Black scholars criticize white writer’s ‘dehumanizing’ use of blackface to write book on U.S. race relations

Black scholars criticize white writer’s ‘dehumanizing’ use of blackface to write book on U.S. race relations

A Canadian journalist is defending his decision to travel the U.S. in blackface and write a book about racism, after facing a storm of criticism online. “Last summer, I disguised myself as a Black man and traveled throughout the United States to document how racism persists in American society,” Sam Forster, who is white, posted Tuesday on … Read more

How the creators of HBO’s The Sympathizer turned the bestselling novel into a dark, comic romp for TV

How the creators of HBO’s The Sympathizer turned the bestselling novel into a dark, comic romp for TV

On the surface, Viet Thanh Nguyen’s The Sympathizer is the perfect target for adaptation. First off, it’s a novel — one of the more lucrative source materials for an industry perpetually hungry for existing IP and a built-in audience.  Second, it’s a Pulitzer Prize winner, a badge of honour that already proved a boon for similar adaptees like Spotlight, Driving Miss … Read more

How documenting the disappearance of the great auk led to the discovery of extinction

How documenting the disappearance of the great auk led to the discovery of extinction

Quirks and Quarks17:24How documenting the disappearance of the great auk led to the discovery of extinction When species cease to exist, we often say they went “the way of the dodo.” But it might be more fitting to say they went “the way of the great auk” because it was the Icelandic bird’s disappearance that led to the discovery that … Read more