Now here’s a communication challenge – explain the proposed European constitution to anyone you know. That’s just what the European Commission would like every citizen of the EU to do. The constitution will affect 25 countries comprising 450 million people who speak over 30 different languages and dialects. Given the general lack of interest in […]
Category: Europe
‘Wordsmith’ Mandelson EU debut
Peter Mandelson, the UK’s new European Commissioner and current whipping boy of the UK’s anti-European factions, put on a star performance in Brussels on Friday during the first meeting of the new commissioners, 25 of them, who will start their new jobs in November. In a great display of political word-smithing, Mandelson said as Trade […]
The EU wins on trust
Latest state of public opinion about the European Union, reported by Straight Banana: 80% of EU citizens support the proposed European constitution (see my post last month for more info about the constitution). On trust and distrust: Regarding the EU, 41% of citizens trust it, 41% distrust it. Regarding national parliaments, 32% trust their national […]
UK political parties struggle with trust
With so much media coverage about the forthcoming US presidential elections, literally everywhere in the world, just about any other political news tends to get a bit overlooked. For instance, other than in UK media, I’ve seen little wide coverage about what’s going on in the UK as things move along in preparation for a […]
Lots going on in Sweden
One European PR blog I pay attention to is Media Culpa, written by Swedish PR practitioner Hans Kullin. Hans is the PR blogging beacon on what’s going on in Sweden (and, at times, in Norway and other Nordic countries), and judging from his posts in recent weeks, there’s lots going on there. For example: Swedish […]
EU signs new Constitution
European Union leaders today signed the new EU constitution in a lavish ceremony held in Rome. Heads of state and government took it in turn to sign the text in the same room where the Treaty of Rome was signed to establish the EU in 1957. Also present at the ceremony were the leaders of […]
Europeans give mixed marks for corporate reputation
The best-known firms in Germany, the United Kingdom and France are largely homegrown, reflecting Europe’s still-fragmented local markets, according to a survey published last week in the Wall Street Journal. The comprehensive survey of corporate reputations among companies in the European Union’s three largest countries – carried out by The Reputation Institute and Harris Interactive […]
European business networking with OpenBC
Last week, a business friend introduced me to OpenBC, a sort of ‘European Linked In.’ From what I’ve seen of it so far, it looks like an excellent networking tool especially for European-based business people. I’ve been a member of US-focused Linked In since mid year and I can see that OpenBC has many similarities […]
The free-falling US dollar
How much worse can it get? The Wall Street Journal says today: Skeptical markets drove the dollar to another all-time low Thursday against the euro, with the European currency climbing above $1.32 for the first time. The euro rose to a new high for a third consecutive day, breaking through Wednesday’s record of $1.3178. It […]
Ukraine blogs
[BBC News image] Headline news items on nearly every TV station and online media site is what’s happening in Ukraine. For instance, this latest report from BBC News. And this from the Kyiv Post. There are increasing numbers of blogs being written by people inside Ukraine and elsewhere, with comments and views that reflect the […]
The changing face of Dutch society
The Daily Telegraph carries a front-page report today about how an exodus of native-born Dutch in search of a new life abroad has reversed immigration flows for the first time since the post-WW2 era. The report says that, last year, more people left The Netherlands than arrived as migrants or asylum seekers, even though unemployment […]
Euronext moves on London Stock Exchange
Wall Street Journal (paid sub req): Euronext NV has made a preliminary approach to the London Stock Exchange PLC about a possible bid for the London exchange, the companies said Monday. “The approach is at an early stage and therefore does not require a response at this point,” the London Stock Exchange said. In Amsterdam, […]
The agony for Sweden continues
While pledges for financial aid continue to mount in the aftermath of the Asian earthquake and tsunami two weeks ago, the nightmare continues for millions of people in South Asia whose lives have been destroyed by this tragedy. The same is true in a wholly different way for the families of the thousands of foreign […]
Growing European resentment at Sarbanes-Oxley
A rising tide of resentment is building at the increasing pressure European companies are feeling to comply with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, with some European companies threatening to de-list from US stock exchanges. Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) is legislation passed in the US in 2002 in response to a number of major corporate and accounting […]
EU commissioner starts blogging
Margot Wallström, the first-ever European Union Commissioner for Communications, appointed last August, will start a blog today. A news announcement late yesterday in the EU Observer said: From Friday (14 January) onwards, the Swedish Commissioner’s thoughts will be aired for all to see. The online journal is to be updated two to three times a […]
Netherlands hard line on immigration
The Dutch government is proposing that people applying to live in The Netherlands will have to take an examination to prove that they understand the language and culture, before they get here. Today’s Daily Telegraph carries a report on proposals that were announced in parliament on Thursday, where Rita Verdonk, the Minister for Integration and […]
EU anti-spam measures face uphill struggle
Thirteen European Union countries have agreed to boost cooperation to tackle unsolicited commercial email, aka junk email and spam. The thirteen are Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Malta, The Netherlands, and Spain. InfoWorld says that under an agreement announced by the European Commission yesterday, the countries’ antispam authorities have […]
Are communicators in Europe ready for blogs?
Yesterday’s announcement that the New Communications Forum 2005 conference in Paris next month has been postponed is a huge disappointment. After the resounding success of the first Forum in the US in January (some highlights here), everyone involved was looking forward to a similar experience in Europe. Posted on the Forum blog, the announcement included […]
Defining the future of blogs and social networks in Europe
A conference taking place in Paris next month is rapidly shaping up into what could be a defining event in Europe about social networks, corporate blogging, nanopublishing and where it’s all heading. An initiative by Loic Le Meur, Executive VP Europe of Six Apart, the one-day event was originally known as "Internet 2.0." It has […]
UK general election called
The UK general election will take place on Thursday 5 May, confirming the date which has been widely rumoured for weeks. Prime Minister Tony Blair made the announcement from Downing Street a short while ago. If the governing Labour Party wins, it will give Blair his third successive term in office as Prime Minister. So […]