(Unknown caller 1): In this episode I examine the history of telemarketing and robocalls–from a 1942 Popular Mechanics article describing an auto-dialer to efforts by the FCC to address the recent resurgence of robocalls.
Category Archives: podcasts
Second Outgoing Message
This episode recalls the old Maxwell Street Market and the first night game at Wrigley field. Correction: I refer to the 2006 documentary about Maxwell Street as “Cheat Your Fair.” The correct title is Cheat You Fair: The Story of Maxwell Street.
Savitri’s First Message
In this episode I recall my time writing for the Grey City Journal and discuss the hymn that inspired the title of GCJ. The lyrics by Edwin H. Lewis were inspired by Chicago’s 1893 Columbian Exposition and became the University of Chicago’s alma mater.
First Outgoing Message (Outgoing 1)
This week’s episode leads me to discuss the “ship of fools” allegory from Michel Foucault’s History of Madness, a brief history of Illinois Central Railroad and the nineteenth century California writer Bret Harte.
Joel’s First Message (Joel 1)
This week’s message leads me to recall the great south Chicago institution AACM: The Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, and the 1987 world series victory of the Minnesota Twins.
Paul Mason Fotsch 