Clarissa Place's blog

“Female reporters are essential” to foreign reporting. That was the message from award-winning journalist Alex Crawford, as she delivered the Bob Friend Memorial Lecture at the Centre for Journalism last night.

Crawford said: “Egypt was and is a dangerous place for reporters whether you are male or female. The whole of the coverage of the Arab Spring has been incredibly dangerous for all of us." 

Crawford added "but should that be an argument for not sending woman reporters to Egypt – or any front line? Of course not.”

Her impassioned  argument is given more significance this morning by the news of the death of Marie Colvin, another multiple-award-winning journalist, in Syria.

So boys where is Peckham in America?

Wednesday 16 November was another blow for young people everywhere, and it wasn’t to do with university fees.

 Officially one million young people cannot find a job.

 To add to the fact that jobs are sparse and competition is fierce. At Bluewater shopping centre, Kent, John Lewis posted 240 Christmas jobs, a nice bonus in the current economic climate.

 There is just one problem… 2,000 people applied.