A made-for-TV marriage quickly dies
It’s been a little more than three months since the wedding of Gerry Turner with Theresa Nist, who met on the made-for-TV meat/meet market of The Golden Bachelor. He’s the golden bachelor; she’s the one among the 20-plus women on the show to whom he proposed at the end of the Fall 2023 season and […]
What is ‘truth’ in documentaries? Sometimes, it’s a meltdown of a letdown.
By Benton Davis In 2019, HBO released a five-part miniseries about the Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster. In the opening minutes of the first episode, we see a Soviet scientist hang themselves, deliberately doing so two years later to the second from the initial disaster. The scientist, named Valery Legasov and portrayed by Jared Harris, did commit […]
Drake and his PR firm strike a pose with Vogue, get shot down in court
Rappers Drake and 21 Savage just released their “Her Loss” album, and it’s important for Aubrey Drake Graham and Sheyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph to gain the public’s attention in a swirling music world where streaming services add 100,000 new pieces of sound every day. So of course they hired a public relations company to help. Hiltzik […]
Separating awful artists from their art: Questions about “Jimmy Carr destroys art”
The Guardian says BBC 4 will host a show called “Jimmy Carr destroys art,” in which the comedian will host debates about problematic people who have created art. Then, the audience decides whether Carr will put a flamethrower or hammer or find another other way to destroy the piece. Among the objet d’art is a […]
You gotta read The Onion’s ‘friend of the court’ brief
Reading court filings usually feels like having a tooth filed or filled, but The Onion’s amicus curiae brief to the U.S. Supreme Court filed in early October 2022 is worth your time. This may be the most friendly written “friend of the court” brief ever. Background: Anthony Novak built a fake Facebook page that mocked […]
The pathos of Taylor Swift
By Cara Walker One of the oldest phenomena regarding entertainment and advertising is the humor in other people falling down. Successful shows such as America’s Funniest Home Videos and Tosh.0 are evidence of that, but why does it seem to be universally appealing for pain to be humorous? Diana Mahony, a psychologist and humor researcher […]
‘Angry’ Joe Vargas: an Echo in the Spiral of Silence
By Kasey Hullett Joe Vargas quit his cubicle job back in 2008 shortly after doing a review for the latest Madden franchise game. The video combined sketch and serious criticism. It showed football players tackling developers in the game studio. The video shortly went viral and soon enough the developer contacted Vargas and assured him […]
Aristotle and Persuasion: Are Gossip Magazines Doing This Right?
By Anna Van Der Like According to the New World Encyclopedia, “celebrity” journalism is less reputable than other types of journalism. Some would argue that these gossip columns are not journalistic at all. Yet they are incredibly successful and continue to sell even in a time when print media is slowly fading away. Aristotle taught […]
Steve Earle and ‘Mississippi, It’s Time:’ Why take the Lord’s name in vain when you don’t have to?
Steve Earle made a powerful statement with “Mississippi, It’s Time,” a raw and real song arguing that the Magnolia State should join Alabama and South Carolina in removing the Confederate flag. Its use of Dixie is masterful, co-opting a song now associated with racism and flipping it for an anti-racism anthem. The Southern Poverty Law […]