Sir David Attenborough to Receive IBC2011 International Honour for Excellence

Sir David Attenborough


19 Aug 2011 18:30 Africa/Lagos


Sir David Attenborough to Receive IBC2011 International Honour for Excellence

PR Newswire

LONDON, Aug. 19, 2011

LONDON, Aug. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The winner of the IBC2011 International Honour for Excellence is Sir David Attenborough, in recognition of his remarkable career in television and, in particular, natural history. His career spans almost 60 years, with his Atlantic Productions documentary Flying Monsters 3D with Sir David Attenborough one of the most acclaimed programmes commissioned by Sky 3D.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110421/NY87427LOGO)

The International Honour for Excellence is the highest award which IBC bestows. It is presented to individuals and organisations which have taken the best technology available – and driven technology forward – to create the finest broadcasting content.

Sir David Attenborough joined the BBC in 1952 and immediately found his vocation in natural history programming. He made his name in front of the camera, as well as producing, with the Zoo Quest expeditions, in which he and a small crew set off with a 16mm camera to a remote corner of the globe, intending to return with a rare animal for London Zoo and sufficient footage to create a television series.

In the mid 1960s Sir David temporarily pulled back from making programmes when he was appointed the controller of the newly launched channel BBC2. Among the programmes he commissioned was Monty Python's Flying Circus – about as far from natural history as it is possible to imagine. But the natural world was too big a draw and he returned to finding new ways of presenting its wonders on television. The 1979 landmark series Life on Earth and its sequence with mountain gorillas became one of the most watched programmes of all time.

"Sir David Attenborough has been called 'the greatest broadcaster of our time', and throughout his career he has seized upon the latest developments in technology to illuminate natural history," said Peter Owen, chairman of the IBC Council. "Working with the BBC Natural History Unit he pioneered time-lapse sequences in The Private Life of Plants and low-light and infrared cameras to capture the behaviour of nocturnal mammals. Today he is working with Atlantic Productions on stunning 3D programmes, including Flying Monsters, the first 3D programme to win a BAFTA Award."

Sir David said "I am greatly honoured to receive this award from IBC. Throughout my career I have used the best technology available. When I started this was 16mm film, which gave us lightweight cameras to take into the wild. Since then my journey has taken me from black and white to colour and from film to digital high definition, and today I am excited to be involved in 3D production, which really immerses the viewer in the scene.

"I have worked with the best people in the business, including the BBC Natural History Unit and now Atlantic Productions, and some extraordinarily patient and skilled cameramen and directors. Making wildlife television – whether it was Zoo Quest in the 1950s or Flying Monsters today – is hugely collaborative. I know that IBC encourages and develops collaborations between programme makers and technologists, which makes this award particularly special. Thank you, IBC."

The IBC Awards Ceremony, which will include a special tribute to Sir David Attenborough and a look at the latest stereoscopic 3D wildlife programmes presented by Atlantic Productions, is on Sunday 11 September. All visitors are invited to attend the ceremony, in the RAI Auditorium, which starts at 18:30 with doors opening at 18:15.

About IBC

IBC is the leading global tradeshow for professionals engaged in the creation, management and delivery of broadcasting media and entertainment. The event's unparalleled exhibition and agenda setting conference encompass the very latest developments in broadcasting, mobile TV, IPTV, digital signage and R&D making it essential for everyone's understanding of the industry and its future.

IBC2011 Dates

Conference 8 – 13 September 2011
Exhibition 9 – 13 September 2011
www.ibc.org

SOURCE IBC

CONTACT: Kelly Hyde, Marketing Manager, khyde@ibc.org, +44 (0) 207 832 4104

Web Site: http://www.ibc.org


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Global Views of USA Improve

2 Apr 2008 01:01 Africa/Lagos


Global Views of USA Improve

COLLEGE PARK, Md., April 1, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --

After years of becoming progressively more negative, public views of the United States have begun to improve, according to a BBC World Service Poll across 34 countries.


While views of US influence in the world are still predominantly negative, they have improved in 11 of the 23 countries the BBC polled a year ago, while worsening in just three countries.


The average percentage saying that the US is having a positive influence has increased from 31 percent a year ago to 35 percent today while the view that it is having a negative influence has declined from 52 percent to 47 percent.


People were asked to rate Brazil, Britain, China, France, Germany, India, Iran, Israel, Japan, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, the USA and the European Union, as having a mainly positive or negative influence in the world.


As was the case a year ago, Iran and Israel receive the most negative ratings. Pakistan follows Israel as the third most poorly rated country.


Similar to last year, Japan is among the most positively rated countries. It comes a close second to Germany; the European Union comes third.


The country with the greatest improvement is Russia. Positive views of Russia have risen on average from 29 percent to 37 percent and negative views have fallen from 40 per cent to 33 percent. In 12 countries, the view of Russia grew more positive.


These results are based on 17,457 in-home or telephone interviews conducted across a total of 34 countries (including the 23 tracking countries) by the international polling firm GlobeScan together with the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland. GlobeScan coordinated fieldwork between October 31, 2007 and January 25, 2008.


Steven Kull, director of PIPA comments, "It may be that as the US approaches a new presidential election, views of the US are being mitigated by hope that a new administration will move away from the foreign policies that have been so unpopular in the world."


GlobeScan president Doug Miller added: "The poll suggests that Iran continues to pay a price for its nuclear stand-off with the United Nations. World opinion continues to see it as the country having the most negative influence."


For more details, visit http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/.


Source: Program on International Policy Attitudes at the University of Maryland

CONTACT: Steven Kull, Director, Program on International Policy
Attitudes, +1-202-232-7500


Web Site: http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/