Author Archives: Ralph Hanson

Let Freedom Ring on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Posted on January 17, 2022 by Ralph Hanson

Editor’s Note: I originally posted this on Aug. 28, 2017, the 54th anniversary of Dr. King’s “I have a dream” speech. “And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

A Year in Movies 2021 – Part 1

Posted on January 16, 2022 by Ralph Hanson

2021 was a rough year, given a pandemic that kept many of us at home for much of the year. There were also public conflicts over people refusing masks and vaccinations.  In my home, we wondered: Could we go out … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Looking Back at the January 6th Insurrection – History Has Its Eyes On You

Posted on January 6, 2022 by Ralph Hanson

Update: 1/6/25  — It’s now been four years since this shameful day. One year ago today an angry mob assaulted the United Staters Capitol Building in an attempt to stop the counting of electoral votes and overturn the results of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Remembering Michael Nesmith of The Monkees – and so, so much more

Posted on December 10, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Michael Nesmith, the contemplative, wool-cap-wearing member of the Monkees, has died at 78. He made one of the rock era's first music videos and won the first Grammy Award for video. https://t.co/Ed2OuEMfqr pic.twitter.com/8PssCI3xfu — The New York Times (@nytimes) December … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

For Your Holiday Reading List – Journal articles with news you can use

Posted on December 9, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

There are a lot of of journal articles out there that cover a very narrow theoretical discipline that develop important knowledge for people in that exact area of scholarship. But occasionally there come articles that can actually be used by … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Student Voices from the COVID-19 Pandemic

Posted on December 3, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Editor’s Note: It has been a long year dealing with COVID-19 and its long-term fallout. Here is a collection of blog entries about getting through the last year from my commentary and blogging students. Really impressed with what these young … Continue reading →

Posted in JMC 406 | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Guest Blog Post: Olympic Games are great for propagandists – how the lessons of Hitler’s Olympics loom over Beijing 2022

Posted on November 18, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Editor’s Note: Thanks to my friend Dr. Michael Socolow, University of Maine, for letting me reprint his article from The Conversation.  Dr. Socolow takes a look at China’s repression and human rights abuses and asks whether cheerful media coverage of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

My Year of Living ‘Strangely’ – Yes, it’s time for the results of my 2021 TS Grand Tour

Posted on November 8, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

(NOTE: Pressed “Publish” instead of “Save.” There’s more to come.) For the last six or seven years, every summer I do a national-scale motorcycle scavenger hunt run by a  motorcycle club out of Minnesota known as Team Strange. Each year … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

What’s The Fuss About Facebook, Inc.? Part I – The WSJ

Posted on October 28, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Editor’s Note: Facebook and its various properties (Instagram, WhatsApp) have been in the news a lot lately, and not in a good way.  Congress has been holding social media hearings where Facebook is the #1 bad guy, the Washington Post  has had … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Questions Worth Asking (Maybe)

Posted on October 13, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

What do My Little Pony, Transformers, Battleship and G.I. Joe all have in common? They are all toys from Hasbro that all became major media entertainment properties under the leadership of CEO Brian Goldner, who died Tuesday of cancer. Goldner … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Link | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment