#this is an apt piece of commentary on the industry

[sareesonscreen]

S1 E3: Sex and Sexuality in South Asian Media

In this episode, we will be talking about Sex and Sexuality in South Asian Media. This is in essence the first half of a two-part conversation. In this first half, we hope to address the broader discussions around Sex and Sexuality in the media in our region. And in our next discussion episode, the conversation will continue into an in-depth discussion around Queer Media.

It’s been empowering to see many people speak about sex so candidly today. This was nearly unimaginable even a decade ago. Unfortunately, open conversations around sex and sexuality continue to be taboo in our society, but it’s been great to see a segment of people start to chip away at that reluctance to talk about such a fundamental part of all our lives.

There are a lot of great podcasters and Youtubers who share their experiences on this (linked below). And we highly recommend you give them a listen (links below). While we absolutely value the importance of sharing lived experiences, in this episode, we will specifically look at the media we consume - how it portrays sex and sexualities of women and marginalized people, and how it shapes the greater societal conversations around these issues.

We wanted to highlight the importance of recognizing that sex and sexuality is experienced very differently and uniquely by everyone. There is no universal women’s experience or queer experience. The specific socio-economic and cultural locations that shape our identities empower and disempower us in different ways, also change how we engage with sex and our sexualities. 

The movies and shows we plan to talk about in this episode come from Netflix productions, slightly indie parts of Bollywood, and the West Bengali film industry. While the chosen media here vary in their representations of language, socioeconomic class, urban/rural spaces, and to a degree caste, a common critique for all the movies chosen (and of us as well) is that it mostly still looks at sex and sexuality through the imposed universality of an upper class/upper caste gaze. We did our best to make note of this as we discussed the issues pertaining to this episode. 

The AIDS epidemic of the 1980s was the first time that conversations around sex and sexuality were forced into the public sphere, outside its usual legal, medical, and demographic confines. Then in the ’90s, with the rise in access to electricity and televisions, a new brand of more explicit sexual imagery entered South Asian homes and media. 

It’s not that sex was invented in the ’90s, or that people in the subcontinent didn’t engage in sex or non-heteronormative sexuality (including gay men and sex workers). It’s just that it became a more constant presence in the media that we consumed.

In the 2000s, there was suddenly more “sex�� on local television and movies. Still heteronormative, still patriarchal, of course. We were showered with the overwhelmingly hetero male gazes in Imran Hashmi movies and the item songs that accompanied almost every movie of that decade. In even worse scenarios, there was the inescapable plight of gratuitous violence in the rape scenes. 

Luckily, even through that period - healthier works were being created in more indie industries or regional media. West Bengal, amongst others, was prominent in producing more “forward” and mature depictions of sex and sexuality.

What’s unfortunate is because of how inaccessible these local healthier portrayals of sex were, a lot of us who had the alternative of having access to Western narratives of sex/sexuality, kind of clung to it. Our vocabulary around sex ended up being heavily shaped by a culture that we didn’t live in. When it felt like the words for sex and sexuality are limited to medical terms or slurs, it was easy to just assume the western alternative (added with our post-colonial hang-ups).  

It’s been very fortunate that the film industries and the artists within it continued to push for better media in this realm. In the last decade, we’ve seen some very prominent works that highlight sex/sexuality that made it to mainstream success. In this episode, we’ll be primarily tackling 3 movies that have done so - Lust Stories, a Bollywood anthology hit, Parched - an Indie movie directed by Leena Yadav and Rajkahini - a take on the partition of the Indian subcontinent through the setting of a brothel and the issues faced by the sex-workers residing there, directed by Srijit Mukherji. 

Through these movies - we hope to tackle some of the major issues confronting discussions around sex and sexuality.

Often discussion around sex and sexuality is looked at with a male-centric gaze, especially in their depictions of women - this was especially apparent in Karan Johar’s short in Lust Stories as well as the portrayals of sex workers in Rajkahini. Some of these portrayals used women’s sexuality for the sake of shock value and titillation and did not take into account the multiple facets of people’s identities that influence their sexual expression. 

Parched was refreshing in its gentler, more feminine take on women’s sexuality showing empathy, affection, and agency as necessary elements of fulfilling sexual experiences. However, even Parched failed to fully consider the “unsexy” elements of how sexuality is affected everyday lives - the women who were the protagonists in Parched were shown to be from a remote, rural village in India, and yet no discussion on their sexuality ever included the structural realities that rural women face in South Asia, like the lack of access to basic sanitation, water or even, privacy.

Any depiction of marginalized people when exploring their sexuality is incomplete without understanding their material struggles. The film, though shot from a feminine gaze, is unable to shed its upper-class/upper-caste romanticization of marginalized women’s lives. This re-orientalization of disadvantaged women’s struggles to be consumed by a privileged, upper-class/ Western audience is an appropriation of the challenges they face, packaged to be palatable (even enjoyable) to its privileged viewers. It is also made worse when the cast and the culture is a hodgepodge of people from completely different cultures than the ones being portrayed.

Rajkahini, while claiming to be telling the stories of ‘forgotten women’ ends up using the women characters as props for the overarching narratives of loss and displacement during the Partition of 1947. Only one character - that of Begum Jaan is given agency and individuality and even she becomes a stereotypical version of the soft on the inside, harsh on the outside, raspy-voiced Madame. The other women characters are only shown to be recipients of violence and abuse and the script and direction do very little to empower them.

Zoya Akhtar & Anurag Kashyap both attempted to make shorts on the sociocultural power dynamics that plague sexuality and sexual interaction in their contributions to Lust Stories. While Zoya Akhtar was more slightly successful in addressing perceptions of the economic and class dynamics between two sexual partners, Anurag Kashyap’s short woefully fell prey to a tired narrative of the “crazy woman” even though it began with a laudable commentary on the predatory relationship dynamic between older women and younger men.

Our main goal in this episode was to examine how mainstream and indie representations of sex and sexuality further (or set back) important conversations around these issues. While Parched and Zoya Akhtar’s short made some commendable efforts, most of these pieces of media were unable to take on a fully intersectional lens to these controversial, but extremely relevant issues for the larger South Asian audience.

In our upcoming episodes, we plan to address topics in consent and rape culture which we briefly touched on in this episode. We also hope to tackle movies from other parts of South Asia as we do this. This episode was so important to us, be sure to let us know what you thought of this episode!

Further Readings + Content

Singh, Asha. “Are All Women’s Stories the Same?” Round Table India. Oct 19, 2016. https://roundtableindia.co.in/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8831:parched-and-feminism-are-all-women-s-stories-the-same&catid=119:feature&Itemid=13

Sander, Lalon. “Eleven Heroines Does Not A Feminist Film Make: A Review of Srijit Mukherji’s "Rajkahini.” The Caravan. Oct 31, 2015. https://caravanmagazine.in/vantage/eleven-heroines-not-feminist-make-review-rajkahini

Singh, Poonam. “Film Review: Parched, Of Women Thirsting for More.” Feminism in India. Sept 26, 2016. https://feminisminindia.com/2016/09/26/film-review-parched/

Ghosh, Stutee. “Review: Women in Radhika Apte’s ‘Parched’ Are Bruised, Not Bechari.” The Quint. Sept 22, 2016. https://www.thequint.com/entertainment/film-review-women-in-radhika-aptes-parched-are-bruised-not-bechari-ajay-devgn-surveen-chawla-feminism#read-more

Podcasters

Masala Podcast https://www.soulsutras.co.uk/masala-podcast/

Brown Girls Do it Too https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08k5cp0/episodes/downloads

Chuski Pop http://chuskipop.com/

Liberating Sexuality https://www.instagram.com/liberatingsexuality/?hl=en

[malkalaila]

February 4th, 2020. Away day to Wales, Port Talbot and Mumbles. 

Today The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are celebrating businesses and local communities in The Mumbles and Port Talbot.

The Duke and Duchess visited one of Wales’ busiest Lifeboat Stations, The Mumbles RNLI. Lifeboat crews at The Mumbles have been saving lives for over 180 years and have been presented with 33 awards for gallantry. The Royal Family have long supported RNLI. The Queen has been Patron since 1952, the year of her Accession and The Duke of Kent has held the position of President since 1969. The Duke and Duchess met crew members and volunteers, many of whom are available 24/7 to help saves lives at sea.

~

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge also made a visit to Tata Steel in Port Talbot today, a vital employer for the community. The factory creates a range of steel products that can be used in different industries, including construction, domestic appliances and automotives.

