious point here but, from a PR perspective, Paddy Power couldn’t have asked for a better outcome.  Bendtner’s pants have exploded.  Paddy Power has achieved far more exposure than any other brand at the Euros, including all the official sponsors. 

 

Velo – to – Velo

By Jonathan Mathias

Recently, as part of the Johnson King 2012 Gold Challenge, I took to the streets of London to visit two Olympic cycling venues.  Decked out in my Johnson King special 20^th anniversary t-shirt, and new clipless pedals and shoes, it was a journey headed South and East.

First up, was the 1948 Olympic velodrome, in Herne Hill, South East London.  The venue was, until very recently, gradually falling into disrepair.  However, thanks to recent investment, the old concrete track – which I remember whizzing around one summer in my early teens – has been scraped up and replaced with a nice slick new layer of tarmac.

I wasn’t there too long and couldn’t take my bike onto the track itself as, even though it has a lot in common with track bikes, there are lots of rules about what’s allowed on the track.  For example you mustn’t have brakes on your bike and you must have the drop-type handle bars.

On then to East London and the 2012 Olympic velodrome.  Up through South East London, the City and Shoreditch towards Homerton and Hackney Wick.  The Olympic park itself is, of course, not yet opened, so the nearest I was able to get to the venue itself was from behind the barriers on the A12.

Although I – by some incredible stroke of luck given recent forecasts – managed to avoid any rain, it was very blustery, which can make for some hairy moments, especially with white van drivers waving out-of-sight traffic into your path!

Overall the distance covered on the day was 52.5km – nice practice ahead of the 250km cycle planned for next month, but more on that then…

Please visit and share our sponsorship page where we’re working towards raising a total of £5000 for the NSPCC.

 

How to get a gold medal in kayaking

By Rishika Sharma

Unfortunately, Campbell Walsh is currently busy training, so I was asked to fill in for him by Hannah (@HanT86) and Ginnia (@ginniacheng) as we attempted to kayak for 10km along the River Thames to raise money for the NSPCC as part of Johnson King’s Gold Challenge.

After paddling every way possible, and spending way too much time in the reeds, it finally hit me that this was clearly NOT the way to kayak. I’m not sure if it was the embarrassment of struggling past the stationary junior rowing team for a good ten minutes, or being in close proximity to a dozen terrifying swans, that finally gave me the good sense to paddle straight. Whatever it was has allowed me to impart the following wisdom to team GB (avid followers of this blog) in advance of the summer games:

1. Understand the vagaries of the London transport systems so that you do not, under ANY circumstance, turn up an hour late. Granted, we weren’t racing one another (or at least I don’t think we were), but it’ll be fairly difficult to win a medal if you’re not at the event. This would be my no.1 tip. 
2. If you would like to lift your arms above your head in jubilation after the event without experiencing excruciating pain, my second big tip would be to perhaps stretch a little, or even practise, before the event. Not everyone is as hard-core as us, so be warned, building endurance will help. 
3. Learn to kayak. If you want a medal, it is important to know which direction you want to go, and actually end up going in that direction. 
4. Pick your lunch well. Warm mango will not give you the energy to win a race. 
5. Lastly, karma has a huge role! If you do something as noble as donating to the NSPCC, I’m sure you will be re-paid in gold, silver or bronze! (No promises)

Living the dream: tech and cheese

By Fiona Halkerston

Earlier this month, I moved from our office in London to work at Johnson King’s French office in Paris. Having lived in France on two previous occasions – during my gap year and to study for my 3rd year at university – I knew more or less what I was in for with the move, and I was really excited about it!

People’s reactions to our decision to move were unanimously positive, but almost everyone we spoke to voiced their concern on one of three issues:

1. The food – how good it is and how careful we were going to have to be to avoid constantly over-indulging in cheese and patisserie goods 
2. How expensive Paris is as a city 
3. TV – how on earth would I cope without my beloved Sky+ and my embarrassing addiction to cheesy US sitcoms 

So I wanted to take this opportunity to alleviate people’s concerns on one of these issues. I wish it could be about the food – it’s truly incredible and I have to walk down the street staring straight ahead so that I’m not drawn in by the array of stunning French produce.

However, satisfying my thirst for American medical and legal dramas has not been a problem at all. Our apartment is fitted with a Freebox from Free, and this bit of kit has truly shown me how far ahead France is when it comes to IPTV. The Freebox offers us Wifi, cable TV (with recording capabilities), and free landline calls to over 100 countries. It also makes playing downloaded content over the TV easier than I’ve ever seen, all over the wireless network. I can sit on the sofa and control the TV from my iPad or laptop, transferring content wirelessly to the 250GB hard drive.

