Author Archives: Ralph Hanson

News About News: Campaign money, Shep Smith & Fox, Charges Dropped for Goodman, and Death Threats at AZ Republic

Posted on October 18, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

There’s been a lot of news about the news coverage of politics in the last few days.  Here are several that I think we should be paying attention to: When journalists give money to the presidential campaign, they give it to … Continue reading →

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Free Webinar on “5 Tips for Teaching Intro To Mass Comm”

Posted on October 11, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

You are invited to join me on Wednesday, Oct. 19th at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, noon Central Time, for a free, live webinar: 5 Tips for Teaching Introduction to Mass Communication: Engaging Students Living in a Media World. Join me … Continue reading →

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An Unwelcome X-Men Mutation

Posted on October 6, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

I just recently rewatched X-Men: Days of Future Past and was struck again by what a good super hero movie it was. It handled the mythos and back story well, it had characters following consistent motivation, and it had characters … Continue reading →

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Do Newspaper Presidential Endorsements Matter in 2016?

Posted on September 30, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

I got a note from my dad earlier this week: On NPR this a.m. I heard an editor of the Arizona Republic interviewed. For the first time in its 127 years that newspaper is endorsing a Democrat for president. She said … Continue reading →

Posted in Chapter 2, Chapter 6 | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Questions Worth Asking (Maybe)

Posted on September 28, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

What word will the Washington Post use in a story but not in a headline? When Rosie O’Donnell called presidential candidate Donald Trump an “orange anus,” the Washington Post used the word in the story, but called it a “body … Continue reading →

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Bad Language in the News: “But what does “d—ing” mean?”

Posted on September 19, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

Last week hackers released a group of e-mails they had stolen from former Secretary of State Colin Powell.  The e-mails gave Powell’s opinions about a wide range of political figures, including Hillary Clinton and her husband Bill. A lot of … Continue reading →

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

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

Posted on September 11, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

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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Fashion icon Tim Gunn rips on industry’s treatment of plus-sized women

Posted on September 9, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

Tim Gunn, co-host of the fashion competition series Project Runway and leading advocate for women’s fashion, ripped into the industry (including his show!) today with an incendiary commentary in the Washington Post on the treatment of plus-sized women by the … Continue reading →

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

Taking a look back at the summer movie season

Posted on September 5, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

It’s been a rough summer for the movie industry, with a lot of big budget movies stumbling and barely making a profit, and the industry as a whole having its second worst summer since 2001. Vox’s Todd VanDerWerf has a … Continue reading →

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Back To School With The Media

Posted on August 26, 2016 by Ralph Hanson

It’s Back To School time, so let’s look at some start-of-the-school-year themed stories: Oregon school district rescinds ban on rap music radio in school buses. Rule was no talk radio, religious radio, or rap music – pop/rock, country and jazz … Continue reading →

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