The final innovation which profoundly affected my personal sense of identity was the advent of the Internet. By the time my wife and I broke down and bought our first PC in the early 90s, the World Wide Web was already a full-blown global phenomenon. The Internet opened up entirely new vistas of research and […]
In this blog I will demonstrate how the term ‘conspiracy theory’ has been misused by the media. In particular, I will focus on the so-called ‘alternative media’ and the many ways they marginalize and isolate reasonable suspicions about the political economy which have the potential to de-legitimize the prevailing social order. The archetypical example of […]
Elite propaganda Scholars such as Lance DeHaven-Smith and Mark Fenster have advanced this field of study by revealing the ways in which valid questions about activities of the power elites in the US have been abrogated by simply applying the term ‘conspiracy theory.’ The pejorative use of the term dates back to a CIA memorandum […]
A recent report from the Council on Foreign Relations confirms that the U.S. public education system is making Americans so dumb it has now become a national security risk. Our very survival as a nation is at stake, according to the task force. Forget the threat of terrorism, the war on drugs, gay marriage or […]
Iron Sky is a totally over the top science fiction parody ostensibly about Nazis on the moon who invade Earth. It was produced by Tero Kalkoman and created by a team of independent Finnish film-makers, led by Timo Vuorensola as director. The film is Vuorensola’s first major film project. He is well-known in his homeland, […]
2014 marked the 67th anniversary of what has become known as the ‘Roswell Incident.’ In the years since the release of Charles Berlitz and William L. Moore’s seminal The Roswell Incident in 1980, the Roswell UFO case has become an iconic and enduring global pop culture phenomenon. Even though new developments are still being reported […]
“Culture jamming” is the process through which a familiar media image or concept is co-opted, deconstructed, demystified and turned against itself. I recently read four articles dealing with various aspects of supposedly “fake news” shows such as The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (TDS) and The Colbert Report. Both are hugely popular satirical TV news […]
The guiding principles behind ‘Net Neutrality’ are currently under attack. Last Wednesday, hundreds of major tech firms and internet advocacy groups staged an online protest of the Federal Communication Commission’s recent proposals which will allow internet service providers (ISPs) to charge customers more money for faster online service. These rules run contrary to the concept […]
The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel is a landmark publication which elucidates the core principles and practices of Journalism. The authors describe some of the ways in which the profession has changed in our society over the years. They decry the failure […]
The late comedian Bill Hicks and I had lot in common. Among other things, we both shared a morbid fascination with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. One of Bill’s funniest stand-up routines dealt with the reactions he used to get whenever he brought up the subject: “I love talking about the Kennedy assassination, […]
Jason Darensburg's Blog-o-rama 