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The story of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has been irresistible to the news media for weeks, with images of FLDS women living as though in another century. But now the sister wives are fighting back in a very 21st century way. Salt Lake Tribune’s polygamy reporter Brooke Adams reviews the narrative.
Rupert Murdoch has had several months to exert influence over his new property, The Wall Street Journal. Many see the modifications to the paper and his grab for Newsday as a direct attack on The New York Times but Slate's Jack Shafer says the speculation is overblown.
Rushmore Drive is a new search engine designed to return results targeted to black people. CEO Johnny Taylor explains why segregated search makes sense and web entrepreneur Omar Wasow gives a status report on the state of the black internet.
Consuming the same media as your peers is what social scientists call homophily, better known as ‘birds of a feather flock together’. Ethan Zuckerman, blogger and internet theorist, has been trying to fight this instinct online. He offers techniques for surprising and challenging readers with news that they didn't know they wanted.
Brooke and Bob read a few of your letters and comments.
This week's release of Grand Theft Auto IV provoked a frenzy of media coverage heralding the game's design, touting the record-breaking sales and of course, examining the threat the game poses to our children. But Lawrence Kutner has authored a new book suggesting violent video games do not create violent children.
65 years ago, Dr. Albert Hofmann embarked on the first intentional acid trip, when he ingested 250 µg and set out from his lab on a bicycle. On the occasion of Hofmann’s death this week, we rerun this interview with Acid Dreams author Martin Lee. He reflects on the uses and misuses of LSD.
Highlights from Past Shows
As reported in The New York Times last weekend, CNN, MSNBC, NPR and others have turned, again and again, to military analysts – retired members of the armed forces hired by broadcast and cable networks – for their supposed expertise on the war. Only, it turns out, the analysts were often coached by the Pentagon in what the Times said were “hundreds of private briefings.” Among those named was Maj. Robert Bevelacqua, a former Green Beret and Fox News contributor through 2005. Bevelacqua discusses his own role in the march to war.
Our interview with Naseem Mithoowani a couple weeks ago sparked a heated debate on our site about free speech, xenophobia, and a clash of cultures when it comes to Muslim immigrants in western societies. This week Bob takes a broader look at some of those issues in Europe, where this clash has been forceful, public, and at times violent. Bob talks with some of the main players in this struggle to define the future of free speech in Europe.
On the Media is funded by The Bydale Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Overbrook Foundation.
