On this page...

• My manifesto
• Candidate questions and answers
• Word associations

My manifesto

Who wins? You decide!
Vote Alex “BBLB” Harries to help you make a difference to UPSU Media!

Hello students! I'm Alex “BBLB” Harries, and I reckon I've got what it takes to be the best Media & Publications Officer Portsmouth has ever seen.

WHO AM I?
I've worked for the Union for almost 5 years in nearly every area, from design work, photography, and DJing, to building the UPSU.net website, and more. I’ve learnt many skills relevant to this role, and understand how the Union works. With this experience, I’ll come into the job knowing exactly what needs doing!

WHAT WILL I DO?
UPSU Media is one of your Union's greatest strengths but, like anything, it can be improved: here's what I will do if you elect me:

INVOLVEMENT - the “UPSU Community”
How many of the 18,000 students at Portsmouth do you know? I want to build on the idea of the “UPSU Community” - think “Facebook”, “Bebo” and “MySpace”: University should be a place to make great friends. I also want the Sabbatical team more involved with blogging (at upsu.net/blogs) so you can see what they’re doing for you.

TRAINING

• UPSU Media: I want you to get involved with creating content, and I want to make sure you benefit from this involvement by training you as well!
• Pure FM: we will teach you how to make great radio by developing a coherent training programme.
• Also, by creating a second radio stream, Pure:FM can have a day-time training ground and - in the evenings - expand the diversity of Pure’s radio content.
• Print: I want to help you push your writing, photography and graphic design skills even further and, once trained, I'd love you to help me train other people as well!

ENTERTAINMENT
Sadly, UPSU no longer has an Entertainments Sabb, but that doesn't mean UPSU can't entertain you:

• I want more shows by clubs and societies - we've had boxing, dance, breakdance and cheerleading shows; let's keep this going!
• … and I also want to bring more musical diversity to the Union - how about organising society music nights at the Union?

Got other ideas? Talk to me - I'll try my best to make it happen!

HELP AND INFORMATION
I want UPSU to become the best starting point for anyone who's looking for advice and support.

MARKETING
It’s vital that the Union’s message is strong, consistent and clear across all media, to help you students get the most out of opportunities at the Union.

DEVELOPMENT
Finally, I want to focus on expanding every aspect of UPSU media:

• Pure FM: make sure the shows are interesting and well produced to increase listeners, and make better use of new technology, such as podcasting, to make money go further and justify further investment,
• Purple Wednesdays: get more clubs and societies featured and widen its appeal to as many students as possible,
• Finally, develop the Pugwash and Purple Wednesdays brands online - www.pugwashmag.com and www.purplewednesdays.com - to increase readership, interactivity, and to introduce new features such as videos and music.

MORE ABOUT ME
You can read more about me and my aims, and ask me awkward questions on my blog at www.upsu.net/blogs/alexh

VOTE FOR ME!
If you agree with what I’ve said here, please vote for me - Alex “BBLB” Harries – for Media & Publications Officer, and help make UPSU Media better than ever!

Who wins? You decide!
Vote Alex “BBLB” Harries to help you make a difference to UPSU Media!

Candidate questions and answers

What do you envisage the role of the Media and publications Officer to be?
It’s the MAPO’s job to ensure the Union’s media output is effective, relevant, informative, accurate and – most of all – INTERESTING! There’s no point spending money on a campaign if no-one gets the message! The MAPO should also make time to commission new projects to further enhance student media.

Communication with the student body lies solely with this position. What in your opinion is the best way to communicate with the student body?
Be continuously inventive, and always aim to engage your target audience: no matter what the format, it’s essential to know how to attract the attention of your market.

My one essential rule is “Always treat your target audience with respect. And never assume they think the same way you do”!

Why are you attracted to Media?
Finding new ways of keeping peoples’ attention, and the resulting creativity, amazes me. I also love helping people generate new ideas and helping them see it through to completion. The difference between the success and failure of everything the Union does rests with media; the satisfaction of seeing a major project like Pugwash or UPSU.net come to life is amazing!

How would you expand on the success of Pugwash, Pure FM and www.upsu.net?
They can all benefit from a focus on training, and a drive to increase variety of content. I also want UPSU.net to reflect everything that goes out in print – for example, Pugwash magazine – online. Online media provides a range of interaction possibilities, e.g. polls, forums, and voting: we must take advantage of these tools to encourage student interaction.

Who is the best communicator of all time and why?
The person whose opinion and advice you listen to and trust. We are more likely to listen to and believe what someone has to say if we think they’re trustworthy. Even the best marketing campaign in the world is worthless if the brand isn’t trusted; for the Union, it must keep listening to its students, and making sure their needs are the first priority in everything it does.

This position becomes much easier with student participation. How do you plan on getting students involved in your ideas?
I want to work with our media outlets to create effective training courses which really benefit the students taking part. I also want to promote the range of media opportunities for students with emphasis on their training and participation benefits. My manifesto goes into this in more detail, so please have a read if you haven’t already!

What experience have you gained so far in Media?
For the last two years I’ve redesigned and built UPSU.net, working closely with the Sabbatical team and UPSU staff. I’ve also helped to create PWs and Pugwash online, and I’m currently working on the UPSU.net Community. While I don’t know everything, I know how to do this job, and I know how to do it very well!

As a sabbatical networking is essential and important, what is your best ‘networking line’?
I’m really sorry, but I don’t have a “line” – “Hello” is usually about as much planning as I do before starting a conversation! I do like to get chatting to new people though, so please come and say hello if you see me about!

Word associations

Media: Multi-faceted
Communication: Essential
Paper: Old-school!
Design: Psychology
Funding: Investment