The Duke and Duchess were taken on a tour of the Hot Strip Mill where they spoke to operators, before meeting apprentices and recent graduates who are starting their careers and training at Tata. Some of the workers at the Steelworks have been with the company for significant periods of time, like Shaun Tobin who has worked at Tata for 30 years.

~

The Duke and Duchess visit Bulldogs Boxing Community in Port Talbot 🥊 Bulldogs uses the power of boxing to involve, educate and inspire the community, including young people who may have been affected by adverse childhood experiences and mental health issues. The Duke and Duchess’s visit to the Bulldogs coincides with Children’s Mental Health Week, set up by @_place2be of which The Duchess is Patron. Earlier in the day, The Duke and Duchess stopped at Joe’s Ice Cream Parlour to speak to local parents and carers about life in the Mumbles, and to talk about The Duchess’s #5BigQuestions survey. The survey aims to spark a UK-wide conversation on raising the next generation of children under 5.

via Kensington Royal instagram

These two had a busy day! Someone else pointed it out, but I’m going to point it out again--these two are wearing green and red for the Welsh flag and it’s soft diplomacy! Every time there’s an engagement, I always stress how important the fashion is, even though it doesn’t look like it. It’s important for the royals to have put thought into their clothes without looking ostentatious or obvious. 

Beside their 3 stops (RNLI, Tata Steel, and Bulldogs boxing) these two stopped off for ice cream at Joe’s Ice Cream.

Aren’t these two adorable?? There were so many smiles and soft looks and Will’s hand on Kate’s back moments today 😍😍😍 

Now, let’s actually talk fashion. Will is diligently wearing a green sweater and his coat has a plaid/checkered (I feel like it has a name and I don’t know what it is) pattern that I’m not opposed to. Though I usually don’t like the blue and green combo, today it’s all right. Kate is a lovely lady in red, again! I love Kate in red and I think she should wear it more often. 

The dress is by Zara and it’s got a patterned weave to the fabric, along with balloon sleeves with cinched cuffs and appears to be mid length. 

She belted the look with a black belt, unidentified for now. She’s also wearing her more comfortable boots by Stuart Weitzman that have a much lower heel. Her pendant necklace is a rewear of a new piece by Daniella Draper and has George, Charlotte, and Louis’ initials engraved on it. 

Her blue coat that she was wearing while outside was by Hobb’s and it’s got beautiful gold button detailing, large pockets, and epaulettes. The fun red and white heart scarf is by Beulah London and very apt for February and she matched it to her red Mulberry clutch (the same one she wore cross body while chasing Louis around during that polo match last year). And Kate finished her look with her trusty gold oak leaf earrings by Asprey.   

Now, for my unofficial fashion commentary. I don’t really like these boots--I would have preferred her Aquatalia Rhumba, but I get it, sometimes a girl needs to not wear heels. I also don’t think she needed another blue coat. But I noticed Kate’s newer coats are longer, and I think it’s to accommodate her longer hemlines--a coat that’s shorter than the dress under it is quite odd. I also really love Kate pulling her hair back lately, not only does it give us a clear view of her jewelry, but I love when her hair is pulled away from her face. 

And that’s a wrap! We should be seeing these two with the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall on the 11th. 

[brokehorrorfan]

Blu-ray Review: Imitation Girl / Nina Forever

Dread Central Presents - the recently-launched genre arm of Epic Pictures - has released six of its titles as Blu-ray double features. Although two movies share a disc, these aren't cheap budget packs. Each feature has its own extras, plus the artwork is reversible with a front cover for either respective title. One such release pairs the 2017 sci-fi drama Imitation Girl with the 2015 British horror-comedy Nina Forever.

In Imitation Girl, an extraterrestrial substance lands in the New Mexico desert and assumes the form of the first being it comes in contact with: an erotic magazine featuring adult film star Julianna Fox (Lauren Ashley Carter, The Woman) on the cover. The real Julianna is jaded with her life in the raunchy porn industry in New York City, while the Imitation (also played by Carter) displays the innocence and mischievous curiosity of a toddler. They spend the nearly the entirety of the film separate, but their stories of discovering themselves parallel one another.

In addition to a stark contrast in their regional backdrops, the two characters are filmed in different styles. The Imitation's coverage largely consists of long takes with lingering, voyeuristic wide shots. Julianna's scenes are more intimate, and she's often washed in colorful lights, reflecting the hustle and bustle of New York. Despite the intentional disparities, the two halves come together to form a cohesive whole.

The Imitation befriends Saghi (Neimah Djourabchi) and Khahar (Sanam Erfani), who help initiate her to human culture. Immigrants themselves, the siblings sympathize with the her struggle. On Julianna's side, she finds compassion from her old piano teacher, played by Catherine Mary Stewart (The Last Starfighter). Adam David Thompson (Mozart in the Jungle) plays Julianna's boyfriend, and comedian Lewis Black (Inside Out) has a brief, unlikely cameo as a drug lord.

Carter has become something of an indie horror darling in the last several years, racking up an impressive resume filled with modern cult classics such as The Woman, Jug Face, Pod, Darling, and The Mind's Eye. Imitation Girl is perhaps her strongest performance to date, with the dual roles allowing her to showcase her versatility and vulnerability.

Imitation Girl's portion of the disc features an audio commentary with writer-director Natasha Kermani, moderated by Dread Central Presents' Rob Galluzzo. The Iranian-American filmmaker shares ample insight on the filmmaking process without divulging too much about the more ambiguous plot points. I found it particularly interesting that the crew filmed the Imitation half in New Mexico, then broke for several months before reconvening in New York City to shoot the Julianna portion.

The original Imitation Girls short, on which the film, is based is also included. At only two and a half minutes, it's quite different than its feature counterpart, but the core concept is there, as is Carter, so it serves as fine proof of concept. Other special features include two deleted scenes, brief red carpet interviews with Kermani and Djourabchi from the film's European premiere at FrightFest, and the trailer.

Imitation Girl is comparable to Under the Skin in terms of both set-up and tone, although Imitation Girl is decidedly less esoteric. It also has hints of Starman in its DNA. Other than the science fiction elements that bookend the film, however, Imitation Girl is virtually void of a genre connection. It's an arthouse drama/character piece at its core, and quite a compelling one at that. With an impressive feature debut under her belt, I cannot wait to see what Kermani does next.

Nina Forever is one of three horror-comedies that came out in a short span that dealt with a girlfriend coming back from the dead; the other two being Burying the Ex and Life After Beth. Despite its cutesy artwork, Nina Forever adopts a more serious take on the subject matter, making it the strongest - yet least funny - of the three.

Rob (Cian Barry) finds himself in a love triangle with his new flame, Holly (Abigail Hardingham, The Missing), and his recently deceased girlfriend, Nina (Fiona O'Shaughnessy), who inexplicably returns to taunt the new couple whenever they get intimate. In an apt metaphor for emotional baggage and closure, they must work through the trying situation together.

Nina Forever is comedic, but writing-directing brothers Ben and Chris Blaine smartly avoid camp by having the actors play the absurd material straight. Eschewing broad laughs, the film follows in the British tradition of dry, black humor.

Nina Forever's special features include a brief behind-the-scenes segment, a featurette dedicated to deleted scenes featuring the Blaines discussing the reasoning behind their removal, two of the Blaine’s early short films (Free Speech, another comedic situation centered around sex, and Crowd Scene), and the trailer.

Nina Forever offers an interesting and engaging take on a familiar story, bolstered by strong performances from the leading trio. The Blaine brothers deftly handle the unique tone, although they falter a bit with the pacing. The elegance with which they depict the abundant sex, always intertwined with the macabre, brings to mind Clive Barker's Hellraiser. The film serves as an effective palette cleaner after Imitation Girl.

Imitation Girl / Nina Forever is available now on Blu-ray via Dread Central Presents.

[thefilmsimps]

Candyman (2021) (dir. Nia DaCosta)

-Jere Pilapil-

Normally, I’m relieved that a movie in 2021 is under two hours. This goes double for much-hyped, rebootquels that seem determined to launch a new series. Careful what you say five times in a mirror, I guess.

The 2021 Candyman is a sequel to the 1992 Candyman (ignoring two reviled sequels in between, though I guess Candyman: Day of the Dead takes place in 2020, which I kinda gotta see for myself for lulz), and it’s one of those new-fangled The Force Awakens-type ones that serves as an introduction to the series in a very “this this is happening again to a younger set of characters” way. So that 90-minute runtime is packing in a lot, and that’s before you factor in its critique of art and its gatekeepers, critics, etc. But, it ends in an open-ended way that makes it easy to imagine a sequel, which I guess is the whole point of these things regardless of what happens between studio logos and the title popping up at the end.

