Ignorant ? Perhaps, But Not Unintelligent

Yes another book about the failings of the younger generations was published recently. It is titled "The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future (Or, Don't Trust Anyone Under 30) ". The author, Mark Bauerlein, a professor at Emery University, it blaming the digital revolution - the Web, cellphones, etc. - for dulling the younger generations.
In a recent op-ed in the Washington Post, Anne Applebaum also claims that our kids a"stupider than we were".
I don't agree to that. Are kids stupider? Absolutely not - ask any parent or educator. But something breaks along the way, and you seldom see that spark, that hunger for deep knowledge and intellectual challenge. And worse - they don't seem to care about that.

Quick: What's Britney's Middle Name?

These days, it would be much easier for an E! channel-addicted viewer to beat a professor of history at the Wheel of Fortune. Bridget McManus - a TV critique for The Age - on the sorry state of Australian quiz shows.

High Time to Learn Spanish

Joe Mathews, a senior fellow at the non-partisan New America Foundation, notes in a recent Washington Post opinion article that news in Spanish is more "timely, serious and civic-minded" than its English counterpart. The article's conclusion:

It's enough to make one wonder if it isn't time for our political leaders to turn off the English-language TV and encourage good citizens to learn Spanish, the language of civic-minded news.

And if you're still struggling with noticias en español, the article quotes Josh Kun, a USC communications professor, who recommends BBC News as a place to look for "better news".