Bad Karma: Life Lessons From Earl
When an American TV show borrows from Eastern philosophy, it leaves the ethical dimension behind while offering a healthy dose of materialism. Even so, it might have something to teach us.
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Heroes: Sex and the Single Superhero
The main difference between the enactment of the heroic archetype in myth and in popular culture is our contemporary squeamishness about the homoerotic vibe that usually hums just beneath the surface of the drama. We try to banish that gayness, or at least keep it at bay, but the pesky thing about archetypes is that they’re not very easily controlled.
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Spiritual, But Not Religulous
In a new documentary, Bill Maher tries his darndest to convince viewers to abandon religion. Is he just preaching to the choir or will it start a valuable conversation?
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Allah Made Me Funny: Borscht Belt Goes Halal
Jackie Mason shticks and all, a new comedy concert documentary, Allah Made Me Funny, reminds us that it’s not all doom and gloom.
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Obama Foe Wants His MTV
MoveOn wannabe, Colin Hanna, has found a new platform for his Obama attack ads: MTV. Aiming to ”plant some seeds of doubt” in the ”younger demographic” a positive org goes negative to push McCain—along with a border fence, an anti-Jihadist site and a Pastor initiative…
Read MoreRDPulpit: McCain Attack Ad is “Hopeless“
McCain’s new ad mocking Obama’s charismatic campaign of hope and the belief that we can do better is being criticized as ‘blasphemous’ and offensive to liberal Christians…
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True Blood: When Marketing Goes For the Jugular
An HBO show about vampires in the rural South depends on “viral marketing” for its buzz. But some people resent the conflation of fact and fiction that this kind of advertising entails. And what of the new religious movement known as the Vampire Community?
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“Jon & Kate” Plus Prop. 8 Hate
A reality show about a failing family. The upholding of Prop. 8. There’s hypocrisy afoot in our culture.
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RDBook: Selling the Good News
Who put the mega in megachurch? Two new books, one on star evangelicals and one that focuses on African-American televangelists, tell the story—and explain the remarkable influence of celebrity preachers in the religious marketplace.
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Aliens in America
A North American Muslim reflects on TV portrayals of Muslims…
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