EpisodeSculptor of Sound
Stephen Vitiello (VCU) is one of the most prominent members of a small but growing field: sound artists. In one of his most memorable works, he attached microphones to the windows …
EpisodeInvestigating C.S.I.
C.S.I. and other television crime shows have captured the public’s imagination but TV may not reflect what really goes on in the lab. Results aren’t provided in the time it takes …
EpisodeReplay: Mind Your Manners
Dining etiquette seems to be a lost art, particularly among college students who tend to eat fast-food while studying or watching TV. But June graduates are in for a rude …
EpisodeDesigning Women for TV
After analyzing 30 years of television programming, communication professor Cynthia Lont (George Mason University) concludes that not much has changed in how women are portrayed. Male characters like Jack McCoy in Law & …
EpisodeJamestown: What Pocahontas Saw
The story of Pocahontas has been told and retold for 400 years, from Captain John Smith’s early letters to director Terrence Malick’s latest film, The New World . In a lively discussion, historians Helen Rountree (Old …
EpisodeMind your Manners
Dining etiquette seems to be a lost art, particularly among college students who tend to eat fast-food while studying or watching TV. But they are in for a rude awakening …
EpisodeSixties Television and the Counterculture
Television tends to mirror as well as reflect our society. Actor/director Tim Reid (Virginia Commonwealth University) discusses his career, the barriers African-Americans face in the entertainment industry, and how the images of …
EpisodeThe Other Side of Hollywood
Many authors who’ve written books that were turned into movies usually say they didn’t recognize much from their original work in the film. But it’s a lot easier for novelists to …
EpisodeEveryone’s a Critic…or Wants to Be
When Clive Barnes wrote drama criticism for The New York Times, it was rumored he could shut down a Broadway show with a bad review. Knowledgeable criticism can lure people to …
EpisodeConscientious Objectors in the Shenandoah Valley
When America began drafting soldiers for World War I, a legal right to abstain from fighting was encoded in law. But many conscientious objectors sent to work for the medical …
EpisodeBits, Bytes, and Books
Remember fifth grade when your teacher would show filmstrips in class? For the enterprising, it was a time to supplement book and classroom learning. For the rest of us, it …
EpisodeIs Painting Dead?
In 1839, upon learning of the first steps toward photography, French painter Paul Delaroche is said to have quipped, “From today on, painting is dead.” No one is quite sure …
