Social media | Westminster World

Nov202017 by Jane BracherNo Comments

How a Facebook page helped young Londoner cope with depression, anxiety

As early as 13 years old, Mhairi Potts-Wyatt from London had already contemplated taking her own life. She didn’t even know that was called ‘suicide’ at the time, nor did she understand she was battling depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. But somehow, Potts-Wyatt made it to 21 years old. And she has a Facebook page to thank for it. The Artidote is a social media community founded on Facebook in 2015 by Jovanny Ferreyra. With close to two million followers, the page, as its name suggests, uses art as a means of healing and improving mental health. Each post features a piece of artwork coupled with a quote either from followers, someone anonymous, or a famous personality. Potts-Wyatt, who is in the process of being diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, jo

Nov202017 by Emily Srebotnjak No Comments

Indian Medical Student Wins Miss World 2017

Culture, DontUse, LifeStyle, Social media

Miss India Manushi Chhillar has won Miss World 2017, and although the 20-year-old medical student’s beauty stood out amongst the other contestants, her intelligence ended up being the ultimate crowd-pleaser. Ms. Chhillar is the sixth winner of this competition, making India tied with Venezuela as they both now hold six victories over the course of the pageant’s 67 years of running. Ms. Chhillar is the first Indian to win the competition in seventeen years. The event was held in the coastal city of Sanya, China on Saturday evening. The competition held contestants from 118 countries and regions. As Ms. Chhillar made it to the final round of the competition, she was asked: “Which profession deserves the highest salary and why?” Her award winning response was: “A mother deserve

Nov132017 by Caroline Paul No Comments

Spotify to sell more than music

Breaking News, DontUse, LifeStyle, Music, Social media, Tech startups

From today Spotify sells more than just music and related official merchandise. Users who visit the service to stream tracks by US singer songwriter Maggie Lindemann, will now be offered the chance to buy the same make-up she wears. Cosmetics company Pat McGrath Labs teamed up with the music streaming app in what Spotify plans to be the first of many e-commerce collaborations. Details for the products will appear in the same area where music lovers can buy gig tickets and band T-shirts. Lindemann has 7.5m monthly listeners on Spotify and 2.4m Instagram followers. The launch of this new commercial venture coincides with the release of her new single, Obsessed. SHOP #LiquiLUST007 Singles EARLY on @MaggieLindemann @Spotify now!! See the full video on https://t.co/YbyGE7Ocgf!???https

Mar262017 by Marc FarràsNo Comments

London’s independent cinemas: building revolution

Art, Audio, Culture, Film, Media, News, Social media

It’s Saturday evening in Central London. It’s cold outside, and a young student couple fancies a good movie. Their decision will reveal how the cinema business in the capital has evolved to a new paradigm of both management and consumption. It’s mid-March and all the Oscar-award winning films are on screen. She wants to see La la land, but he has already seen it, so it’s going to be Moonlight. They check the screenings on their smartphones. The closest venue is the Curzon in Bloomsbury. 13 pounds. Too much for their short budget. Another option: the Vue in Islington. 11 pounds. Still too expensive. They live in East London, so what about the Hackney Picturehouse? 11,5 pounds, no way. He is about to quit. Wait, she says, let’s check the Genesis in Whitechapel. Look, 7 pounds. Deal. Once

Mar262017 by Evie ChomchuenNo Comments

Let me show you how to Hygge!

Audio, Blogs, Culture, Fashion, Food, Social media

Hooga? Hhyooguh? Heurgh? No, “Hygge” is pronounced HOO-guh (with an old-timer car horn) which you may as well pronounce it right as it is ‘the key to happiness’ … or at least that’s what they say. (credit: Pinterest) Hygge is a Danish term broadly translated as everything from “creating intimacy”, “cosiness of the soul”, “the absence of annoyance” to “taking pleasure from the presence of soothing things”. Well … it seems the pronunciation isn’t that difficult after all. But however broad and abstract the concept of hygge may be, it has become a hype so suddenly and inescapably that the word “Hygge” itself has received an extraordinary spike in coverage. In 2016, the figure of the word alone has shot up to more than 200 pieces in national newspaper, roughly speaking, that’s 400 per ce

