Counterstrike: MEF Film “The Price of Pleasure” Screens For Free

April 9, 2009 Even though K-12 youth is Shaping Youth's primary focus, this campus controversy caught my eye for the overlap with our own counter-marketing tactics. In a ‘fight fire with fire’ media literacy move straight out of the Shaping Youth playbook, the Media Education Foundation is responding to this week’s University of Maryland campus uproar of whether or not free … [Read more...]

Fem 2.0: Feminine Feminism & The Mother of All Conversations

Femmes and friends of all colors are abuzz about whether Erin Aubry Kaplan’s recent Salon article about Michelle Obama’s backside was out of bounds or ‘a joyful celebration’ of blackness... Some of my blog favorites from Latoya at Racialicious to Gina at What About Our Daughters (and adjunct blog “Michelle Obama Watch”) have landed some … [Read more...]

Are “Game Cheats” a Misnomer? Kids, Ethics & Virtual Worlds

Yesterday I had yet another mondo three-hour lunch with Michael Carter, PhD, mastermind of informal learning and Chief Playwright at cool new upstart virtual world Zookazoo. (feature forthcoming on their eco/animal endangerment efforts in their inspiring tween world soon!) As I was recapping the Ypulse Mashup session on kids’ virtual worlds, we zinged off on a variety … [Read more...]

Shaping Youth Via Tapestries of Hope: Go To IndieGoGo!

Last August when Shaping Youth advisory board member and maverick documentary producer/director Michealene Cristini Risley returned from Zimbabwe, she pinged me with a handful of understated words, “Back…quite an experience!” The links told the story…news from AllAfrica.com and Voice of America about Michealene being arrested, tossed in jail, and … [Read more...]

Breaking the Color Code & Princess Power

One of my favorite ‘stereotypes in media’ moments is when I get to use my own background to instill critical thinking skills in teens.At the national Girls For A Change summitfor instance, I had the opportunity to break through race barriers and color codes of perceived expectations by starting off the session asking teens, “Okay, so who was I in high school?” to get the media … [Read more...]