I realise that this might sound a lot like Apple TV, but given everything else that’s contained with the Freebox, it’s pretty incredible. Free has also recently jumped into the mobile space, offering tariffs that are so cheap that they’re forcing other operators to react and cut their prices i.e. iPhone 4S for 1 Euro, and then 17.99 Euro per month for unlimited calls, unlimited SMS and unlimited Wifi.

I admit that this is starting to sound like I’m trying to PR Free, but I’m truly impressed by this service, especially compared to the amount I was paying for my iPhone and Sky back in the UK. Free is forcing other companies to re-think their pricing models, and hopefully this is something that will have a ripple on effect to help cut costs for TV, mobile and internet use across Europe.

So, now that I’ve tackled one of the major concerns about my move to Paris, does anyone have any suggestions on how to avoid all the cheese?

Mike takes to the saddle for the NSPCC

Kudos to Mike King who took time out from his holiday in Texas last week to try his luck at horse riding, all to raise money for NSPCC.

Because those Texans are considerably braver than us Europeans, Mike was expected to take to the saddle without a riding hat and to steer one handed. And while we tend to stop at level crossings when a train is approaching, it seems that in Texas the horses are taught to gallop across the tracks.

Mike’s endeavours are part of Johnson King’s involvement in the Gold Challenge, which will see a team of us chance our arm at a number of different Olympic sports this year, covering a combined distance of 2012km. So far we’ve racked up 927km and have raised just over £3,000 for children’s charity the NSPCC.

 

Censoring cyberspace

by Lindsey Challis

Everything and anything exists on the internet; from an instant ‘drunk’ spray to a magnetic floating bed, and some things will inevitably be more suited to some people’s tastes than others.   This does however create a problem, and whilst we seem to have got the hang of controlling unsavoury content in the real world – glamour magazines on the top shelf, age restricted films and adult only shops – a new can of worms has been opened with the internet.  The scariest element of all is that it is often those who we need to protect the most – children – who have the ability to access it all!

With politicians such as Claire Penny MP arguing that ISPs must take responsibility for child access to porn, and the recent court ruling stating that ISPs should block access to the Pirate Bay, focus is once again on the internet, its availability and censorship.  For some, the net is an optional extra that they can live without, for many others it’s essential.  My concern is that the first view presumes there’s a brick wall between the real world and the virtual world, one that simply doesn’t exist. 

The online and physical world are combining, interweaving and becoming more dependent on each other, every day.  The internet is increasingly mirroring the physical world, and the more we integrate it into daily lives, the more problems this mirror will reveal.  As in the real world, there will be internet crime, obscenities and danger, and like the real world, only so many precautions can be taken.  The rest needs to be done with common sense, education and guidance.  At present, some seem to be overlooking this point.

Protecting children from unsavoury information, such as porn, terrorism and brutality is not as easy as flicking a switch, and default internet censorship is not the silver bullet.  Firstly, if children don’t find ways to circumvent the restrictions, hackers and scammers will, meaning that children may still be targeted in phishing or social engineering scams.  Secondly, what is ‘right’ and what is ‘wrong’ is completely subjective.  What for one person is nudity and inappropriate for children, may for another be sex education, or a school art project.   Different sites will also be more damaging to different individuals.  For example, weight loss sites may strike a chord with some but not others and   while websites may not look incriminating at first glance, they might need to be treated just as sensitively as more obviously explicit websites. 

It is absolutely correct that we should be trying to protect the vulnerable, but restricting websites creates the illusion that this can be done at the touch of a button, as easy as launching a web browser.  For some parents or grandparents who are less familiar with the internet, they may see such precautions as a solution, leaving children at huge risk of seeing something they shouldn’t, by simply not realising that internet use itself still needs to be monitored.  You wouldn’t let an eight year old start reading Cosmopolitan magazine, so why would you allow them on a website or into a forum which discusses similar issues?  The only reason ISPs should proactively block websites is if they’re illegal, anything else is a matter of opinion, as far as I’m concerned.  In reaction to Claire Penny MP one Tweeter quoted by the BBC said, "You want DIY stores to be responsible for what buyers of crowbars do with them."  I completely agree.

As always, a combined effort is needed: the Government, security vendors and ISPs need to advise parents on how to control internet usage, but blanket censorship of the internet is not a solution, just as it isn’t in the real world. 

 

Don’t mention the Games!

By Claire Ayles

As a sports fan and a proud Londoner, I can’t wait for the Olympics, but, with still three months to go, some of the official sponsors’ ads are already beginning to grate.

Whether it’s a washing powder suggesting your Olympic kit will fade unless you use its particular brand, or a fast food joint creating the impression that the world’s finest athletes are fuelled solely by burgers, there’s simply no avoiding the marketing onslaught.

