In the early 2010s self-taught guitarist Tashi Dorji was recording improvised guitar explorations in his home near Asheville, North Carolina. These self-released outings drew on his unique mix of musi...

While Mack takes a summer break, we bring you this treat from the archives: the full-members-only version of his 2024 interview with beloved audiobook narrator Robin Miles. This episode features almos...

Two disquieting works of fiction I encountered this spring feature the same menacing figure: a young girl that refuses to eat. In Ben Lerner’s novel Transcription (2026), doctors inform a couple that ...

There are fresher ways to understand life's digital shit show. Welcome to the past sixty years of media theory. In last month's newsletter and on my podcast Phantom Power, I criticized how journalist...

Most media scholars left this premise about oral communication for dead decades ago. Reporters keep giving it new life. What is "the Great Divide" and why is this media theory so irresistible to those...

I print whistles now. You can too.

With movie star looks and a raucous piano style, Maurice Rocco made a splash in the 1940’s, influencing future rock and rollers Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis. By the 60s, however, he was a has-be...

Three top media scholars discuss the impact of the cassette tape in American and Egyptian music and culture.

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Unlike the other major cities that appear on lists of unsafe places, New Orleans has a striking competitive advantage.

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In a special event, prolific UK-based sound designer **Barney Oram** will be joining us for a talk on defying the common preconceptions in sound design. ***"If it Sounds G