Behind every social justice worker is a feminist who will bring everything down if she doesn’t get her way. I needed a reminder about how much “chaos is a ramp” after taking a long break from re-watching anything GoT related. Hearing this one on one conversation felt more like a YouTube rabbit hole conspiracy theory more than an actual writer giving away reasons for a disappointing final season. I understand that this was a more light-hearted podcast feature but listening to Chris through a phone recording made it somewhat harder for me to stay engaged during the podcast. I think that is the audiophile in me affecting my attention span.

I always enjoy a story about how rich people get scammed and how the FBI has to come in and help them realize that they were getting played . Hearing the investigation details about how the paintings were being replicated worked well in podcast format. I think this story would’ve transferred well to video format as well because the subject revolves around these masterpiece paintings by famous names but I didn’t know the artists by name. Having a visual for this story would’ve made it much easier to understand how good the fakes compared to the originals. This podcast felt almost like a documentary due to how well the audio recordings and interviews were integrated. I could see the inflections in some of the museums workers voices’ when they talked about how crazy the situation was. Making the listener feel like they are able to imagine the conversation occurring through solid audio technique was the biggest takeaway I got from listening to the multi-layered art heist.

“Falling Man” is probably one of the most profound images in American History that I’ve ever seen. To be in Richard Drew’s shoes witnessing that moment in time is what astounds me. He was a witness with a camera. He had no way of stopping the event from happening, but by capturing the figure, he created a powerful dialogue that I haven’t ever felt in photos before. This is a difficult image to come to terms with when you understand the context of either being collapsed under rubble or taking your life into your own hands and jumping out of a 1400 foot tall building. He is not identifiable which makes the composition of the photo so much more powerful. A moment in time that juxtaposes the fragility of life and the individuality of escape.

The Raisin Situation by Jonah Engel Bromwich introduced me to a whole different side of the food industry I never gave thought to. It’s a war zone out in California’s raisin industry and if I were in Harry Overly’s shoes I would’ve hired a bodyguard so a raisin hit man didn’t come after me. The Raisin Industry is ridiculously divided and hosts a bunch of issues from drought, bad weather, work strikes, and more. The Raisin mafia definitely exists and I would instantly watch a documentary on this oddity of a story because of the establishments of the characters and it’s profile on Mr. Overly. I think the black and white photo gallery really supports the tone of the story along with the mini paragraph subsection titles that dive into a new slice of the conflict. The article did a great job adding information in parentheses to emphasize that the shady stuff happening in the story is actually legal like independent farmers coming together to set new industry prices. The quotations from “The Showdown at the Expo” really set the scene well and I felt the tension in the room through Bromwich’s writing. 

This 2017 article by Jason Fagone provides insight into the world of gun trauma in hospitals and the debate over what bullets do to the human body. The layout and pacing of this article especially stuck with me because of its focus on Dr. Amy Goldberg and the Temple Hospital which treats more gunshot wounds than any other state. The life of a trauma surgeon is one that most could not handle: the things that are never shown on doctor TV shows or in movies will always stay hidden behind hospital walls. I’ve noticed there is a misconception in the media that doctors think of themselves as gods who control life and death but Goldberg’s concept of dealing with both God and The Devil on her shoulders is more relatable. I think Fagone does a good job structuring the article from present profile and situation with guns in america to a more profile based section into Goldberg’s life and how gun violence has always been a prominent issue in Philadelphia. The stat that “Eighty percent of people who are shot in Philadelphia survive their injuries” is a haunting fact because that means surgeons are becoming better at saving patients from death but not the actual issue of changing how many people come in with these injuries. This piece was powerfully written and photographed as it vividly portrays the horror of what surgeons deal with at hospitals when gun laws could change the reality of this violence epidemic.

Benoit Denizet-Lewis, “Why Are More American Teenagers Than Ever Suffering From Severe Anxiety?” (NYT, 2018, 7800 Words)

This profile piece on teen anxiety by Benoit Denizet Lewis highlights the increase in programs and facilities for anxiety. Anxiety is such a generalized but personal topic at the same time. It helps us avoid dangerous situations and people, especially when people might not live in safe environments. Teens are currently living in the most self conscious time period to date where everything from social media to getting into colleges makes them feel like their actions are under a microscope. When we internalize our anxieties about news stories in the world, family life, and everything in between it builds up pressure. I’m glad the article discussed the contrast between how we talk about teens raised in affluent families versus those in disadvantaged communities as those “kids who have it all might be hurting” from anxiety as well. There will always be disdain when debating about people receiving medical help for anxiety in programs like Mountain Valley that cost 910 a day, a resource that is nearly impossible to provide for all suffers of debilitating anxiety.  Getting people to realize that they can overcome their issues through practice and facing their fears in controlled settings is much better than being overprotective of their circumstances.