Michael D. Dwyer
@michaelddwyer.bsky.social
film, pop music, cultural studies // author, TINSEL AND RUST (oup 2025) and BACK TO THE FIFTIES (oup 2015) // both can't survive // michaelddwyer.com
Pinned
Well, my author copies came this week, which means it is really real.
If you want to review it for a journal or a podcast, if you want me to talk to your class about deindustrialization or hollywood's perpetual search for lower production costs, or if you just think it's neat, please @ me!
If you want to review it for a journal or a podcast, if you want me to talk to your class about deindustrialization or hollywood's perpetual search for lower production costs, or if you just think it's neat, please @ me!
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
Worth remembering that something did happen: the journalist who revealed this died from a car bomb.
remember when the panama papers came out and we found out every rich person on earth was committing tax fraud and then nothing happened
February 1, 2026 at 10:40 AM
Worth remembering that something did happen: the journalist who revealed this died from a car bomb.
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
A note from our editors:
February 1, 2026 at 9:10 PM
A note from our editors:
Josh Shapiro really wants to be President and I can imagine how he might believe that the best way to achieve that is to carve out the 'reasonable moderate' position but the bare fact is that man is 5'6" *at best* and nothing he says or does is going to overcome that. <pat_bev_too_small.gif>
Confused as to how Josh Shapiro thinks it is appropriate to compare student protestors to the KKK but inappropriate to compare ICE to the Gestapo
February 1, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Josh Shapiro really wants to be President and I can imagine how he might believe that the best way to achieve that is to carve out the 'reasonable moderate' position but the bare fact is that man is 5'6" *at best* and nothing he says or does is going to overcome that. <pat_bev_too_small.gif>
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
absolute nazi shit. these are people who came here legally and are to be rendered criminals to populate concentration camps because of lies.
“about 350,000 Haitians will lose their status on Tuesday — ending their right to live and work in the United States legally and putting them at risk of immediate detention and deportation”
"‘Reminds me of Anne Frank’: Jewish seniors are offering to hide their Haitian caregivers as Trump’s TPS end looms"
February 1, 2026 at 2:03 PM
absolute nazi shit. these are people who came here legally and are to be rendered criminals to populate concentration camps because of lies.
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
we said all along that they wanted Gawker dead not because we embarrassed a pro wrestler but because the Epstein story is one Gawker was covering a decade before most other people caught up & was just one of many stories exposing powerful people and their misdeeds
Among the batch of newly released emails from Jeffrey Epstein: Epstein telling Peter Thiel he would “gladly share…expenses for the Gawker suit.”
This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker
This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker
January 31, 2026 at 8:31 PM
we said all along that they wanted Gawker dead not because we embarrassed a pro wrestler but because the Epstein story is one Gawker was covering a decade before most other people caught up & was just one of many stories exposing powerful people and their misdeeds
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
Vaccinate your kids, you friggin nuts.
Measles cases this year have reached nearly 26% of last year's total cases, which totaled 2,255.
Measles Cases This Year Are Outpacing 2025 — The Worst Recent Year On Record
Measles cases this year have reached nearly 26% of last year's total cases, which totaled 2,255.
www.forbes.com
February 1, 2026 at 1:37 AM
Vaccinate your kids, you friggin nuts.
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
And most of the major media did not take it as seriously as they should have because they were also often ridiculed by Gawker etc. An entire century thus far of reactionary politics from people getting owned online.
we said all along that they wanted Gawker dead not because we embarrassed a pro wrestler but because the Epstein story is one Gawker was covering a decade before most other people caught up & was just one of many stories exposing powerful people and their misdeeds
Among the batch of newly released emails from Jeffrey Epstein: Epstein telling Peter Thiel he would “gladly share…expenses for the Gawker suit.”
This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker
This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker
January 31, 2026 at 9:27 PM
And most of the major media did not take it as seriously as they should have because they were also often ridiculed by Gawker etc. An entire century thus far of reactionary politics from people getting owned online.
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
NEVAH FORGET
Happy Mooninite Day to those who celebrate!
For the unaware, this day in 2007 The Boston Police department confused guerilla Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie ads depicting the Mooninites made out of bootleg lightbrights for explosives and made CN pay for it.
For the unaware, this day in 2007 The Boston Police department confused guerilla Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie ads depicting the Mooninites made out of bootleg lightbrights for explosives and made CN pay for it.
January 31, 2026 at 8:57 PM
NEVAH FORGET
If Stephen Miller gets to live on like Henry Kissinger after this we're just not going to make it as a society. Maybe not even as a planet.
