SubscribeStreet robbery and violence - two offences one might expect to be effectively tackled by CCTV cameras - have actually soared as cameras have proliferated over the past decade.-Daily Mail
Robberies are 50 per cent higher than in 1998/99 and violence against the person has more than doubled since then.
Police patrols have diminished over that period often because, we were assured, we were now protected by CCTV.
Massive investment in CCTV cameras to prevent crime in the UK has failed to have a significant impact, despite billions of pounds spent on the new technology, a senior police officer piloting a new database has warned. Only 3% of street robberies in London were solved using CCTV images, despite the fact that Britain has more security cameras than any other country in Europe.-Gauniad
“But after the M.E.N. [Manchester Evening News] spotted some telltale signs that the footage was not all that it seemed, the band admitted that the idea of a CCTV video was a PR stunt.
The unusually clear images show them performing in a variety of Mancunian locations including on a tram, in the back of a taxi and at Castlefield.
CCTV footage showing the band playing in the back of a taxi that apparently belongs to Clayton cab firm Mantax also features in the four minute long video.
When we contacted the city centre firm they denied all knowledge of it.
Spokeswoman Bernadette Tabner said: ‘I don't think any of our drivers actually have CCTV footage yet. And even if they did it would not say Mantax on it. I'm the manager and if any request like this came in I would know about it and I don't!
Further clips show the band playing on a tram. Footage bears the label `GMPTE CAR 4'. But when we contacted Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority, they too denied that it was genuine CCTV film.
A spokesman said: ‘We do not hand over CCTV for requests like this. And our footage bears the label Stagecoach - not GMPTE. I don't know where `CAR 4' comes from either.’
We also spoke to Manchester city council who said they had received no requests under Freedom of Information laws for CCTV footage taken in Manchester.
A spokesman for the band admitted that not all the videos used were genuine CCTV images and said the group had been looking for a ‘fresh idea’ to promote their single.
And PR experts agree that regardless of their use of faked CCTV footage, the band have played a masterstroke in media promotion.
Rick Guttridge, Managing Director at Brazen PR - no stranger to publicity stunts themselves - hailed the launch as a `great success'.
He said: ‘When there are thousands of bands out there trying to get noticed this has made people sit up and listen. They've appeared on Sky and whether their music is good or not people will hear it. It's got people talking about them which is what I guess they meant to do.’”*
"To promote their novel idea, the band have just hired the man who helped break Oasis, Manchester PR, Liam Walsh. He thinks this video idea might help him sell the band.
'I've always liked them but it was only when they came to me with this idea and they showed me the video. I thought "oh great, that's an angle" which is just perfect when you're doing PR,' says Liam.
With Liam's help, The Get Out Clause are now trying to break into the mainstream."*
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posted by whir at 9:56 PM on May 12, 2008