Ric Chetter - From Radioland

Episode 426: Uvalde, Texas

Ric spent some of his formative years in South Texas. He also spent a little time in Uvalde, Texas. The scene of a horrific school mass shooting. In this special episode, Ric tries to make sense of the situation. He also tries to understand what it was that happened. Join him for a bit of therapy if you need to find the things he's looking for, too. This is the episode that aired on Radio Memphis on 25 May, 2022.

NEXT WEEK: 6% of You Are Stupid

 

Episode 425: Gone To Hell

If you have ever spent any time with someone from a previous generation, they might tell you that "the whole world has gone to hell." For some younger people, that is rather off putting. Ric gets it. Here is a little secret. EVERY generation says the same thing to the younger generation. Surprise! Nothing has changed.

NEXT WEEK: Uvalde, Texas

 

Episode 424: War, Social Media Style

Perhaps an interesting test of the power of an unfiltered internet comes in the everyday coverage of a war. That is precisely what is happening now. Among the cat videos, self-affirmation memes, and random political falsehoods one can find fascinating threads of the war in Ukraine being posted by those actually participating in the thing. The important thing for anyone to remember is the fact that most large events portrayed among the feeds of any social media may either be too much information or merely a reflection of the facts at hand. Ric's advice to anyone cruising this form of coverage should beware, it's like trying to drink out of a fire hydrant.

NEXT WEEK: The World is Always Going to Hell.

Episode 423: Drop The Dead Weight

In a sort of continued thought from last week, Ric talks about the notion that forward progress can be a good thing. However, for that to work, people should lose the things we no longer need. Nostalgia is fun to think about, but sometimes things last only for so long. Drawing from the example Netflix is setting up, some decisions are easier to make than others. If there is one takeaway from all of this, don't let others tell you what you like.

NEXT WEEK: War, Social Media Style

Episode 422: We’re Never Going Back

Part of an advancement of society means some sort of progress, ideally. Never ending references to the way things used to be have become tiring to many people. Now, we must look to the way things are going to be. In that the world is approaching a post-pandemic situation, the old thing of "the new norm" is now. Most of the world has changed. Some changes are not so great while others are pretty good. Here, Ric takes a look at how the inherent resistance to change tends to slow things down. We aren't going back, and that is not a bad thing.

NEXT WEEK: Not all things are worth keeping.

Episode 421: Virtually Social

The "rise" of virtual reality seems more like a dud than the latest and greatest thing. Mark Zuckerberg thinks people will come flocking back to Facebook as a result. The issue it seems, is that virtual reality is having the same trajectory as 3D movies have had. Cute trick, but not a necessary thing. Headaches aside, the whole notion of entering a virtual world cut off from real society is just not all that appealing. Then again, is "Zuck Bucks" going to be the right answer?

NEXT WEEK: Post Pandemic Norms

Episode 420: Is Network Television Dead?

The answer to the question on the table would, of course depend on who you ask. It certainly has it's niche audience these days. The problem may be the fact that people in general don't want to be tied to a specific schedule to watch their shows. However, it seems to go deeper than that. Perhaps the real question that should be asked is whether or not the content that is being offered is compelling enough.

NEXT WEEK: Augmenting Reality

Episode 419: The Social Media Washout

The sands are shifting in the social media world. One of the biggest indicators seems to be the attitudes of the public regarding its existence. The general public seems to have come to grips with the ins and outs of this monster. Whether it stays or goes is not really the issue. The one fact remains in that the absence of reality is the only thing most people have taken to heart. Well, that and the absolute toxicity of the thing. Where does it go from here?

NEXT WEEK: Is network television still a thing?

 

Episode 418: The Famous

There is one facet of journalism that on the surface seems absolutely pointless and devoid of any sort of attention spent on it and that is celebrity news. Unless a TV or movie star dies, most people don't seem to care, Or, do they? In this episode, Ric takes a look at phenomenon of this weird and kind of dirty side of the news. What drives it and do people really care about these people who are so unlike the rest of us? These are valid questions with a simple answer and that may be more sinister than you would want to believe.

NEXT WEEK: Social Media Overhaul

Episode 417: The New Normal is Expensive

A late winter snow thing wasn't enough to knock Ric off his schedule this time around as he talks about the way things are shaping up as we near a post-pandemic world. However, there are a lot of things going on to make our current situation rather complicated. Sure, we seem to be coming through to the end of the Covid 19 pandemic but not without changes in the way we are going to live. Pandemic not withstanding, there is a war going on, runaway inflation, and God help us everyone is freaked out about the price of gasoline. Strangely enough, we are not in a recession. How did that happen?

NEXT WEEK: For some strange reason, people think famous people are interesting.