Search results for friday roundup

RU090913Getting down with what’s up on The Society Pages (and if you just wanna get down, NPR’s streaming the new Elvis Costello/The Roots album here)

Shiny New Book:

In case you missed our excitement about the publication of our first reader with W.W. Norton & Co. (hard to do, what with all the skywriters we hired…), please do check out the source of our pride, The Social Side of Politics. Click on through to Norton to request a desk copy or order your own.

Shiny New Facebook:

Well, not really, but we’re doing a lot more posting on FB, usually drawing together related articles from across our site. Love a SocImages post? We’ll let you know about a White Paper or Special Feature that pairs well. Excited to see Dalton Conley in Vogue? We’ve got stuff on that, too!

Citings & Sightings:

Social Network Sorrows,” by Andrew Weibe. Researchers are all over the map when it comes to deciding if social networking is “good” or “bad” for us. Here’s a new look. more...

RU083013Clear Eyes, Full Hearts

In just three days, a new school year is upon us. For my part, I enjoy the ritual: I buy a new pair of Converse (high-top Chucks, black, always). I make sure I’ve got a fresh notebook or two. I think hard about how to be organized and motivated (this will fall away quickly), and I try to draw on the enthusiasm of all of the incoming students swarming the campus. And then I get geared up for the next wave of great ideas and new readers flowing into The Society Pages. Then Doug gives me a good “Coach Taylor” pep talk, and we dive in. Can’t wait to see what the inbox brings. All I know is, with readers and authors like these, we can’t lose.

If all else fails, show a movie (see the comments for many suggestions). more...

RU081613Home Again, Home Again

So, we are back from that extravaganza of society’s science, the annual American Sociology Association meetings. Among all the usual parties, plenaries, and pleasantries, the conference, held this year in New York City, featured lot of talk about blogs and social media, websites, and public sociology. For example, incoming ASA President Annette Lareau has created an ad hoc task force on social media, and apparently several different proposals are floating around to create an association-sponsored blog. Who knows whether or how these ideas will come to fruition before next year’s meeting. What is particularly intriguing and exciting for us is that The Society Pages seems to be very much on people’s minds and it’s been at the center of many of these conversations. Even as our HQ dispersed for the meetings and our authors circulated in NYC,  our bloggers continued to blog and contributions and exciting ideas continued to come in. Among the highlights on the site this past week was a roundtable on one of the most fascinating cultural festivals in the nation, Burning Man, assembled by Matt Wray. Below, Letta Page has assembled some of the other weekend reading from the past couple of weeks of site work.

One last note: for those who joined us on Monday night, you know that W.W. Norton & Co. throws a fantastic annual party, and we’re honored to be invited. Thanks for coming, and thanks to Karl Bakeman and his team for putting together such a fun night. The Norton Party is always the home of some unforgettable moments. more...

RU080213Still Wise Words

Hopefully, we all have a teacher or two who stirs fond memories. For me, one of the first to spring to mind is Loren J. Samons II, a professor of classical studies at my alma mater, Boston University. Prof. Samons is notable for many reasons (one of his brilliant strokes was to refer to the class, collectively, as “scholars”—a convention that set the tone for each lecture in just one word), but this week, I found an old syllabus. I wondered why I’d kept it—I took several classes from Prof. Samons in my time at BU, but it still seemed an odd document to cling to, some 12 years after graduation. And then I read. Nestled within many wise words for young students learning to learn, write, engage with literature, and find their way through sources both ancient and modern, was this gem: more...

RU071913Verdict? What Verdict?

There’s no mistaking it: this week’s talk focused on the acquittal of George Zimmerman, the Floridian who killed teenager Trayvon Martin in February 2012. Below, you can find some of the week’s pieces about Martin, Zimmerman, and privilege here on The Society Pages, as well as a few other topics we hit on.

In the meantime, I’ve gotten two other suggestions of palate cleansing items to bring to your attention: more...

RU071213Double Your Fun

Time to play catch-up!

In Case You Missed It:

Thinking About Trayvon: Privileged Response and Media Discourse,” by Stephen Suh. A roundtable discussion from just months after Trayvon Martin’s death, this piece looks at media framing and public responses.

The Editors’ Desk:

The Home Stretch (Or: Introducing Our Third Book),” by Doug Hartmann. In which Doug details some of the coming content for Color Lines and Racial Angles, TSP’s third reader from W.W. Norton (the first two volumes are due out by the end of the year). 

Citings & Sightings:

Economics, Sentimentality, and the Safe Baby,” by Letta Page. An economist walks into a baby expo… and calls on some classic social science.

The People’s Art,” by Letta Page. If a society is enriched by its art, is it impoverished by keeping that art in museums?

A Gender Gap and the German Model,” by John Ziegler. An emerging education gap shows women outstripping men in the race for diplomas in the U.S. Does Germany offer a solution?

‘Spiritual’ Scofflaws,” by Evan Stewart. What happens when there’s neither an angel nor a devil on your shoulder.

A New South Africa?” by Erin Hoekstra. In post-Apartheid South Africa, Somali refugees are everyone’s target.

A Few from the Community Pages:

Scholars Strategy Network:

Why Immigration Reform with a Path to Citizenship Faces an Uphill Climb in Congress,” by Tom K. Wong.

What Happens if [Now that] the Supreme Court Weakens [Has Weakened] Voting Rights?” by Gary May.

How Conservative Women’s Organizations Challenge Feminists in U.S. Politics,” by Renee Schreiber.

RU062813Summer Bloggin’, Happened So Fast

For real. It’s the end of June. What happened? Here in Minnesota, it’s a blur of downed trees and hot, muggy days. And yet, the hits keep comin’. Here’s what TSP was doing (when the power was on). more...

RU062113Don’t Call it a Comeback

You know, come to think of it, I’m sure I’ve used that title before somewhere on the site. But you know what? I haven’t used it enough. So there.

Hrm. After skipping last week, I’ve got a lot to round up, so let’s just go with that. In the meantime, know that we’ve been putting the finishing touches on the second of our TSP readers with W.W. Norton & Co., Crime and the Punished, which is now slated for a fall release. If you look closely in the picture at right, you can see three of our cover images coming into focus (they’re not finalized, but they’re looking sharp).

Until then, feast your eyes on this! more...

RU032913
Second verse, same as the first.

Yet Another Airport Post

This is becoming a frequent activity: writing the Friday Roundup from an airport. By my count, it’s at least the fourth I’ve written from a row of pleather seats. The wifi is spotty, the company is unpredictable, and my power cord frequently drops out of the not-so-conveniently-located power source tower. And yet, for this scaredy-cat, writing the Roundup is not only a great way to get my arms around what happens on our website each week—it’s become an excellent distraction from flight fears! Thus, on to the Roundup. No writing tips this week other than to write something today. Getting used to jotting down good phrases or dictating them into your iPhone for future use is a good way not to lose those fleeting treasures. more...

RU053113Use Twitter to Refine Your Writing

As a prematurely old person (that is, I’m technically 33, but I make a suspicious number of references to “those damn kids” and know the difference between e.g. and i.e.), I can be wary of social media. Still, I’ve found one way Twitter is really useful for the writers I advise: forced brevity.  more...