Ramy Zabarah
Media Man
Writing Samples
The following article was published on August 19, 2014. Read it on Complex.com.
"Who the hell are you?” isn’t usually a question that sparks partnerships. But that’s just how a political journalist and a renegade filmmaker teamed up in an attempt to change the nature of documentary media.
Dylan Ratigan of MSNBC’s The Dylan Ratigan Show and documentary filmmaker Andrew Jenks of MTV’s World of Jenks recently launched a production company that delivers “substantive, entertaining content that humanizes storytelling.” You might remember Ratigan as the fiery personality who angrily criticized the role of U.S. politics during the financial crisis during a live broadcast in 2011. His 2012 book, Greedy Bastards spent five consecutive weeks on the New York Times Best Sellers List.
Jenks, who had an overwhelming amount of success the last decade, focuses on sharing the stories of everyday people in ways that combine the personal and unfiltered nature of reality TV and the educational style of documentary film. His popular show, World of Jenks, centers on the lives of regular young people, capturing their tales through their own perspectives. Jenks goes in deep and lives with each subject for a week.
The following article was published on August 18, 2014. Read it on Complex.com.
Here's a little history lesson. Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart, premiering Monday, August 18 on HBO, tells the story of the highly publicized murder trial of Pamela Smart, who in 1990 was convicted of killing her husband, Greg Smart in Derry, New Hampshire. The Smart trials marked the first time in the U.S. that a court case had been televised gavel to gavel. But more importantly, as filmmaker Jeremiah Zagar posits through footage from the trial as well as interviews with various people involved with the case, it was the first time intensified media coverage played a direct role in the outcome of the trial.
Zagar spoke to us about Captivated, his other work, and the various effects media has on its audience’s perceptions of reality.
The following article was published on July 23, 2014. Read it on Complex.com.
This weekend, the San Diego Convention Center will receive an influx of nearly 130,000 of the biggest aficionados of comics, television, movies, and books for the 44th International Comic-Con. Die-hard superfans and cosplayers will arrive from all over the world to catch a glimpse of actors and characters from their favorite films and shows. Those who were lucky enough to get tickets to the hyped-up media event will have access to exclusive previews, panel discussions, and special guest appearances for some of the entertainment industry's most highly anticipated releases of the year.
From the creators of the much awaited Sharknado 2 to the cast of the critically acclaimed (and underappreciated) Orphan Black, here are some panels and presentations at this year's San Diego Comic-Con that you won't want to miss.
The following article was published on July 9, 2014. Read it on Complex.com.
2014, the year in which some of your favorite actors have done some ridiculous and, yes, embarrassing shit. Neil Patrick Harris, the lovable showman and the only reason most people stuck with How I Met Your Mother for so long, unleashed some gross diarrhea into a couple of old-timer guys’ hats. Colin Farrell, who, prior to this year, was on a roll with underseen but solid flicks like Seven Psychopaths, rode a horse into the sky and became a star. Olivia Wilde, one of the world’s most beautiful women and an underrated actress, ran around a Parisian hotel’s hallways buck-naked after being sexually rejected by Liam Neeson. And Aaron Paul… Well, Jesse Pinkman he wasn’t while trying to look hardcore in a poor man’sFast & Furious ripoff.
And that’s barely scratching the surface. We’re merely at the halfway point in 2014 and there’s already been an influx of terrible cinema. Earlier this week, we singled out the year’s 30 best movies so far to remind everyone that, in the grand scheme of things, film buffs had it quite good from January through June, but now it’s time to bring the pain. These are The Worst Movies of 2014 (So Far), home to all those shameful moments described above and so many more fails.
The following article was published on June 27, 2014. Read it on Complex.com.
“So far as the United States seems to be concerned, it is only a slight overstatement to say that Muslims and Arabs are essentially seen as either oil suppliers or potential terrorists. Very little of the detail, the human density, the passion of Arab-Moslem life has entered the awareness of even those people whose profession it is to report the Arab world, presented in such a way as to make that world vulnerable to military aggression.” —Edward Said, "Islam Through Western Eyes" (The Nation, April 26, 1980)
On the first day of school in 2002, a boy with spiked blonde hair and glasses walked down the bleachers as we waited for gym class to start, introducing himself to his classmates one by one. As he approached me, he asked for my name, and when I replied, he asked, “Where are you from?” I said, “Yemen.” When he looked confused, I explained, “It’s right by Saudi Arabia.” His face became flush with disgust as he responded simply before turning away: “Terrorist.”
The following article was published on June 23, 2014. Read it on Complex.com.
Aaron Swartz was a revolutionary.
The name might ring a bell if you’re at all interested in the Internet rights debate, or even if, like me, you’re a redditor who remembers where you were the day he died.
The prodigal computer programmer was arrested in 2011 for downloading millions of journals from the digital library JSTOR with the intention of making them publicly available online. Only one of his many attempts to liberate exclusive content on the web, the punishment for Swartz’s crime was up to 35 years in prison and a $1 million fine. He was being made an example of.
The following article was published on May 25, 2014. Read it on Complex.com.
As far as TV dramas go, AMC’s Mad Men shines in its ability to accurately document various cultural groups and social movements of the 1960s in New York, and to a lesser extent, Los Angeles.
