Countdown To Christmas: 5 Shopping Days!
This pair -- What Orwell Didn't Know: Propaganda and the New Face of American Politics and Orwell Rolls In His Grave (DVD) -- is designed for the political media critic on your list.
What Orwell Didn't Know is a collection of essays edited by Andras Szanto, with an introduction by Orville Schell. Szanto, a writer and researcher, is affiliated with Columbia University, New York University and Sotheby's Institute of Art. The book reviews the state of political communication on the eve of the 60th anniversary of Orwell's 1984. It is critical of the role media have played in the past decade; many of us remember 1984 for its introduction of doublespeak, but how many remember the permanent state of war (fear)? Essayists include Geoff Cowan, Mark Danner, Farnaz Fassihi, Francis Fitzgerald, George Lakoff, Michael Massing, Aryeh Neier, Nick Lemann, Victor Navasky, Samantha Power, Francine Prose, David Rieff,Orville Schell, George Soros, Drew Westen and Patricia Williams.
This 2004 DVD by Robert Kane Pappas compares the world of political communication in 2004 with that of 1984, based on the 1948 novel of the same name. Pappas makes the case that media consolidation has had a powerful effect on our opinions and perceptions and argues that much of Orwell's dystopic novel has come to pass. The video includes interviews with filmaker Michael Moore; reporters Charles Lewis and Greg Palast; and Rep. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
A "sustainably intriguing, suitably distressing exposé" (L.A. Weekly); "occasionally repetitive, but passionately argued documentary" (NY Post); "Those who've never thought about these issues may be in for the shock of their lives" (San Francisco Chronicle). Other reviews: Washington Post (-) and Christian Science Monitor (+). Don't buy unless your politico has an open mind. R
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Bingo.