If the original was about a privileged white woman invading a black space to be a voyeur and having her life completely demolished in exchange, this one is about the ghosts of the past rising up to haunt the present. The former Cabrini-Green projects are no more, paved over and turned into luxury housing, All the chic decor in the world cannot hide the ugly, racially motivated crimes of the past, which bubble up increasingly as our protagonist investigates the stories of Helen Lyle and Candyman from the 1992 movie. It’s an apt metaphor here, but without the accusatory subtext of the original, I’d have to think the Venn diagram of people who would see this movie and people who watched the news at all from the Obama administration to now would just be one big circle of people saying “No shit”.

Our protagonist is Anthony McCoy, played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, doing what I assume is his best to convey “slowly losing my shit”. He’s an artist, living off his girlfriend, an art gallery director. With artists in movies, I can never tell how good the art is supposed to be. I can’t quite tell how much others are blowing smoke up his ass, since his breakthrough painting series, black people with nooses, is an almost hilariously boring idea of art-as-commentary. His new work gets dismissed by critics and friends for his new piece about the legend of the Candyman until people start dying because the piece gets people to summon Candyman. The art world is populated by snobs and creeps that seem to just exist so that we (the audience) can feel good about Candyman murdering people, but the scenes look goofy (with well-executed special-effects), and the brutality would feel better earned if I could imagine someone thinking Anthony is a good artist.

The most interesting idea this movie posits is that Candyman is not just one man, but one in a succession of racially motivated murders. It’s the idea that keeps coming back and taking revenge on the present. It just takes nearly the entire runtime of the movie to do anything with the implications of that. He spends the runtime of the movie wandering and researching while eerie stuff happens around him and a bee sting becomes infected and spreads up his arm. And then some shit happens in the third act that literally had me bury my head in my hands for how jarring, stupid and out of nowhere it was. It feels like the filmmakers had the idea for the ending and retroactively worked to get characters A and B into positions X and Y (like the Loki series, the finale is good, but tethering it to preexisting works complicates the road there in exhausting ways).

The 2021 Candyman is mostly saved by just being a great looking movie. While it feels like it’s pounding you over the head with mirrors and mirror imagery, some of it is nifty, at least, and the cinematography is foreboding and dark. I wish this movie had a little more focus (may of its links to the original movie are unnecessary, the characterization of the critics and art industry people are as subtle as the gif results for “jerk off motion”), and maybe a little more bravery. The movie itself seems afraid to be truly scary, instead shaking its head and saying “what a pity…”. Even if it had come out as planned in 2020, it would have been as interesting as an artist drawing a black man with a noose and calling it “commentary”.

4.5/10

[rocket-pool]

Bolstering the commentary on conversion rates, because I'm a business writer and a LOT of industries have significantly lower rates even than those mentioned above.

What's more the comment on more content is apt. Before, and by that I mean the early 2000s, fandom was more insular. They flocked to a limited number of sites, and the content got a lot more attention, both good and bad.

Then the internet got it's footing, became a world wide force of change that redefines how we relate to each other. Most of us in the world, every day, all the time, producing content. Because guess what - this post is content. The two lines you post bitching about your day is content. The thing you reblog is content.The ads you scroll past are content.

There's more to pay attention to in the same number of hours a day as when the internet was smaller.

For a creator, you have to remember that most people will hold their likes for something they adore and comments for something that blows them away (be it good or bad). Success can't be measured by the old yard stick, and it can't be compared to what goes viral within a fandom.

Let's throw this to the publishing world. How many books are put out? How many are good but are never discovered? How many are great but never make the best seller list? How many are read at the library and the author never sees or hears from that person, no matter how much of an impact it makes on their life?

The one piece of advice I've always heard about becoming a pro creative writer is this: if you want money and fame, do something else; write because you can't not write.

If you write fic, do it because you love it. Do it because you've got something to say, because there's something you want to explore, because there's a way you want to look at things. If someone reads it, all the better.

Want more attention? That's fine, but you're going to have to work for it. Your content has to break through all the other content constantly bombarding us at all hours, and that's not easy. It takes time, especially since as a fan writer you can't spend money to market your fic.

Be realistic about your expectations, and more than that, don't feel entitled to hits and likes and comments. You have to be realistic about how people will interact with your story, and chances are, reading is going to be it.

Don't create and believe a myth about what creators should see in response to their work.

I’ve seen five different authors take down, or prepare to take down, their posted works on Ao3 this week.  At the same time, I’ve seen several people wishing there was more new content to read.  I’ve also seen countless posts by authors begging for people to leave comments and kudos. 

People tell me I am a big name fan in my chosen fandom.  I don’t quite get that but for the purposes of this post, let’s roll with it.  On my latest one shot, less than 18% of the people who read it bothered to hit the kudos button.  Sure, okay, maybe that one sort of sucked.  Let’s look at the one shot posted before that - less than 16% left kudos.  Before that - 10%, and then 16%.  I’m not even going to get into the comments.  Let’s just say the numbers drop a lot.  I’m just looking at one shots here so we don’t have to worry about multiple hits from multiple chapters, people reading previous chapters over, etc.  And if I am a BNF, that means other people are getting significantly less kudos and comments.

Fandom is withering away because it feels like people don’t care about the works that are posted.  Why should I go to the trouble of posting my stories if no one reads them, and of the people who do read them, less than a fifth like them?  Even if you are not a huge fan of the story, if it kept your attention long enough for you to get to the bottom, go ahead and mash that kudos button.  It’s a drop of encouragement in a big desert. 

TL;DR: Passively devouring content is killing fandom.

[jacethebeltsculptor]

Steven Universe’s Universal Appeal

Since it first aired in November of 2013, Steven Universe has become a beloved show among people of all shapes, sizes, and colours. It has garnered overwhelming critical praise and popularity, established itself as a mainstay of convention centre floors in cosplay and merchandise, and established itself in reputation with the likes of Gravity Falls and Avatar: The Last Airbender. I, personally, have no end of praise for the show- I truly do feel those comparisons are apt. However, today, I want to look at precisely *why* Steven Universe is so broadly beloved by so many people. I believe Steven Universe has four main qualities that broaden its appeal and contribute to its massive success- the nuance of its characters,  the diversity of its cast. the serious chords struck by the story, and the levity of the character interactions.

I’ll begin by citing a common feeling about cartoons- people see them as dumb and childish. They’re written based on an adult perception that anything more complex than a caricature and a fart joke is beyond the comprehension of children. The result is that children are often not faced with characters they can relate to- their problems are superficial, their behaviours are cartoonish. Steven Universe isn’t afraid to present characters who are deep and nuanced. Steven is bright and optimistic, wants to help, and solve problems. He misses his mother, but also struggles to separate his own identity from her legacy. Garnet is cool and collected, wise, and insightful- but we also see that she feels a need to always appear that way for the sake of others. Greg is a loving father and a goofball, as well as a bit of a bum, but we also see the insecurity as he struggles with how to raise his son. Not only does this nuance to the characters speak to children by allowing them to relate to characters and their complexities, it provides a way for adults to grow invested in the cast as well. This nuance means that someone of any age will find a way to resonate with at least one or two characters, and to sympathize with the rest.  Speaking of Steven Universe’s cast- it’s a pretty diverse one. Like most cartoons aimed for the children’s audience- it’s about a young boy. However, unlike a lot of children’s shows, the supporting cast is made up of all sorts. The Crystal Gems themselves, as well as many supporting and recurring characters like Connie or Sadie are women- something that’s uncommon in an industry marketed mainly to young boys unless the aim is *specifically* to young girls. Furthermore, a lot of the characters are meant to be identifiable as black, such as Garnet or Bismuth, from their hairstyles, voices, and mannerisms. Body positivity is also abound in the show- the characters are designed with different and distinct body types. This diversity helps the show garner a massive appeal to audiences by allowing people to find initial connections to characters via personal sympathy. Plus-size women might like seeing a show where a plus-size woman is a warrior and a leader. Young girls might feel inspired to see a character like Connie pushing herself for excellence to help the Crystal Gems. Young boys will see Steven’s accepting and understanding attitudes and aspire to that same level of openness. There’s a character in the show that’s a little like everyone- in western media, that’s a rare trait, and it’s a shame. It really is an easy way to make a lot of people smile.  Speaking of making you smile, Steven Universe’s characters are brilliant. The majority of the humour in the show comes from the interactions between them- Garnet’s moments of dry observational humour, or Greg’s goofy, laid-back commentary provides the show with a sense of humour that people can relate to. Situations for comedy often arise from the interactions of different personalities in different ways- and the different types of humour each character employs creates a way for an audience to see the levity in different ways. One scene I’d like to point to as an example is in Peridot- her over-the-top narcissism, odd mannerisms, and hyperactive personality is hilarious to me, and her pairing with the low-energy, neutral Lapis generates a fantastically odd-couple comedy of Peridot exclaiming things, doing things, and shoving items into Lapis’s arms while Lapis usually gets dragged along without much say in the matter. In contrast, Peridot and Garnet interact much like a precocious child and her babysitter- with Garnet reining in Peridot’s hyperactive nature, and putting her on a proverbial (and once, rather literal) short leash. The result is that the show’s comedy is remarkably human. Comedy arises from people interacting, something we can all relate to. Steven Universe’s comedy is about people- and to everyone’s surprise, people like it.  While Steven Universe is a funny show, it’s far from all laughs. Steven Universe is a show that unflinchingly tackles deep social and moral issues, presenting its characters with challenges to their growth, morals, and questions without clear answers. While, for the purposes of avoiding spoilers, I won’t go too far into these points, the show delivers many moments that strike a deeply emotional chord. The show has a narrative weight that serves to foster growth in us, both children and adults, by asking us to think about what the characters are facing. To a young child, this is them being exposed to new ideas and new challenges of the real world- they learn about themselves as they go. To adults, this is seeing maturity in very young characters, and seeing the world you know play out on screen. These serious moments leave the lasting marks on the viewer that a story should- listening to the story *should* change you, impact you, and leave a mark on you. Audiences leave an episode feeling a bit different, and pass the word on- Steven Universe is a story you won’t forget.  If this piece hasn’t made it clear, Steven Universe is a recent favourite of mine. It’s reminiscent of Avatar: The Last Airbender, a show I prize as one of my earliest inspirations in storytelling. If you’re reading this and already love the show, I’m glad. If you’re reading this to try and glean an idea of what all the fuss is about- I’ll implore you to watch it for yourself and find out. I won’t ask you to like it, but please, stop and appreciate it. 

