Reality

In the state's first decision involving juries and social media, the Massachusetts Appeals Court has called on judges to better police jurors' use of the Internet to make sure they do not discuss cases online, and thus risk a mistrial. The court said judges need to do more to explain to jurors that refraining from conversations about a case also means not posting anything about it on Facebook or Twitter, common practice in today's technology-driven world. "Jurors must separate and insulate their jury service from their digital lives," the court said in a ruling involving a Plymouth Superior Court...

I agree with the four May 14 letters about the cost and value of higher education, but I feel they missed a key point in the discussion regarding the original op-ed by John E. Sununu, " Students don't get what they pay for . " There is no doubt that better-educated people are a value to society, and those with liberal arts degrees definitely enrich our lives and culture. However, the value society places on a person is largely determined by the business world. What the marketplace is willing to pay anyone is not necessarily their value to society but...

Is fiction good for us? We spend huge chunks of our lives immersed in novels, films, TV shows, and other forms of fiction. Some see this as a positive thing, arguing that made-up stories cultivate our mental and moral development. But others have argued that fiction is mentally and ethically corrosive. It's an ancient question: Does fiction build the morality of individuals and societies, or does it break it down? This controversy has been flaring up — sometimes literally, in the form of book burnings — ever since Plato tried to ban fiction from his ideal republic.

One in a series of occasional articles looking at the careers and records of the Massachusetts candidates for US Senate. WASHINGTON - Scott Brown's frustration and dismay boiled over one September night, in a rambling speech on the Senate floor. Suffering from what he said was a bout of pneumonia and sipping from a glass of water, the Massachusetts Republican launched into an unfiltered tirade, a diatribe against the Democrats in power, against his critics, against partisan squabbling, against gridlock.

Dina Eastwood has heard the question repeatedly: Why put her family and superstar husband Clint Eastwood on display for a reality TV show, generally the province of D-list or wannabe celebrities? The answer is simple, she said. "Mrs. Eastwood & Company," the E! series debuting 10 p.m. EDT Sunday, is her bid for stardom — not for herself, but for a vocal group, Overtone, that has become her passion. "I had a midlife crisis and I adopted a boy band," said the breezily candid Eastwood.

NEWTON - Dan Kennedy will graduate from Boston College on Monday, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and the recipient of the school's most prestigious prize, the Edward H. Finnegan Award. Winners of the Finnegan, given to the student who best exemplifies the BC motto, "ever to excel," tend to go big - top grad schools, Wall Street, overseas fellowships. Kennedy is planning to give away his computer, recycle his Blackberry, and move to a modest communal house in St. Paul, Minn.

Eighteen wins in a row, and eight more victories to go. That says it all about how the San Antonio Spurs are steamrolling through these playoffs at a pace that is flirting with NBA history, even if they are saying as little about it as possible. "We don't have any secret. We don't even think about it," Spurs guard Tony Parker said. There's plenty for everyone else to mull. Like whether these Spurs — some 13 years after winning their first of four championships — actually might be the best version yet. Game 1 of their first Western Conference finals since...

FIRST, a confession: I like to watch reality TV. Not all reality TV, not often. (I wish I could say, as I would about a junky magazine, "I saw it at the hairdresser" or " . . . while I was waiting in line at the supermarket. " But no — I sit in my living room, turn on the TV, and choose the station. I take full responsibility. Though I do also use the time to fold laundry.) The show I've gotten hooked on lately is called "Giuliana and Bill. " Giuliana and Bill are on TV because they are famous for being on TV — she as a host of E!

CONCORD — Part of what makes a painting a painting, regardless of whether it’s abstract or representational, is that when we see it we know it doesn’t present a slice of objective reality. Part of what makes a photograph a photograph, regardless of whether Walker Evans took it or a 6-year-old with a cellphone, is that we do assume it presents a slice of objective reality. “Seeing Is Believing,’’ which runs at the Concord Art Association through Aug. 12, wonders what happens when we don’t necessarily recognize a photograph as a photograph or when a photographer...

