Author Archives: Ralph Hanson

XKCD answers the question “What will new technology do to us?”

When you have questions about what will technology do to us, the first place to look at is the web comic XKCD: Remember: New technology is always scary!

Posted in Chapter 1 | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on XKCD answers the question “What will new technology do to us?”

24-hour Video Game Streaming Fund Raiser

My friend and occasional guest blogger Aaron Blackman is doing a 24-hour live streaming video game fund raiser for Omaha Children’s Hospital. He writes: My wonderful wife Michelle had surgery on her heart when she was 3 years old. She … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 10, Chapter 12 | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on 24-hour Video Game Streaming Fund Raiser

Why you need to pay attention to what you write (It can be spelled right and still be wrong)

Over the last few weeks there have been several spectacular copyediting errors in newspapers around the country that probably passed right through a spelling/grammar check but still managed to totally humiliate the publication and the staff members responsible. For example: … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 14, Chapter 6 | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

In the Battle of Disney vs. The Press, The Press Won

As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog post, Disney recently entered into an ill-advised battle with the Los Angeles Times because the media conglomerate didn’t like how the newspaper was covering the company’s business relationships with the city of Anaheim. Disney (aka … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 3, Chapter 6, Chapter 8 | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on In the Battle of Disney vs. The Press, The Press Won

Questions Worth Asking (Maybe) – All-Disney Edition

How many African-American writers does Hulu have working on their series? Zero, none, zip, nada. (And just 4.8 percent of all TV writers are black.) Behind-the-camera diversity can be as important as in-front-of-the-camera. (Disney is one of the major owners … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 3, Chapter 8, Chapter 9 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Telling the story of the California fires through comics

We often think of comics as being either funny stories or super hero dramas.  And they can be all that. But many of the best comics tell intensely personal stories about life, death, and surviving the time in-between. I was reminded … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 1, Chapter 4, Chapter 6 | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Telling the story of the California fires through comics

How Lin-Manuel Miranda helped boost a tweet about insulin in Puerto Rico

The one thing you need to know about me as I tell this story is that I’m an insulin-dependent diabetic. My pancreas checked out several years ago and no longer does much.  Which means that I have to manually control … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 10, Chapter 12 | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on How Lin-Manuel Miranda helped boost a tweet about insulin in Puerto Rico

How watching a movie leads to Facebook ad

I recently watched the movie The Fifth Element on TV at home, and I don’t believe I posted anything about it, though I certainly searched it for cast and crew information. Fascinating to see that such a low level of … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 10, Chapter 8 | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on How watching a movie leads to Facebook ad

A few more thoughts on the Bechdel Test

The Bechdel Test is a fairly simple test for the presence of women in movies.  It asks three simple questions: Are there two or more women in the movie who have names? Do they talk to each other? Do they … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 8 | Tagged , , | Comments Off on A few more thoughts on the Bechdel Test

When tragedy strikes: Dealing with breaking news

As I write this, we as a nation are reeling from a mass shooting in Las Vegas Sunday night that left at least 58 people dead and more than 500 people injured. As the story started to break, there were … Continue reading

Posted in Chapter 14, Chapter 6 | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on When tragedy strikes: Dealing with breaking news