Assistant Teaching Professor of Tech & Prof Comm at University of Washington. Formerly: USU, CMU (PhD). Producer/co-host @reverb_cast. Tweets my own. He/him.
Seattle, WA
Joined May 2018
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Calvin Pollak retweeted
New re:verb! 📢
In this ep (recorded early on 6/23), we confront the alarming reality of US strikes on Iran and ensuing escalation of tensions, in the context of decades of neoconservative influence & prior escalations like Soleimani's 2020 assassination.
reverbcast.com/podcasts/2025…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
We also discuss the AI hype cycle, the validity of arguments about job prospects for humanities grads, the importance of studying literature and culture for their own sake, and the ongoing need for Cultural Studies' tradition of critique.
Listen here:
reverbcast.com/podcasts/2026…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
We discuss the conspicuous use of the word "innovation" to launder controversial administrative changes with a seemingly apolitical positive spin. (Ironically, core CMU LCS faculty member Jeff Williams deftly critiqued this rhetoric about 10 years ago.)
dissentmagazine.org/article/…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
"Immediately after the ruling, [Tricia] McLaughlin urged Khalil to 'self-deport now before he is arrested, deported, and never given a chance to return.'"
It's appalling how this administration is abusing its power to deport a law abiding husband and father because Israel fanatics don't like his views. Of course, it's not surprising that the Third Circuit's abysmal and illogical decision has emboldened their tyrannical approach
Calvin Pollak retweeted
LEAKED: Israel Is Considered a ‘Genocidal, Apartheid Country’ Abroad, According to Israel’s Own Research We Obtained dropsitenews.com/p/leaked-is…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
In its alleged fight against antisemitism, the Trump administration has relied on two groups with murky funders—one of which is in Israel.
Here's my deep dive into Canary Mission and Betar, two extreme Zionist groups at the heart of Trump's crackdown. thebaffler.com/latest/for-be…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
Breaking News: DOGE put the personal information of hundreds of millions of Americans at risk by uploading Social Security data to a vulnerable cloud server, a whistle-blower complaint said.
nyti.ms/3HUiQaP
Calvin Pollak retweeted
Israeli army database suggests at least 83% of Gaza dead were civilians
Classified intelligence from May reveals Israel believed it had killed ~8,900 militants in Gaza, indicating a proportion of civilian slaughter with few parallels in modern warfare.
972mag.com/israeli-intellige…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
The Incredible Disappearing Human Rights Reports
The State Department’s new reports whitewash the records of some of the world’s most notorious nations and targets Trump’s enemies.
theintercept.com/2025/08/14/…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
In this investigation we are exposing Israel’s so-called “legitimization cell”, which sought to label Gaza journalists as Hamas for ‘hasbara’ purposes: to counter media criticism over the army’s mass killing of reporters in Gaza.
972mag.com/israel-gaza-journ…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
Check out the episode, and if you have any questions or concerns about it (or about anything else), feel free to contact our custom-tuned chatbot, @reverb_Bakh!
reverbcast.com/podcasts/2025…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
🚨🚨🚨 New podcast! 🚨🚨🚨
Check out "'Shoveling cultural snow', or: Season's greetings from AI Slop Summer" right now:
reverbcast.com/podcasts/2025…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
One thing Mahmoud Khalil said at the press conference today that will always remain with me was that he was placed with 70 others in a single cell — and that he would see men cry every day not knowing when they’d see their families again.
This system has got to go.
Calvin Pollak retweeted
I think a bigger part of left-wing anti-war messaging should be that we are not afraid of or hateful toward people in other countries.
Calvin Pollak retweeted
During these critical moments following the US bombing of Iran, key lawmakers and pundits are circulating a lie on par w/ Iraq WMD falsehoods: that Iran has a nuclear weapons program. US intel consensus is they do not. Does it matter? By me/@adamjohnsonCHI columnblog.com/p/lawmakers-a…
Calvin Pollak retweeted
The media should be reminding readers and viewers of this constantly, but it won't:
None of the nuclear sites illegally attacked by the US were hidden or secret. All of them operate under expanded IAEA monitoring, as they have for years. The US bombed safeguarded nuclear sites.