Award-winning journalist and public radio veteran John Carroll gives his perspective on today's hottest topics in news, media, technology, and more.
Dec. 27, 2007
New Year's Resolutions (3:27)
Media makers listen up: John Carroll has few resolutions he'd like you to attend to this year.
Dec. 20, 2007
Frosty
(2:44)
Sure, you can sing out all of Rudolph's fellow reindeer, but can you get beyond the opening words to "Frosty the Snowman"?
Dec. 13, 2007
Prescription Drugs (2:22)
Pharmaceutical makers spend roughly $4 billion a year advertising directly to consumers. But there are some parts of their messaging that they don't want you to notice.
Dec. 6, 2007
Steinway Pianos
(2:48)
Steinway pianos rank alongside Stradivarius violins and Les Paul guitars as the most celebrated of musical instruments. And recent media attention has made the Steinway ever more popular.
Nov. 29, 2007
Gawker.com (2:54)
The Internet is rightly regarded as journalism's new frontier. But gossip blogs such as gawker.com prove that the Web has become a mainstay for all the news that's not fit to print.
Nov. 15, 2007
Black Mask (2:53)
During an average week, roughly one-half of the top 10 Nielsen-rated television dramas are about forensic crime solving. But that's nothing new in American popular culture.
Nov. 8, 2007
Misinformation (2:57)
Former Washington Post reporter Carl Bernstein, who is most famous for breaking the Watergate story with fellow reporter Bob Woodward, once described journalism as "the best obtainable version of the truth." But even Bernstein would acknowledge that media makers often find it difficult to simply call a spade a spade.
Nov. 1, 2007
e.e. cummings (2:30)
The Wall Street Journal recently reported that the State University of New York at Brockport is home to the best individual collection of paintings by 20th-century American poet e.e. cummings. The collection would be an amazing resource — if only it hadn't fallen into disrepair. Here's John Carroll's take.
Oct. 25, 2007
Futuristic Visions (2:44)
For about a year now, the blog Paleo- Future has documented how artists, scholars, and technologists from the past century imagined our future. Most of these "retro-futures" are full of egalitarian hope. Unfortunately, it's safe to say the batting average of the predictors has been, well, anemic.
Oct. 18, 2007
Matt Drudge (2:39)
In a recent New York magazine profile of Drudge Report founder Matt Drudge, Pat Buchanan described him as "just about the most powerful journalist in America." Here's John Carroll's take on the reigning king of cyber journalism.
Oct. 11, 2007
Front Groups (3:11)
Papers such as the New York Times and the Washington Post often run ads from sponsors that promote social justice and charitable causes. Unfortunately, the motivation behind these ads is a far cry from selfless.
Oct. 4, 2007
Jimmy Lee Sudduth
(3:12)
Self-taught African-American folk artist Jimmy Lee Sudduth died last month at the age of 97. Get John Carroll's Take on the artist The New York Times art critic Michael Kimmelman praised for his "pictures of improbable chalky luminosity and understated bliss."
September 27, 2007
World War II Correspondents (4:26)
Perhaps more than any other military conflict, WWII was known for its war correspondents — from Edward R. Morrow and Ernie Pyle to W.C. Heinz and Bill Mauldin. So, while Ken Burns has our attention focused on The War, his seven-part PBS documentary series, John Carroll adds his take on covering WWII.
September 20, 2007
Charlie Parker (4:07)
Every day, contemporary media makers bombard consumers with an overwhelming surplus of information. For some respite, John Carroll turns to Charlie Parker, of whom music critic Albert Goldman declared "never before or since has someone said so much so well in so few seconds." Here's John Carroll's Take on rediscovering "The Bird."
Sept. 13, 2007
The Huffington Post (3:00)
For the past decade, liberals have tried — and almost always failed — to rival conservative media makers, who continue to dominate talk radio and cable television. The Internet, though, still remains competitive. Initially written off as a vanity project of Arianna Huffington, the wife of millionaire congressman Michael Huffington, The Huffington Post has become one of the first liberal media success stories.
Sept. 6, 2007
Campaign It Girls (4:07)
Campaign songs have long been a staple of American elections. Today, YouTube has spawned a gaggle of campaign song video parodies by "campaign girls" including "Obama Girl," "Hillary Girl," and "McCain Mama." Get John Carroll's take on — and hear a sampling of — a new generation of campaign songs.
