In February, Smithsonian Folkways released Lead Belly: The Smithsonian Folkways Collection, a box set and book dedicated to Huddie “Lead Belly” Ledbetter – an influential country musician in the early twentieth century. Clifford Murphy, an ethnomusicologist and adjunct lecturer of American studies, published an article in The Conversation  which examined Lead Belly’s legacy and lasting cultural impact.

“But beyond his influence on (mainly white) musical artists, the collection is significant because it shows how Lead Belly defied the racial categories of blues and country (as black music and white music, respectively) – stereotypes established by the burgeoning record industry of the Jim Crow era that persist today,” Murphy wrote.

In the article, Murphy honored Lead Belly’s influential musical legacy an analyzed the cultural context in which he performed.

“Thankfully, Lead Belly’s Smithsonian Folkways Collection defies those cultural reductionists who would suggest that firm racial categories of blues and country ever truly existed, and that “traditional” singers were uninterested in – or, worse, corrupted by – popular music. The set’s 108 tracks may be a small sampling (Lead Belly claimed to be able to sing 500 songs without repeating one – and he likely knew far more). But a bi-cultural reality glimmers within the set’s five CDs,” Murphy added.

To read the full article titled “Lead Belly’s music defied racial categorization,” click here.

History professor Kate Brown has been in the news reflecting on two major recent news stories: the death of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov and a Pasco, Washington police shooting case. Brown published op-eds in Al Jazeera America  and Time  that studied the deeper history behind both incidents to give more meaning and context to the two stories.

In her column “Boris Nemtsov died alone,” Brown discussed how much of the news coverage surrounding Nemtsov’s murder mainly focused on his personality and who was responsible for his death, not on his plans for economic reform.

“Unfortunately, the funeral coverage of Nemtsov is all about his personality, not his policies, because he did not manage on a national level to pass the reforms he sought,” Brown wrote.

In “Only Part of the Story is Being Told About the Police Shooting in Pasco,” Brown explained how Pasco’s history in many ways has informed some of the reaction to the police shooting case of Antionio Zambrano-Montes on February 10.

“The killing of Zambrano-Montes—the fourth fatal police shooting in six months by Pasco police, though the first with a Latino victim—triggered anger among the Latinos who make up more than half of Pasco’s population, because they complain that they have little representation in the local government or police force. But there is more to this story than one death. The anger has been building for generations, in part because the marginalization of minorities in Pasco has a long history,” Brown wrote.

To read complete versions of both articles, see below:
Boris Nemtsov Died Alone (Al Jazeera America)
Only Part of the Story is Being Told About the Police Shooting in Pasco (Time)

Jason Loviglio, associate professor and chair of media and communication studies, was quoted in a March 10 City Paper article that examined WYPR’s use of underwriting. Loviglio, who is writing a book about public media and plans to include a chapter about WYPR, discussed how the station’s use of underwriting has influenced its workers’ union.

Loviglio, who has interviewed many station members for his book, discussed what he discovered while conducting his research.

To read the full City Paper feature titled “Why So Much P.R.?” click here.

Nicole King (AMST) and Bill Shewbridge (MCS) were awarded a grant from the Hrabowski Innovation Fund for their project, Emerging Media Across the Curriculum. “Baltimore Stories” is a collaborative teaching innovation that brings several courses together to work with the Center for Emerging Media (CEM), a Baltimore non-profit, to produce audio oral histories focused on Baltimore residents and neighborhoods. Oral histories will be edited and produced for broadcast on WEAA during the Marc Steiner Show. Steiner and the CEM will work with students to develop interview and production skills as professors from American Studies (AMST), Media and Communication Studies (MCS), and Visual Arts (VART) guide students in place-based cultural and historical examinations of Baltimore neighborhoods.

First Call for Sessions and Panels for the 3rd Biannual Conference: Montreal, 7-10th June 2016

Hello!

To all current UMBC undergraduates, TestMasters is offering a $500 discount on their live LSAT preparation course, which can be applied to any of their course locations around the country. For students who are interested in preparing for the June 2015 LSAT in Baltimore, they’re offering a Spring Course that will begin March 24th. You can view schedules for other locations here.

All the best as you prepare!