Mar242017 by Shiksha AroraNo Comments

Is the human touch needed to put an end to online dating fails?

dating, Social media, Tech

Finding a life partner has long been a subject of concern especially after hitting your late 20’s. If you were of South Asian origin, grandmothers played cupid and had a major role in hand picking your future partner. Matchmaking in today’s world isn' just limited to the Asian household, it has come to be a well-known phenomenon globally. In London, particularly, matchmaking has turned into this million-dollar industry where professionals in their 30’s spend thousands of pounds in a quest to find the perfect match. 68% of people in the UK admit to have used online dating sites, but what is the probability that a computer algorithm will be successful in finding you the right match? Data found in 2014, shows the success rate of the different dating sites. With an overload of dating we

Mar242017 by Minghao GaoNo Comments

What will Brexit mean for UK tech startups?

Audio, brexit, DontUse, EU investment, EU referendum, EU talents, International, Media, News, Politics, Social media, Tech, Tech startups, Video

UK’s tech entrepreneurs remain concerned over Brexit despite the government’s recent investment guaranteed on the Spring Budget. Talent access Jack*, a london-based tech entrepreneur, said that he is to launch a startup company, but is concerned over Brexit. He told Westminster World that he fears the hiring cost of his business would spiral because of a “hard Brexit deal”. The 29-year-old will create a digital publishing platform where consumers could be engaged by various visual content. He said: “Especially for digital startups, their employees have never had to think about residential opportunities here, whether they need visa or not. Even if Brexit is not here yet, for many of them it would make no sense to take jobs in the UK if after a year they will have to apply for certain

The unfiltered world of ‘fake’ Instagram accounts

Opinion, Social media, Tech

“The selection process is mostly your close friends or anyone who you trust to see not-so-nice photos of yourself.” Emily* is an 18-year-old girl who loves Facebook and Instagram. She’s been on social media for most of her teen years, and enjoys scrolling Instagram for funny videos and photos her friends post. Emily is acting as my guide to one trend on the photo-sharing app which is previously unchartered territory for me: Finstagrams. ‘Finstagram’ explained A ‘Finstagram’, or fake Instagram for the uninitiated, is a private Instagram account run alongside with the user’s public account. The difference between the two is that the ‘Finsta’ is a much more liberated space where posting is more frequent and less filtered. Emily explains: “a few of my friends do to kind of spam wi

Mar232017 by Khyati RajvanshiNo Comments

Thriving without money: Local London Charities tell the tale

Audio, DontUse, Environment, Harrow, Health, Media, News, Social media, Video

With the country facing harsh financial climate, hundreds of charities in London are striving to create a better environment for local people. Despite their efforts, a new survey now shows that all of them are in danger. How do local charities function and achieve their goals in London? What are the dangers that are stopping them from thriving? Leah Robertson joined Mind in Harrow just over a year ago with a burning passion. Passion to help those in need, especially those who suffer from mental health issues. With experience in working at mental health care homes, she holds a postgraduate diploma in Mental Health Nursing from King's College London. She is currently the coordinator of the Support & Wellbeing Information Service Harrow (SWiSH), and is in charge of supporting people wit

Four alternative ways of living in London

Culture, Experience, Galleries, Housing, Media, News, Social media

With the cost of rent skyrocketing out of reach for many living in the capital, four Londoners have managed to find affordable ways to live that could prove to be viable solutions in the urban housing crisis. Meet David, a Scottish bus driver. David has endured great instability in his life over the last year. After getting deported from Canada, David found himself homeless in the UK. Until now. David just moved into his new home in a converted shipping container in Walthamstow. This affordable housing project, mYPad, is the brainchild of the YMCA. The mYPad project, as David explains, is about “moving in people and enabling them to save money to move on.” David is not alone. According to Crisis.org, the affordable housing shortage in London has left over 8,000 people “sleeping ro