Subscribe to get Part 2 of this episode. Listen to a preview. On Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business (1985), featuring Mark, Seth, Dylan, Wes, and guest Brian Hirt, the co-host of Pretty Much Pop with degrees in linguistics and science education. Sponsors: Save 20% on an annual membership of at TheGreatCoursesPlus.com/PEL. See Continue Reading …
Ep. 268: Neil Postman’s “Amusing Ourselves to Death” (Part Two for Supporters)
Continuing from part one on Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business with guest Brian Hirt. Let's get critical: Is it really the case that the written word is so much more suited for providing context than television, which after all does retain some of the virtues of the pre-literate speechifying culture that Socrates preferred over writing? Continue Reading …
Ep. 268: Neil Postman’s “Amusing Ourselves to Death” (Part One for Supporters)
On Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business (1985), featuring Mark, Seth, Dylan, Wes, and guest Brian Hirt, the co-host of Pretty Much Pop with degrees in linguistics and science education. How does the form in which we receive media affect how we think? Postman tweaks Marshall McLuhan's famous slogan "the medium is the message" to say "the Continue Reading …
Pretty Much Pop #11: The Live Music Experience
Surely tech advances make it unnecessary to ever leave the house, right? Why go to see live people doing live things live? Dave Hamilton (Host of Gig Gab, Mac Geek Gab, and Mark's old drummer) joins Mark, Erica, and Brian to discuss what's so damn cool about live music (and theater), the alternatives (live-streamed-to-theaters or devices, recorded for TV, VR), why Continue Reading …
Pretty Much Pop #2: Binge Watching
Partially Examined Lifers, please enjoy the continuing adventures of the new podcast. Episode 3, the interview with Yakov Smirnoff on the dangers of conformity, and how they're expressed in media and culture more generally, will be going up today, but you won't hear them it yet. You have to go subscribe to the podcast; look it up on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Play, or Continue Reading …
Pretty Much Pop #1: Pop Culture vs. High Culture
What is pop culture? Does it make sense to distinguish it from high culture, or can something be both?Your PEL host Mark Linsenmayer is joined by actor/musician Erica Spyres (a recent PEL guest), and sci-fi writer/linguist Brian Hirt (of the Constellary Tales podcast) in this first attempt at a conversation together for this new podcast that will cover films, TV, novels, games, Continue Reading …
PREVIEW-Ep 216 Game of Thrones’ Fantasy Politics (Part Two)
Get teased re. Mark and Wes's post-finale, spoiler-filled continuation of the discussion of the show. How does its conclusion affect its overall political message? Does it make sense to be performing feminist critiques on a show based on the premise of people murdering each other for power? To hear the full discussion, become a PEL Citizen or $5 Patreon supporter. For more Continue Reading …
Ep. 216 Follow-Up: Reflections on the End of Game of Thrones (Citizens Only)
Mark and Wes continue discussion of the TV show on the morning after its 5/19/19 finale. Listen to our ep. 216 first. Yes, of course this is now full of spoilers. How does the end of the show affect its overall political message? Was it really (as George R.R. Martin depicted) about the irreducible complexity of politics (given that any character named or unnamed can actually Continue Reading …
Episode 216: Game of Thrones’ Fantasy Politics
Discussing the TV show (2011–2019) based on the books by George R.R. Martin. What's the role of a mass-consumed fantasy series in today's society? Is it our "fantasy" to have all these horrible things happen to us? Is this an edifying prompt to engage in public moral thinking, or a spectacular distraction of the kind that those Marxist theorists keep warning us Continue Reading …