Journalist – Historian – Speaker
My first ever op-ed was published in the Minneapolis/ St. Paul Star Tribune. It was in 2006 and on the use of medieval rhetoric to talk about modern problems in the Middle East, a situation that continues today. Over the weekend, the Star Tribune published this full-page ad raising the worst kind of fear-mongering about transgendered …
Yesterday, I published a piece on CNN focusing on an episode from This American Life that, I felt, mocked people with Down syndrome. What was interesting to me, though, is that the comedian in question (Wyatt Cenac) wasn’t just telling jokes using the r-word, but had something more complex going on. As a listener, it …
Resource Posts on “How Did We Get Into This Mess?” provide full or partial transcripts of relevant documents, organized links, and minimal commentary on issues. A fellow parent and internet friend alerted me to a show on This American Life in which Wyatt Cenac, former Daily Show correspondent and comedian, made some jokes about Down syndrome. …
In the last two weeks, I have received a half dozen requests for advice from newish writers looking to expand their readership or break into more formal publication. They all ask me roughly the same questions – how did you do it? Does blogging help? Unfortunately to those seeking my advice, the true answer is …
David Brooks published a column this week that has circulated widely, including among my circle of liberal intellectuals and artists, and to much praise. It’s really quite lovely. It celebrates the love of art – writing, music, images and more. It mourns for a lost world. And it completely misses the point of how we …
I don’t mind if my critics call me a lazy tenured socialist academic. But criticizing my earring is GOING TOO FAR! — David M. Perry (@Lollardfish) May 1, 2014 Today is my last day of grading for the year, so here’s a very quick post on reactions to my Sarah Palin essay. I’m continuously fascinated …
I have a new essay up on CNN today reacting to Sarah Palin’s “forced baptism” remarks. In it, I link her most recent comment and her use of “blood libel” back in 2011 (after the Giffords shooting) to the history such words invoke (or evoke, depending on intention). One thing that startles me is that …
A little over a year ago, I wrote a piece for CNN on my daughter. It was the first piece I had written that hit a truly mass audience – well over two hundred thousand clicks, 32K facebook shares, incalculable tweets (because CNN does things with their URLs that makes it hard to count them). …
I have a new piece on CNN today about the upcoming canonizations of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II. When CNN asked me if I had anything to write about it, the core question to me was – why should non-Catholics, especially secular people, care. I’m lucky in having very smart people around me …
Jordan Weissmann, Slate columnist on business and education, is really happy that your small private college might be closing. Here’s why: These are agonizing times for small, private colleges. Enrollment is falling. Debts are rising. Tuition is high as it can go. And since the financial crisis, schools have been shuttering more often than normal….“What we’re …