I found this to be moving and beautiful. I hope they are able to find some means by which to satisfy their theological, zoological, and practical needs. Thank you for sharing.
I found this to be moving and beautiful. I hope they are able to find some means by which to satisfy their theological, zoological, and practical needs. Thank you for sharing.
As an aside, has 99 Percent Invisible ever commented on their piece about Chick Tracts? I was an avid listener for years, listened to everything they ever put out, even bought the book - and after...
As an aside, has 99 Percent Invisible ever commented on their piece about Chick Tracts? I was an avid listener for years, listened to everything they ever put out, even bought the book - and after they made their bit about Chick Tracts, I haven't listened to anything by them since.
What was wrong about their episode on chick tracts? As far as I know, there was no controversial reaction to it, so I doubt they have or will ever specially comment on it?
What was wrong about their episode on chick tracts? As far as I know, there was no controversial reaction to it, so I doubt they have or will ever specially comment on it?
There was a somewhat controversial reaction to it over on 99PI's reddit. I, for one, felt that their coverage viewed them as these quirky little curiosities, while conveniently hand-waving the...
There was a somewhat controversial reaction to it over on 99PI's reddit. I, for one, felt that their coverage viewed them as these quirky little curiosities, while conveniently hand-waving the fact that they are incredibly bigoted, racist, and xenophobic.
The article as a whole reads like "love him or hate him, you've got to hand it to him - his work is popular!"
Case in point:
To this day his company gets tons of orders from missionaries. Evangelicals still participate in a time-honored practice that they call “tract bombing” – where they swarm your neighborhood, sometimes at night, and flood it with hundreds of booklets on windshields and doorknobs, in mailboxes, and under your front door. And when you wake up, it’s as if Chick Tracts have rained down like one of The Ten Plagues. Chick Tracts have been an undeniable, uncontainable source of viral hate. Over the years, Jack’s focus intensified from general moral decay, to much uglier and more detailed yarns about homosexuality and pretty much all non-Protestant religions. But – there’s still something about the artist and his weird little comic books that’s interesting and even alluring, even to his critics.
I feel like that's mixing reporting on actual, observable happenings and the podcast's opining on the subject itself. It's a fact that many, if not the majority at this point, of people who own...
I feel like that's mixing reporting on actual, observable happenings and the podcast's opining on the subject itself. It's a fact that many, if not the majority at this point, of people who own chick tracts do so ironically - they're so over the top, they're considered unintentional parodies of themselves, by the people that own them.
The episode is about why these have a continual legacy where innumerable other pieces of Evangelical work from that era have faded into oblivion. You can't talk about that without talking about how people view them as weird, quirky curiosities.
In terms of "hand-waving", I don't see that at all in the episode. They say it innumerable times in the 30 minute episode that they are hateful and bigoted. The episode spends much of its time describing how its author is disturbed.
We see two different episodes, then. As did several other commenters on the episode: https://old.reddit.com/r/99percentinvisible/comments/14x1xq4/episode_discussion_544_chick_tracts/ Yes, they are...
Yes, they are ridiculous to the point of self-parody. They are also harmful, and dangerous when the "wrong people" consume them. I hate to invoke him, but Alex Jones is a prime example - his work is so over-the-top and absurd that it's hard to imagine anyone takes it seriously. And yet, there are people that do, and they have been harassing the families of the victims of Sandy Hook for over a decade.
Ultimately, we're free to have differing opinions of what we listened to.
Sure. Back to the original subject, I don't think there was much out an outcry over that episode in general. That's what, a handful of comments in a whopping 25 reply thread on a pretty dead sub?...
Ultimately, we're free to have differing opinions of what we listened to.
Sure.
Back to the original subject, I don't think there was much out an outcry over that episode in general. That's what, a handful of comments in a whopping 25 reply thread on a pretty dead sub? Not to mention podcast subs tend to be, uh, "concentrated" - if the general audience to Serial had the same opinion as /r/serialpodcast I'm pretty sure Koenig would have been publicly executed by now.
So there hasn't been a comment, no, and there probably won't be one.
Is he wrong? When looking at it from a design perspective? I feel like this is going nuclear over a small mistake, one that 99pi should be allowed to make with their track record and their...
Is he wrong? When looking at it from a design perspective?
I feel like this is going nuclear over a small mistake, one that 99pi should be allowed to make with their track record and their generally favourable disposition towards minorities.
I don't even really view it as "wrong", per se, given that the point is made multiple times in the episode that the content of these tracts are really problematic and hateful. This is kind of...
I don't even really view it as "wrong", per se, given that the point is made multiple times in the episode that the content of these tracts are really problematic and hateful. This is kind of like, in my mind, when people say Nazis were well dressed by Hugo Boss. It's not wrong, and if in the context of a design or aesthetic oriented discussion (with appropriate acknowledgements of, you know, Nazis), not an issue. Just my two cents.
Looking at hate speech and bigotry purely from a "design perspective" misses the point, in my opinion. I hate to Godwin the discussion, but it would be like looking at the design and engineering...
Looking at hate speech and bigotry purely from a "design perspective" misses the point, in my opinion. I hate to Godwin the discussion, but it would be like looking at the design and engineering of gas chambers without acknowledging what they were used for. Extreme example, I know.
99PI is free to make any mistakes they want, and they will surely make others. This particular mistake grated against my personal beliefs in such a way that I no longer wish to extend them the benefit of that doubt.
Looking at the transcript I'd say they're being very, very, very clear they do not endorse the content in any way, shape, or form. I think it makes the point clearly that they do not look at the...