[morganbelarus]

NYCxDesign: Why all-female shows are popping up all over New York

New York (CNN)On the tails of Milan's massive design week in April, New York City's citywide festival of design, NYCxDesign -- which runs through May 24 -- kicked off with a spate of shows giving voice to female talent in an industry that remains notoriously male-dominated.

"I feel like this is happening a lot now. People are organizing themselves everywhere," said Hilda Hellstrm, a sculptor and co-founder of Den Nya Kvinnogruppen (The New Women's Group), an all-female artists' collective in her native Sweden.

A 'Room' of one's own

This month, Hellstrom is displaying her work, alongside 20 other women artists and designers, at "Room With Its Own Rules" (through July 15), the last in a series of four shows curated by Matylda Krzykowski at New York's Chamber gallery.

The prospect of organizing the final show centered on women artists and designers, Krzykowski says, rose from an undeniable sense of necessity.

"The goal is to influence and make people aware and consider the imbalances that still persist, but not forcefully," she said, noting that the rosters of many of the design world's top companies and galleries still comprise mostly men.

"We just have to give more space to women, and then naturally the space will be shared more democratically. In the end, we hold all the potential. It's just a matter of redistributing visibility."

While Krzykowski's first three installations were inspired by "Just What Is It That Makes Today's Homes So Different, So Appealing?" -- a 1956 collage and commentary on postwar consumer culture by Richard Hamilton -- "Room With Its Own Rules" stems from Hamilton's 1992 update to that piece, in which an image of a male bodybuilder has been replaced by a woman of color.

It struck Krzykowski as a sort of "sociological report" and promise for progress in the creative world that has largely remained unfulfilled, and thus ripe for examination.

Diversity over protest

But If "Room With Its Own Rules" offers any statement about female creativity, Krzykowski suggests it is one that defies singularity, and instead imagines a post-patriarchal society in which an all-female show is neither necessary nor seen as progressive.

It's not a show of protest or empowerment, she says, but simply a show featuring "21 different women, with 21 different narratives," an international, multi-generational portrait of creativity in a given time.

Still, Kryzkowski's heady approach begs the question: How have women moved forward in the design world, and what challenges remain?

"I would prefer if we didn't need to have all-female shows, but I will be a part of them until we don't need to have them anymore," said artist Katie Stout, who created an oversize, pink fiberglass-and-resin table, cheekily titled the "Executive Wage Gap Desk," for the installation.

"I feel very lucky that I get to do what I want to do," she adds.

In the last year alone, Stout has shown globally at fairs including Design Miami and the Venice Biennale.

"Of course there are challenges, and sometimes it's hard to know if things are harder because I'm a woman. Obviously, I'm unaware of opportunities I haven't been given because I wasn't given them, but sometimes I do wonder about that."

An unstoppable force

Designer Lindsey Adelman, who has achieved a level of renown both Stateside and abroad with her sculptural, bauble fixtures, says she can't recall an occasion in which she's exhibited in a show without men, but welcomes the rising momentum in the city.

"It's a force that's unstoppable," said Adelman. "Now that we all know who each other are -- a lot of us have followed one another's work, but hadn't met -- we know that the other women are out there, each doing their thing. It gives you so much confidence."

For others, such as Johanna Grawunder -- an architect-designer who worked with Italian master Ettore Sottsass for a number of years -- all-female shows have not always provided an apt venue for empowerment.

"I've never wanted to do all-women shows because it almost felt like being placed in a ghetto. It never felt like an honor, but more of a sideline," she said.

However, she feels optimistic by the strain of feminism presented by Krzykowski and younger generations: "When Matylda wrote me, her approach about so much more than just being a woman. In fact, I didn't even realize it was an all-female show until quite a ways into it."

Egg Collective

Downtown at its Soho showroom, the independent design studio Egg Collective presents another stellar show of works by an entirely female cast.

"Designing Women" (through May 26) features works by 16 New York-based female artists and designers, including fiber pieces by Dana Barnes, hanging tassel pendants by lighting designer Bec Brittain, and a rust velvet chaise by Syrette Lew of Moving Mountains.

Twenty percent of sales from each piece will benefit Girls Inc., a nonprofit whose mission advocates gender equality and increased opportunities for women.

"It's hard when we have someone leading our country who is able to normalize talk about women that shouldn't be normalized," said Egg Collective co-founder Hillary Petrie, who was inspired to organize the exhibition after the Women's Marches that followed President Trump's inauguration.

"It almost feels like we're being pushed back, and we don't want that to happen. There's also a need to redefine the language and not be put into a box of feminist design, or having to say 'This is done by a female.' In fact, it's just design."

A number of museum exhibitions are also underlining a spectrum of female creativity.

At the Museum of Modern Art, "Making Space: Women Artists and Postwar Abstraction" spotlights female artists from the midcentury.

Uptown, the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum -- itself founded by women -- proudly displays a gallery of permanent-collection works guest-curated by comedian and design devotee Ellen DeGeneres.

At the Brooklyn Museum, "A Year of Yes: Reimagining Feminism at the Brooklyn Museum" commemorates the 10th anniversary of its Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art with a year-long series of shows, including a monographic presentation on painter Georgia O'Keefe (through July 23).

Call it political synergy, or a collective clapback to the polarizing political administration, but one thing is for certain: All is not well in the state of current American politics, and New York's creative community is standing up to support underrepresented voices in art and design.

More From this publisher : HERE

=> *********************************************** Read Full Article Here: NYCxDesign: Why all-female shows are popping up all over New York ************************************ =>

NYCxDesign: Why all-female shows are popping up all over New York was originally posted by 16 MP Just news

[michaelmfergusonusa]

Your content’s home is on your blog

Doing some research yesterday afternoon I pulled up a blog post of mine from a few years ago. As is often the case, the post cited a third-party resource and contained the appropriate link to the resource.

The resource I was looking for was a survey conducted by the American Bar Association Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services.

Click on the word “survey” and you’ll see the link is dead. The ABA has taken the survey down or, more likely, redesigned their website without keeping the site architecture intact so as to retain the existing url structure and the validity of incoming links.

I shared on Twitter:

Links to surveys and studies performed by the American Bar Association/@ABAesq are turning up dead. Another example of legal publishers ignoring link rot and dismissing the value of their own work as well as the work of others citing their work. Sad. pic.twitter.com/PqGUGQHsEA

— Kevin O'Keefe (@kevinokeefe) November 15, 2018

To which Dennis Garcia, Assistant General Counsel at Microsoft, responded:

.@kevinokeefe Very unfortunate and this also recently happened to me. I'm seriously thinking about blogging vs writing articles that I spend a great deal of time writing and which can no longer be found on a publisher's website. https://t.co/AzECFr4uxc

— Dennis Garcia

(@DennisCGarcia) November 15, 2018

Garcia, an established leader in technology and innovation in the legal industry, regularly writes for widely read third-party publications.

