CultureKlatsch

Listen to a longer interview with Drs. Sarah Hagelin and Katy Mohrman on the intersections among gender, race, class, and colonial culture in House of the Dragon in this bonus episode of CultureKlatsch (hosted and edited by Jake Johnson).

This episode of CultureKlatsch discusses House of the Dragon (the Golden Globe winning prequel to Game of Thrones) in terms of spectatorship and genre. Host Jake Johnson, along with guests Kendall Adamson, Madison Cook, David Debonis, and Landon Sickler (all CU Denver students), create a roundtable discussion on a wide range of topics, including television consumption patterns and rituals, violence against women as a plot device, trauma and spectatorship, the cultural appeal of high fantasy television, the ways HOD mirrors current social relations, the politics of gender and colonialism, artistic intent and HOD as historical account, and the ongoing celebration of “masculine strength” in both GOT and HOD. They speak with several CU Denver professors—Dr. Sarah Hagelin (Ethnic Studies and English), Katy Mohrman (Ethnic Studies), and William Wagner (History)—as well as CU Denver film student Darcen McCampbel and spectators outside the university, Beth Hall and Allie Borgsmiller.

This episode of CultureKlatsch dives into the complex relationship between Denverites and their environment. Specifically, this work explores the dynamic between Colorado's cultural values towards the outdoors versus the actions done to preserve the environment. It looks at the language used to promote "green" culture and the steps being taken (or that have been taken) to show an appreciation for the Rocky Mountains and plains. We talk to several CU Denver professors--Dr. Rachel Gross from the History Department, Professor Kirsten Christensen and Dr. Benjamin Crawford from the Environmental Science Department, and Dr. Michelle Comstock from the English Department--for their expert opinion on the concepts of green marketing, environmental rhetoric, and urban sustainability or resilience. We explore the history of environmental consciousness and pursue an understanding in our present-day relationship with our environment. References Anderson, Corinne. “A Glimpse into Denver's Sustainable Future.” 303Magazine, 16 March 2021. Cammack, Becca., Bekins, Lynn K., & Krug, Allison., “From Concept to Action: Do Environmental Regulations Promote Sustainability?” Environmental Rhetoric and Ecologies of Place edited by Peter N. Goggin, 2013, 174-186. Christensen, Kirsten. Personal Interview. 2 March 2022. City and County of Denver. “Climate Action, Sustainability, & Resiliency.” 2022. Comstock, Michelle. Personal Interview. 11 April 2022. Crawford, Benjamin. Personal Interview. 16 March 2022. Finley, Bruce. “As development eats away at Denver's green space, the ‘city within a park' is becoming a concrete metropolis.” The Denver Post, 13 Jan 2019. Gross, Rachel. Personal Interview. 16 March 2022. Kirsch, Gesa E. “A Land Ethic for Urban Dwellers.” Environmental Rhetoric and Ecologies of Place edited by Peter N. Goggin, 2013, 69-83. Kohler, Judith. “How green is Colorado? News report says middling at best.” The Denver Post, 16 April 2021. Senda-Cook, Samantha., & Endres, Danielle., “A Place of One's Own.” Environmental Rhetoric and Ecologies of Place edited by Peter N. Goggin, 2013, 143-154. Williams, Deborah. L., & Brandt, Elizabeth. A., “Sense of Place, Identity, and Cultural Continuity in an Arizona Community.” Environmental Rhetoric and Ecologies of Place edited by Peter N. Goggin, 2013, 42-53.

