Buy Nothing Day
November 24th is the busiest day in the American retail calendar and the unofficial start of the...
View ArticleSorting through the advertising hype: finding toys that stand the test of time
With the holidays around the corner, many parents are feeling the heat to have the hottest new toys...
View ArticleHave yourself a merry non-consumer holiday
It’s almost impossible to avoid the marketing onslaught that accompanies this time of...
View ArticleSecret History of the Credit Card
On March 17th (in most markets) PBS’s Frontline will feature The Secret History of the...
View ArticleDo It Yourself
Image © Science Museum/Science and Society Picture Library Note: this is...
View ArticleThe Most Toys
Summer is officially upon us, and with it comes the usual lineup of blockbuster movies. Along with...
View ArticleHooked on classics
A recent issue of Entertainment Weekly was devoted to a list of so-called “new...
View ArticleNew online resources for teachers
The Web is full of great online resources for teachers and students, with new material appearing...
View ArticleNaughty or Nice: Video Games for Christmas
With Christmas approaching, video games are the one media industry that seems recession-proof,...
View ArticleIt's Not Easy Buying Green
There’s an old urban legend called “the water engine,” which tells of...
View ArticleClockwise
It’s a persistent phenomenon: the faster we move into the future, the more we find it...
View ArticleToy Story
Last year in this space we wrote about how summer movies serve as advertisements for various kinds...
View ArticlePress Play
On Saturday, September 26, 2009, the US network Nickelodeon did something unusual: it switched...
View ArticleLittle Princesses
It's a question that most parents of young daughters face: "Has she hit the 'princess...
View ArticleWhat is public space online?
New York's Gramercy Park is a curious institution: two acres of fenced-in greenspace that is...
View ArticleThe Gimme Season
For parents, this time of year can feel like walking through a minefield, with ads, decorations and...
View ArticleCan you spot the difference?
Three well-known companies – Xerox, Starbucks, and the Gap – have recently made...
View ArticleWorking for a living
One of the most unusual things about Internet-based businesses is that few of them try very hard to...
View ArticleWorking for a Living (part two)
This is the second part of a two-part blog. The first part looked at some of the more...
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