But good luck with your Olympic-themed marketing if you’re not one of sponsors. Fair enough, firms shouldn’t be able to stick the Olympic Rings on their website if they haven’t paid for the privilege, but it seems that even pubs and bars could be banned from putting up posters saying they are showing the action. And it’s not just easy-to-bully small businesses that are feeling the heat. The same story reports that easyJet was prevented from running a campaign, fronted by 1992 Golden Girl Sally Gunnell adorned with a Union Jack, because it might step on the toes of official sponsor, British Airways.

However, there is at least one area where LOCOG, the Olympic organisers, has admitted defeat. While tickets (for those lucky enough to get some) will include small print stating that photos and videos shot of the Games cannot be posted on the internet, it has been forced to concede that these rules are totally unenforceable.

So you might want to run the risk of uploading your shots of Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps and Sir Chris Hoy to Twitter and Facebook. Or if you’re me, they’ll be pics of footballing superpowers, South Korea and Gabon (yes, I had to look up where it was too).

French say ‘non’ to election Tweets

By Mike King

The French often like to take their own path and, when it comes to social media it seems they are no different. In a move that brings to mind King Canute, French authorities are attempting to stop people from using social media to discuss exit poll results on election days. This strikes me as being as ridiculous as trying to stop people chatting about politics in the pub on the day of a general election.

In particular, the French authorities are reported to be targeting those Twitter users (and there were many of them) who discussed exit poll results before the 8pm deadline in Sunday’s first round presidential election because the law in France bans the publication of exit poll results before all polling stations are closed. And it isn’t just Twitter users in France who are under fire. In a move that reinforces stereotypes of French arrogance, the authorities were also reported to have begun attempts to prosecute media outlets in other countries, in particular Belgium, for breaking the same law. Why newspapers would have to do anything other than adhere to the laws of the country that they operate in is beyond me.

Amusingly, to get around the restrictions in France, Twitter users adopted code names for the various candidates when tweeting about them. The candidate with the most votes after round one, Francois Hollande was frequently referred to as The Flan and the current president Nicolas Sarkozy as Platform (a reference to his stacked shoes).

It will be interesting to see what action is taken and what codes are used when the second round of voting takes place on May 6th. One thing’s for sure, there’ll be plenty of people Tweeting about it, including the exit poll results.

20 years of tech with Johnson King

To celebrate Johnson King’s 20^th birthday, we worked with Blue Chew to create this wonderful infographic looking at how the tech industry has changed over the last 20 years:

Let us know what you think!

Gold medal performance

By Ben Roberts

I was absolutely gutted for Jacqui that she couldn’t run the race, but also incredibly excited to get the opportunity to run in the Olympic stadium – warming up the track for the likes of Usain Bolt and Mo Farah.

Arriving at the stadium, it was great to see so many people come out to watch and support the event.    I met my fellow ‘athletes’ and, with numbers pinned and stuck on, we made the walk towards the venue.  We entered through a discreet side door and were taken to the warm-up track, a place I never thought I’d get the chance to see!  The friendly Gold Challenge team took us through a quick warm-up session to loosen the muscles and wished us good luck.  While we waited to get out on to the actual track, the conversation was suitably chatty and friendly, but also full of nerves as none of us had ever done anything like this in front of so many people!

Then, as we walked out of the wide tunnel in one of the corners of the stadium, the scale of the arena hit us.  Being down on the track you really appreciate the size of the place, and – though the stadium was far from full – you definitely notice the noise (good work on the acoustics!). 

As I was wandering down towards the starting line I heard a strange variety of people screaming my name, looking up I noticed the JK support team cheering me on!  With such adoring fans, I  knew I had to run well!

Down to business.  We assumed our starting positions in our respective lanes and waited for the call.  On your marks.  Get set.  *BANG* (wow that gun was deafening!).  A reasonably quick runner for most of my life, I made a good start and pulled away in the first 50m or so.  But then, as my tired, unfit and frankly past it legs started to tire (I didn’t know it was possible for legs to tire during the 100m!) I noticed a charge on the inside lane.  Thankfully I just managed to hang on to the lead and record a very proud Gold Medal finish for Team JK.  It was over in a flash, but what an experience!  As a massive sports fan this was such an incredible thing to get to do.  (I'm the blurry guy in blue, if you're wondering)

 

After I’d re-joined the JK team and basked in my glory (*ahem*) we treated ourselves to some well-earned food – I was crying out for a hot dog and thankfully was satisfied.

The day was absolutely fantastic with such a great mix of people running and supporting.  A huge well done has to be said to all of those involved with organising the event and making sure it ran so smoothly and with such a friendly and warm atmosphere.

With well over 1,000km still to go in our Gold Challenge, we’re still raising money for the NSPCC, so if you’d like to sponsor us please do!