Kelly Cutrone knows how it works: She's supposed to bring the "reality" to fashion reality TV. That's what she did it on "The Hills," "The City" and "Kell on Earth. " Now it's "America's Next Top Model," where once again the truth can hurt. Cutrone's unflinching on-screen rep doesn't bother her a bit. The publicist with a long roster of hipster clients said she's trying to build stronger, smarter women. She wants young fans to see the seductive world of fashion with their eyes wide open.

The breakout performance at the Cannes Film Festival this year is Aniello Arena's turn as a Naples fishmonger who becomes obsessed with appearing on a "Big Brother"-style TV show in "Reality. " But the star will not be walking the red carpet at the Italian movie's gala premiere Friday. He'll be where he has been for two decades — in prison. Arena is riveting in the film by "Gomorrah" director Matteo Garrone — lively, likable and lost — and many viewers were astonished to learn he is serving a life sentence for murder.

Dina Eastwood has heard the question repeatedly: Why put her family and superstar husband Clint Eastwood on display for a reality TV show, generally the province of D-list or wannabe celebrities? The answer is simple, she said. "Mrs. Eastwood & Company," the E! series debuting 10 p.m. EDT Sunday, is her bid for stardom — not for herself, but for a vocal group, Overtone, that has become her passion. "I had a midlife crisis and I adopted a boy band," said the breezily candid Eastwood.

Get ready for Rob Gronkowski the reality TV star. The hard-partying Pats tight end is among a slew of C-list celebrities set to appear on Fox's new dating show "The Choice. " The prime-time show, which debuts June 7, will feature famous bachelors and bachelorettes auditioning sexy singles. In each episode, according to Entertainment Weekly, four celebs will sit in spinning chairs and listen to prospective dates pitch themselves. The pool of contestants is eventually pared down until the celebrities choose their date.

We got glimpses of it in Martin Scorsese 's "The Departed," Clint Eastwood 's "Mystic River," and Ben Affleck 's "Gone Baby Gone," but South Boston is about to get a TV show of its very own. A&E announced Wednesday that it has picked up "Southie Rules," a reality series that will track "one wicked-stubborn native South Boston family" as they deal with the gentrification of their neighborhood. The show, which begins production immediately, is the brainchild of the Somerville-based Powderhouse Productions and Magilla Entertainment, which has had a hand in such fine shows as "The ...

CBS sued ABC on Thursday to stop an upcoming reality show that CBS claims is being developed in violation of its copyrights and with secrets obtained from the long-running reality show "Big Brother. " The federal lawsuit seeks an injunction barring ABC from continuing its work or airing "The Glass House," a show that will film and allow viewers to vote off contestants living together in a house. CBS claims the show copies the formula used for its hit series "Big Brother," and that ABC has hired 19 of the show's former staffers to help make "Glass House.

FIRST, a confession: I like to watch reality TV. Not all reality TV, not often. (I wish I could say, as I would about a junky magazine, "I saw it at the hairdresser" or " . . . while I was waiting in line at the supermarket. " But no — I sit in my living room, turn on the TV, and choose the station. I take full responsibility. Though I do also use the time to fold laundry.) The show I've gotten hooked on lately is called "Giuliana and Bill. " Giuliana and Bill are on TV because they are famous for being on TV — she as a host of E!

Q. How did you come to be on “Kitchen Nightmares’’? We needed new training, new thinking, to revitalize everything — mostly myself. I never expected it to turn out to what it has. It will be lucky or unlucky. We don’t yet know the outcome.

A local reality check: James DiSaba- tino and his Cleveland Circle-based Roxy's Grilled Cheese truck have made it to the final three on the Food Network's "Great Food Truck Race. " The local sandwich chefs just have to beat out California's the Lime Truck and Cleveland's Hodge Podge to win. Meanwhile, the pride of Barnstable High School - Jonathan "The Greek Mystique" Sarhanis (above) got kicked off "Ton of Cash," a VH1 program that challenges eccentrics to haul loads of money from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.