Russell Brand

• Very often, workplace bullying or harrassment is inflicted by someone in a position of authority.
• These perpetrators are firmly to blame, of course, but victims can be met with silence from bystanders.
• If you witness someone being bullied or harassed at work, you might be reluctant to intervene for many reasons.
• If they witnessed someone being bullied by somebody senior to them, 28% said they would be afraid to get involved.

Confronting workplace bullying

• While researching intervention, I was inspired by law expert Rachel Fenton’s work on how bystanders can help challenge problematic behaviour.
• It also aims to teach people how to make safe and effective interventions if they witness bullying or harassment.


Once you become aware of ongoing toxic behaviour, you could even plan these interventions in advance to try to avoid escalation. But if a confrontation still seems like the only option, finding someone better positioned to intervene may be the best route. This could be another person in authority, the bully’s line manager, a member of HR or even the police.

Taking a stand

• The aim of any bystander intervention training is to help people realise that, whatever your limits, capacities or status, everyone has the power to take a stand – we can all play a part in changing a toxic environment.
• So, you could suggest this kind of training in your workplace or school.

• People may work for little or no money, often for experience or exposure – typically in the hope that future opportunities may follow.
• Hope labour is distinct from free labour because the work is discounted against imagined future opportunities or earnings.
• In the creative industries, hope labour is widely understood as a necessary pre-condition to paid work.
• Creative and cultural jobs are often characterised by self-employment, uncertainty, project-based work, long hours, inequality and competition for scant opportunities.

The rise of freelancers

• Freelancers make up over a third of broadcasters’ workforces, although many previously worked in-house.
• Recruitment and vetting for freelance teams are often managed through informal social networks.
• In this way, work isn’t simply about earning, it’s a way to build reputation, gain creative freedom or fulfilment, and learn or enhance skills.

Getting a reputation

• One freelance artist and curator that we spoke to during our study of hope labour among creative freelancers, admitted:
  there’s a trap that people fall into.
• And the precarious working conditions in creative industries provide few safe spaces for dialogue and critique, rebuke and reform.
• If so, desires and hopes could be directed towards helping creative workers critique the way their industries are governed and managed.
• Hope, in this sense, would point to a different future that could be about fairness, equity and safety for all.

• For $89 per year, annual subscribers have access to question-and-answer sessions and other exclusive content, such as comedic performances and on-location videos.
• His hit show "Louder with Crowder" live streams four days a week at 10:00 a.m.
• "More than 58,000 paying subscribers before a show debuts is something few, if any, can accomplish in this market.
• “Paying subscribers” represents the total number of paying subscribers in the “Mug Club” community of Steven Crowder on Rumble’s platforms, including both fully paid subscriptions and free trial subscriptions that convert to paid subscriptions after the trial period.

• LONGBOAT KEY, Fla., March 15, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rumble, the video-sharing platform ( NASDAQ; RUM ), announced its first-ever pay-per-view content with the exclusive release of Russell Brand's comedy special "Brandemic."
• The influential comedian, actor, and podcaster released his new stand-up special on March 13th on Locals, the subscription-based Rumble platform.
• In his new comedy special, Russell Brand promises viewers the best stand-up special he has ever made.
• "Rumble is the natural home for my new comedy special ‘Brandemic,'" said Russell Brand.