Communication and Media Studies (Audio)

Brian Spitzberg, PhD examines the nature of disinformation, misinformation, and fake news in social media through the lens of the COVID-19 pandemic. Series: "Exploring Ethics" [Health and Medicine] [Humanities] [Show ID: 37400]

How can parents help their children develop healthy habits around gaming and technology? Game developer Hilary Lok and digital well-being expert Nadja Streiter discuss current gaming models, technology addiction warning signs, helpful guidelines and more. Series: "Education Channel" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37007]

In his new book, Transmitted Wounds, Amit Pinchevski explores the ways media technology and logic shape the social life of trauma both clinically and culturally. Drawing on a number of case studies such as radio broadcasts of the Eichmann trial, videotapes of Holocaust survivor testimonies, and the recent use of digital platforms for holographic witnessing, he demonstrates how the technological mediation of trauma feeds the traumatic condition itself. His insights have crucial implications for media studies and the digital humanities field as they provide new ways to understand the relationship between technology and human suffering. Pinchevski is an associate professor in the Department of Communication and Journalism at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Series: "Library Channel" [Humanities] [Show ID: 35017]

Jeremy Prestholdt examines how Che Guevara, Bob Marley, Tupac Shakur, and Osama bin Laden are major "dissenters" who have represented challenges to the world order. Prestholdt explores the appeal of these four figures over five decades, in part revealing two aspects of an increasingly interconnected world: the tension between shared global symbols and their local interpretations, and the intersection of political vision and consumerism. Series: "Library Channel" [Humanities] [Show ID: 35243]

Director Jeremy Podeswa joins Pollock Theater Director Matt Ryan for a Script to Screen discussion of the season 7 finale of Game of Thrones, “The Dragon and the Wolf.” Podeswa recalls his admiration for the cast, the challenges of creating a show that transcends the episode length and production values of typical television programming, and his creative influences. The talk focuses in particular on shooting a complicated ensemble showdown where many main cast members finally share a scene simultaneously and what was involved in bringing that moment to the screen. Series: "Script to Screen" [Humanities] [Show ID: 34755]

Noted tech venture capitalist Roger McNamee, an early mentor to Mark Zuckerberg, woke up to the serious damage Facebook and other social media outlets are doing to our society and set out to try to stop it. McNamee is in conversation with Jeff Light, publisher and editor of The San Diego Union-Tribune. Series: "Helen Edison Lecture Series" [Humanities] [Show ID: 34249]

Constructed languages, or conlangs, are well-known in science fiction and fantasy literature as ways of creating an immersive world-building experience. Join us in learning how linguists design the sound systems and grammars to behind some of our favorite conlangs.  With Grant Goodall (Professor and Language Program Director, UC San Diego Linguistics), David J. Peterson (Creator of Dothraki, Game of Thrones), and Paul Frommer (Creator of Na’vi, Avatar). Moderated by Tamara Rhodes (Linguistics Subject Librarian, UC San Diego Library). Series: "Library Channel" [Humanities] [Show ID: 34407]

Screaming girls, overwhelmed security, and segregated auditoriums all arise in musicology Professor David Novak (UC Santa Barbara) and rock journalist Ivor Davis’ discussion about Richard Lester’s A Hard Day’s Night (1964) and the Beatles’ American audience reception. Part of a small cadre of British journalists invited, Davis accompanied the Beatles for the entirety of their astonishing first US tour. The two discuss the Beatles’ connections to earlier musicians and the unprecedented passion they were showered with by young American fans. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 34473]

A Q&A session with Writer/Director/Producer Miguel Coyula and Actor/Co-Producer Lynn Cruz of the documentary Nadie (2017). Coyula and Cruz discuss the production of the film and their work with the subject of the documentary, the reclusive Cuban poet, Rafael Alcides. The Q&A session, moderated by UCSB FIlm and Media Studies Professor, Cristina Venegas, covers the banning of the film in Cuba, the effect that making an “Anti-Revolutionary Film” has had on Coyula and Cruz, and the reception of the film in light of the deaths of both Fidel Castro and Alcides. This is Coyula’s first documentary feature, he was previously awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for the production of Memories of Overdevelopment (2010). Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 34472]

Communicating through the Internet is different than face-to-face interaction. No matter how familiar people are with email, chat, and the web, differences in the availability of nonverbal cues lead people to underestimate the interpersonal and emotional impact of online interaction. Joe Walther (UCSB Communication) explores the hyperpersonal model of communication and explains how people actually create more intense impressions and relationships as they influence each other online, often more positive than those occurring face-to-face. The results of studies from several online settings show how we and our communication partners sometimes unwittingly affect our perceptions of others and ourselves through computer-mediated interaction. Series: "GRIT Talks" [Humanities] [Show ID: 34027]