Frank Farley (frank.farley@tempple.edu), Kristyn Carrell, Bradley Dinger, Madison McClary, Alexa Micozzi, Wande Sogbesan, Angelo Soriano, & Melissa Steinheiser1 A Review of Joker, Director: Todd Phillips Joker is a film that goes deeper than many DC Comics-influenced films. It is not just a seeming descendant of the Batman movies but is a psychological horror film with…
Kathryn Stamoulis, PhD kestamoulis@hotmail.com As I near the end of my presidential year I want to thank everyone who put in the hard work to make this a great year for The Society for Media Psychology and Technology. It has been a pleasure to serve and work closely with our membership and our amazing Executive…
V. Krishna Kumar, PhD kkumar@wcupa.edu If you belong to any social media, you are familiar with the endless stream of recycled inspirational and informational (nutritional/medical/exercise/travel/political) messages in the forms of sayings, videos, short—actually rather long—stories on social media that ping in your inbox 24/7. Of course, some of this is not restricted to social media.…
June Wilson, PhD junewilsonphd@gmail.com As my tenure as past president comes to an end, I can’t help but think about how technology has changed on a global and personal level over the past three years. I began writing this article in the dark, after receiving a text message, which stated power will be lost for…
Christopher J. Ferguson, PhD cjfergus@stetson.edu This August I was unable to attend the Council meeting for our division as it was my wife’s 40th birthday and I knew where my bread is buttered. Mary Gregerson graciously stepped in for me and did an excellent job representing our division. Here are some of the important things…
Roger Klein, PhD University of Pittsburgh rklein@pitt.edu Can real news be fake? Of course. While most news stories are based upon real events, I use the term “fake” here to suggest that with a variety of production strategies, purposeful exaggerations, and other intentional decisions by management, producers, and reporters, the end product—what the audience sees…
Frank Farley, PhD Temple University, Philadelphia frank.farley@temple.edu Youth are of course the inheritors, and future innovators, of our information technology. Given the influence of the internet across contemporary society, it was of interest to take a brief look at how youth internet life might reflect some central long-time concerns and focus of study in psychology…
Robert W. Proctor and Isis Chong Purdue University rproctor@purdue.edu; ichongde@purdue.edu Aiping Xiong Pennsylvania State University axx29@psu.edu Cyber security and privacy are areas of concern not only to organizations but to individual end users. Computer scientists can devise algorithms and security measures that help protect organizations and systems from attack, but the success of these measures…
Jared Boot PsyD Student, Michigan School of Psychology jboot@msp.edu The recent twin weekend shootings in El Paso and Dayton and the high-profile suicide of Jeffrey Epstein, have raised concerns over media depictions of mental illness and suicide. Mass media has an immense potential to positively or negatively impact health-related behavior and perception of individuals with…
Frank Farley Temple University frank.farley@temple.edu A Review of the film A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Director: Marielle Heller This is the ultimate feel-good film, which of course makes sense as it involves that ultimate feel-good TV figure Fred Rogers, of TV’s Mister Rogers’s Neighborhood. With Rogers played brilliantly by Tom Hanks, it traces the…
V. Krishna Kumar, PhD kkumar@wcupa.edu A Review of Serlin, I. A., Krippner, S., & Rockefeller, K. (Eds. 2019). Integrated care for the traumatized. A whole-person approach. Rowman & Littlefield: Lanham, MD. Paperback $40.00 In a world rife with conflicts and wars, suffering from trauma has become a common occurrence. Trauma is not restricted to military…
Helen Friedman, PhD, a clinical psychologist in private practice in St. Louis, MO, is among the first to receive the WPATH (World Professional Association for Transgender Health) Certified Provider Certificate. WPATH is an international interdisciplinary, professional organization whose mission is to promote evidence-based care, education, research, advocacy, public policy, and respect in transgender health. Congratulations…
