Author Archives: Ralph Hanson

Holiday Potpourri

Target takes an edgier approach in advertising to new moms Cute no longer cuts it.  New Target ad uses head, “I just had a 20-minute conversation with a stranger about nipples.”  Figuring out how to target (lower case) a narrow market … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 11, Chapter 9 | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

No take-down order for Yogi Bear parody

Tech Dirt reports that Warner Brothers has declined to issue a take-down order for the brilliant Yogi Bear parody posted to You Tube in which BooBoo does not behave like a true friend. Lots of tweeters were expecting an immediate … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 10, Chapter 13 | Tagged , | 1 Comment

How can you tell when women have significant roles in movies?

There are lots of movies with great relationships between men.  There are a number of movies with interesting roles for women.  But how many movies out there feature multiple major female characters who interact with each other?  That’s the question … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 2, Chapter 8 | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Media News I Learned From Twitter

Celebrate Willa Cather’s birthday by reading one of her stories Thanks to @ebertchicago and @czuegner for this link to “The Sentimentality of William Tavener.”  And after this beautiful link to Cather’s story, Ebert gives us Jane Austin’s Fight Club. iPad … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 10, Chapter 4, Chapter 5 | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Summary of Why WikiLeaks Matters

Here’s a great summary article from the Nieman Journalism Lab on why we, as journalists and citizens, need to be thinking about the implications of WikiLeaks.  Thanks to Jay Rosen for pointing out this article.

Posted in Chapter 10 | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The Real Meaning of WikiLeaks

The Economist has a great blog post up explaining why the importance of WikiLeaks transcends Julian Assange and his merry band of leakers.  The magazine’s writer argues that we are undergoing a huge shift from paper documents that are heavy … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 2 | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

WikiLeaks and Journalism

The website WikiLeaks has continued its project of posting huge numbers of secret government documents, generating a lot of news and a lot of controversy.  There is debate over whether the website is damaging national security for the United States, … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 6 | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on WikiLeaks and Journalism

Disability, Humor, and Pop Culture

One thing we have an awkward relationship with is humor connected with disabilities.  There is the crude movie humor, there’s the “very special” episode humor, and finally, rarest of all, genuine humor that deals with the disability from the point … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 10, Chapter 14 | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Digital Media News Roundup

WSJ’s Walter Mossberg says Google TV not yet ready for prime time. Google’s entry into the set-top box tries to merge Web video and television into a single universe.  He likes the idea, but says it isn’t a smoothly operating … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 1, Chapter 10, Chapter 9 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Digital Media News Roundup

Link Ch. 14 – NY Times Ombudsman – Q&A with Clark Hoyt

C-SPAN’s Brian Lamb talks with Clark Hoyt, former ombudsman for the New York Times: “Clark Hoyt talked about his career in newspapers and the state of journalism. He recently finished a three-year stint as public editor of the New York Times. … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 14, Chapter 6 | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Link Ch. 14 – NY Times Ombudsman – Q&A with Clark Hoyt