Aug. 23, 2007
LifeLock (2:47)
LifeLock, an identity theft prevention service, placed a full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal promising to "protect your good name" but LifeLock's own good name is in question.
Aug. 16, 2007
New and (Dis)improved (3:31)
For many American consumers, the three most frightening words in the English language are "new and improved."
Aug. 9, 2007
Anita O'Day (3:31)
The Newport Jazz Festival, which takes place this weekend, is celebrating the legacy of vocalist Anita O'Day. Back in 1958, big names like Louis Armstrong, Thelonious Monk, and Mahalia Jackson helped make the festival famous. But it was O'Day who made 1958 a most memorable festival year.
Aug. 2, 2007
New York Galleries (3:11)
It has long been accepted that artists suffer for their art. But viewers of art at some Manhattan galleries can suffer, too.
July 25, 2007
Emile Griffith (3:03)
Over the course of his 20-year career, welterweight boxer Emile Griffith fought 122 professional bouts. But his battle to remain in the closet is one fight Griffith still hasn't finished.
July 19, 2007
Frost/Nixon (3:51)
Former president Richard Nixon has had something of a revival lately, thanks to Peter Morgan's 2007 Tony Award-winning play Frost/Nixon, which dramatizes the series of interviews between Nixon and British talk show host David Frost in 1977. These interviews marked the first time that Nixon apologized for the Watergate scandal. Get John Carroll's take on this production.
July 12, 2007
Condoms (3:03)
CBS and Fox recently rejected a new commercial for Trojan condoms on the grounds that it was inappropriate. Historically, condom ads have had a difficult time making it on national networks — even with late-night-only restrictions. Could the low rate of condom use in the United States be tied to the low rate of condom ads on broadcast TV?
June 28, 2007
Vivitrol (2:45)
Last year, pharmaceutical manufacturers spent more than $5 billion on consumer advertising, pitching everything from cholesterol-lowering drugs to mood-elevating drugs to Vivitrol, a new drug for the treatment of alcohol dependence, manufactured by Alkermes Inc. and Cephalon Inc. Get John Carroll's on how advertisers market problems for consumer drugs to solve.
June 20, 2007
Blogola (2:53)
TV networks and studios have started to bypass courting traditional critics in favor of seeking out reviews from starstruck Internet bloggers, who are more than happy to trade mention on their blogs for freebies and star treatment. Get John Carroll's take on trading swag for media buzz in the blogosphere.
June 14, 2007
Smoking on Film (3:01)
In response to efforts by antitobacco activists, the Motion Picture Association of America has made smoking on-screen a factor in its rating of films. Get John Carroll's take on the politics surrounding cinematic cigarette use.
June 7, 2007
133 Federal Street (2:57)
Built in the 1950s, the former Blue Cross/Blue Shield building at 133 Federal Street was the first modernist building erected in downtown Boston. Today, developers are vying for the opportunity to level it, while preservationists are lobbying to keep it intact. Get John Carroll's take on the fate this Boston landmark.
May 31, 2007
Snooping Industry (2:39)
Covert surveillance by government organizations and major U.S. corporations is on the rise. Now a new generation of surveillance tools is available for civilians as well.
May 24, 2007
LonelyGirl15 (3:03)
When Internet giant Google purchased video-sharing site YouTube for $1.6 billion, the immediate question was: Can Google turn YouTube into a reliable advertising vehicle? In the meantime, ambitious video bloggers are already using the site effectively in order to market themselves.
May 17, 2007
Left-Handers (3:37)
As the 2008 presidential race heats up, so too does the time-honored "on the one hand, on the other hand" dissection of each candidate's political agenda. All this talk about "the other hand" got John Carroll thinking about the proverbial other hand &mdash the left hand. Get John Carroll's take on left- handed politicking.
May 10, 2007
Military Bait and Switch (2:41)
With the US armed forces lagging in their recruitment efforts at the same time that President George W. Bush is extending the tour of duty of troops in Iraq, the Pentagon has begun implementing new, and some say deceptive, methods for recruiting and discharging soldiers.
May 3, 2007
MySpace Primaries (2:51)
The 2008 presidential election is considered the most wide-open race since Harry S. Truman decided not to run in 1952, not to mention the earliest-starting presidential race in US history. In addition to already making the history books, the current campaign for the White House has also broken futuristic ground by making online campaigning a standard practice. Get John Carroll's take on stumping in cyberspace.
