With the absence of any news to occupy your mind, you probably are wondering what Zach Snyder used to accessorize his dapper suit for the 2023 Hollywood Reporter profile. And, if you can only remember the top portion of the photo you would be justified in guessing a croquet mallet of course! Well…

This looks to be a great and necessary conversation!

In my personal newsletter this week: 51(ish) things you can do to make a difference. amandalitman.substack.com/p/50-things-...

Another great issue from the @contexts.org crew! Check out @kaareeenah.bsky.social's review of @karenlevy.bsky.social's Data Driven and Madison Van Oort's Worn Out! - journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10.... - I really appreciate the part on moving from an either/or to a both/and approach to organizing.

co-hosted Dear Adam Silver podcast and spoke to Emmy Award-winning writer, comedian and producer James Hamilton (@thejamham.bsky.social) about basketball fandom, the changing media landscape, his favorite jerseys, and his about to drop podcast Posters! podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/e...

@firstpublics.bsky.social is asking the type of questions that I think all academics should be asking at this moment. Honored to be included on an advisory board made up people I value and respect and excited to see where this project goes! thesocietypages.org/firstpublics...

new GTaC! @aliciamwalker1.bsky.social and @ariellekuperberg.bsky.social stopped by to discuss their new book Bound by BDSM: Unexpected Lessons in Building a Happier Life: thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/... @sunybrockport.bsky.social @thesocietypages.bsky.social @bloomsburyacad.bsky.social

one relevant starter pack: go.bsky.app/2Fq4P6e

new GTaC! Stefano Bloch shares lessons from his recently published article “Crime as Relational Concept in Political Geography” and says nice things about @timcresswell.bsky.social - thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/... @sunybrockport.bsky.social @thesocietypages.bsky.social @uarizona.bsky.social

Hi all, I’ve got a crowd sourcing request for an essay I plan on writing. Please send me the names of any movies where someone chops wood with an axe, maul, or wedge (or I guess chipper or saw). *the scene does not have to central to the plot! *many thanks in advance!

As sociologists we have failed to adequately address the absurdity and canon prophesying powers of Max Weber’s full name. *Unless this is a wikipedia joke that made it into the Routledge Encyclopedia of Modernism and the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Can't wait to listen. The mundanity paper is one of my all-time favorites. Thanks for sharing!

"...this is an ideological project to remove local news access from rural communities...It eliminates access to information within one’s own community. This is about changing the information ecosystem that eliminates local news & replaces it with national news."

New GTaC! @danchambliss.bsky.social joins us to reflect on life lessons that can be taken from reading social theory. Really enjoyed thinking about how the "mundanity of excellence" extends far beyond the pool. @sunybrockport.bsky.social #hamiltoncollege - thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/...

What will defunding NPR, PBS, and public media affiliates mean for democratic media, and how will the rescission bill affect First Nations communications? I wrote a concise analysis with Allison Perlman (UC-Irvine).

One of my faves this issue is @ashley-c-rondini.bsky.social and @dcunningham-stl.bsky.social's piece, "TQ+: public memory, structural violence, and transgender erasure," on the indelible trans and queer community refusing erasure by Executive Order! journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10....

Our new issue is free to read, download, and share: contexts.org/articles/sp2... Peer-reviewed features include: ↪️@cantonwiner.bsky.social‬ on asexuality and queer gatekeeping ↪️‪@makchur.bsky.social‬ and JV Bastidas on environmental justice ↪️@avbsoc.bsky.social‬ on conservatorships #Sociology

It's here! Our latest issue takes up big social problems, from the multi-front assault on queer and trans people to the opioid epidemic, urban segregation, and environmental racism. #sociology Clickable table of contents: contexts.org/articles/sp25-toc/ Companion playlist: tinyurl.com/CTXsp25tunes

The new issue of @contexts.org is a good one! And be sure to check out @dsilver432.bsky.social's examination of the @jonwynn.bsky.social ouvré (including The Setup, Jon's debut work of fiction) - journals.sagepub.com/doi/epdf/10....

