Monthly Archives: September 2012

Questions Worth Asking – Maybe

Should we long for the good old days of the Alien and Sedition Acts? A look at how our understanding of the First Amendment has changed over the years. (Lawyers, Guns & Money) What does free speech look like globally? … Continue reading

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WP’s The Fix Lists Top Political Ads of 2012 (so far)

I don’t think that this election cycle has given us a lot of brilliant political ads, but here are four that the writers at The Fix political blog at the Washington Post really like, and I have to agree with … Continue reading

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Science in the Movies – Right and Wrong

Science fiction movies are science fiction, right? But that doesn’t mean movie makers are free to completely ignore reality.  The Smithsonian’s Collage of Arts and Sciences recently ran a pair of entries looking at SciFi and fantasy movies that did a … Continue reading

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Are phone apps ancillary markets for movies?

I would think so.  Questions on Twitter today from students using Mass Communication: Living in a Media World:

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Talking about media coverage of health care debate

I’m going to be talking to a business class about media coverage of the health care debate tonight.  Most of the figures I’ll be using come from two Pew Foundation reports: What Americans Learned from the Media about the Health … Continue reading

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When politicians’ private remarks go public

The news broke today that Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney said some pretty disparaging things about the 47% of Americans who don’t end up having to pay income tax while speaking at a private fund raising event.  The leaked video … Continue reading

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Working with social media

I’ve been talking lately with folks about social media.  Here are a few thoughts on the subject: What are social media? Online sites that allow users to generate content, comment, tag, and network with friends or other like-minded people. What … Continue reading

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Truth 7 – There is no “they” – Does the anti-Muslim film blamed for rioting even exist?

On Tuesday evening, the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, and the U.S. embassy in Cairo, Egypt were attacked by protestors.   The attack in Benghazi led to the death of American ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens and three other … Continue reading

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Sept. 12 Anniversary – We Choose to go to the Moon

No, not the anniversary of the day after Sept. 11, but the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s “We Choose to go to the Moon” speech at Rice University. “We choose to go to the moon. We choose to … Continue reading

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A Motorcycle Ride to the United 93 Memorial on a Rainy Summer Day

This has nothing to do with the media. It’s a brief story about a ride I took on my motorcycle to the United 93 Memorial on a rainy June day back in 2004. It was written shortly after I had … Continue reading

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