The LIP: Why did you start ST?

I think that the literary culture in this country has always been very, very complacent and very dominated by certain values. It gives me great pleasure to shake it up. But also I think in the 80s there were certain voices, like gay and lesbian writers, or black writers, which clearly weren’t getting published. It’s less the case now. I don’t think that you can say that it’s a disadvantage any more in terms of getting published to be black – one could argue that it probably helps. But that certainly wasn’t the case twenty years ago.

You can read the full version of this article in The LIP Magazine Media Issue. Order Your Copy Online!

There are many widely held misconceptions in the west about al Jazeera – what needs to be done to put that right?
It is true that there are many misconceptions about Al Jazeera in the West. The primary source of these misconceptions arises from that fact that since Al Jazeera has been broadcast in the Arabic language many people have not had the opportunity to decide first-hand for themselves what Al Jazeera is and does. Their opinions are largely influenced by statements made by officials who are not always happy with Al Jazeera’s independent approach in reporting events. Two prevalent examples come to mind. First, even though Al Jazeera has never shown a single frame of a beheading on our channel we are constantly being accused of this. In addition, when we receive tapes of hostages or statements on tapes, we have a strict editorial policy that stipulates if, how, and when we will show them. Sometimes we have shelved tapes because there is no newsworthy content on them, only propaganda. We will only show a tape if it has newsworthy content, and, if we do decide to show the newsworthy segment of a tape we always contextualize it in analysis and discussion. Contrary to the general Western public, our policies are well known by Western media analysts and journalists who applaud our approach.

You can read the full version of this article in The LIP Magazine Media Issue. Order Your Copy Online!

For more information contact Mark Grimmer editor@theLIP.org.

PLUS…Photography from Martin Parr, Alex Masi and Kate Peters, graffiti art from Elph and new micro fiction from Rose Heiney and Helen Oyeyemi.

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Too many young artists, writers, photographers and designers are expected to work for free upon completion of their training. At the LIP, we believe that newly qualified creatives are the people with the strongest ideas and the most vital approach to their work. We also believe that they should be paid.

The new LIP magazine is a quarterly national politics and arts publication. It is dedicated to providing exposure to the UK’s best young creatives – writers, photographers, artists and designers. The LIP bucks the trend of expecting young contributors to offer their work for free in order ‘to get a foot in the door’. At the LIP, we hold the door open.

The LIP will pay its contributors a competitive fee for their work, as well as promoting the professional interests of its network of freelance staff. There will be two arms to the distribution of the magazine. The first could be described as ‘traditional’ – book shops, galleries, universities and cultural centres will sell the magazine to their visitors and customers. The second arm of the distribution strategy will see the magazine distributed for free to decision makers in the creative industries. The LIP will be a single port of call for editors looking for young journalistic talent, creative directors looking for fresh designers and other arts employers who want to have a finger on the pulse.

As well as being a showcase of the best new creative work, the LIP fills a gap in the national magazine market. No publication successfully combines intelligent artistic review, political comment and cutting edge design targeted at the 18-30 age group. Further kudos will be given to the project by the regular contribution of work from major figures in the arts and politics.

In order to give the LIP the kickstart it deserves, we need your help. A preview edition is being compiled so that we can get our message to as many people as possible, and we want your work to feature in it. Every issue of the LIP has a broad theme and we allow contributors to interpret it how they wish. Where better to start than ‘The Media’. We invite you to submit articles, interviews, illustration, graphic design or photography which take ‘The Media’ as their theme. The outlook of the LIP is global – we live in a richly multicultural world and contributors should aim to consider the big picture.

Alongside the best new work, seasoned professionals will offer their experienced opinions – many of them wish that there had been an equivalent of the LIP when they began their careers.

If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. As well as contributions, the LIP is looking for a team of dedicated freelance staff who are interested in taking on editorial responsibilities. More information on the project and archived articles from the back issues can be found online at www.theLIP.org. For printed back issues, email editor@theLIP

We look forward to seeing your work.

Evil men try to narrow your horizons. They try to control your thoughts. They try to tell you who you are. They spread falsehoods, by saying that the public wants only celebrity and sensation. They give this as the reason for their bland magazines and TV shows that patronise us all. Do not believe their lies!

Beware the magazines which look the exactly the same, from issue to issue.

We have shown that there is a latent mass of people in this country, who are sick of this “media-by-numbers.” With our glorious success we have shown that people want to hear from new lands. They want to hear new politics, new music. They want to judge new ideas for themselves. People who revel in the diversity of our great species are coming together at last, to celebrate the humanity we share.

We ask for your help, to accelerate the coming of our certain victory. You owe yourself the chance to become involved. Now, at the genesis of the project, is when you will harvest the greatest rewards.

We are building a coalition of the willing. We wish to recruit LIP operatives for every UK city. We require advertising and marketing managers, regional editors, news hunter-gatherers, legions of reviewers, web-masters. If you would like to help propagate the LIP, please send an e-mail to MinistryOfTruth@theLIP.org

You’re either with us or against us. You decide.