They Say / I Blog

Far across the Distance: Daniel Mendelsohn on the Enduring Fascination of the Titanic

Unless you’ve been living in a kingdom far, far away from any media, you are probably aware that this month marks the centennial of the sinking of the Titanic on its maiden voyage across the Atlantic Ocean. In this April 2012 article from The New Yorker, author and critic Daniel Mendelsohn attempts to explain why the Titanic continues to be the focus of intense popular and scholarly interest.

Read it here: Mendelsohn, "Unsinkable: Why We Can’t Let Go of the Titanic”

 

Walk Down the Aisle, Top Shelf on Your Left: DePaulo on Weddings and Advertising

“We’ll be right back after these weddings, er, messages, from our sponsors.” Have you ever noticed that love and marriage-related themes appear in commercials for tires or cat food, or other seemingly mundane items? Bella DePaulo has, and posits a theory as to why. A professor of psychology and blogger, DePaulo has studied and written extensively about various aspects of single life. She is the principal contributor to the website Single at Heart, where this article appeared in March 2012.

Read it here: DePaulo, "Why Are Advertisers So Stunningly Unoriginal”

 

Old McDonald Had a Farm: Nation’s Restaurant News on the New Happy Meal Campaign

Lately, fast food chains have been under considerable pressure to provide more nutritious food choices, and they have responded in a variety of ways. This report introduces McDonald’s new advertising campaign, which features an animated goat that learns to eat Happy Meals instead of furniture. The author, Mark Brandau, is associate editor of Nation’s Restaurant News, where the report was published in March 2012.

Read it here: Brandau, "McDonald's Updates Happy Meal Campaign"