Category Archives: Blogging

The Increment

“We have to do something. Anything is better than nothing.” A standard topos in political rhetoric that to me usually signals desperation. Let’s get started! Let’s not think too much! What, are you happy with the status quo? It’s not … Continue reading

Posted in Blogging, Grasping the Nettle, Politics | 3 Comments

Rebooting

Folks who follow this blog, or my social media presence generally, have probably noted that I’ve not had much to say lately. Part of that is feeling overly busy, but it’s more the consequence of a growing sense of perplexity … Continue reading

Posted in Academia, Blogging, Cleaning Out the Augean Stables, Grasping the Nettle | 2 Comments

Nervous Conditions

Nick Kristof’s call to cloistered, monastic faculty to come out and speak to wider publics has already been lambasted, dissected and critiqued by a wide range of academics. My knee jerked pretty hard as well when I read it, for … Continue reading

Posted in Academia, Blogging | 3 Comments

There Are More Things on Heaven and Earth Than Dreamt of in Your Critique

Just back from some research work that took up my energy for writing and thinking, I spent some time catching up on blogs and social media. I followed one link out from a Facebook friend to Paul Mullins’ excellent Archaeology … Continue reading

Posted in Academia, Blogging, Popular Culture, Production of History | 8 Comments

“Our Rate Even for Original, Reported Stories is $100″

About two years after I’d started blogging, a journalist friend of mine gently needled me about what I was doing. “You’re going to put us all out of business if you keep giving away all that stuff for free,” he … Continue reading

Posted in Blogging, Information Technology and Information Literacy, Intellectual Property | 8 Comments

Getting to Wrong

About a month ago, I started writing an entry about Gawker Media as a model for the “new journalism”. When I started writing that, I mostly meant it as a compliment. I was thinking about Deadspin’s Manti Te’o expose (by … Continue reading

Posted in Blogging, Digital Humanities, Information Technology and Information Literacy | 1 Comment

A Month of Blogging, Ten Years On

So as often happens with this blog, I get busy and other things occupy my attention. It’s all there in the title, folks. What also happens is I store up a lot of things I want to talk about in … Continue reading

Posted in Academia, Blogging | 11 Comments

Debt: The First 500 Comments At Crooked Timber

Some years ago, I was talking with a senior scholar that I had known well while I was in graduate school and in my early career. This person’s scholarly work is amazing stuff, a huge presence in African history, and … Continue reading

Posted in Academia, Blogging, Generalist's Work, Oh Not Again He's Going to Tell Us It's a Complex System | 13 Comments

Digital Calluses and Tender Hands

J.J. Cohen’s reflection “The Darker Side of Blogging” is a very interesting read in many respects. I could certainly write an account of my experiences as an academic blogger that echo some of Cohen’s experiences, including the negative ones. What … Continue reading

Posted in Academia, Blogging | 1 Comment

Registrations

I’ve turned off registrations for commenters for a bit until I can figure out a reliable longer-term solution. Getting 20-30 spam registrations a day now. If you’re inspired to comment on a post and you’re not a registered user, please … Continue reading

Posted in Blogging | 4 Comments