Looking at the transcript I'd say they're being very, very, very clear they do not endorse the content in any way, shape, or form. I think it makes the point clearly that they do not look at the hate speech from a design perspective, but rather literal in the way the comics were designed and moreover why this uniquely American phenomenon became popular in the spirit of the times. They quite directly acknowledge what they are used for too, outright calling them "dangerous".
Look, I'm not trying to convince you that you are wrong for feeling what you are feeling, but I look at your post and just do not see what you are seeing. If anything, when you so absolutely state that they do not deserve the benefit of the doubt I'm left asking myself if I somehow misunderstood 99pi and how they position themselves towards people.
And after thinking about it all I can conclude is that 99pi deserves better.
They do acknowledge what they were used for though. They just don’t make it the focus of the episode because it’s a design podcast and they’re talking about the design. As a born and bred darkie...
They do acknowledge what they were used for though. They just don’t make it the focus of the episode because it’s a design podcast and they’re talking about the design.
As a born and bred darkie heathen who grew up in the Bible Belt and dealt with Chick Tracts deployed against me unironically as a tool for bullying, I found the episode did a good job of signposting why the tracts are bad while also pointing out why they were effective for what they were used for.
A fascinating reporting about a disappearing (arguably already gone) funeral rite in India for the Parsi people
I found this to be moving and beautiful. I hope they are able to find some means by which to satisfy their theological, zoological, and practical needs. Thank you for sharing.
Listened to this on my commute yesterday and today, was a really fascinating episode and the reporting was very well done.
As an aside, has 99 Percent Invisible ever commented on their piece about Chick Tracts? I was an avid listener for years, listened to everything they ever put out, even bought the book - and after they made their bit about Chick Tracts, I haven't listened to anything by them since.
What was wrong about their episode on chick tracts? As far as I know, there was no controversial reaction to it, so I doubt they have or will ever specially comment on it?
There was a somewhat controversial reaction to it over on 99PI's reddit. I, for one, felt that their coverage viewed them as these quirky little curiosities, while conveniently hand-waving the fact that they are incredibly bigoted, racist, and xenophobic.
The article as a whole reads like "love him or hate him, you've got to hand it to him - his work is popular!"
Case in point:
I feel like that's mixing reporting on actual, observable happenings and the podcast's opining on the subject itself. It's a fact that many, if not the majority at this point, of people who own chick tracts do so ironically - they're so over the top, they're considered unintentional parodies of themselves, by the people that own them.
The episode is about why these have a continual legacy where innumerable other pieces of Evangelical work from that era have faded into oblivion. You can't talk about that without talking about how people view them as weird, quirky curiosities.
In terms of "hand-waving", I don't see that at all in the episode. They say it innumerable times in the 30 minute episode that they are hateful and bigoted. The episode spends much of its time describing how its author is disturbed.
We see two different episodes, then. As did several other commenters on the episode:
https://old.reddit.com/r/99percentinvisible/comments/14x1xq4/episode_discussion_544_chick_tracts/
Yes, they are ridiculous to the point of self-parody. They are also harmful, and dangerous when the "wrong people" consume them. I hate to invoke him, but Alex Jones is a prime example - his work is so over-the-top and absurd that it's hard to imagine anyone takes it seriously. And yet, there are people that do, and they have been harassing the families of the victims of Sandy Hook for over a decade.
Ultimately, we're free to have differing opinions of what we listened to.
Sure.
Back to the original subject, I don't think there was much out an outcry over that episode in general. That's what, a handful of comments in a whopping 25 reply thread on a pretty dead sub? Not to mention podcast subs tend to be, uh, "concentrated" - if the general audience to Serial had the same opinion as /r/serialpodcast I'm pretty sure Koenig would have been publicly executed by now.
So there hasn't been a comment, no, and there probably won't be one.
Is he wrong? When looking at it from a design perspective?
I feel like this is going nuclear over a small mistake, one that 99pi should be allowed to make with their track record and their generally favourable disposition towards minorities.
I don't even really view it as "wrong", per se, given that the point is made multiple times in the episode that the content of these tracts are really problematic and hateful. This is kind of like, in my mind, when people say Nazis were well dressed by Hugo Boss. It's not wrong, and if in the context of a design or aesthetic oriented discussion (with appropriate acknowledgements of, you know, Nazis), not an issue. Just my two cents.
Looking at hate speech and bigotry purely from a "design perspective" misses the point, in my opinion. I hate to Godwin the discussion, but it would be like looking at the design and engineering of gas chambers without acknowledging what they were used for. Extreme example, I know.
99PI is free to make any mistakes they want, and they will surely make others. This particular mistake grated against my personal beliefs in such a way that I no longer wish to extend them the benefit of that doubt.
Looking at the transcript I'd say they're being very, very, very clear they do not endorse the content in any way, shape, or form. I think it makes the point clearly that they do not look at the hate speech from a design perspective, but rather literal in the way the comics were designed and moreover why this uniquely American phenomenon became popular in the spirit of the times. They quite directly acknowledge what they are used for too, outright calling them "dangerous".
Look, I'm not trying to convince you that you are wrong for feeling what you are feeling, but I look at your post and just do not see what you are seeing. If anything, when you so absolutely state that they do not deserve the benefit of the doubt I'm left asking myself if I somehow misunderstood 99pi and how they position themselves towards people.
And after thinking about it all I can conclude is that 99pi deserves better.
They do acknowledge what they were used for though. They just don’t make it the focus of the episode because it’s a design podcast and they’re talking about the design.
As a born and bred darkie heathen who grew up in the Bible Belt and dealt with Chick Tracts deployed against me unironically as a tool for bullying, I found the episode did a good job of signposting why the tracts are bad while also pointing out why they were effective for what they were used for.
The article in question: https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/chick-tracts/