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New GTaC! @sethabrutyn.bsky.social returns (!) to discuss Daniel Chambliss's "The Mundanity of Excellence: An Ethnographic Report on the Stratification of Swimmers" (1988) - thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/... @sunybrockport.bsky.social #hamiltoncollege

🚨New blog! Yolanda Wiggins, SJSU sociologist and Public Voices Fellow w/ The Op-Ed Project, urges us to "Let Sociology Majors Dream Bigger" and trust that the discipline "can thrive beyond traditional academic spaces" ↪️contexts.org/blog/dream-bigger/

New GTaC! Rahsaan Mahadeo introduces us to the ideas of Denise Ferreira da Silva and helps us understand the radical/generative possibilities of engaging with her work. thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/... podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/r... @sunybrockport.bsky.social @thesocietypages.bsky.social

"you root for the sacramento kings because you are a sick pervert, not because you believe they will ever win the nba finals." (this piece is fantastic.)

is it banana tell me it's banana

Spent the morning talking about AI use in the classroom, what professors can do, and whether it is all simply inevitable as a guest on Connections with Evan Dawson. Listen here —> www.wxxinews.org/show/connect... Watch here —> www.youtube.com/live/U2EU9Bl... @wxxirochester.bsky.social

I'm deeply, deeply saddened by the passing of Richard Alba @alba42.bsky.social. He was such a great scholar and source of support to me - blurbing my first book, writing for me on multiple occasions, and generally discussing ideas (incl when we didn't agree - which is rare for scholars these days).

Wonderful collection of sociology podcasts put together by the @asanews.bsky.social! Also great to see the Give Methods a Chance and the Give Theory a Chance featured! --> www.asanet.org/public-engag... @thesocietypages.bsky.social @sunybrockport.bsky.social

If you want a certain kind of grassroots resistance to Trumpism, what you do is encourage and participate in that kind of resistance. What you don't do is sit on your hands until people come up with something without you, and then say "no, not that."

Tomorrow! (+ check out my conversation with Jon - thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/... + get yourself a copy of his book!)

I had a great time talking to @sarahksshannon.bsky.social and Natalia Pires De Vosconcelos about my experience hosting/producing the Give Theory a Chance podcast. The edited writeup of our conversation is available on @firstpublics.bsky.social! thesocietypages.org/firstpublics...

[downloading for the next time I teach soc theory!] --->

I'll add on personal note that the conversation with @jonwynn.bsky.social about a passion project that tests what sociology can be/do/is was inspiring and particularly timely as Abigail Smithson (aka Dear Adam Silver) and I begin our own sociological experiment.

New GTaC! @jonwynn.bsky.social talks the The Set Up (beltpublishing.com/products/the...), his debut work of fiction releasing on May 20th! thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/... podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/j... @sunybrockport.bsky.social @thesocietypages.bsky.social @umassamherst.bsky.social

Register now (free) for our 2nd Annual Sports & Activism online symposium in partnership with Vanderbilt's James Lawson Institute. A great lineup of speakers already confirmed & more to come. May 15, 12-3 pm Central. More info & register: bit.ly/4jMz0QQ

Had a great time talking about the Give Theory a Chance podcast with @sarahksshannon.bsky.social and @nataliapires.bsky.social. Excited to see what they do with the conversation for @firstpublics.bsky.social (and check out all the exciting work happening at First Publics)!

Check out my conversation with @kylethegreen.bsky.social about Parsons’ theory of action. Topics covered include the convergence thesis, emanationist idealism, the utilitarian dilemma, and the problem of order.

Talcott Parsons reached for the sun and even he got burnt there’s lots to learn. Had a blast taking with Kyle about early Parsons and the theory of action.

New GTaC episode! @dsilver432.bsky.social helps me understand the logic of Talcott Parsons and convinces me of the joy of engaging with his ambitious theorizing - thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/... *listen on The Society Pages or your favorite podcast app! #socialtheory #Parsons #sociology

Hot off the presses!

send them trends!

RIP David Lynch

great podcast you have there! Keep at it... Dan Silver is terrific, so will check out the Simmel episode.

New Give Theory a Chance episode! thesocietypages.org/theory/2025/... @mclaughlinsoc.bsky.social discusses the wonder, the limitations, and the lessons learned from the rise, fall, and resurgence of the writings of Erich Fromm. @thesocietypages.bsky.social @mcmasteruniversity.bsky.social