January 31, 2026 at 9:17 PM
If Stephen Miller gets to live on like Henry Kissinger after this we're just not going to make it as a society. Maybe not even as a planet.
Yesterday, I just got a rejection from a conference on nostalgia that I really didn't have the time nor the energy to invest in. Just last week I told my partner that I hoped I wouldn't have to go. And yet! Today I am alternating being indignant and wounded about it. Ego is a prison man.
January 31, 2026 at 9:15 PM
Yesterday, I just got a rejection from a conference on nostalgia that I really didn't have the time nor the energy to invest in. Just last week I told my partner that I hoped I wouldn't have to go. And yet! Today I am alternating being indignant and wounded about it. Ego is a prison man.
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
This trend is giving me life. College is cool, knowledge is great. The liberal arts is rad. Being well rounded is the GOAT.
Fund all colleges and universities. We should be throwing money at them. Make it affordable for all. Let people take underwater basket weaving if they choose.
Fund all colleges and universities. We should be throwing money at them. Make it affordable for all. Let people take underwater basket weaving if they choose.
Never mind the jobs you had, tell me five classes you took in college:
1. Marine Biology (we got to go out on a boat!)
2. The History of the Holocaust
3. Logic and Critical Thinking
4. Eastern Religions
5. The French Revolution
1. Marine Biology (we got to go out on a boat!)
2. The History of the Holocaust
3. Logic and Critical Thinking
4. Eastern Religions
5. The French Revolution
Never mind the jobs you had, tell me five classes you took in college:
1. Origins of Nazism
2. Dante’s Divine Comedy
3. Behavioral Ecology & Conservation Biology
4. Principles of Evolution
5. Thinking and Speaking About Thinking and Speaking
1. Origins of Nazism
2. Dante’s Divine Comedy
3. Behavioral Ecology & Conservation Biology
4. Principles of Evolution
5. Thinking and Speaking About Thinking and Speaking
January 31, 2026 at 12:35 PM
This trend is giving me life. College is cool, knowledge is great. The liberal arts is rad. Being well rounded is the GOAT.
Fund all colleges and universities. We should be throwing money at them. Make it affordable for all. Let people take underwater basket weaving if they choose.
Fund all colleges and universities. We should be throwing money at them. Make it affordable for all. Let people take underwater basket weaving if they choose.
I started using the 1st edition of this book in my intro class a few years back, can't recommend it enough
The Media Studies Toolkit, 2nd edition, dropped this week. I'm excited for this refreshed, updated, and expanded version to reach students and instructors of introductory courses in media studies. www.routledge.com/The-Media-St... A short thread about what's inside.
January 31, 2026 at 2:56 PM
I started using the 1st edition of this book in my intro class a few years back, can't recommend it enough
I just read that piece about students not wanting to watch films anymore but as is often the case with these stories I wonder if the size of these courses is a part of the story.
January 31, 2026 at 4:36 AM
I just read that piece about students not wanting to watch films anymore but as is often the case with these stories I wonder if the size of these courses is a part of the story.
five classes i took in college, all bangers:
marine science - evolution & biodiversity
history of france, 1815-1914
history of vietnam wars
american lit 1870-1915: realism & naturalism
modern/modernist drama
marine science - evolution & biodiversity
history of france, 1815-1914
history of vietnam wars
american lit 1870-1915: realism & naturalism
modern/modernist drama
January 31, 2026 at 4:14 AM
five classes i took in college, all bangers:
marine science - evolution & biodiversity
history of france, 1815-1914
history of vietnam wars
american lit 1870-1915: realism & naturalism
modern/modernist drama
marine science - evolution & biodiversity
history of france, 1815-1914
history of vietnam wars
american lit 1870-1915: realism & naturalism
modern/modernist drama
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
"god didn't miss a stitch / be it dog or be it bitch" is permanently lodged in my brain RIP to a goddamned treasure of the movies
Best In Show - God Loves a Terrier
YouTube video by Darren Williams
www.youtube.com
January 30, 2026 at 9:15 PM
"god didn't miss a stitch / be it dog or be it bitch" is permanently lodged in my brain RIP to a goddamned treasure of the movies
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
This makes the post-9/11 NSA warrantless surveillance program look like digging through people's trash (which the FBI also did).
That caused such a backlash there was still congressional activity on it a decade later.
This is absolutely blood-chilling levels of state overreach and so far crickets.
That caused such a backlash there was still congressional activity on it a decade later.
This is absolutely blood-chilling levels of state overreach and so far crickets.
January 30, 2026 at 12:40 PM
This makes the post-9/11 NSA warrantless surveillance program look like digging through people's trash (which the FBI also did).
