DAILY SUMMIT - FASTER THAN CNN?

Manchester, August 19 2002: The Daily Summit is today officially launched at www.dailysummit.net after a successful two-week pilot process.

The web site provides news and views live from the World Summit on Sustainable Development, which runs in Johannesburg from 26 August – 4 September 2002. It also offers opportunities for debate, discussion, and interaction about the summit with its international audience.

"The Daily Summit has covered all the key stories over the last couple of weeks," says site editor, David Steven. "From rows over the size of the UK delegation to speculation about summit outcomes, we've followed the key controversies. And we've also got to stories quickly. The Daily Summit reported pressure on President Bush not to attend the summit two days before CNN."

The Daily Summit acts as a gateway to summit news - directing its readers around the overwhelming flow of information being published on the web.

"Links are the lifeblood of the web and the Daily Summit is an unrivalled linker," says site designer, Abigail Hanson. "We've linked our readers to over 200 stories on other websites. And often we're able to point them to the big news stories within minutes of them breaking. Our content is also fresh and up-to-date. Even in the pilot period, stories have hit our front page hour-by-hour and seven days a week. We know that other journalists are depending on our site as an original, provocative and, at times, idiosyncratic guide."

The Daily Summit will be live from Johannesburg on the 23 August - where the site will continue to grow as the summit progresses.

"We'll be using a personal approach to describe what could otherwise be a chaotic and impersonal event. Other news organisations have much bigger resources. But we bring a critical - and above all human - voice to the process."

ENDS

Background for editors:

For more information on The Daily Summit, to arrange interviews with the team, or to discuss content syndication, contact Jane Frewer on +44 1202 849993 or David Steven on +44 7939 038832

The World Summit on Sustainable Development will be one of the largest and most important international meetings ever held. It will focus on the interface between human society and the environment. A United Nations event, it will bring together thousands of participants - including Heads of State and Government, other government delegates, business leaders and representatives of civil society - to promote concrete commitments to implement sustainable development.

The Daily Summit was commissioned, and is funded, by The British Council, which aims to win recognition abroad for the UK’s values, ideas and achievements, and to nurture lasting mutually beneficially relationships with other countries. It works closely with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, but operates at arms length from government, enabling it to build long-term international relationships.

The Daily Summit will be updated every day between now and the summit. It will be live from Johannesburg from 23 August – 5 September 2002. It has editorial independence from the British Council. Views expressed on the site cannot be attributed to the British Council and do not represent British Council policy.

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