Why you should be watching ‘Parks and Rec’ | BP at the Daily

Below is an excerpt from my review of Parks and Recreation that ran in today’s edition of the Tufts Daily. The article is the latest edition of “Second Chances,” a semi−recurring feature that looks at TV shows that deserve a second chance from viewers. Their ratings may be low, but their quality is high, so if you tuned out early on, here’s our case for why you should give each show another try.

American Television: Not Quite the Land of Opportunity | BP at the Daily

design by Leanne Brotsky

For today’s Tufts Daily, I wrote the weekly Weekender feature, focusing on the continued lack of racial diversity on television. Although progress has been made over the past several decades, the roles available to people of color are still unrepresentative, qualitatively and quantitatively, of the population of color in the U.S.

I talked to TV critics and writers Mo Ryan (AOL), Dan Fienberg (HitFix), Josh Wolk (Vulture) and Myles McNutt (Cultural Learnings) to get their thoughts on the current TV landscape in terms of racial diversity. After the jump, I have the article intro, and you can read the full article at the Daily website here.

‘The Killing’ review | BP at the Daily

Dreary and methodical, "The Killing" makes for killer TV.

In today’s issue of the Tufts Daily, I review The Killing, AMC’s newest drama. Slow and methodical, it’s practically the anti-procedural, but is gripping nonetheless and features some terrific performances.

Crime and murder shows are a dime a dozen these days. “CSI,” “Law & Order,” “Criminal Minds,” their multiple spin-offs — it’s safe to say that you could turn on your TV at any moment and find a team of detectives investigating the latest whodunit and trying to bring a killer to justice.

Where “The Killing,” AMC’s newest drama series, varies from those shows, though, is that the titular crime is the focus of the entire 13-episode season, not just one episode. Each week’s installment does not tie up a different case in a neat little bow. Instead, the murder is drawn out, giving the audience the chance to see how it actually affects those parties involved.