Unwittingly, the prestigious men of letters at the Columbia Journalism Review have discovered a few reasons why the newspaper industry is dying.

The overriding motif in a recent issue of CJR is the angst felt by newspaper reporters as their industry shrivels into a black hole. A staff editorial called “More Than a Job” weeps:

Losing any job can be traumatic, and we are not suggesting that this emotional toll is unique to journalism…

O! But they are.
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Tags: trusted media & news by Michael Cade
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I recently participated in the writing of a serial novel with some colleagues at Drexel University. Maybe it’s not a “novel.” It’s a bit short for that. There are eight chapters by eight authors and they will be published at DPG Online over the next four weeks. The project is called Turning the Page and is a sometimes-comedic detective mystery story set in and around Drexel University and Philadelphia. If you like detective yarns, some silliness, and the incorporation of books, authors, and English departments into the plots of stories, Turning the Page is for you. Chapter 1 is now published. I am the author of Chapter 5, coming out in a couple of weeks. But you’ll want to read the chapters leading up to it if there’s to be any chance of my chapter making sense to you when it is published. Enjoy.

Tags: books & writing, creative writing by Scott Stein
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… than the way students at our Early College High School were passing time and pursuing studies, yesterday on the Midland College campus – reclining on the grass, in the shade of trees, reading one of the great works of American literature. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing, education by Jeff McDonald
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Translated from Los Tiempos de Nueva California, dated June 17, 1840:

Arizona Governor Don Fernando d’Ibaraa y Figueora y Mascarenes y Lampourdos y Souza — in response to the wave of illegal immigration coming from the United States — signed into law a controversial bill that will allow Mexican authorities to check the documentation of foreign workers residing in the territory and arrest those who are without such documents.

“We sympathize with Americans who come to our country to escape the poverty of their cities,” the governor said, “and we certainly appreciate their work on our farms, haciendas, and gardens — taking the jobs that no Mexicans want. But they must do so legally.

“But rest assured,” the governor concluded, “we will not racially profile gringos before we arrest them.”

Tags: politics & government by Colin Cohen
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I have and will always love The Lemonheads album It’s A Shame About Ray. Came out in 1992 and yet I still listen to it on an almost weekly basis. It was a simpler time then — Kurt Cobain was still alive, mix tapes were literally cassettes, and the only person I knew with a cellphone was Zach Morris. Every song on the album is so good, and it brings me back to my days of stressing over girls and being almost solely responsible for keeping Oxy Cream’s stock up. Ahh, my teenage years! [Read more →]

Tags: art & entertainment, Marty digs, movies, music by Marty O'Connor
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I’ve been a fan of David Cross since the late 1990s when his sketch comedy show, Mr. Show with Bob and David, aired on HBO. He is a harsh, vulgar, and insightful comic who calls attention to serious issues through exaggerations so extreme most people are instantly offended. I remember one sketch that assaulted America’s public schools by juxtaposing Hitler and Anne Frank — brilliance. So, when I saw his book, I Drink for a Reason, I was psyched to download the audio book from iTunes and give it a listen. Wow! Does it suck! The comedy takes a turn for the worse about two hours in; it moves quickly from amusing social critique to the trite ramblings of a tired comedian. 
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Tags: books & writing, fan boy says by Steve Mazzeo
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Retired Marine Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North offers us a Vietnam War lesson today on the 35th anniversary of the fall of South Vietnam.

The highly decorated Vietnam veteran explains some facts about the war that I fear our children are not being taught in school and he compares Vietnam to our current war in Afghanistan.

You can read his column here.

Tags: terror & war by Paul Davis
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The website FirstThings.com has an interesting story up, one I’m sure a few of you have seen.  It is entitled “Obama and Big Sis call out riot police on Quincy TEA Party patriots“.

Apparently someone felt that a bunch of little old ladies posed a significant threat!

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Tags: politics & government by Mike McGowan
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Congressdude James Oberstar, whose last name in German I think means either “superstar” or “cow dung” is trying to amend the Clean Water Act, which allows the EPA to regulate navigable waterways; that is, places through which boats can pass. Oberstar wants to get rid of that inconvenient “navigable” part, which will allow the EPA to regulate any and all bodies of water.

Which would include pools. And bath water. And perhaps even that perspiration forming underneath your arms. [Read more →]

Tags: environment & nature, politics & government by Colin Cohen
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Books from politicians, and from those who are a part of their aspirations and achievements, are common enough … but not many of them find their way onto my shelves.

This one might … [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing by Jeff McDonald
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