Celebrity culture, or “standom” as people call it these days, has always fascinated me. In this new world, artists aren’t mere mortals; they’re gods that people idealize and pay tribute to. Stars like Charli are within closer reach than they’ve ever been thanks to online platforms like Twitter and, in this case, Zoom.
2019 was such a good year for movies. This makes it all the more disappointing that 2020 has been almost completely barren. The more interesting result has been the slew of movies released on streaming services or for direct purchase on demand.
Say you’re faced with making a choice between two alternatives, but both are immoral in their own right. Is it possible to make an objective calculation of which one causes the least total damage? Is it moral to do so?
Dear J: How do I handle a long-distance relationship?
The film sells itself as a story about a woman who turns to making rap music when her writing career seems stuck, but it is so much more. Radha Blank’s screenplay is an intricate and personal portrait of what it means to be an artist, life in New York City, and the issues that come with gentrification.
Public education glorifies Columbus as a supernatural figure that discovered "unexplored" land. It is time we question this presentation: are we giving children textbooks filled with facts, or fiction?
Most of New England was not expecting this rollercoaster start to the Patriots season, but New Engalnd fans should not be sounding the alarm bells just yet.
No players or coaches did anything wrong and nobody affiliated with the program or working at UMass knew anything incorrect had occurred, yet the NCAA cracked down and forced the team to vacate three years of wins. If a teacher, parent, boss, or any other authority figure acted this way it would leave us scratching our heads in disbelief. But this is the way the NCAA has governed for years.
As someone who spent a rather large amount of their Starbucks barista savings on a nicer viola, I find myself rather defensive whenever my instrument is subject to the popular jokes and scorn cast on violas and violists. Ever since the 18th century, violas have been the butt of endless jokes and mockery. As it was often unaccomplished violinists who were made to take up the viola for the sake of the orchestra, the viola became an instrument associated with inferior musicians.
Jim Jeffords left the Senate in 2007. How could Democrats be so naïve to even consider there might be another like him lurking somewhere in the Republican cloakroom? With today's political climate, there is no more room for another Jim Jeffords in the Republican party.
Salmon sushi did not exist before the 1990s, and no one told me. I have been taking its “authenticity” (whatever that means) as a Japanese dish for granted, when really we have Norway’s ridiculous persistence to thank for its creation.
While you can always count on Marc Rebillet to cook up something original, what made his drive-in livestream this summer particularly special was his collaboration with a surprise guest: Erykah Badu, the "Queen of Neo Soul."
This week, my travels take me to Spain — provided that I successfully cross the language barrier. My lack of soccer knowledge is compensated by my fascination with international basketball. Lucky for me, I quickly discovered that behind the iconic soccer franchise logos of FC Barcelona and Real Madrid rests an unexpected — yet powerful — non-soccer legacy.
If 2020 has taught the music industry anything, it is that historically excluded groups should have an equal opportunity to a lasting legacy. The Beatles should be respected and idolized in their own right, but with a larger, more diverse playlist of artists to listen to today, more icons can emerge into the mainstream.
To fill some of that basketball void that’s been lingering since the finals wrapped up, I’ve decided to look ahead and evaluate what the basketball landscape will look like in 2021. There are some exciting narratives and teams to explore, as well as several key players coming back from prolonged absences.
18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant didn’t give us much warning about what an internalized duty to know everything about every tragedy would mean for our mental states, but what he did offer was a distinct source of all good in the world: good intentions.
Against all odds, 2020 has forced The Academy to, what I assume to be begrudgingly, remove their theatrical release requirement for the first time in history. For possibly the first time in history, releasing direct-to-video is being viewed as an alternative rather than necessarily a downgrade for the studio releasing it.
Although I’ve been wary of social media for a while, the decision to actively regulate my usage was precipitated by “The Social Dilemma” (2020), a Netflix documentary centered around Tristan Harris, a former Google employee and cofounder of the Center for Humane Technology. He uses the ominous phrase “human downgrading” to describe the effect social media has on our minds, and has spent much of his career pushing tech companies like Facebook and Apple to adopt more ethical guidelines to govern their interfaces.
In honor of the Seattle Storm’s thrilling Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Finals win on Oct. 6, this week’s spotlight is on two-time Most Valuable Player (MVP) Breanna “Stewie” Stewart. The forward brought home the hardware this season after a dominating run against the Las Vegas Aces.
On a campus where fresh fruit and warm sandwiches are just a click away, it can be hard to remember that there are areas of our developed nation where proper nutrition is hard to come by.
