· EVERYONE IS HERE. All 12 syndicates participating in the America's Cup Regatta are now based in the American Express New Zealand Cup Village. The last to arrive was Young Australia who literally floated in courtesy of the floating crane Hikinui. While all the other syndicates are land based the Australian team will be working off the water adjacent to Waitemata Plaza. Today saw the arrival in town of their skipper, 20-year-old James Spitall. He sums up their situation by saying" With the oldest boat, youngest crew and smallest budget, the challenge ahead is to harness our enthusiasm and show the world what we can do."

· Anyone who doubted the enthusiasm of New Zealanders to embrace the America's Cup regatta only needed to be in the AMEX Cup Village on Saturday morning to see the level of interest starting to gather momentum. America True held a special media morning, which started at 8 in the morning. Despite the hour, despite it being a weekend and despite only about 30 being expected over 100 people attended, to be welcomed by a very delighted Dawn Riley.

· The employment boom continues around the AMEX Cup Village. We recently ran a release about 800 people being employed on construction sites in our general region. Another group in hot demand is experienced hospitality workers. Many job opportunities have been created with all the corporate hospitality facilities within the Village and AMEX Yacht Club as well as the Village Pavilion

· The Village Pavilion is rapidly taking shape where the old city markets used to be. A wide range of retail outlets will be based there including a hairdresser, Cut Above, a cyber café, an art gallery, New Zealand Art Embassy, Whitcoulls and Aotea Souvenirs as well as a Pacific area promoting the Islands. A food hall will also be in operation, this will include Mc Donalds and Robert Harris.

· It appears the AMEX Cup Village is onto a winner with its free Tim Finn concert on October the 10th with phone calls even being taken from south islanders keen to be here for the event.

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>