April 26, 2007
Gardasil (3:03)
Science and politics often clash in the public policy arena. Case in point: the proposed use of the newly approved drug Gardasil for mandatory inoculation of girls against the human papillomavirus (HPV), which is a leading cause of cervical cancer.
April 11, 2007
Slings & Arrows (2:34)
Public schools are preparing students to meet new Education Reform Mandates, especially high-stakes testing. In many cases, test preparation has eclipsed other subjects, including literary classics, which foster cultural appreciation in young people. Get John Carroll's take on what kids may be missing out on.
April 4, 2007
China Internet (2:53)
According to The Washington Post, a survey suggesting that nearly 14 percent of teens in China are vulnerable to Internet addiction has prompted the Chinese government to mount a campaign to curb this "grave social problem." Get John Carroll's take on China's Internet addiction campaign.
March 29, 2007
Camel No. 9 (2:53)
Tobacco giant R.J. Reynolds recently launched a new brand of "light and luscious" cigarettes aimed at female smokers called Camel No. 9. No. 9 has triggered protests from women's rights organizations and public health officials, who point out that more women in the U.S. die of lung cancer than breast cancer every year.
March 22, 2007
Job Corps (2:31)
The U.S. Department of Labor recently embarked on an overhaul of their Job Corps program, which has provided educational and vocational training to students ages 16 through 24 for four decades. The New York Times reports that the makeover will improve student's reading, math, and trade skills. But those aren't the only abilities Job Corps graduates lack.
March 15, 2007
Video Games (2:40)
A recent MacArthur Foundation-sponsored panel asked, "Do Video Games Help Kids Learn?" Citing a rich participatory culture and ample opportunity for creative expression, the panel thought yes. But what can be gained from games like Super Columbine Massacre RPG!?
March 8, 2007
Save Darfur (2:48)
Political activist groups routinely make their way into the public arena by running advocacy ads on television and, more often, in print. Lately, there has been a raft of these ads in the mainstream media.
Tune in to WGBH 89.7 for John Carroll's Take, Thursdays at 6:35am, 8:35am, and 5:45pm, or check out the latest online, any time.
Dec. 27, 2007
New Year's Resolutions (3:27)Media makers listen up: John Carroll has few resolutions he'd like you to attend to this year.
Dec. 20, 2007
Frosty
(2:44)Sure, you can sing out all of Rudolph's fellow reindeer, but can you get beyond the opening words to "Frosty the Snowman"?
Dec. 13, 2007
Prescription Drugs (2:22)Pharmaceutical makers spend roughly $4 billion a year advertising directly to consumers. But there are some parts of their messaging that they don't want you to notice.
Dec. 6, 2007
Steinway Pianos
(2:48)Steinway pianos rank alongside Stradivarius violins and Les Paul guitars as the most celebrated of musical instruments. And recent media attention has made the Steinway ever more popular.
Nov. 29, 2007
Gawker.com (2:54)The Internet is rightly regarded as journalism's new frontier. But gossip blogs such as gawker.com prove that the Web has become a mainstay for all the news that's not fit to print.
Nov. 15, 2007
Black Mask (2:53)During an average week, roughly one-half of the top 10 Nielsen-rated television dramas are about forensic crime solving. But that's nothing new in American popular culture.
Nov. 8, 2007
Misinformation (2:57)Former Washington Post reporter Carl Bernstein, who is most famous for breaking the Watergate story with fellow reporter Bob Woodward, once described journalism as "the best obtainable version of the truth." But even Bernstein would acknowledge that media makers often find it difficult to simply call a spade a spade.
Nov. 1, 2007
e.e. cummings (2:30)The Wall Street Journal recently reported that the State University of New York at Brockport is home to the best individual collection of paintings by 20th-century American poet e.e. cummings. The collection would be an amazing resource — if only it hadn't fallen into disrepair. Here's John Carroll's take.
Oct. 25, 2007
Futuristic Visions (2:44)For about a year now, the blog Paleo- Future has documented how artists, scholars, and technologists from the past century imagined our future. Most of these "retro-futures" are full of egalitarian hope. Unfortunately, it's safe to say the batting average of the predictors has been, well, anemic.
