Rachel Simmons Tonight at GunnHS, Palo Alto!

Sept. 24, 2009 S.F. Bay Area readers, reminder Rachel Simmons is speaking TONIGHT for free at Palo Alto's Gunn High School (details here) about her new book The Curse of the Good Girl (living proof of same right here with yours truly, heh) I interviewed Rachel Simmons about what all has transpired in media and marketing since her decade of research on relational … [Read more...]

The Civility Solution

Sept. 14, 2009 Rather than rehash the coarse conduct of music stars, athletes, and politicos reaching some new lows this past week, I’d like to point to The Civility Solution (Sept. '09) the sequel to one of my faves, called "Choosing Civility: 25 Rules of Considerate Conduct."Why? Because we've got major media moments ripe for peeling back a deeper conversation on how this is … [Read more...]

Obama’s Speech to Kids: Controversy or Common Sense?

Sept. 8, 2009 As a nonpartisan, nonprofit, non-religious based entity, I’m having a hard time seeing the logic of pulling kids out of school to avoid a Presidential speech about kids staying in school in protest to the potential for “liberal propaganda and socialist thinking.” Wouldn’t a media literacy lesson using a living lab of live chat be a better EducationWeek-forum … [Read more...]

Curse of the Good Girl: Interview with Rachel Simmons

August 29, 2009 “Aw, mom, it sounds boring, why do I have to hear some ‘expert’ talk about stuff I already know…Are any of MY friends going to be there?” Those were my ten year old daughter’s words back in 2005 when Rachel Simmons author of “Odd Girl Out” spoke to a sold-out crowd  giving us insights on girl culture, relational aggression, and coping tips for navigating … [Read more...]

So Sexy So Soon: Shaping Youth Chats With Jean Kilbourne, Ed.D.

August 17, 2009 Last month So Sexy So Soon hit the market in paperback, though my hand-signed hardback by academic rockstars Diane Levin, Ph.D. and Jean Kilbourne Ed.D is frayed, highlighted, and worn from full use with youth and parent ed groups ever since its release last year. I broke bread with these two research pioneers at Susan Linn’s house when she hosted all of the … [Read more...]