MEDIA REVIEW TEMPLATE: Date of event/article published: | 16-12-2015 | Name of Source:Newspaper/news channel/writer etc | BBC iPlayer | Summary of the event: | Documentary examining the violence inflicted by men on women everyday, telling the stories of all women who died at the hands of a male partner or ex partner. The Documentary stated that on average seven women a month in Britain are killed by their male partners. Of the 164 women murdered in Britain in 2013, 86 were killed by their male partner or ex-partner. This film names all 86 women and, through interviews with families, friends and neighbours, tells the stories of seven of them in detail. The first victim spoken in detail about in the documentary is Kirsty Humphrey (aged 23), she was described as a genuine, kind and funny person by her family and friends that is until she met mark who used to hurt her physically and verbally and stole money from her to buy drugs but despite all this she was still fascinated by him even when he began to beat her. Her friends and family had started to notice marks on her but she brushed it off by saying they were play fighting or that she had burnt her hand when getting food out of the oven. Kirsty’s behaviour over this period had also started to change; she had become isolated, looked worn out and had started to become addicted to alcohol. On 4th September 2013 kirsty was murdered by Mark police found several stab wounds and bruises on kirstys body. Second victim Anne- Maire Birch (aged 47) murdered by her partner Lee in Kent. Her daughter described lee as possessive and a bully controlling every aspect of her mums and her life. When Anne finally decided to leave that’s when things got worse he started stalking her everywhere she went and started threatening to kill her if she left him. On 7th November 2013 lee murdered Anne in a secluded area strangling her with a rope and hitting her on the head with a big branch and left her for dead. He then left the area and went to local shop where he cleaned himself up and then went to a bar, after which he rang the police station and handed himself in. Amina Bibi (aged 43) was murdered by her partner Mohamed Ali. A close friend of theirs describes Mohamed as very happy, helpful and generous man whereas Amina was described to have become very greedy and overall change in her was noticed as time passed. In September 2013 Amina was murdered by two men; Frederick Best a drug addict high on crack and her husband Mohamad Ali who paid Frederick £100 deposit to stab Amina in a fake burglary act. Chantelle Barnsdale-Quean (aged 35) murdered by her partner Steven Barnsdale queen. Chantelle was described by her mum as being the typical blonde full of love and care where as Steven was described as having no friends, never left Chantelle on her own; had control over everything from her social accounts to her bank details. Chantelle later discovered that Steven had run himself a considerable amount of debt and they soon had to move out of their house and into a council house. He strangled and murdered Chantelle using chain, bobby pin and rolling pin, this was described ny the pathologist as a Spanish windlessJoanna Hall (aged 35) was murdered by her partner Steven Williams. She was described as suffering from depression and borderline personality disorder by her sister, She described Steven as taking advantage of her sisters love and affection. Joanna had been stabbed several times by Steven on 16th march and rushed to hospital and later pronounced dead. But before she died she had told her family what had happened and that Steven had in fact stabbed her over an argument they had that evening.Assia Newton (aged 44) murdered by her partner she was described by her daughters as bubbly, friendly and outgoing person where as he was described as very controlling, not nice and having a temper, to the point where he tried to burn the house down with his daughters and wife in the house. He strangled her using a dogs lead and left for her dead in their bedroom | Why was it of interest to you?Approx 100 words | It was of interest to me because it looked at cases of women who had been murderd by their partners after suffering from long term abuse | How does this relate to psychology?Research the issues raised and link to actual theories or evidence.Approx 250 words | Through psychology you are able to understand the reasoning behind domestic violence. Domestic Violence is the leading cause of injury to women sending over 1 million every year to doctor’s offices or emergency rooms. The Cycle of Violence * Phase 1: Tension building (In this phase there is usually tension building from the batterer/abuser and there is usually an argument) * Phase 2: Explosion (this is where the assault happens) * Phase 3: Honeymoon Phase (this is where the batterer/abuser apologizes for his behavior buying the victim gifts or flowers) * The cycle of violence will not end until one partner leaves or seeks treatment. * There are five types of abuse and they usually start with the less noticeable first and become more obvious as the abusive relationship continues.Profile of an Abuser/Batterer * 1.Jealousy (questioning her constantly about whereabouts, and jealous of time she spends away from him). * 2.Controlling behavior (I’ve had clients who’s victim couldn’t get a job, leave the house or bathe without his permission) * 3.Isolation (Makes partner move away from family and friends so that she depends on him solely for support.) * 4.Forces her to have sex against her will (I’ve had several clients who forced their partners to have sex with their friends and forces sex when she is asleep.) * 5.Holds very rigid gender roles (Believes that her job is just to cater to him, he is the “king of the castle.”) | References used? | BBC iPlayer, (2015). Love You to Death: A Year of Domestic Violence. [online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06sgbbm/love-you-to-death-a-year-of-domestic-violence [Accessed 31 Dec. 2015]. | Date of event/article published: | 27-10-2015 | Name of Source:Newspaper/news channel/writer etc | BBC iPlayer | Summary of the event: | UK rapper Professor Green,takes an intensely personal journey to uncover the truth behind the suicide of his father seven years ago. His platinum hit Read All About It and songs such as Goodnight have given fans a glimpse into this tragic story. But now for the first time Stephen discovers what really happened to his dad. Opening up to close family for the first time about his estrangement from his father, reconnecting with old relatives, meeting others affected by suicide and laying bare his own demons, Stephen faces tough answers.Through this journey, Stephen explores the wider scourge of male suicide in the UK. As the biggest single killer of men under 45, latest figures show suicide accounts for nearly 5,000 male deaths a year in the UK. By understanding the complex factors behind it, the stigma around it and some of the ways it is being tackled, Stephen highlights the urgency of addressing this most pressing of problems | Why was it