Category Archives: Uncategorized

Looking Back at the January 6th Insurrection – History Has Its Eyes On You

Posted on January 6, 2022 by Ralph Hanson

Update: 1/6/25  — It’s now been four years since this shameful day. One year ago today an angry mob assaulted the United Staters Capitol Building in an attempt to stop the counting of electoral votes and overturn the results of … Continue reading →

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Remembering Michael Nesmith of The Monkees – and so, so much more

Posted on December 10, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Michael Nesmith, the contemplative, wool-cap-wearing member of the Monkees, has died at 78. He made one of the rock era's first music videos and won the first Grammy Award for video. https://t.co/Ed2OuEMfqr pic.twitter.com/8PssCI3xfu — The New York Times (@nytimes) December … Continue reading →

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For Your Holiday Reading List – Journal articles with news you can use

Posted on December 9, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

There are a lot of of journal articles out there that cover a very narrow theoretical discipline that develop important knowledge for people in that exact area of scholarship. But occasionally there come articles that can actually be used by … Continue reading →

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Guest Blog Post: Olympic Games are great for propagandists – how the lessons of Hitler’s Olympics loom over Beijing 2022

Posted on November 18, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Editor’s Note: Thanks to my friend Dr. Michael Socolow, University of Maine, for letting me reprint his article from The Conversation.  Dr. Socolow takes a look at China’s repression and human rights abuses and asks whether cheerful media coverage of … Continue reading →

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My Year of Living ‘Strangely’ – Yes, it’s time for the results of my 2021 TS Grand Tour

Posted on November 8, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

(NOTE: Pressed “Publish” instead of “Save.” There’s more to come.) For the last six or seven years, every summer I do a national-scale motorcycle scavenger hunt run by a  motorcycle club out of Minnesota known as Team Strange. Each year … Continue reading →

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What’s The Fuss About Facebook, Inc.? Part I – The WSJ

Posted on October 28, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Editor’s Note: Facebook and its various properties (Instagram, WhatsApp) have been in the news a lot lately, and not in a good way.  Congress has been holding social media hearings where Facebook is the #1 bad guy, the Washington Post  has had … Continue reading →

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Everything is a Remix – Apocalypse Pooh

Posted on October 8, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Back in 1987, comedian and filmmaker Todd Graham had a thought. What if he combined sequences from Francis Ford Coppola’s classic reboot of “Heart of Darkness”  Apocalypse Now with segments of the Disney version of Winnie the Pooh and the Honey … Continue reading →

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Everyone’s Gone to the Movies – Let’s talk movies in class

Posted on October 4, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

NOTE: This is a collection of videos I’m going to be using in class this week to go with my discussion of the movies in Global Media Literacy. You all no doubt think you are of the “cat video” generation. … Continue reading →

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Everything is a (musical) remix

Posted on September 29, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Updated 2/28/24 Kirby Ferguson did a remarkable series of videos about ten years ago under the title “Everything is a Remix.” He’s now in the process of remaking (remixing!) the series for a new decade. Below is the first segment, … Continue reading →

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Return of “Missing White Woman Syndrome”

Posted on September 22, 2021 by Ralph Hanson

Editor’s Note: Please note that nothing in this commentary is intended to minimize the violence perpetrated against Gabby Petito. But there are significant news coverage issues brought up by this case that I think need to be discussed. Ms. Petito … Continue reading →

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