Gentrification: The Denver Experience We talk about the history and politics of gentrification here on the CU Denver campus, as well as in the Denver Metro Area. Many news organizations and libraries have documented the ongoing disenfranchisement of the “Displaced Aurarians”—a largely Hispanic neighborhood “relocated” by the Auraria Campus, which houses CU Denver, Metro State University, and Community College of Denver. However, very few news sources have framed that notorious displacement within Denver's larger culture of gentrification. According to a 2020 study by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, Denver is the second most gentrified city in the nation, with over 27% of its neighborhoods affected by skyrocketing home prices and rising inequality. We first interview two Auraria campus employees: Francine Olivas-Zarate, who is our CU Denver English Department Program Coordinator, and her sister Benita Olivas, who was an advisor and worked in the Women's Center at the Community College of Denver. Their family members lived on 9th Street Park before the mass displacement by Auraria Higher Education Center in the 1970s, and both have worked on campus near their family's original home. Second, we interview Dr. Jeremy Nemeth, Professor in CU Denver's Urban and Regional Planning Department, and Dr. Brian Page, Associate Professor in our Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences, about Denver's history of gentrification and current economic effects on particular neighborhoods. Finally, we interview Laura McKenna, Development Director of HomeAid America, who discusses the impact of gentrification on the growing number of unhoused people in Denver. Addition Resources: Wells, J., & Abbott, P. (2021). Shameless. Season 11. Episode 2. “Go Home, Gentrifier!” Lees, L., Slater, T., & Wyly, E. K. (2011). Gentrification. Routledge. Fullilove, M. T., Peterson, C. F., & Bassett, M. T. (2016). Root shock how tearing up city neighborhoods hurts America, and what we can do about it. New Village Press. Brian Page & Eric Ross (2017) Legacies of a Contested Campus: Urban Renewal, Community Resistance, and the Origins of Gentrification in Denver, Urban Geography, 38:9, 1293-1328, DOI: 10.1080/02723638.2016.1228420 Rigolon, A., & Németh, J. (2019). Green gentrification or ‘just green enough': Do park location, size and function affect whether a place gentrifies or not? Urban Studies, 57(2), 402–420. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042098019849380 Hoyman, M. M., & McCall, J. R. (2010). "Not imminent in my domain!" county leaders' attitudes toward eminent domain decisions. Public Administration Review, 70(6), 885-893. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.aurarialibrary.idm.oclc.org/scholarly-journals/not-imminent-my-dom ain-county-leaders-attitudes/docview/853334132/se-2?accountid=14506 Hemmat, S. A. (1986). PARKS, PEOPLE, AND PRIVATE PROPERTY: THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE AND EMINENT DOMAIN. Environmental Law, 16(4), 935–961. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43265779 https://digital.denverlibrary.org/digital/collection/p15330coll27/search/searchterm/denver.%20city %20council/field/subjec/mode/exact/conn/and https://digital.denverlibrary.org/digital/collection/p15330coll6/id/460/rec/42 https://catalog.denverlibrary.org/search/title.aspx?ctx=1.1033.0.0.6&pos=2&cn=612821

We talk about the documentary “The New York Times Presents: Framing Britney Spears,” directed by Samantha Stark. The documentary traces Britney’s rise to stardom and the events that ultimately led to her being placed in a conservatorship, examining the role of the media in the framing of female celebrities. We parse out the complexities of the frame with Dr. Rodney Herring. We discuss the lore of celebrity culture and how celebrities are portrayed in traditional and social media, limning the differences between how Britney is portrayed by the tabloids and by The New York Times. We look at some of the arcs of Britney’s portraiture that emerge in the documentary and how she is variously framed, now as a relatable and empowered role model for young people, now a panoramic laughingstock or monetized public meltdown. We consider these portraits along the theme of control in Britney’s mental health, her body and sexuality, and even her own capacity of personhood at the hands of her conservatorship. Further Reading: Holden, Stephen. "FILM REVIEW; A Britney Spears Vehicle That Bypasses the Bumps." The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/15/movies/film-review-a-britney-spears-vehicle-that-bypasses-the-bumps.html Polaschek, Bronwyn. “The dissonant personas of a female celebrity: Amy and the public self of Amy Winehouse.” Celebrity Studies, 9:1, 17-33. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392397.2017.1321490 Snapes, Laura. “Comrade Britney Spears! Star calls for strike and wealth redistribution.” The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/mar/25/comrade-britney-spears-star-calls-for-strike-and-wealth-redistribution Yahr, Emily. “Documentaries are changing public opinion about celebrities — with consequences even the filmmakers didn’t expect.” The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2021/03/19/celebrity-documentaries/ The songs you hear on the show are "Belle et Triste" and “Roza Vertov” by Kariatida: freemusicarchive.org/music/Kariatida

We talk about the virtual reality exhibit “Carne y Arena,” created by filmmaker Alejandro G. Iñárritu, which allows us to experience what it’s like to cross the U.S. - Mexico border on foot. During the 20-minute journey, the participant walks along with a group of immigrants, who are based on real people, and the group is confronted by U.S. border patrol officers. We speak with Dr. Andrew Scahill, Assistant Professor of Film in the English Department at CU Denver, about the potential for virtual reality to enhance or even transcend the capacity of traditional cinema to create empathy. We each made our solo walk through the desolate sands of the exhibit, joined by Film Studies majors Emilio Marquez and Starz Sanchez, as well as our own Student Assistant Producer Alyssa Haskel. We share our individual versions of the experience and consider how VR can go “beyond the frame” in how it elicits very real emotional reactions to virtual representations, constantly compelling the participant to shift between spectating and interacting directly with the narrative. Further reading: About “Carne y Arena” https://carne-y-arena.com/ Gleiberman, Owen. “Cannes Virtual Reality Review: Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s ‘Carne y Arena’.” Variety. https://variety.com/2017/film/reviews/carne-y-arena-review-alejandro-g-inarritu-1202438293/ Sehgal, Parul. “A Mother and Son, Fleeing for Their Lives Over Treacherous Terrain.” (Review of ‘American Dirt’). The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/17/books/review-american-dirt-jeanine-cummins.html The songs you hear on the show are "Belle et Triste" and “Roza Vertov” by Kariatida: freemusicarchive.org/music/Kariatida

