The streets and parts and sidewalks of London are home to some 800,000 closed circuit TV cameras, a huge number of which are mounted on walls of public buildings. The cameras capture the comings and goings of vast numbers of people, scarcely any of whom feel that the cameras constitute an intrusion on their privacy. …
Mr. Media, a/k/a the charming Bob Andelman, recently interviewed me for his radio program/podcast/column, and we had a delightful time talking about not only And the War Came, but also bygone days at Spy and Playboy. It was a lot of fun. Anyone who would like to listen to the program can find it here. …
Fifty years ago (fifty years ago tomorrow, to be precise), my mom and dad drove my brother and me from our home in Baltimore MD to Culpepper County, Virginia, about sixty miles away, for a centennial reenactment of the first Battle of Bull Run, which took place 150 years ago today. About 2000 reenactors restaged …
50 YEARS AGO: THE FIRST BATTLE OF BULL RUN AT 100 Read More »
The highly revealing Parliamentary hearings into Rupert Murdoch and the News Corp. hacking scandal were interrupted yesterday when spectator Jonathan May-Bowles, a.k.a. “Jonnie Marbles” tried to throw a shaving cream pie at the media baron but was thwarted by his wife, Wendi Deng. In an article in The Guardian, May-Bowles defended himself. “Simply put, I …
Explaining his intention to support the gay marriage bill now before the legislature, New York State Senator Roy McDonald said “You get to the point where you evolve in your life where everything isn’t black and white, good and bad, and you try to do the right thing. You might not like that. You might …
In a fine example of state of the art thinking circa 1980, Peter Beinart today explains in The Daily Beast why this is Sarah Palin should seize this moment to run for president. “There will be never be a better moment,” he writes. “A conventional politician might bide his or her time, amass a record …
THE AXIS OF VANITY (OR, WHEN REALITY TV STARS COLLIDE) Read More »
“I have a roaring fire in the belly, and I struggle with it every day.” An hysterical quote, held up for ridicule by Lawrence O’Donnell. Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Lawrence has held that Sarah Palin will not run for president because no losing vice presidential candidate in …
It feels odd to say, but it may well turn out to be the case that the major literary figure of my generation (or the one right after me, depending how thinly you’d like to slice the generational lines) is Aaron Sorkin. No one seems to have done a better job of capturing the underpinnings …
Donald Trump‘s presidential publicity stunt reached its natural and entirely predictable denouement yesterday when, boosted by press coverage generated by yet another pretend flirtation with a political campaign, his reality television show was renewed by a hit-starved NBC. For a good example of the news media’s maddeningly narcissistic role in our national political life, see …
My new favorite commercial is this Volvo ad, featuring the unique song stylings of the Swedish singer Miss Li. Lots of pizzazz.