Author Archives: Ralph Hanson

Questions Worth Asking (Maybe)

Posted on October 5, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

Should ESPN have fired Hank Williams Jr. for comparing Obama to Hitler? Or comparing Boehner to  to Netanyahu?  Jon Stewart says no: “Have you met him?”  BTW, Williams’ comparison of Obama to Hitler is a great example of Godwin’s Law. … Continue reading →

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Day 2 on Kindle Fire and e-readers

Posted on September 29, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

Here’s some followup to Amazon’s big announcement yesterday of its Kindle Fire tablet and the new lower-priced Kindle e-ink e-readers. Daring Fireball – Apple blogger John Gruber, writing at Daring Fireball, likes the new Kindles. In fact, my feelings and … Continue reading →

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Amazon announces new Kindle tablet and e-book readers

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

This morning Amazon announced its anticipated new tablet device, the Kindle Fire. Some people will point out that it is based on Google’s Android operating system, which is technically true.  Other people will point out that it is the first … Continue reading →

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Nancy Grace pulls a Janet Jackson

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

Tonight on Dancing With The Stars Nancy Grace pulled an accidental Janet Jackson Super Bowl move.  Not only did she expose the same part of her anatomy Miss Jackson did, she did it for more than twice as long (close … Continue reading →

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T-Shirts, ESPN, and College PR

Posted on September 23, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

West Virginia University has a big public relations opportunity and a bit of PR problem coming up this weekend. The opportunity?  ESPN’s immensely popular College GameDay is coming to the Mountain State for the West Virginia vs. Louisiana State game. … Continue reading →

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Link Ch. 9 – Shep Smith “This is the stupidest thing we’ve ever done.”

Posted on September 21, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

I don’t have the loathing for Fox News that some people have, but I’m not a fan, either.  But I have to say that I’m liking Shep Smith’s style more all the time. In the middle of a story that … Continue reading →

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Hitler finds out about the changes to Star Wars on Blu-Ray

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

I completely blame my editor @dwainsmith for this.  To quote Han Solo, “It’s not my fault….” (Note: As usual with the “Hitler finds out about memes, NSFW subtitles)

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Questions Worth Asking (Maybe)

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

Was this the source of a Castle plot? Who knew the pizza story from last year had a grain of truth in it?  Of course, @jayrosen_nyu was talking about the NY Times stating flatly in a story that something was … Continue reading →

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For my feature writing students – Frank Sinatra Has a Cold

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

Today I’m posting an edited and updated version of something I first put up back in October 2009: This week in my feature writing class we’re talking about a classic Esquire feature story from the mid 1960s: Gay Talese’s Frank Sinatra Has A … Continue reading →

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Global Car Commercials

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Ralph Hanson

I’ve had several interesting, sometimes controversial, commercials show up through my in-box the last few days.  Some old, some new. Great examples to use in class either for teaching advertising or ethics (or both!). They are also just a lot … Continue reading →

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