Author Archives: Jon Murad

“Black Leaders” — from *Bulworth*

Most people, if they remember the movie Bulworth (1998) at all, remember Warren Beatty’s Senator Jay Bulworth and his bad socially conscious rapping. He has some big monologues about the media and race relations and healthcare. But for me, the … Continue reading

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American Gun Owner

I’m an American gun owner. I have three NYPD pistols. I grew up in Vermont, which has fewer gun regulations than Texas or anywhere else, for that matter. If I moved back, I’d be a hunter. (Back when I was … Continue reading

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Harvard Commencement Graduate Oration

Harvard Commencement Graduate Oration The YouTube video of my commencement speech, In Praise of Clip-on Ties.

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THE LEGACY OF THE TERROR ATTACK IN BOSTON

An OpEd of mine from The Citizen, the Kennedy School newspaper, published May 29, 2013, discussing the memorial service for MIT Officer Sean Collier and my experience at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. They had come from Cambridge … Continue reading

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In Praise of Clip-on Ties

From the Morning Exercises of Harvard University’s 2013 Commencement: The Graduate Oration. Good morning. My name is Jon Murad, and this is a clip-on tie. Not the height of fashion, perhaps, but when you’re a cop—as I am—there’s a definite … Continue reading

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The Internet Is People

The Internet has become inextricable from modern campaigning, thanks to the ubiquity of email and the cost-margins of online messaging. But have we really reached a point where elections are won on the web? This week’s readings make a strong … Continue reading

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Reports of My Death… Well, You Know the Rest

Watching the second presidential debate last night, I was struck by two quotes from one of this week’s readings: “[L]arge news media companies are being scooped by their own sources—even by their own reporters on Twitter!” And, ““[it] remains unclear … Continue reading

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It’s Good To Be The King: Why Leadership Reduces Stress

[From The Citizen, the HKS newspaper] Once you’ve been here for a while, you’ll eventually see them: the black SUVs parked in the Kennedy School Quad, with their flashing red and blue lights, and the taciturn men in dark suits … Continue reading

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Omphaloskepsis, Facebook, and the Filter Bubble

There’s something evocative about the boy in the bubble, isn’t there? Whether cloyingly portrayed by John Travolta, or childishly taunted over Trivial Pursuit by George Costanza (“I’m sorry, the answer we were looking for is moops”), the hermetically sealed child—or, … Continue reading

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Wikipedia and the RTCC

As noted in the “About” section, this blog was begun as a requirement for a class covering digital media and its social power. In order to ground us students in the topic, the professor has taken us on a head-spinning … Continue reading

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