Yes, yes… it’s been a veeery long time since I’ve posted anything here.
Well, instead of simply writing about WHY I haven’t posted (major health issues, holidays, and an insane teaching load this semester), I’ll just dive right into the post-Oscar media frenzy. Read More
Earlier this week I found myself in my natural habitat – a Starbucks. Say what you will about their coffee (mediocre at best), they have free wi-fi and comfy chairs. I wrote much of my MA thesis at the North Burnaby Starbucks in Kensington Square, and I am on track to repeat with my doctoral dissertation.
I add a hint of variety to my weekly routine by working at hipster-infested indie coffee shops too, where the coffee is better, the music louder, and the chairs far less suited to prolonged sitting. It was in the pretentious little coffee shops in Toronto that I began to recognize a particular kind of behaviour (apologies to my good friend who helped crystallize these thoughts… you know who you are…). In certain types of coffee shops, I am now on the lookout for grad students performing the role of The Suffering Grad Student. It’s a brilliant bit of acting, and I encourage you to observe it when you can.
At my usual Starbucks this week, I sat next to two of the finest specimens of The Suffering Grad Student I have ever seen. Their performances were breathtaking. And infuriating. And deeply worrying.
… shit… do I REALLY look like that to other people?
… and if so… how have I NOT been punched in the throat by a complete stranger? Read More
AMC’s Breaking Bad is the best show currently on TV. Period.
Now that we have that out of the way, some ideas to consider…
*** If you aren’t caught up with at least three full seasons, ‘Spoiler Alert’. Read More
Working in and around Media Literacy, as with any field, I run into a number of ideas that just refuse to go away. Bad theories and writers who practically haunt the field, continually finding new ways to make themselves relevant or hip.
Case in point: this cartoon, which pops up with a maddening frequency. I see this linked on Facebook or Twitter every few weeks, in an effort to remind the world that Neil Postman sure was a grumpy, elitist tool. Oh, wait… I mean, the cartoon is supposed to remind us that Postman was a prophet, and that our world is really quite a terrible place to be.
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In the ongoing fallout from last week’s ‘event’ in Vancouver, I’ve been trying to wrap my head around the highly contested term ‘Fan’ as it relates to this mess. As was expected, the good tax-paying Vancouverites have rallied their wagons, insisting that ‘professional rioters’ are to blame. (What in the hell does this even mean?)
REAL fans wouldn’t do that. REAL fans showed up the next morning to clean up the mess.
Watching the live footage unfold on Wednesday, I certainly started to fall into that trap myself, insofar as I believed that those directly responsible for burning and looting probably didn’t care very much about the actual hockey game. But really, who gets to decide what constitutes a ‘real’ fan, and why? Read More
As with my post-election hangover (of sorts), I feel compelled this morning to write a few quick notes about the colossal media failure surrounding the ‘riots’ last night.
First and least importantly… that may have been the first good hockey game of the series. Few penalties, relatively exciting throughout three periods, and another stunning performance from Tim Thomas.
And I really do want to applaud the majority of fans in attendance. After a few beer bottles hit the ice (mostly in response to the NHL Commissioner, I think…) the crowd applauded their home team, they applauded the Cup itself, and they recognized a brilliant effort by the Bruins generally, and Thomas in particular.
Outside, however, things got nasty.
Local and national media struggled to use the term ‘fans’ last night, because as we all know ‘fans’ are noble, and can NEVER be idiots in their spare time. Read More
I pay for cable. In fact, I pay a fair amount of money for cable.
I’m not one of those crackpots who subscribe to HBO just to watch a few episodes of sexy big-budget Fantasy, but I do send a Canadian telecom more money than I care to.
Which is strange, given that I also pay for Netflix. And I download TV shows from the web.
So why do I still pay for cable?
Because I’m an idiot. Because of AMC.
I started watching Mad Men last year (on Netflix). I watched two seasons of Breaking Bad (on DVD). Both are great shows, and I highly recommend them to you.
When AMC announced their third show, The Walking Dead, I was pretty excited. Zombies on television. It makes sense.
And yes, some critics went after the writing. And yes, the network has replaced all of the writers. It was still a brilliant show.
But for me, AMC sealed the deal three weeks ago with the launch of The Killing, adapted from a Danish mini-series. I’ve been glued to my TV each Sunday. It’s well-paced, well-acted, and genuinely riveting stuff.
And it’s got me thinking that Patton Oswalt was right.
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