COMMON DREAMS 03/09/13 by Michael Shank One nation, underfed. That’s the tagline for the new film out by Participant Productions, entitled A Place at the Table, which looks at America’s growing hunger epidemic. Participant Media, which produced Lincoln, The Help and Food Inc., does not disappoint with its latest take […]
THE NATION 03/07/13 By Michael Shank One nation, underfed. That’s the tagline for the new film out by Participant Productions, entitled A Place at the Table, which looks at America’s growing hunger epidemic. Participant Media, which produced Lincoln, The Help and Food Inc., does not disappoint with its latest take […]
US NEWS & WORLD REPORT 01/24/13 By Michael Shank With New York State legislature laying down the law on gun control, and with the White House taskforce announcing similar measures, it is clear that the National Rifle Association isn’t ruling this roost—at least at the state legislature and executive branch […]
WASHINGTON POST 01/04/13 By Lisa Miller The week before Christmas, 3 million people watched the Discovery Channel’s new reality show, “Amish Mafia,” making it the second-most-viewed cable show that night, after the trashy hit “Moonshiners.” This is surprising for two reasons: First, it reveals Americans’ enduring fetish with all things […]
AL JAZEERA 12/23/12 By Michael Shank Now that the National Rifle Association is playing hard ball by suggesting today that we provide armed guards in every school across America at a cost of nearly $6bn, it is quite clear that this conversation has gotten completely out of hand. The idea […]
WASHINGTON POST 12/21/12 By Michael Shank Friday morning, the National Rifle Association will hold a much anticipated press conference, responding to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that claimed 26 lives last week. No matter what the powerful group says, there will likely still be calls for stronger gun control […]
WASHINGTON POST 11/29/12 By Michael Shank If anyone thinks that the Discovery Channel is about actual discovery of, say, science, history, space, or tech, as their Web site claims, think again. Or if you think that its sister company, The Learning Channel (TLC), is about learning new insight or information, […]
WASHINGTON POST 11/28/12 By Michael Shank There is much to laud in the recently released film “Lincoln,” and Participant Media, which produced the film, points a principled way forward for fellow filmmakers, and their audiences, who care about social action. Participant Media is relatively new to Hollywood, but it has […]
PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER 11/28/12 By Michael Shank Will Pennsylvania ever produce another Republican leader on par with Thaddeus Stevens (“‘Lincoln’ lays bare messy reality of process,” Sunday)? Stevens’ adamant promotion of equality and opportunity contrasts starkly with the present state GOP. Whether it is the voter-ID law that would disproportionately impact […]
FOX NEWS 11/24/12 By Michael Shank and Sonia Manzano No longer can the President of the United States defer dealing with immigration. While it was barely a campaign issue, for America to continue avoiding comprehensive immigration reform is plainly inexcusable. When President Obama takes up immigration reform in 2013 he […]