of interest to you?Approx 100 words | Because its astounding how little things; from words or actions from someone else to witnessing loss of someone close can build up overtime and lead people to a state where they believe their life is not worth living and this stage never overcomes them, It becomes part of their default setting when they feel bad about themselves. | How does this relate to psychology?Research the issues raised and link to actual theories or evidence.Approx 250 words | Psychologist have been able to identify reasons for people attempting suicide that is * They're depressed. The pain of existence often becomes too much for severely depressed people to bear. The state of depression warps their thinking, allowing ideas like "Everyone would all be better off without me" to make rational sense. They shouldn't be blamed for falling prey to such distorted thoughts any more than a heart patient should be blamed for experiencing chest pain: it's simply the nature of their disease. * They're psychotic. Malevolent inner voices often command self-destruction for unintelligible reasons. Psychosis is much harder to mask than depression, and is arguably even more tragic. The worldwide incidence of schizophrenia is 1% and often strikes otherwise healthy, high-performing individuals, whose lives, though manageable with medication, never fulfill their original promise. * They're impulsive. Often related to drugs and alcohol, some people become maudlin and impulsively attempt to end their own lives. Once sobered and calmed, these people usually feel emphatically ashamed. * They're crying out for help, and don't know how else to get it. These people don't usually want to die but do want to alert those around them that something is seriously wrong. They often don't believe they will die, frequently choosing methods they don't think can kill them in order to strike out at someone who's hurt them, but they are sometimes tragically misinformed. * .They have a philosophical desire to die. The decision to commit suicide for some is based on a reasoned decision, often motivated by the presence of a painful terminal illness from which little to no hope of reprieve exists. These people aren't depressed, psychotic, maudlin, or crying out for help. They're trying to take control of their destiny and alleviate their own suffering, which usually can only be done in death. They often look at their choice to commit suicide as a way to shorten a dying that will happen regardless. * They've made a mistake. This is a recent, tragic phenomenon in which typically young people flirt with oxygen deprivation for the high it brings and simply go too far. The only defense against this, it seems to me, is education. | References used? | BBC iPlayer, (2015). Professor Green: Suicide and Me. [online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06mvx4j/professor-green-suicide-and-me [Accessed 31 Dec. 2015]. |

Date of event/article published: | 03-12-2015 | Name of Source:Newspaper/news channel/writer etc | BBC iPlayer | Summary of the event: | The doctor spends time with the D'Arcy family in Shropshire. Mum and dad Dottie and Russ have a love of fast food and shock the doctor with a regular family meal. Dotti discovers she has type 2 diabetes, and Rangan's mission to correct her diet leads him to unravel the root cause of the family's relationship with food. Rangan discovers that Russ's firefighter career is more deskbound than active, so encourages a radical lifestyle change. The whole family's health is interlinked, and the doctor encourages them to transform their health by making simple lifestyle changes - involving every aspect from the moment they wake up to the way they sleep at night. At the end of his intervention, the family undergo a series of tests to measure just how much impact the doctor's suggested lifestyle changes have had on their health, with incredible weight loss. | Why was it of interest to you?Approx 100 words | It was of interest to me because you were able to identify reasons behind what drives people to the doorstep of type 2 diabetes | How does this relate to psychology?Research the issues raised and link to actual theories or evidence.Approx 250 words | The essence of comfort food is its ability to cheer us up. It works by creating reinforcements; when we eat food, we receive positive reinforcement by obtaining physical sustenance along with great flavors and taste. Positive reinforcement is when we receive something, which leads us to want to continue the action that caused the effect (more happiness).Additionally, we also receive negative reinforcement when we eat food to relieve stress, and we begin to associate eating comfort food with the lessening of a burden. Negative reinforcement is when something is taken away, which leads us to want to continue the action that caused the effect (less stress). After a period of time, our minds will be trained to seek out food as a way to deal with our problems in life. This process causes us to crave food, creating the idea of “comfort food.”The process of conditioning affects our brains in other ways that encourage the consumption of comfort food. For example, food that is associated with fond memories can bring happiness by enabling you to relive these memories. Similarly, a food associated with a certain person (say, Grandma’s apple pie) can become a comfort food that reminds you of someone you cherish. All these separate factors contribute to amplify your desires and cravings for your specific comfort foods. | References used? | BBC iPlayer, (2015). Doctor in the House, Episode 3. [online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06rdtx0/doctor-in-the-house-episode-3 [Accessed 31 Dec. 2015]. | | | Date of event/article published: | 16-12-2015 | Name of Source:Newspaper/news channel/writer etc | BBC iPlayer | Summary of the event: | Dev explores what makes Star Wars one of the most loved, successful and hyped franchises of all time, and interviews new stars John Boyega, Daisy Ridley and director J.J. Abrams. In the week of release of the latest Star Wars Episode 7, Dev talks to the stars and director of ‘The Force Awakens’, industry experts, and a real-life Jedi to discover what makes Star Wars such a cultural phenomenon. To help him understand the meaning of ‘The Force’ and the religious philosophies of Jedi-ism, Dev spends time with a 23-year-old student who lives his life as a Jedi. This documentary includes interviews with new young British stars John Boyega, Daisy Ridley and director J.J. Abrams | Why was it of interest to you?Approx 100 words | Because it answers questions such as: What is the secret of Star Wars? How does Star Wars’ simple good versus evil storyline echo ancient mythology to connect with people | How does this relate to psychology?Research the issues raised and link to actual theories or evidence.Approx 250 words | | References used? | BBC iPlayer, (2015). The Secret Of Star Wars. [online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p0397g47/the-secret-of-star-wars [Accessed 31 Dec. 2015]. |