Last week, Mad Men gave us a taste of something the show has been largely missing since its premiere seven years ago: the LGBTQ struggle in the ‘60s, when engaging in homosexual activities could get you arrested, violently beaten by the police, or worse. But considering the program’s loyalty to detailed portrayals of the struggle of women in the workplace and out, why are we just now seeing the plights of the gay community? And why have certain landmark events for the progress of gay rights been omitted or only mentioned in passing?
The following interview was published on May 20, 2014. Read it on Complex.com.
Personality Complex is a regular feature of Complex's Pop Culture channel, where you'll be introduced to rising stars of film and television.
The modern young actor, constantly zooming through scripts and auditions, finds comfort in the dream of one day attending his/her own silver screen premiere. Yet a current generation of Internet-savvy media consumers continues to raise the bar when it comes to the progress of television programming and the TV culture new media has spawned, adding a whole new level of prestige and competition to the industry. One modern young actor in particular has found his dream TV opportunity, working with one of his all-time favorite filmmakers.
I’m often one to fall victim to the appeal of engaging in heated debates online, oblivious to the perception of social media skeptics who question the morality of sending off to sea our conventional sense of interpersonal connection, and more often than not, those debates involve cultural figures and the subtext of their behavior in the context of race, gender, and class.
Most recently, a close friend (rather, the online version of a close friend) chided me for my outrage that Macklemore was being considered a frontrunner for various Grammy awards in rap categories, citing unfair judgment due to the color of his skin (Macklemore is white, for context). In an attempt to explain my assertions with background and examples rooted in the extensive history Hip-Hop and systemic racism, I realized that I was furiously attacking someone who did not have the same background and passion that I did for race relations and the impact of systemic oppression…so I stepped back.
‘Better Out Than In: Culture Industry and Banksy’s illicit New York residency’
The Culture Soup (Personal Blog), 2013
Abstract: This essay aims to analyze Banksy’s month-long New York residency titled ‘Better Out Than In’ in October 2013 based primarily on the work of Frankfurt School philosophers Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer in their text, ‘Dialectic of Enlightenment (1944),’ and more specifically concerning their established theory of ‘Culture Industry’. In the text, Adorno and Horkheimer address similarities between mass culture and capitalist mass production, making connections such as homogeneity, manipulation, and consumer or audience passivity. Banksy, delivering a popular, yet unconventional style of creative cultural expression, challenges the Culture Industry on a regular basis, as exemplified by ‘Better Out Than In.’
Far be it from Kanye West to tell us what good music is (pun intended), but the genius behind his latest release proves once more that West has plenty of tricks up his sleeve.
That being said, it’s apparent that no fucks were given on his part in terms of marketability and consumer expectations. Somewhere between the gritty industrial beats, the radical lyricism and the innovative ‘je ne sais quoi’ that West is so known to offer, and like such albums as NWA’s ‘Straight Outta Compton‘ or Radiohead’s ‘Kid A,’ ‘Yeezus’ might possibly be the game-changer that won’t expose its true significance until years later.
From ‘On Sight,’ the distorted, head-bopping opener to ‘Hold My Liquor,’ the rock-ballad-type symphony with gorgeous vocals provided by Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, to ‘Bound,’ the album’s soulful conclusion, reminiscent of the earlier ‘College Dropout/Late Registration/Graduation’ sound, ‘Yeezus’ is a testament to the venturer in West.
‘Yeezus’ – Kanye’s ‘Kid A’
The Culture Soup (Personal Blog), 2013
Rollingout.com, 2013
Luis Daniel Montero is a 22-year-old kayak tour guide and volunteer for ASCONA (Asociacion De Servicio Comunitario Nacional y Ambiental), a local non-governmental organization dedicated to community service and environmental conservation on the Osa Peninsula.
Along with a few other ASCONA volunteers, Daniel, as he prefers to be called, is part of an extremely passionate group of activists protesting an American business-owner’s proposal for a large marina development project on the Gulfo Dulce, a proposal met with considerable opposition among Osa residents and various conservationists on and around the peninsula.
Fairfax, Virginia — This week, SGIA's LinkedIn group surpassed 4,000 members, a result of the dynamic growing online community within the specialty imaging industry. SGIA is continuously expanding their resources to reach industry professionals through social networking.
LinkedIn, “the world’s largest professional network,” has been instrumental in bringing the greater imaging community together and facilitating the networking of industry professionals. SGIA's LinkedIn group — as well as its subgroups for the Printed Electronics and Membrane Switch community (PEMS) and the Professional Decal Application Alliance (PDAA) — represents the graphic imaging industry as a whole, providing members with a great forum to share experiences and learn from experts and peers.
Live from the Patriot Center, it's Seth Meyers!
Broadside, 2010
Magic: The Gathering; a Card Game Bringing Students Together
Broadside, 2010
George Mason University has seen a great many stars come to campus this semester, and last Saturday was no exception.
Sports fans might know him as the host of this year’s ESPY’s, ESPN’s annual awards ceremony, while others might recognize him from his news parody segment on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” (“SNL”) where Meyers also serves as the show’s head writer.
We’ve all seen them, we’ve all heard them and we’ve all judged them, but does anyone actually know them?
For most students, the bottom level of SUB I is a place to get a quick bite to eat, grab a drink after a long day of class or play a game of pool to unwind. But for a certain group of students, it’s a place where they can be themselves.