We talk about the series 'Fleabag,' written by and starring Phoebe Waller-Bridge. We discuss the title character as a comedic anti-hero who acts against the normative understanding of femininity in the 21st century. We examine the structure of the show, which begins as a raunchy comedy and evolves into an exploration of grief and forgiveness. We also explore the show’s relationship with contemporary feminism and the demands it makes of women. We’re joined by doctors Sarah Hagelin and Gillian Silverman, Associate Professors of English at CU Denver, as well as CU Denver students Brittney Finley, Alyssa Haskel, and Kamesh Saba. Further reading: Bastow, Clem. “Fleabag’s feminist rethinking of tired screenwriting tools.” The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/fleabags-feminist-rethinking-of-tired-screenwriting-tools-121104 Jones, Alice. “How ‘Fleabag’ Sold Thousands of Jumpsuits and Made Religion Sexy.” The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/16/arts/television/fleabag-phoebe-waller-bridge-uk.html The songs you hear on the show are "Belle et Triste" and “Roza Vertov” by Kariatida: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kariatida

In our season two premiere, we welcome new co-host Sarah Tyson and discuss John Murillo's book 'Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry.' Murillo joins us for an interview on his timely new collection of poetry that puts on display the visceral truth of the lived experiences of Black and Latino communities facing police brutality. We also hear from CU Denver students, who offer a rich and introspective response to the poems that speak to the history of police brutality in our country. Further reading: Grigsby Bates, Karen and Anjuli Sastry. “When LA Erupted In Anger: A Look Back At The Rodney King Riots.” NPR. https://www.npr.org/2017/04/26/524744989/when-la-erupted-in-anger-a-look-back-at-the-rodney-king-riots Nodjimbadem, Katie. “The Long, Painful History of Police Brutality in the U.S.” Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/long-painful-history-police-brutality-in-the-us-180964098/ Mapping Police Violence. https://mappingpoliceviolence.org/ The songs you hear on the show are "Belle et Triste" and “Roza Vertov” by Kariatida: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kariatida

Hello and welcome to season 2 of CultureKlatsch, A Humanities Podcast About Contemporary Culture! This season, the English and Philosophy Departments at the University of Colorado Denver are coming together to engage in conversations about what’s happening in our society and the impact of the media we’re consuming. Join us for our first episode on Oct. 14.

In this episode, I discuss Ada Limon’s book of poetry The Carrying with Dr. Nicky Beer. We talk about how poetry belongs to everybody and the shelter that something so small as a poem can provide. I also talk to English Department Chair Dr. Philip Joseph about how the CU Denver Community is adapting to the pandemic, featuring stories by students who share a range of experiences, from the challenges teachers and medical professionals are facing to the role of creativity in isolation. Cited and Additional Resources: The Carrying by Ada Limón. https://milkweed.org/book/the-carrying “This is Just to Say with Carrie Fountain” interview with Ada Limón https://www.kut.org/post/just-say-ada-lim-n-0 University of Colorado Denver student podcasts: https://soundcloud.com/user-762579172/sets/student-podcasts The songs you hear on the show are "Belle et Triste" and “Roza Vertov” by Kariatida: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kariatida

University of Colorado Denver graduate students submitted the podcasts they created, discussing a variety of ways in which people have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

University of Colorado Denver graduate students submitted the podcasts they created, discussing a variety of ways in which people have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

University of Colorado Denver graduate students submitted the podcasts they created, discussing a variety of ways in which people have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

University of Colorado Denver graduate students submitted the podcasts they created, discussing a variety of ways in which people have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The songs included in this podcast are courtesy of the musicians featured. "Shooting Star" by Maranta "Weigh In" and "Evolve" by Brie Capone All other sound segments are recorded from online performances.

