“Internet trolls have a manifesto of sorts, which states they are doing it for the “lulz,” or laughs. What trolls do for the lulz ranges from clever pranks to harassment to violent threats. There’s also doxxing–publishing personal data, such as Social Security numbers and bank accounts–and swatting, calling in an emergency to a victim’s house so the SWAT team busts in. When victims do not experience lulz, trolls tell them they have no sense of humor. Trolls are turning social media and comment boards into a giant locker room in a teen movie, with towel-snapping racial epithets and misogyny.”
Category: media
Scientists Took MRIs Of People’s Brains While They Watched Movies. Here’s What They Saw
“Our results demonstrate that some films can exert considerable control over brain activity and eye movements. However, this was not the case for all types of motion picture sequences, and the level of control over viewers’ brain activity differed as a function of movie content, editing, and directing style.”
Three Olympics Story Lines That The Media Should Just Drop Already
“Doping scandals, dubious economic benefits of hosting, and nail-biter badminton finishes aside, the Olympics are really the world championships of #content. Small wonder, then, that some media narratives emerging from the games are more tired than Katie Ledecky’s competitors in the pool.”
The Fourth Remake Of ‘A Star Is Born’ Is Coming. Bad Idea
“The movie has been made three times (in 1937, 1954, and 1976), each time to diminishing critical returns, with barely any variation in story, and yet with every new Hollywood generation someone looks to try again. On Tuesday, the fourth version was announced: Lady Gaga will play the ingénue and Bradley Cooper her love interest, with the latter also writing and directing, and presumably trying to find a new angle to justify the remake.” David Sims looks at why the story is unlikely to play well in 2017.
NPR Website Drops Reader Comments
“NPR introduced public comments to its website eight years ago, when many of today’s most popular venues for digital interaction didn’t yet exist or were in their infancy. Since then, we’ve explored and developed many options for strengthening those connections. Some of these methods have proven invaluable. Others less so.”
Sure TV Is More Diverse. But Here’s What Still Needs Doing
“Progress isn’t solely a matter of narrowing the color gap on TV but of widening the types of stories that reach us.”
Georgia Attracts Record $2 Billion In Movie Production
“It’s absolutely the highest it’s ever been. It’s double what we did practically the first 25 years of the film office… in one year!”.
Women-Centered Hollywood Hits Were Once The Norm
“Ghostbusters and Ocean’s Eight don’t mark a turning point for Hollywood so much as a return: From the 1920s to the ’50s, women drove box-office revenue – in drama, comedy, and ensemble films.”
NBC’s Lagging Olympic Ratings Illustrates Seismic Shift In TV Audience
“The average audience of 27.8 million viewers through the first 10 nights is down 17% from the 2012 Games in London. With more competition airing live in prime time, NBC counted on the Rio Games’ ratings to be as good or better than London, the most-watched Olympics held outside of the U.S.”
Does Comedy Central’s Cancellation Of Larry Wilmore Mean Anything For TV Diversity?
“When a move toward progress is made in the entertainment industry, the parties involved often sweat to death under the harsh spotlight that’s put on them. When a gamble is made and it doesn’t work out, executives don’t just start betting more conservatively. They shut down the whole casino.”