In addition to legal professionals citing his writings in their blogs, articles and on social media, Garcia is building a personal and professional legacy in his writings. His influence is growing.

Our Twitter discussion continued with my comment.

This is a good reason that you should have your own blog as the primary place for your content. Syndicate it elsewhere, but your blog is the primary and original as far as you, Google and others are concerned. https://t.co/30tkJH1uit

— Kevin O'Keefe (@kevinokeefe) November 15, 2018

Feeling insecure that no will otherwise see their content, lawyers and law firms are apt to have their content published on third-party sites – both news sites and content distribution platforms.

The problem comes with the long term visibility and url structure of the content.

Business models of publishers change. Medium has gone through about three and is still not clear on their long term business model.

Companies get acquired with the aquirer changing things up or eliminating most of the product acquired altogether.

More than one current legal blogger has complained that their contributions to ALM, owner of Law.com, originally free and open on the web, have now been placed behind a paywall pursuant to a business deal between ALM and LexisNexis.

Two problems there. One, people cannot find this content any longer (was only written for ALM, not the lawyer’s blog) and all of the links citing their commentary are now dead.

Two, links from blogs, articles and social media are important, they are an objective measure of a lawyer’s influence in their field. Take those links away and you take away their influence.

Seems the long term answer is to publish on a platform that you can control. One where you own the domain, the content and the domain mapping for the content should you ever want to migrate the content. 

Getting your content back, alone, without the original url structure, as would be the case with making the third-party poublisher the host of your content, will not cut it. All of the incoming links are dead and you’re starting over from scratch.

Sure, syndicate the content to other places to increase visibility and delivery to a focused audience, just like you syndicate your content through social media, but make your place – your blog or site – the primary site.

When syndicating to third party sites, ask that that your content reference that the piece was originally published on your site or blog. That’ll signal your blog or website as the primary site.

Digital publishing, especially by individuals, is new, this learning process for each of us as to what’s important is only natural.

[khanguadalupe]

Your content’s home is on your blog

Doing some research yesterday afternoon I pulled up a blog post of mine from a few years ago. As is often the case, the post cited a third-party resource and contained the appropriate link to the resource.

The resource I was looking for was a survey conducted by the American Bar Association Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services.

Click on the word “survey” and you’ll see the link is dead. The ABA has taken the survey down or, more likely, redesigned their website without keeping the site architecture intact so as to retain the existing url structure and the validity of incoming links.

I shared on Twitter:

Links to surveys and studies performed by the American Bar Association/@ABAesq are turning up dead. Another example of legal publishers ignoring link rot and dismissing the value of their own work as well as the work of others citing their work. Sad. pic.twitter.com/PqGUGQHsEA

— Kevin O'Keefe (@kevinokeefe) November 15, 2018

To which Dennis Garcia, Assistant General Counsel at Microsoft, responded:

.@kevinokeefe Very unfortunate and this also recently happened to me. I'm seriously thinking about blogging vs writing articles that I spend a great deal of time writing and which can no longer be found on a publisher's website. https://t.co/AzECFr4uxc

— Dennis Garcia

(@DennisCGarcia) November 15, 2018

Garcia, an established leader in technology and innovation in the legal industry, regularly writes for widely read third-party publications.

In addition to legal professionals citing his writings in their blogs, articles and on social media, Garcia is building a personal and professional legacy in his writings. His influence is growing.

Our Twitter discussion continued with my comment.

This is a good reason that you should have your own blog as the primary place for your content. Syndicate it elsewhere, but your blog is the primary and original as far as you, Google and others are concerned. https://t.co/30tkJH1uit

— Kevin O'Keefe (@kevinokeefe) November 15, 2018

Feeling insecure that no will otherwise see their content, lawyers and law firms are apt to have their content published on third-party sites – both news sites and content distribution platforms.

The problem comes with the long term visibility and url structure of the content.

Business models of publishers change. Medium has gone through about three and is still not clear on their long term business model.

Companies get acquired with the aquirer changing things up or eliminating most of the product acquired altogether.

More than one current legal blogger has complained that their contributions to ALM, owner of Law.com, originally free and open on the web, have now been placed behind a paywall pursuant to a business deal between ALM and LexisNexis.

Two problems there. One, people cannot find this content any longer (was only written for ALM, not the lawyer’s blog) and all of the links citing their commentary are now dead.

Two, links from blogs, articles and social media are important, they are an objective measure of a lawyer’s influence in their field. Take those links away and you take away their influence.

Seems the long term answer is to publish on a platform that you can control. One where you own the domain, the content and the domain mapping for the content should you ever want to migrate the content. 

Getting your content back, alone, without the original url structure, as would be the case with making the third-party poublisher the host of your content, will not cut it. All of the incoming links are dead and you’re starting over from scratch.

Sure, syndicate the content to other places to increase visibility and delivery to a focused audience, just like you syndicate your content through social media, but make your place – your blog or site – the primary site.

When syndicating to third party sites, ask that that your content reference that the piece was originally published on your site or blog. That’ll signal your blog or website as the primary site.

Digital publishing, especially by individuals, is new, this learning process for each of us as to what’s important is only natural.

Your content’s home is on your blog published first on http://fergusonlawatty.tumblr.com

[mrmichaelchadler]

Thumbnails Special Edition: Changes in Journalism

This special edition of Thumbnails explores the changing state of journalism in the world today. The topic was suggested by our Editor at Large, Matt Zoller Seitz, and I agree that it is a profoundly timely one worth exploring. Several of the articles highlighted below are from the Columbia Journalism Review, a publication dedicated to chronicling the mounting obstacles faced by modern journalists.—Chaz Ebert

1. 

"Advocates are becoming journalists. Is that a good thing?": An essential analysis from Mathew Ingram of the Columbia Journalism Review.

“In many ways, the story was a perfect fit for an organization like the ACLU: Matt Cagle, a lawyer for the ACLU in Northern California, noticed online marketing materials posted by Amazon for its software, which listed several law-enforcement organizations as users. So Cagle and his team started a records search, got two other ACLU bureaus involved, and the group’s national editorial team pulled the project together. In all, Cagle says, the project involved more than two dozen lawyers and advocates, as well as legal advisers at the national level, editors, and the ACLU’s communications team, and it took several months to come to fruition—the kind of resources many media companies would find hard to marshall for a single story. As the media landscape continues to fragment and many outlets struggle to afford more ambitious reporting projects, non-governmental organizations and advocacy groups like the ACLU and Human Rights Watch are increasingly taking on the role of reporter—breaking stories and in some cases even helping to change policy. But even those leading the new NGO-as-muckraker efforts acknowledge that they’re no replacement for traditional news organizations. ‘We can definitely bring some skills to bear on this kind of story, but that’s by no means a substitute for the amazing work that journalists do around the country right now,’ says Cagle. ‘But I think if we can help supplement that work and also do our part to educate the public and advocate for civil liberties, then we are doing something good.’”

2. 

"We need more diversity in film criticism, but 'Who is this movie for?" is the wrong question to ask": Impassioned commentary from Justin Chang at The Los Angeles Times.

“Larson’s thoughts on the matter are certainly preferable to those floated in the Telegraph’s recent interview with Cate Blanchett and Sandra Bullock about their all-female heist caper, ‘Ocean’s 8.’ In that piece, Bullock opined that ‘it would be nice if reviewers reflected who the film is for, like children should review children’s films, not a 60-year-old man. I guess his opinion would be kind of skewed.’ Blanchett chimed in with the claim that male critics are sometimes apt to view a film ‘through a prism of misunderstanding.’ It’s unclear from the interview whether Blanchett and Bullock were blaming male critics for the mixed critical response to ‘Ocean’s 8.’ If they were, I take it neither of them bothered to read the less-than-enthusiastic notices from Lindsey Bahr of the Associated Press, Manohla Dargis of the New York Times, Emily Yoshida of New York/Vulture and Stephanie Zacharek of Time. (For what it’s worth, even the more positive notices, my own included, tended to praise the movie’s female ensemble while taking issue with Gary Ross’ direction.) Recognizing and counteracting the existence of systemic bias in criticism is one thing; suggesting it should be a stay-in-your-lane activity is quite another. And at a certain point, dismissing your critics on the basis of signifiers such as race and gender starts to read as defensiveness about the very existence of criticism, specifically negative criticism, in the first place. You didn’t like it? Well, who cares, it wasn’t made for you!”

