I am intrigued by the possibility that Miley Cyrus’s alleged “performance” at VMA was intended as a criticism of the pro-date-rape sentiment of Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” but I suspect we’re just witnessing the latest celebrity breakdown. Here’s a mommyblogger who calls it as she sees it. Yes, this is what happens when you constantly…
Brutally honest satire, from The Onion. Over the years, CNN.com has become a news website that many people turn to for top-notch reporting. Every day it is visited by millions of people, all of whom rely on “The Worldwide Leader in News”—that’s our slogan—for the most crucial, up-to-date information on current events. So, you may…
I didn’t watch the show, but I did see the aftermath on Twitter. I think it’s perfectly newsworthy to correct a misconception by presenting a video clip that contextualizes a still image that has been apparently mischaracterized by the media. Unfortunately, Viacom has apparently blocked the copy of the image embedded with this story. The image…
The AP Stylebook jumped in price by more than $2 over the summer, to about $15. I assume this has everything to do with the fact that college students are buying textbooks like mad. Price History Chart of 0465082998 The Associated Press Stylebook 2013 (Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law). Similar:They Should Have…
It is a weekly creative writing challenge for children under 16 years of age. Each week a prompt is given, which can be a picture or a series of individual words and the children can use up to 100 words to write a creative piece. This should be posted on a class blog and then…
A former student of mine who often wore a Star Trek VI T-shirt was trying to make an annoying person go away, so when he spoke to her, she said “Servant, attention!” in Goa’uld. When I paraphrased this story to my son, he immediately said, “Jaffa, kree!” Then he said something in Goa’uld that he…
Students whom I haven’t met yet, I’ll have you know I left a party early so I could be ready for you tomorrow. You’re welcome. And they were still serving cake and ice cream. Similar:A little board-gaming for Labor Day.PersonalWoman Yelling at Cat About Academic Argument: an evidence-based defense of a non-obvious p…See: Academic Argument:…
TWEEN GIRL: “What’s a tribble?” MY GEEKLING DAUGHTER: (Gasp!) ME: Don’t worry, dear. If everyone was a geek, geeks wouldn’t be so awesome. Similar:Make a date with #HeartOurArt at The Westmoreland Museum of American ArtWhile our daughter is performing in Stag…ArtEnjoy the showmanship as a 94yo woman performs in a dance competition.https://youtu.be/8LOdmka4_90AestheticsStage Right's production of…
#geekgirlproblems Similar:The Case for Slow Journalism: When to Unplug from the Endless News CycleOften when I see people in my social med…CybercultureMore #steampunk control panel bits for a #neovictorian #blender3D project. I have a master…AestheticsWe ask 3 Broadway photographers: How do you turn a live show into a still image?Great story about the art of…
“Every good lesson plan has a culminating activity,” says Dr. Audrey Quinlan. “Sondra, it took six months, but here’s your culminating activity.” Similar:Added a splash of color to this section of a #neovictorian #steampunk control panel (for m…Aesthetics14 questions for new journalists to consider when filing a story – PoynterIf you’re new to reporting, here…
A blessing before the butterfly release at #sondrasgarden #setonhill http://t.co/z8rKzgc49B Similar:Desert Bus: The Worst Video Game Ever CreatedPenn and Teller are involved with this s…BooksI asked my geekling whether she was ready for bed…I asked my #geekling whether she was rea…AmusingParallel structure in writing: Use it!These comic panels cover the issue well….HumanitiesHello, there, mini.Hello, there,…
While I’d rather see a reminder that we need to know the rules of formal writing, so that we can choose to ignore them deliberately, otherwise this author makes a good case for the value of poetry. (Great training for the art of writing engaging headlines and story leads.) (See also “Poetry Writing Tips.”) Poetry…
Similarly, “dived” is the traditional past tense of “dive”, but “dove” has overtaken it, as speakers have drawn an analogy with “drove” and “wove”. At some stage, like “stopt” – the old past tense of “stop”, common as recently as the 1940s – “dived” may be obsolete. When will we start to dock points for…
Here is the entry on it from The Times’s “Manual of Style and Usage,” a guidebook used by reporters and editors throughout the newsroom: transgender (adj.) is an overall term for people whose current identity differs from their sex at birth, whether or not they have changed their biological characteristics. Cite a person’s transgender status…
“There was a lot of writing involved. The one that stands out the most is, we were asked to compose a tweet, a limerick, or a haiku. I believe I did a limerick, and it goes: ‘Eyes fixed, gazing off into space My mind in awe of the human race This is all dizzying to…
As the recent death toll in Egypt surpasses 500, news of Muslim Brotherhood supporters being slaughtered in Rabaa Al-Adawiya Square has been an especially tragic manifestation of the powder-keg that is “post-revolutionary” Egypt. Just days before, our photographer found himself embroiled in an MB protest near to that now-tragic location. While this story does not…
With water already obscuring his vision, he had to turn upside down in order to release his safety cable. “Two things happen: the Sun sets, and my ability to see — already compromised by the water – completely vanishes, making my eyes useless; but worse than that, the water covers my nose — a really…
Because you know you have the chance to tell stories for a living. Which is pretty cool. via 31 Undeniable Truths That Journalism Majors Can All Agree On. Similar:The Benefits of No-Tech Note TakingI quibble with The Chronicle headline wr…AcademiaI am not really sure why I have kept it up this long. I have…
My daughter, having just received a hand-me-down paperback, is annotating it and consulting it as she cannibalizes multiple generic Lego sets for what looks to be an epic DIY “Lego Hobbit” video. (We did buy her a small “Riddles in the Dark” set so she could have a Gollum, Bilbo, and ring, but everything else…
Death is universal, so one day I’ll face these decisions. I just asked my tween to put down her Legos and my teen to put down his algebra, so I could tell them that when I’m dead, I don’t want them to pay for a fancy coffin, or cushions, or an open casket. I told…