Tag: media

Lighter Technology

It’s Fun To Work (And Play) At Google

Everyone wants to work somewhere that’s interesting and fun.

The people at Google have taken that concept to an extreme.

Their new Canadian headquarters in Toronto, Ont. have some features that make everyone want to come to work.

Google is the Internet’s most popular search engine (the software program that helps you find websites you’re looking for).

The company also makes many other software products such as Google Maps and Google Chrome.

Google also owns many Internet companies including YouTube and Blogger.

Lighter

What’s In A Meme? Ikea Monkey Goes Viral

Who knows why something “catches on” through the Internet?

Somehow it sparks the collective imagination and before you know it, it’s gone “viral.”

That’s what happened last week with the “Ikea monkey.”

Bronwyn Page was in an Ikea (furniture store) parking lot in North York, Ont. on Dec. 9 when she saw something unusual.

A little brown monkey wearing a diaper and a tiny, expensive-looking coat.

News Sports

The “Voice Of The Blue Jays” Wins Prestigious Award

Grown men have been known to tear up upon hearing the famous words: “Touch ’em all, Joe!”

They were spoken by Blue Jays’ baseball radio broadcaster Tom Cheek back in 1993.

Recently, the Baseball Hall of Fame announced that the “voice of the Blue Jays” would receive the prestigious Ford C. Frick award for broadcasting excellence.

Many fans consider the award long overdue.

Cheek was part of the first Blue Jays radio broadcast. He continued to be the voice of the Blue Jays for 27 years.

From his first game to his last, he never missed a game. He worked 4,306 games in a row–from April 1977 until June 2004.

Cheek also broadcast 41 playoff games.

Cheek experienced struggles in his early years.

He was also witness to back-to-back World Series championships for the Blue Jays in 1992 and 1993.

But topping it all was the call he made in 1993.

Blue Jays outfielder Joe Carter had just hit a huge home run to win the World Series.

News

Celebs Sleep Outside For Homeless Fundraiser

Celebrities can usually afford a nice home, a comfy bed and tasty food.

But last Thursday, Arlene Dickinson and Brian Burke slept outside on the ground in only sleeping bags.

That night, the temperature dropped to 0-degrees C.

Dickinson is one of the “dragons” from TV’s Dragon’s Den, a show in which wealthy businesspeople invest in new businesses.

Burke is the General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team.

Both of them have plenty of money and can afford nice accommodations.

They were “sleeping rough” to help raise money for Covenant House, which provides shelter and services to homeless kids in Toronto and other big Canadian cities.

Health News

Ontario Doctors Call For Strong Action To Help Children Maintain A Healthy Weight

The Ontario Medical Association (OMA) wants the government to put higher taxes on junk food.

Doctors say that higher costs would make it harder for children to buy junk food.

They also want high fat and sugary foods that have little nutritional value, to have more information and even warnings on the packaging.

And they want less junk food advertising, especially targeting children.

These are just three strong actions doctors say will help children eat less junk food, keep their weight at a healthy level and live a longer life.

The Ontario Medical Association said that over the years strong actions like extra taxes and scary pictures on cigarette packages have helped to reduce smoking from 50 per cent, in the 1960s, to as low as 20 per cent in Canada today.

Doctors say this kind of action can help in the same way with junk food.

News

Rebuilding A Special Community Castle

Last March a fire all but destroyed a very special playground in Toronto.

The city’s High Park children’s castle had been lovingly built by volunteers. Its destruction resulted in an overwhelming community response–including a day-long community celebration.

Celebrity contractor, Mike Holmes, stepped in with his crew to offer to lead the rebuild–an elaborate new playground structure.

Holmes filmed the rebuild for his television show, Holmes Makes It Right. It’s scheduled to air later this month.

The description for that episode reads:

When a beloved castle playground in Toronto’s High Park is damaged by fire, “Mike Holmes is fuming.

“He leads a legion of crewmembers, engineers, architects and firefighters into battle against extreme heat and construction challenges, all while the clock is ticking.

“With help from the community, Mike and his team overcome major setbacks to rebuild a brand new castle that’s fit for any King or Queen, teaching kids that they can rise above any obstacle and build their own kingdoms.”

News

Ikea Criticized For Airbrushing Women From Its Saudi Arabia Catalogue

Ikea is a large chain of stores around the world that sells furniture and home accessories.

Recently the company came under fire for removing all of the images of women from the pictures in the Saudi Arabia edition of their catalogue.

In the Ikea catalogue, families are shown using and enjoying Ikea’s products. In the Saudi Arabia version of the book, none of the families show women in them.

In other editions of the catalogue, women are featured in the photos.

The images of women were digitally removed from the pictures in the catalogue. This is known as airbrushing or photoshopping.

Ikea said they shouldn’t have removed the images; they regret having done it.

Ikea prints more than 60 versions of its catalogue and sends them all over the world.

News Politics

Romney’s Debate Performance Puts Him Back In The U.S. Presidential Race

U.S. President Barack Obama has a reputation for being an eloquent speaker.

When he was first elected in 2009, he won the hearts of American voters with his smart, straight talk.

His opponent in the American presidential race this time around is Mitt Romney.

On Wednesday night, the two men who want to be president squared off in a debate.

Each debater spoke for two minutes on topics such as healthcare, the American economy and how they would create new jobs for Americans if they are elected.

News

Pope’s Butler On Trial For Leaking Documents

The Pope’s butler is on trial.

The Pope is the leader of the Catholic Church around the world. The current Pope is Pope Benedict XVI.

The Pope’s butler is named Paolo Gabriele.

His job is to look after the personal needs of the Pope—for instance, serve the Pope his meals and help him dress.

Naturally, he has access to some very private areas of the Vatican, like the Pope’s bedroom and other rooms.

For months, Italian media have been publishing private information about the Catholic Church. No one knew where the media got the information.

It looks like the butler may have done it.

Arts Entertainment News

CUT! It’s A Wrap For TIFF 2012

The 2012 Toronto International Film Festival ended last Sunday.

For 10 days, movies from more than 60 countries were shown around the city.

Thirty-eight of them were premieres, or films that were shown in Toronto for the first time. And all the big players–famous actors, directors and producers–came out to see them, and to be seen.

A film festival is an event about movies: watching movies, making movies and acting in movies. And of course, it’s about the business of movies. Many big movie deals are made during TIFF. Storytellers meet writers. Writers meet producers. Producers meet directors. Directors meet actors. And later–often years later–a movie is made