Author Archives: Ralph Hanson

Gravity Shows the Limits of the Bechdel Test

Posted on October 11, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

Let me start by saying I’m more than a little bit obsessed with the Bechdel Test.  As I wrote back in August when Pacific Rim was released: You all know the Bechdel Test for the role of women in film, right? … Continue reading →

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Why Gravity is Grabbing So Much Attention

Posted on October 10, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

The Sandra Bullock 3-D space movie Gravity has opened to spectacular reviews and record-breaking October box office numbers.  And after going to see it last Tuesday in 3-D at my local theater, I have to say that the movie has earned … Continue reading →

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Using narrative and other techniques in depth reporting

Posted on October 9, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

I’m posting here the readings that I’m assigning to my Depth Reporting Students.  Why?  So they will be easy for my students to find and because these are great things for anyone interested in journalism to read: New York Times: … Continue reading →

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Media News Roundup

Posted on October 5, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

USB ports replace cigarette lighters in Hyundai cars As if we needed any more proof that mobile media devices are addictive! iPhones are more important than cigarettes! FAA backs letting people use mobile media during take-off and landing And they … Continue reading →

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Four Rules to Make Star Wars Great Again

Posted on September 27, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

An open video letter to J.J. Abrams from Sincerely Truman. This is brilliant and correct.  And as one commenter on YouTube put it: “So basically… Make Firefly.” Pretty much. Shiny!  

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Link Ch. 4 – Portrait of an Attempt to Ban a Book in Minnesota

Posted on September 27, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

Omaha author (and former newspaper columnist) Rainbow Rowell did not grow up well off.  She wrote back in her column back in 1997 that, “We went from desperate to poor.  And poor felt so good.” In Eleanor & Park, her award-winning … Continue reading →

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Banned Book Week

Posted on September 24, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

It’s the American Library Association’s annual Banned Book Week, which draws attention to books that have been challenged in libraries or classrooms over the last year. I’ve long had somewhat ambiguous feelings about Banned Book Week.  On the one hand, … Continue reading →

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Questions Worth Asking (Maybe)

Posted on September 23, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

Who has America’s oldest college newspaper? At least eight different papers claim the title.  Of course, each paper uses its own standard to determine the “oldest.”  (Thanks to College Media Matters from the Associated Collegiate Press) How sexist were ads … Continue reading →

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TV/movie piracy & Hollywood. Who’s to blame? And is it all bad?

Posted on September 19, 2013 by Ralph Hanson

A post in honor of International Talk Like a Pirate Day! Are improper movie downloads Hollywood’s own fault? Kinda looks like it.  When you give people easy, reasonably priced ways to download movies, they prefer them over “pirated” downloads. And as … Continue reading →

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

Posted on September 11, 2013 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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