University of Colorado Denver graduate students submitted the podcasts they created, discussing a variety of ways in which people have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

We talk about the Academy Awards, the success of Parasite, our picks for the best film of 2019, the politics of the Oscars, and the ways in which the Academy is starting to change. This episode features Dr. Andrew Scahill and UC Denver students Alyssa Haskel, Kamesh Saba, and Jake Johnson. Spoiler alert: We discuss the endings of Parasite, 1917, Jojo Rabbit, Little Women, Midsommar, and Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood. Cited in this episode: Feinberg, Scott. "Brutally Honest Oscar Ballot: '1917' Is 'Gimmicky,' Renée Zellweger 'Nailed It'." The Hollywood Reporter. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/brutally-honest-oscar-ballot-1917-gimmicky-renee-zellweger-nailed-it-1276607 Williams, Linda. “Film Bodies: Gender, Genre, and Excess.” Film Quarterly. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1212758?seq=1 The song you hear on the show is "Belle et Triste" by Kariatida: freemusicarchive.org/music/Kariatid…elle_et_triste

We talk about Jordan Peele’s films “Get Out” and “Us,” how he’s challenging the representations of black characters in horror film, and how the themes and tropes of horror have changed in the films of the past decade. This episode features Dr. Andrew Scahill and the students of Dr. Sarah Hagelin’s film theory class from UC Denver and Kyle Harris from Westword. Cited in this episode: Creed, Barbara. “Horror and the Monstrous-Feminine: An Imaginary Abjection.” (Screen, 1986) https://academic.oup.com/screen/article-abstract/27/1/44/1630470?redirectedFrom=PDF Du Bois, W.E.B. “The Souls of Black Folk.” (A. C. McClurg & Co.‎, ‎1903) https://www.gutenberg.org/files/408/408-h/408-h.htm Goddu, Teresa. “Gothic America: Narrative, History, and Nation.” (Columbia University Press, 1997) https://www.amazon.com/Gothic-America-Teresa-Goddu/dp/0231108176 “Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror” (Shudder, 2019) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9567548/ Mayne, Judith. "Cinema and Spectatorship." (Routledge, 1993) https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9780203133880 The song you hear on the show is "Belle et Triste" by Kariatida: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kariatida/I_1863/Kariatida_-_I_-_01_Belle_et_triste

In celebration of our first episode, we held a live roundtable discussion to continue the conversation about the Handmaid's Tale. We talked about the adaption from the book to the series, how the series handles issues of sexism and racism, and our thoughts on podcasting as a medium to discuss literature. The panel featured CultureKlatsch host and producer Nathalia Velez Ryan; Dr. Rodney Herring, who you heard on the first episode; Dr. Cate Wiley, who is a playwright and teaches playwriting, drama, and 20th century women writers at UC Denver; and Maddie Lutz, an undergrad student getting a bachelors degree in English Literature with a minor in Women’s and Gender studies.

We talk about the Hulu series "The Handmaid's Tale" based on the Margaret Atwood novel and consider why this story is so relevant today and how it handles important political and social issues such as reproductive freedom, immigration, and white nationalism. This episode features Drs. Colleen Donnelly, Sarah Hagelin, and Rodney Herring from UC Denver. Cited in this episode: Althusser, Louis. “Ideology and Ideological State Apparatus.” Lenin and Philosophy and Other Essays, Ben Brewster, trans. (New York: Monthly Review, 1971). https://www.amazon.com/Lenin-Philosophy-Other-Essays-Althusser/dp/1583670394/ Creed, Barbara. The Monstrous-Feminine. (Routledge, 1993). https://www.amazon.com/Monstrous-Feminine-Feminism-Psychoanalysis-Popular-Fictions/dp/0415052599 Gramsci, Antonio. Prison Notebooks, selections of which are available in a single collection: https://www.amazon.com/Selections-Prison-Notebooks-Antonio-Gramsci/dp/071780397X/ Projansky, Sarah. Watching Rape: Film and Television in Postfeminist Culture (NYU Press, 2001). https://books.google.com/books/about/Watching_Rape.html?id=ycIuGP3ZlVwC Silverman, Kaja. “Suture.” The Subject of Semiotics (New York: Oxford University Press, 1983). http://www.davidbardschwarz.com/pdf/silverman.suture.pdf Žižek, Slajov. “Welcome to the Desert of the Real,” from the collection of essays of the same title (London: Verso, 2002). https://www.amazon.com/Welcome-Desert-Real-September-Related/dp/1859844219/ The song you hear on the show is "Belle et Triste" by Kariatida: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kariatida/Sampler_EP_Vol_10/Kariatida_-_Vulpiano_Records_Sampler_EP_Vol_10_-_01_Belle_et_triste