“Gen Zers know the difference between rock-solid news and AI-generated memes. They just don’t care.”

Over the past couple of years, researchers at Jigsaw, a Google subsidiary that focuses on online politics and polarization, have been studying how Gen Zers digest and metabolize what they see online. The researchers were hoping that their work would provide one of the first in-depth, ethnographic studies of Gen Z’s “information literacy.” But the…

That Much-Despised Apple Ad Could Be More Disturbing Than It Looks

Apple has apologized, but like writer Peter C. Baker, I’m not quite ready to let go of that really horrifying ad depicting a roomful of beautifully displayed musical instruments, sound gear, art supplies, and even toys being slowly squashed by a huge hydraulic press (ostensibly to highlight the creative potential of the latest iPad). Picture…

Delightfully geeky news story about a legal kerfuffle over typefaces

I’m very amused at this nerdy news story about some tension between a judge who asks for legible documents and a lawyer who files documents with flasher typography.   While I recognize that language changes and the distinction between “font” and “typeface” is unimportant to the general public, I teach my journalism students that historically…

Travel trouble, gun restrictions and no more ‘Mr Trump’: the trials of life as a felon

It’s unlikely to be at the forefront of the former president’s mind as he reflects on the verdict, but one immediate consequence is that Trump will probably lose the honorific title of “Mr” in the news pages of the UK’s Daily Telegraph. The Telegraph’s style guide states: “Defendants in criminal court cases … are to be referred…

A crushing backlash to Apple’s new iPad ad

Have you seen Apple’s “Crush” ad? It features a huge huge hydraulic press crushing musical instruments, art supplies, google-eyed toys, and other beloved artifacts of imagination and creativity. I remember seeing a video years ago that showed how a smartphone replaced a desktop full of tools like a calculator, notepad, rolodex, and so forth. But…

I’m still teaching journalism and my usual courses, but after 21 years I’ve stepped aside as faculty adviser to the Setonian. The student voice of the hill (founded in 1919) will continue to evolve.

I’m still teaching journalism and my usual courses, but after 21 years I’ve stepped aside as faculty adviser to the Setonian. The student voice of the hill (founded in 1919) will continue to evolve. First published in 1919, The Setonian not only predates SHU’s journalism major, it also predates the majestic London planetrees that the…

Remnants of a Legendary Typeface Rescued From the River Thames

A little over a century ago, the printer T.J. Cobden-Sanderson took it upon himself to surreptitiously dump every piece of this carefully honed metal letterpress type into the river. It was an act of retribution against his business partner, Emery Walker, whom he believed was attempting to swindle him. With its extra-wide capital letters, diamond shaped punctuation and…

Seton Hill students Emily Vohs, Elizabeth Burns, Jake Carnahan-Curcio and Carolyn Jerz in a scene from “Dead Man’s Cell Phone.”

Seton Hill students Emily Vohs, Elizabeth Burns, Jake Carnahan-Curcio and Carolyn Jerz in a scene from “Dead Man’s Cell Phone.” This weekend only… opens tonight! Order tickets online at http://www.setonhill.edu/tickets by phone at 724-552-2929, or by mail at SHUPAC Box Office, Seton Hill University, 1 Seton Hill Drive, Greensburg, Pa., 15601-1599. Box Office Hours are…