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A new video released by the militant group, Islamic State of Iraq, is one example in a new trend of insurgent videos, a move away from gore and toward highly stylized dramatization. The Washington Post’s Philip Kennicott explains that the video shows a profound awareness of pacing, dramatic effect, and American media imagery.
The G8 summit in Germany this week brought new rhetoric from the United States about climate change. President Bush seemed to signal a willingness to cooperate with international partners, after nearly a decade of ignoring international agreements like the Kyoto Protocol. Andrew Revkin, environment reporter for The New York Times, looks at how Bush has warmed to a new approach and the unlikely influence of an old Bush nemesis, Al Gore.
Last week a Dutch reality series, The Big Organ Donor Show, shocked the world twice. First for what it was going to broadcast – a reality show whose winner gets a life-saving kidney- and then again for revealing it was a hoax. Laurens Drillrich, chairman of BNN, explains why his little lies exposed some big truths.
Larry Flynt, porn king and First Amendment militant, placed a full-page ad in the Washington Post last week offering $1 million in exchange for documented evidence of sexual indiscretion by a high governmental official. Flynt explains that if paying is the only way to get dirt, then it’s worth it.
Tom Fiedler was offered a photo in 1987 implicating Presidential hopeful Gary Hart in an extra-marital affair. Fiedler refused to pay the source, but he managed to break the story anyway. Fiedler, retired Executive Editor for the Miami Herald, explains that in the 20 years since that incident, checkbook journalism has thrived.
This week, a NYC court ruled against the FCC and in favor of the broadcast networks in a case that centered on “fleeting expletives,” uttered by the likes of Nicole Richie and President Bush, among others. Is this a free speech victory or a cultural loss? Parents Television Council President Tim Winter says the verdict was a big disappointment.
Instead of fading into failed TV history, some canceled pilots are given new life on the internet. Canned by the WB network, Nobody’s Watching, has had more than 14.2 million online views. Wired’s Hugh Hart discusses the phenomenon and why we can expect more of this in the future.
Surfing has films, skateboarding has VHS tapes, and parkour has the internet. After a few clips of David Belle leaping around the French suburbs made their way to the internet, a sport was accidentally born. New Yorker writer Alec Wilkinson explains how parkour managed to be the first sport to go viral.
Our favorite Parkour clip.
Highlights from Past Shows
This week marks the 40th anniversary of one of Israel’s major conflicts with its Arab neighbors. Here and in Israel, it’s known as the Six-Day War. But Palestinians call it an-Naksah, or “the Setback.” The New Yorker’s Jeffrey Goldberg discusses the event that became Year Zero for subsequent Middle-East coverage.
For 27 years, the identity of the only anonymous Pulitzer Prize recipient remained secret. Last year, Wall Street Journal reporter Josh Prager went to Iran to find the winning photographer. This week, Jahangir Razmi finally claimed his Pulitzer. Razmi and Prager tell their story.
On the Media is funded by The Bydale Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Overbrook Foundation.