That caused such a backlash there was still congressional activity on it a decade later.
This is absolutely blood-chilling levels of state overreach and so far crickets.
That caused such a backlash there was still congressional activity on it a decade later.
This is absolutely blood-chilling levels of state overreach and so far crickets.
I have a family connection to the French Hen and can unreservedly assure you they have deep and significant commitments to taking care of their workers and peace/justice work in the Twin Cities. I just threw them my venmo balance, consider helping out!
Hey y’all! The French Hen in St. Paul is hoping to support 5 employees who have been impacted by the federal government. These funds will help their employees with rent and bills during these hard times.
Venmo: @ HENSOLIDARITYFUND
Venmo: @ HENSOLIDARITYFUND
January 30, 2026 at 5:31 AM
I have a family connection to the French Hen and can unreservedly assure you they have deep and significant commitments to taking care of their workers and peace/justice work in the Twin Cities. I just threw them my venmo balance, consider helping out!
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
I keep thinking about Wemby saying that team PR told him to shut up and not decry the ICE murders in Minneapolis. I don’t think he did it consciously, but he was breaking some serious omertà. Jocks have told me for years about political pressure from team PR but they never talk about it publicly.
January 29, 2026 at 6:00 PM
I keep thinking about Wemby saying that team PR told him to shut up and not decry the ICE murders in Minneapolis. I don’t think he did it consciously, but he was breaking some serious omertà. Jocks have told me for years about political pressure from team PR but they never talk about it publicly.
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
Dan McQuade was a real blogger and journalist in the best meanings of both terms, with an eye for the uncanny and a strident curiosity that all his peers and readers admired. He was also a true blue son of Philly, the peculiar city he loved very much and helped explain better than anyone else.
A real blogger and real journalist
RIP to Dan McQuade
www.welcometohellworld.com
January 29, 2026 at 1:56 PM
Dan McQuade was a real blogger and journalist in the best meanings of both terms, with an eye for the uncanny and a strident curiosity that all his peers and readers admired. He was also a true blue son of Philly, the peculiar city he loved very much and helped explain better than anyone else.
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
"Who's city is it Chief?
Bovino: "It's our fucking city."
And that, in a nutshell, is the problem. It is not a democracy when men with guns and uniforms believe they have more control over a city than its residents.
Bovino: "It's our fucking city."
And that, in a nutshell, is the problem. It is not a democracy when men with guns and uniforms believe they have more control over a city than its residents.
January 29, 2026 at 2:41 PM
"Who's city is it Chief?
Bovino: "It's our fucking city."
And that, in a nutshell, is the problem. It is not a democracy when men with guns and uniforms believe they have more control over a city than its residents.
Bovino: "It's our fucking city."
And that, in a nutshell, is the problem. It is not a democracy when men with guns and uniforms believe they have more control over a city than its residents.
I just had my students read this. Absolutely sublime.
if you are unfamiliar with my personal most referenced dan mcquade piece i talk about it basically any time rocky is mentioned www.phillymag.com/news/2013/09...
How Far Did Rocky Go in His Training Run in 'Rocky II'?
Rocky wasn't just a boxer. He was a marathoner.
www.phillymag.com
January 29, 2026 at 2:20 AM
I just had my students read this. Absolutely sublime.
Aw hell. What a writer. What a Philadelphian.
January 29, 2026 at 2:15 AM
Aw hell. What a writer. What a Philadelphian.
Reposted by Michael D. Dwyer
"There's nothing they can do, they're the minority" OK THEN ASK FOR *MORE* IF IT'S ALL ASPIRATIONS AND SIGNALING ANYWAY YOU FUCKING DOLTS
January 28, 2026 at 8:48 PM
"There's nothing they can do, they're the minority" OK THEN ASK FOR *MORE* IF IT'S ALL ASPIRATIONS AND SIGNALING ANYWAY YOU FUCKING DOLTS
I was on the jury for one of the best essay awards and though it was a good bit of work it was *so* edifying & encouraging to see all the different kinds of interesting work my colleagues around the world are doing.
SCMS is excited to announce this year's award winners—congratulations to all! View the full list: cmstudies.org/page/2026_awards.
Thank you to our members who served on award committees—your dedication makes this recognition possible. We can’t wait to celebrate with everyone in Chicago! #SCMS26
Thank you to our members who served on award committees—your dedication makes this recognition possible. We can’t wait to celebrate with everyone in Chicago! #SCMS26
January 28, 2026 at 12:43 AM
I was on the jury for one of the best essay awards and though it was a good bit of work it was *so* edifying & encouraging to see all the different kinds of interesting work my colleagues around the world are doing.