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Posted on April 4, 2008 by
Kathy McManus
The shocking headlines out of Waycross, Georgia— 3rd-graders plotted to attack teacher, brought knife, handcuffs —lowered the bar on school violence and raised the alarm among parents, teachers, psychologists and just about anyone with an opinion about the country’s future. Read full article »
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Posted on March 13, 2008 by
Kathy McManus
Many people tell the truth because it’s the responsible thing to do. But should you ever tell the truth because it’s a lucrative thing to do?
Contestants on the controversial new TV show Moment of Truth say yes, motivated by the chance to win $500,000 in exchange for performing a kind of moral striptease in front of their families, spouses, and ultimately, millions of riveted viewers. Read full article »
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Posted on March 4, 2008 by
Kathy McManus
Soon after Paris Hilton’s 23-day jail stint related to DUI charges, she announced that she wanted to go to Rwanda to “help save some people’s lives.” The head of the charity group she was to accompany revealed that Ms. Hilton’s five-day African trip would be documented by a camera crew. Read full article »
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Posted on February 28, 2008 by
Kathy McManus
Parental advisories abound these days. Toys are toxic. Cold medicine is dangerous. Sesame Street has an adults-only warning. Cowabunga! Is the letter of the day X, as in Rated? Read full article »
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Posted on February 20, 2008 by
Kathy McManus
By the time British singer Amy Winehouse received five Grammy Awards for “Rehab”—her autobiographical ode to dodging detox—the song had become Hollywood’s newest soundtrack. In the week before Rehab was named record of the year and song of the year, news reports noted that the actresses Eva Mendes, Kirsten Dunst, and Sean Young had all entered rehab, and that Pat O’Brien—host of a tabloid TV show that routinely reports on the rehab struggles of others— was suddenly in rehab himself. All of which prompted one culture-chronicling website to ask: Is rehab the new black? Read full article »
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Posted on February 5, 2008 by
Kathy McManus
Stephen King is known for writing scary things. When Time Magazine recently asked him who he would choose as Person of the Year, Mr. King wrote “Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan.” But rather than an endorsement of the two celebs—whose personal downfalls are relentlessly chronicled throughout the media—the full context of King’s nomination was an indictment of the media itself: Read full article »