3.

"'This is unprecedented': Public colleges limiting journalist access": A frightening report from Max Zahn of the Columbia Journalism Review.

“On an assignment in August, freelance journalist Jeff Bachner had no trouble driving onto Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn. He parked his car and started taking photos. Soon after, a college security officer said he was trespassing and put him in handcuffs. The officer, Corporal Maurizio Gambino, took Bachner to a campus security office, Bachner said in a statement to the New York Press Photographers Association, or NYPPA. The officer then re-cuffed him to a railing over his head, and ignored his pleas to loosen the handcuffs, Bachner said in the statement, the contents of which were confirmed by NYPPA Vice President Todd Maisel. When Bachner began to gasp for breath and complain of numb fingers, officers called a medic. They eventually released Bachner without charge. Four days after the detention of Bachner, on August 16, campus security at Bronx Community College handcuffed freelance journalist J.B. Nicholas and issued him a summons for trespassing as he interviewed students about Confederate statues on campus. The charges were later dismissed.”

4. 

"The End of the Social News Era? Journalists Brace for Facebook's Big Change": As observed this past January by Sapna Maheshwari and Sydney Ember at The New York Times.

“Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief executive, said in an interview with The New York Times on Thursday that he wanted the social network to focus on ‘meaningful interaction.’ But his idea of what that phrase means is likely to differ from that of news industry executives and editors — and therein lies a conflict. Media companies are bracing for the changes coming to Facebook’s News Feed — the column that appears when the site or app is opened — that will favor posts by friends over material from news organizations and other businesses. ‘Nobody knows exactly what impact it’ll have, but in a lot of ways, it looks like the end of the social news era,’ Jacob Weisberg, the chairman and editor in chief of the Slate Group, said on Friday. ‘Everybody’s Facebook traffic has been declining all year, so they’ve been de-emphasizing news. But for them to make such a fundamental change in the platform — I don’t think people were really anticipating it.’ Although Facebook users craved conversation and journalists gave them things to talk about, the relationship between the platform and media outlets was imperfect from the start.”

5. 

"DOJ Seizure of Times reporter's data raises press freedom concerns": According to Pete Vernon of the Columbia Journalism Review.

“Trump and his Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, have made leak prosecutions a priority since shortly after taking office. In November, Sessions told the House Oversight Committee that his department was pursuing more than two dozen investigations into the leaking of classified information, adding that “it cannot be allowed to continue and we will do our best effort to make sure that it does not continue.” Wolfe, it should be noted, is charged only with making false statements, not with leaking classified information. The press freedom issues raised by the case aren’t new, and they aren’t limited to the current administration. The Times notes that the seizure of Watkin’s data “suggested that prosecutors under the Trump administration will continue the aggressive tactics employed under President Barack Obama.” The previous administration faced criticism for a lack of transparency and ensnaring journalists in its leak prosecutions, and Obama’s Justice Department prosecuted more leak cases than all previous administrations combined.”

Image of the Day

Michael Shaw of the Columbia Journalism Review selects 11 images (including the one above posted on the president's Twitter account) that "show how the Trump administration is failing at photography." 

Video of the Day

Peter Preston, the late British journalist and author from The Guardian, delivers his 2014 Keynote Speech at the 59th Distripress Congress in Cannes. Click here to read his article published last year in which he declared, "Change never stops, but we will always need journalism."

from All Content https://ift.tt/2KrFjsM

[qwertsypage]

Janelle Monae, Dirty Computer, Scrum

Janelle Monae, Dirty Computer, & Scrum

  Source: https://ift.tt/2GvpZc5

Janelle Monae is a hard artist to put into a box. Hip Hop? R&B? An Afrofuturist like Sun Ra? Is she like Prince or Annie Lennox or Lauryn Hill? Maybe an apt comparison would be David Bowie, a genre and gender rethinking of the future. Maybe she is the future. I probably have nothing original to say, except she is a remarkable talent making sui generis musical commentary on the current moment and mode.

Which made my discovery of this Radical Reads piece list of her favorite books reinforce for me that Scrum is a universal human accelerant, whether you are working on software, rocket ships, AI, or really interesting music.

“One of the last books that we read as a company was Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time. We have some incredible people working with Wondaland Records, and we knew that if we were going to be releasing five artists, including myself, we’d need to figure out a way to make sure we were on schedule. We wanted to find the quickest ways to get quality results we were all happy with. It solves problem on how we write music and how we run the company. It’s the way people use it in the tech industry, inspired by the tech world. It justifies the way we run Wondaland Records.” -JM

It's not many people that have Isaac Asimov, Octavia Butler, Ray Kurzweil, and Malcolm X on their list of favorite authors. I do myself, and to be honest thought I was the only person with that particular brand of eclecticism. It is an honor to be included on the Electric Lady's bookshelf.

  The post Janelle Monae, Dirty Computer, Scrum appeared first on Scrum Inc.

Janelle Monae, Dirty Computer, Scrum published first on https://koresolpage.tumblr.com/

[lucyariablog]

10 (Mostly) Quick Wins to Steal for Your Original Research Project

Did you know Andy Crestodina spends 150 hours on his annual blogger study? (This truly blew my mind – and it’s just one of the many insights I gleaned from a recent podcast with Andy on the Inbound Success podcast on original research. Absolutely worth a listen!)

While I can’t quantify how much time I have invested on any given research project, it’s somewhere in the ballpark of heaps to a truckload. Putting in the time – and money – makes sense because research works, but you can do much more beyond publishing the initial findings.

#Research works & you can do much more beyond publishing the initial findings says @michelelinn. Click To Tweet

To that end, I have studied how other marketers approach research and talked with those “in the trenches.” My goal is to learn from those who recently started publishing research as well as those who have been doing it awhile.

Today, I’m sharing a collection of solutions to missed opportunities that anybody doing their own original research can incorporate.

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Thinking of Creating Original Research? 8 Things to Consider

Have an ungated version of your research

The other week, I happened upon some strong research that had few shares or backlinks. When I dug in, I quickly realized the main research page was a gated form that teased the findings but offered little substance.

Of course, the company’s goal may be subscribers, but it’s tough to get many subscribers if people aren’t getting to your gated page.

It’s tough to get subscribers from your #research if people aren’t getting to the gated page. @michelelinn Click To Tweet

I’ll let you in on a little secret, too: Some sites won’t link to gated pages because it feels promotional. Even if your research is fabulous, you may lose if you don’t have an open-access, useful page.

Don’t miss an opportunity to share your research findings wide and far, even if you are focused on leads. If you tell your story well in a blog post or article, people will want to read more – and they will be more apt to complete your form.

TIP: If your primary goals are brand awareness, traffic, or backlinks, forgo the gate altogether. And take advantage of this next opportunity …

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Setting Content Free: How Health Catalyst Gets Results With Ungated Content

Create a call to action for your research

Chances are, your research will uncover key challenges or things your audience isn’t doing but should be. Can you hear your readers practically screaming, “We need help!”?

Be proactive and figure out what content you can publish to help your readers with their biggest struggles – and use that as a call to action for your research.

For instance, the majority of Content Marketing Institute research is ungated. A key challenge was identified in that research and a gated guide was created on how to document a content marketing strategy. It’s been downloaded thousands of times.

Or, take this example from CoSchedule. Its State of Marketing report landing page uncovers key takeaways from the research – and the gated content bundles the report with documents and templates that align with these ideas: personas, a marketing plan, and a content plan.

Publish your research on SlideShare

This next idea comes from Hailley Griffis at Buffer, which recently published The State of Remote Work in 2018. When I asked what surprised her about the process – or what worked better than expected – she had one word: SlideShare.

Publish your #research on @SlideShare to generate more traffic, says @hailleymari. Click To Tweet

She had not planned to put the research on the SlideShare platform, but it was an easy thing to try. She was surprised how much traffic it generated – more than 25,000 views as of this writing.

TIP: If you gate your research, you may be hesitant to release your research on SlideShare. However, most people don’t search for an ungated version if they come across a landing page with the gated version. (Do you?) Chances are different people will stumble across your research on SlideShare. If you aren’t certain, run a short experiment to see what happens.

Alternatively, if this SlideShare idea makes you or your management squeamish, create a skinny version for SlideShare that offers valuable information with a call to action to download the full version of your research.

