Category: media

Film critics A.O. Scott and Manohla Dargis debate Pauline Kael’s legacy – and sharply disagree on her writing. Scott: “A lot of people read her for the pleasure of disagreement, and the resentment she was able to provoke — in critical targets and rival critics — is surely evidence of power. “

The Fox News mastermind, Roger Ailes, wanted to make news that doubled as entertainment. Whatever else Fox has done – damaged journalis or altered the political course of the country, some claim – it’s certainly succeeded at Ailes’ goal.

When it comes to cultural programming, I expect something rather better than “Andrea Bocelli Live in Central Park” from the TV network that put “Civilisation” and “Dance in America” on the air. So should you.

“I think that in addition to it being something of a general dream that people have – the idea of seeing yourself as the opposite sex – there is the question of challenging God. If you are transsexual, then you are issuing a challenge to God, who created you in the wrong body.”

June Thomas: “Experiencing the Almodóvar filmography is like stepping into one of those endlessly repeating M.C. Escher paintings. Some motifs recur so frequently that I feared for my sanity.”

“Newly published research suggests nuggets of misinformation embedded in a fictional television program can seep into our brains and lodge there as perceived facts. What’s more, this troubling dynamic seems to occur even when our initial response is skepticism.”

Baby books and child-rearing classes describe TV as a vice on the order of smoking or keeping firearms in the house. But is it?

Farhad Manjoo: “Baby books and child-rearing classes describe TV as a vice on the order of smoking or keeping firearms in the house. Our pediatrician told us that on-screen images move too quickly for kids’ brains, and could thus cause long-term developmental problems. … After digging into several studies, I found that there’s little to support a zero-tolerance policy on screen time.”

Maintain quality? That will be very hard given the proposed cuts in budget. This will dismantle a national treasure.

“Monty Python star Terry Jones says even the comedy icons would ‘think twice’ about doing a religious satire like Life of Brian these days – and that a similar film about Muslims would ‘probably not’ be made.”