Oct. 18, 2007
Matt Drudge (2:39)In a recent New York magazine profile of Drudge Report founder Matt Drudge, Pat Buchanan described him as "just about the most powerful journalist in America." Here's John Carroll's take on the reigning king of cyber journalism.
Oct. 11, 2007
Front Groups (3:11)Papers such as the New York Times and the Washington Post often run ads from sponsors that promote social justice and charitable causes. Unfortunately, the motivation behind these ads is a far cry from selfless.
Oct. 4, 2007
Jimmy Lee Sudduth
(3:12)Self-taught African-American folk artist Jimmy Lee Sudduth died last month at the age of 97. Get John Carroll's Take on the artist The New York Times art critic Michael Kimmelman praised for his "pictures of improbable chalky luminosity and understated bliss."
September 27, 2007
World War II Correspondents (4:26)Perhaps more than any other military conflict, WWII was known for its war correspondents — from Edward R. Morrow and Ernie Pyle to W.C. Heinz and Bill Mauldin. So, while Ken Burns has our attention focused on The War, his seven-part PBS documentary series, John Carroll adds his take on covering WWII.
September 20, 2007
Charlie Parker (4:07)Every day, contemporary media makers bombard consumers with an overwhelming surplus of information. For some respite, John Carroll turns to Charlie Parker, of whom music critic Albert Goldman declared "never before or since has someone said so much so well in so few seconds." Here's John Carroll's Take on rediscovering "The Bird."
Sept. 13, 2007
The Huffington Post (3:00)For the past decade, liberals have tried — and almost always failed — to rival conservative media makers, who continue to dominate talk radio and cable television. The Internet, though, still remains competitive. Initially written off as a vanity project of Arianna Huffington, the wife of millionaire congressman Michael Huffington, The Huffington Post has become one of the first liberal media success stories.
Sept. 6, 2007
Campaign It Girls (4:07)Campaign songs have long been a staple of American elections. Today, YouTube has spawned a gaggle of campaign song video parodies by "campaign girls" including "Obama Girl," "Hillary Girl," and "McCain Mama." Get John Carroll's take on — and hear a sampling of — a new generation of campaign songs.
Aug. 23, 2007
LifeLock (2:47)LifeLock, an identity theft prevention service, placed a full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal promising to "protect your good name" but LifeLock's own good name is in question.
Aug. 16, 2007
New and (Dis)improved (3:31)For many American consumers, the three most frightening words in the English language are "new and improved."
Aug. 9, 2007
Anita O'Day (3:31)The Newport Jazz Festival, which takes place this weekend, is celebrating the legacy of vocalist Anita O'Day. Back in 1958, big names like Louis Armstrong, Thelonious Monk, and Mahalia Jackson helped make the festival famous. But it was O'Day who made 1958 a most memorable festival year.
Aug. 2, 2007
New York Galleries (3:11)It has long been accepted that artists suffer for their art. But viewers of art at some Manhattan galleries can suffer, too.
July 25, 2007
Emile Griffith (3:03)Over the course of his 20-year career, welterweight boxer Emile Griffith fought 122 professional bouts. But his battle to remain in the closet is one fight Griffith still hasn't finished.
July 19, 2007
Frost/Nixon (3:51)Former president Richard Nixon has had something of a revival lately, thanks to Peter Morgan's 2007 Tony Award-winning play Frost/Nixon, which dramatizes the series of interviews between Nixon and British talk show host David Frost in 1977. These interviews marked the first time that Nixon apologized for the Watergate scandal. Get John Carroll's take on this production.
July 12, 2007
Condoms (3:03)CBS and Fox recently rejected a new commercial for Trojan condoms on the grounds that it was inappropriate. Historically, condom ads have had a difficult time making it on national networks — even with late-night-only restrictions. Could the low rate of condom use in the United States be tied to the low rate of condom ads on broadcast TV?
June 28, 2007
Vivitrol (2:45)Last year, pharmaceutical manufacturers spent more than $5 billion on consumer advertising, pitching everything from cholesterol-lowering drugs to mood-elevating drugs to Vivitrol, a new drug for the treatment of alcohol dependence, manufactured by Alkermes Inc. and Cephalon Inc. Get John Carroll's on how advertisers market problems for consumer drugs to solve.