At a minimum, create a skinny version of your #research study to post on #SlideShare, advises @michelelinn. Click To Tweet

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: SlideShare Secrets to Stack the Decks in Your Favor

Highlight key stats in click-to-tweet format

When you write about your research, make it as easy as possible for people to share. CMI’s Blog and Community Operations Manager Lisa Dougherty adds Better Click to Tweet posts with key stats or insights in every article, but it works especially well in research articles.

Use @WordPress plugin Better Click to Tweet to make it easy to share #research stats via @brandlovellc. Click To Tweet

Here is an example from CMI’s annual B2B content marketing research.

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: 17 No-Cost Ways Writers Can Extend Reach of Their Editorial

Include industry quotes

Another way to encourage social sharing – and add some color commentary to your research – is to include quotes from those in the industry.

One example to steal comes from Andy’s annual blogger study that takes the aforementioned 150 hours. For each survey finding, he shares a quote from an industry expert. Here is an example featuring Aaron Orendorff. 

Or, check out how Brody Dorland of DivvyHQ incorporates quotes into its research, Content Planning Challenges, Trends & Opportunities. I like how a Twitter icon links to each person.

TIP: Sketch your key findings or sections to see how many quotes you need and match your quote to key takeaways when possible.

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Proactively reach out to influencers

When I talk to people about research, I don’t hear often enough how they proactively reach influencers to talk about their research.

Of course, one way to make people aware of your research (and encourage them to share it) is to ask for quotes like Andy and Brody do. But, you want to cast a wider net.

Amanda Subler, CMI’s PR consultant, shared her approach and provides detailed templates you can use. The system is easy to understand and customize for your project.

Yes, it does take some time to reach out to influencers, but it’s worth it.

In fact, Priceonomics, a site that publishes a lot of original research, shared its process in the (lengthy but highly recommended) Content Marketing Handbook. One slightly mind-bending gem:

We tell people to start off by emailing 50+ journalists, because it conditions you to work very hard to spread your content after you write it … Another reason we tell people to email journalists after they publish a report is that we want you to anticipate what you’ll say to them before you are creating the content. What’s the hook going to be? How will you pitch it to someone? Why will it be interesting?

TIP: If you don’t know the journalists and influencers in your space, a tool like BuzzSumo can help. Dig in to see who has covered your topic or similar research. (Or, if this is an annual report, understand who covered your previous findings.)

If you don’t know journalists & #influencers in your space, a tool like @buzzsumo can help. @michelelinn. Click To Tweet

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: 3 Steps to Identify Influencers in Your Industry

Develop a library of graphics to be easily shared and used

You likely have spent time refining the charts, graphs, and other data visualizations in your report. Why not get as much from them as possible? My business partner Clare McDermott recently shared some ideas for dataviz to incorporate into your marketing, including original research.

Once you have dataviz, use it. I love how Udemy has a library of mini infographics from one of its research reports. These data-based graphics can easily be shared on social and in blog posts. (And, if you scroll through them, you can quickly understand the story.)

TIP: Include a source line and link on your charts and graphics so people can easily learn more about your research. (I’m continually surprised by how often I see that a source line is missing.)

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: 6 Mistakes Ruining Your Charts and Infographics

Write about your research on other platforms

Someone recently asked about my biggest mistake with research. That’s easy: not pitching articles about the findings to other publications.

Of course, it makes sense to cover your research on your blog as it can be a traffic magnet, but you also have an opportunity to get in front of new audiences if you tailor and pitch posts to other publications.

For instance, Andrea Fryrear recently covered her research, State of Agile Marketing 2018, on several blogs including CMI and Marketing Insider Group.

TIP: Identify an angle for each publication that is relevant and meaningful to that audience. A simple regurgitation of stats won’t cut it.

Pitch your #research to other publications. Find a relevant angle for each, advises @MicheleLinn. Click To Tweet

Include your research in your email signature or out of office

This next idea comes to us from Heike Young at Salesforce – and it’s the quickest one to put into action. When I was (coincidentally) emailing Heike about research Salesforce published, I received this out-of-office message:

TIP: Email signatures are also a great place to add a link to a key piece of research as well.

Include a link to your #research in your out of office message via @YoungHeike. Read more >> Click To Tweet

Make it easy for people to reach out to you

Your research is story-worthy, and you want people to write about it, interview you, etc. Right? I imagine you nodding your head, but how easy do you make it for people to contact you?

I love talking to people about their research projects (please add a comment below or reach out anytime if you are interested in chatting). And, it surprises me how difficult it can be to find the person responsible for the research. Journalists, bloggers, podcast hosts, and more may want to talk to you as well, but if you don’t make it easy, they may quickly move on.

I really like how Unbounce includes a list of their contributors for its Conversion Benchmark Report. Not only does this make it easy for people to reach out, but it acknowledges the smarts of the team who developed the report.

Over to you. What else can marketers do to spread their research far and wide? Add your ideas in the comments. (And, if you have published research, let me know. I’d love to check it out.)

Need data to inform your content marketing strategy, budget increase, or new tactical implementation. Check out CMI’s annual B2B and B2C research.

Want to learn more about making the most of your research? Catch Michele’s session at Content Marketing World 2018. Register today using code BLOG100 to save $100.

Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute

The post 10 (Mostly) Quick Wins to Steal for Your Original Research Project appeared first on Content Marketing Institute.

from http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2018/04/original-research-project/

[us-cheapwritingservice-blog]

MIT / Sloan Essay Topic Analysis 2015-2016

'\nFrontFollowing up on the sacque of MIT Sloans 2015-2016 employment experiment exalt (as puff up as our query with Admissions Director Dawna Levenson), we model wed tin both(prenominal) suggestions deathly how Sloan MBA hopefuls efficacy uprise this age scripted materials.\n composition the naturalise has reduced its pull up stakes of required distrusts from dickens to just angiotensin converting enzyme actuate this season, the admissions directions inwardness philosophy has remained constant. The Sloan adcom has large believed that agone way is the best forecaster of future demeanor, and the weapons platform has been consistent in espousing and applying this concept solely over the noncurrent hug drug or so. Accordingly, the informs 2015-2016 c exclusively into headland is highly focussed on the specifics of and the applicators behavior in a past stake, and is intentional to elicit a funfair derive of factual tuition by which the admission s perpetration can evaluator a candidates broader authority and competencies. The school has excessively retained its unrestricted ex gratia hear for the coming admissions season. And, in a virgin addition for this season, Sloan has inform plans to ask a second question required scarcely of applicants who are invited to dis fly the coop for the MBA platform. \nLets take a shoemakers extremer olfactory modality at this age MIT Sloan essays:\n set near: enunciate us closely a modern success you had: How did you progress to this? Who else was involved? What hurdle did you encounter? What slip of wallop did this acquit? (500 contrives)\nTheres a fair amount to pass through in this comparatively short solution, and its specialty pull up stakes attach on the graphic symbol of the eccentric prefered. While it may be tempting to lead a al maven act with a very awful fix, such a story may not return the level of behavioural richness that the admissi ons committee is looking for.\nInstead, candidates will need to select a mail that allows them to ac fill inledge meaning fully on individually of the follow-up inquiries, as this will stop that they are evincecasing all of the abilities that this prompt is intentional to assess. That is, the situation should overwhelm collaboration with separates (and ideally almost leg of formal or informal leadinghiphip), as veracious as obstacles that had to be vote down via persuasion, persistence, and/or problem-solving. Of course, whiz will overly hope to close with a constructive knocked out(p)come that allow ins an wedge on a person, client, move, or organization. eyeshade that this doesnt need to be a master copy accomplishment, leaving individualised and extracurricular pillow slips throw for shootation. We do postulate to suggest, however, that a competent professional example would be preferable, anticipate that in contains all of the elements required to fully scream the prompt. Meanwhile, applicants should escort closely to the adcoms crave for a new-fashioned success and range to identify an example from the past 2-3 years.\nAs for structure, we recommend a transparent sensory faculty approach (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to applicants tackling this behavioural prompt. Effective results will open with a full rendering of the situation, including a treatment of the setting and timeframe, as well as the players involved in the story and their various(prenominal) responsibilities and motivations. Youll as well fate to share the depute i.e. what you set out to accomplishearly in the essay. This component might alike include a discussion of your overall strategy, as well as anticipate challenges. Next, the action subdivision should comprise the volume of the essay. In this section, youll loss to take the ref through your piecemeal process of accomplishing your design; this piece of the resolution should a lso include descriptions of interpersonal interactions and troubleshooting of hurdles. Youll thence want to close with a comment on the result: the positive impact you were able to wealthy person. occur in assessment that while MIT is primarily interested in observable behaviors and their impact, some commentary on your reasoning and reactions may help to frame light on your process and change the adcom to better clear what your actions in this situation say close to your homogeneouslihood of skill in the future.\noptional Essay: The Admissions military commission invites you to share anything else you would like us to bang about you, in any format. If you bring to use a multimedia format, cheer host the information on a website and provide us the URL.\nAs far-off as optional essay prompts go, this one is fairly inviting with paying attention to meat as well as format. This prompt offers an prospect to address elements of ones industriousness that require expositi on (e.g. choice of recommender, a semester of poor undergrad performance), and may also be an fortune to share chief(prenominal) information that isnt captured elsewhere in ones compose materials.\nApplicants who do have a potential weakness to address should use this chemical reaction to comment on this issue in a straightforward manner. Meanwhile, applicants who dont have a pressing blemish to explain should cypher about what they might want to play up in this response. For example, the multimedia format may represent a peculiarly immense way to type an athletic following or claim the adcom to your hometown via video. This is also an prospect to share a blog, Pinterest page, or other digital subject that will show the adcom a peculiar side of your candidacy. As always, applicants should use good judgment in determining the content and length of this response remember that responding to an optional essay basically creates more tend for the admissions lecturer retention their comments as outline as workable and thinking guardedly about whether responding to this prompt will rattling make a meaningful exit in their applications.\n interrogate Invite Essay: The mission of the MIT Sloan give lessons of Management is to go bad principled, innovative leaders who improve the orb and to generate ideas that come management practice. revel share with us something about your past that aligns with this mission. (250 words).\nSomewhat identical to the schools required essay, this prompt (a modified mutant of a question that appeared on last seasons application) asks applicants to produce some evidence from their past that speaks to their fit with Sloan and its mission. apt(p) the abbreviated word count, the school potential isnt looking for a full superstar treatment with this response; its probably not necessary to walkway the adcom through a step-by-step process, though it will cool it be weighty to share bountiful context for th e reader to appreciate the before-and-after depicting of the impact the applicant was able to have. In selecting a issue for this response, applicants should zero in on the concepts of innovation, returns and idea-generation in this prompt, identifying a time they heighten an existing process or introduced something clean to their organization. Applicants will of course want to bit out the expand of the impact they had. Finally, the comments about principled leaders and improving the realism suggest that Sloan is pursuance applicants whove done more than bolster their companys fundament line; linking ones accomplishment to a positive social impact (or potential percentage to a computer program or disciple organization at Sloan see the soak up take in MIT Sloan work Guide for ideas) could be a particularly nice assemble here.\n derive meet Resources\nThanks for knowledge our analysis of this years Sloan MBA essay topics. As you work on your Sloan MBA essays and ap plication, we encourage you to consider all of make up controls MIT offerings:\nMIT Sloan rail of tune Profile on the Clear Admit website: up-to-date advice and admissions information\nClear Admit Sloan School jibe: overview of key curricular details and application information\nClear Admit Sloan School Guide: in-depth program and campus information and side-by-side school comparisons; everything you need to know for a winning application!If you want to get a full essay, put together it on our website: Looking for a place to buy a cheap paper online? Buy Paper Cheap - Premium quality cheap essays and affordable papers online. Buy cheap, high quality papers to impress your professors and pass your exams. Do it online right now! '

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NYCxDesign: Why all-female shows are popping up all over New York

New York (CNN)On the tails of Milan's massive design week in April, New York City's citywide festival of design, NYCxDesign -- which runs through May 24 -- kicked off with a spate of shows giving voice to female talent in an industry that remains notoriously male-dominated.

"I feel like this is happening a lot now. People are organizing themselves everywhere," said Hilda Hellstrm, a sculptor and co-founder of Den Nya Kvinnogruppen (The New Women's Group), an all-female artists' collective in her native Sweden.

A 'Room' of one's own

This month, Hellstrom is displaying her work, alongside 20 other women artists and designers, at "Room With Its Own Rules" (through July 15), the last in a series of four shows curated by Matylda Krzykowski at New York's Chamber gallery.

The prospect of organizing the final show centered on women artists and designers, Krzykowski says, rose from an undeniable sense of necessity.

"The goal is to influence and make people aware and consider the imbalances that still persist, but not forcefully," she said, noting that the rosters of many of the design world's top companies and galleries still comprise mostly men.

"We just have to give more space to women, and then naturally the space will be shared more democratically. In the end, we hold all the potential. It's just a matter of redistributing visibility."

While Krzykowski's first three installations were inspired by "Just What Is It That Makes Today's Homes So Different, So Appealing?" -- a 1956 collage and commentary on postwar consumer culture by Richard Hamilton -- "Room With Its Own Rules" stems from Hamilton's 1992 update to that piece, in which an image of a male bodybuilder has been replaced by a woman of color.

It struck Krzykowski as a sort of "sociological report" and promise for progress in the creative world that has largely remained unfulfilled, and thus ripe for examination.

Diversity over protest

But If "Room With Its Own Rules" offers any statement about female creativity, Krzykowski suggests it is one that defies singularity, and instead imagines a post-patriarchal society in which an all-female show is neither necessary nor seen as progressive.

It's not a show of protest or empowerment, she says, but simply a show featuring "21 different women, with 21 different narratives," an international, multi-generational portrait of creativity in a given time.

Still, Kryzkowski's heady approach begs the question: How have women moved forward in the design world, and what challenges remain?

"I would prefer if we didn't need to have all-female shows, but I will be a part of them until we don't need to have them anymore," said artist Katie Stout, who created an oversize, pink fiberglass-and-resin table, cheekily titled the "Executive Wage Gap Desk," for the installation.

"I feel very lucky that I get to do what I want to do," she adds.

In the last year alone, Stout has shown globally at fairs including Design Miami and the Venice Biennale.

"Of course there are challenges, and sometimes it's hard to know if things are harder because I'm a woman. Obviously, I'm unaware of opportunities I haven't been given because I wasn't given them, but sometimes I do wonder about that."

An unstoppable force

Designer Lindsey Adelman, who has achieved a level of renown both Stateside and abroad with her sculptural, bauble fixtures, says she can't recall an occasion in which she's exhibited in a show without men, but welcomes the rising momentum in the city.

"It's a force that's unstoppable," said Adelman. "Now that we all know who each other are -- a lot of us have followed one another's work, but hadn't met -- we know that the other women are out there, each doing their thing. It gives you so much confidence."

For others, such as Johanna Grawunder -- an architect-designer who worked with Italian master Ettore Sottsass for a number of years -- all-female shows have not always provided an apt venue for empowerment.

"I've never wanted to do all-women shows because it almost felt like being placed in a ghetto. It never felt like an honor, but more of a sideline," she said.

However, she feels optimistic by the strain of feminism presented by Krzykowski and younger generations: "When Matylda wrote me, her approach about so much more than just being a woman. In fact, I didn't even realize it was an all-female show until quite a ways into it."

Egg Collective

Downtown at its Soho showroom, the independent design studio Egg Collective presents another stellar show of works by an entirely female cast.

"Designing Women" (through May 26) features works by 16 New York-based female artists and designers, including fiber pieces by Dana Barnes, hanging tassel pendants by lighting designer Bec Brittain, and a rust velvet chaise by Syrette Lew of Moving Mountains.

Twenty percent of sales from each piece will benefit Girls Inc., a nonprofit whose mission advocates gender equality and increased opportunities for women.

"It's hard when we have someone leading our country who is able to normalize talk about women that shouldn't be normalized," said Egg Collective co-founder Hillary Petrie, who was inspired to organize the exhibition after the Women's Marches that followed President Trump's inauguration.

"It almost feels like we're being pushed back, and we don't want that to happen. There's also a need to redefine the language and not be put into a box of feminist design, or having to say 'This is done by a female.' In fact, it's just design."

A number of museum exhibitions are also underlining a spectrum of female creativity.

At the Museum of Modern Art, "Making Space: Women Artists and Postwar Abstraction" spotlights female artists from the midcentury.

Uptown, the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum -- itself founded by women -- proudly displays a gallery of permanent-collection works guest-curated by comedian and design devotee Ellen DeGeneres.

At the Brooklyn Museum, "A Year of Yes: Reimagining Feminism at the Brooklyn Museum" commemorates the 10th anniversary of its Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art with a year-long series of shows, including a monographic presentation on painter Georgia O'Keefe (through July 23).

Call it political synergy, or a collective clapback to the polarizing political administration, but one thing is for certain: All is not well in the state of current American politics, and New York's creative community is standing up to support underrepresented voices in art and design.

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