June 20, 2007
Blogola (2:53)TV networks and studios have started to bypass courting traditional critics in favor of seeking out reviews from starstruck Internet bloggers, who are more than happy to trade mention on their blogs for freebies and star treatment. Get John Carroll's take on trading swag for media buzz in the blogosphere.
June 14, 2007
Smoking on Film (3:01)In response to efforts by antitobacco activists, the Motion Picture Association of America has made smoking on-screen a factor in its rating of films. Get John Carroll's take on the politics surrounding cinematic cigarette use.
June 7, 2007
133 Federal Street (2:57)Built in the 1950s, the former Blue Cross/Blue Shield building at 133 Federal Street was the first modernist building erected in downtown Boston. Today, developers are vying for the opportunity to level it, while preservationists are lobbying to keep it intact. Get John Carroll's take on the fate this Boston landmark.
May 31, 2007
Snooping Industry (2:39)Covert surveillance by government organizations and major U.S. corporations is on the rise. Now a new generation of surveillance tools is available for civilians as well.
May 24, 2007
LonelyGirl15 (3:03)When Internet giant Google purchased video-sharing site YouTube for $1.6 billion, the immediate question was: Can Google turn YouTube into a reliable advertising vehicle? In the meantime, ambitious video bloggers are already using the site effectively in order to market themselves.
May 17, 2007
Left-Handers (3:37)As the 2008 presidential race heats up, so too does the time-honored "on the one hand, on the other hand" dissection of each candidate's political agenda. All this talk about "the other hand" got John Carroll thinking about the proverbial other hand &mdash the left hand. Get John Carroll's take on left- handed politicking.
May 10, 2007
Military Bait and Switch (2:41)With the US armed forces lagging in their recruitment efforts at the same time that President George W. Bush is extending the tour of duty of troops in Iraq, the Pentagon has begun implementing new, and some say deceptive, methods for recruiting and discharging soldiers.
May 3, 2007
MySpace Primaries (2:51)The 2008 presidential election is considered the most wide-open race since Harry S. Truman decided not to run in 1952, not to mention the earliest-starting presidential race in US history. In addition to already making the history books, the current campaign for the White House has also broken futuristic ground by making online campaigning a standard practice. Get John Carroll's take on stumping in cyberspace.
April 26, 2007
Gardasil (3:03)Science and politics often clash in the public policy arena. Case in point: the proposed use of the newly approved drug Gardasil for mandatory inoculation of girls against the human papillomavirus (HPV), which is a leading cause of cervical cancer.
April 11, 2007
Slings & Arrows (2:34)Public schools are preparing students to meet new Education Reform Mandates, especially high-stakes testing. In many cases, test preparation has eclipsed other subjects, including literary classics, which foster cultural appreciation in young people. Get John Carroll's take on what kids may be missing out on.
April 4, 2007
China Internet (2:53)According to The Washington Post, a survey suggesting that nearly 14 percent of teens in China are vulnerable to Internet addiction has prompted the Chinese government to mount a campaign to curb this "grave social problem." Get John Carroll's take on China's Internet addiction campaign.
March 29, 2007
Camel No. 9 (2:53)Tobacco giant R.J. Reynolds recently launched a new brand of "light and luscious" cigarettes aimed at female smokers called Camel No. 9. No. 9 has triggered protests from women's rights organizations and public health officials, who point out that more women in the U.S. die of lung cancer than breast cancer every year.
March 22, 2007
Job Corps (2:31)The U.S. Department of Labor recently embarked on an overhaul of their Job Corps program, which has provided educational and vocational training to students ages 16 through 24 for four decades. The New York Times reports that the makeover will improve student's reading, math, and trade skills. But those aren't the only abilities Job Corps graduates lack.
March 15, 2007
Video Games (2:40)A recent MacArthur Foundation-sponsored panel asked, "Do Video Games Help Kids Learn?" Citing a rich participatory culture and ample opportunity for creative expression, the panel thought yes. But what can be gained from games like Super Columbine Massacre RPG!?
March 8, 2007
Save Darfur (2:48)Political activist groups routinely make their way into the public arena by running advocacy ads on television and, more often, in print. Lately, there has been a raft of these ads in the mainstream media.
Tune in to WGBH 89.7 for John Carroll's Take, Thursdays at 6:35am, 8:35am, and 5:45pm, or check out the latest online, any time.
