Karen Aagaard

"When people stop being polite... and start getting real," is the mixed-message voice-over that opened, and continues to open, MTV's pioneering docudrama reality show, The Real World. As a viewer, this description functioned as a promise and an excuse. As though "politeness" was somehow a threat to reality. With... continue reading on Torontoist

Culture Club is Torontoist's Canadian pop culture column. We'll be waxing philosophical about the trivial, the titillating, and the mundane on a semi-regular basis. Manuel Deon tells us about his YouTube semi-stardom. It’s a hot, humid day in clubland. The mid-afternoon sun is unrelenting, and the hum of air conditioners... continue reading on Torontoist

Illustration by Brian McLachlan/Torontoist. It’s that time of year again—the time when those who love to hate average food start writing snobbish soliloquies about the pitfalls of Summerlicious. (We should know; we wrote one about Winterlicious last year.) Some say Summerlicious menus pale in comparison to the participating restaurants'... continue reading on Torontoist

Culture Club is Torontoist's Canadian pop culture column. We'll be waxing philosophical about the trivial, the titillating, and the mundane on a bi-weekly basis. Robert Mankoff and Margaret Wente talk 'toons. "Have you ever heard of the Internet meme, 'Christ, what an asshole'?" asked Torontoist illustrator Brian McLachlan, standing in... continue reading on Torontoist

Culture Club is Torontoist's (brand new) Canadian pop culture column. We'll be waxing philosophical about the trivial, the titillating, and the mundane on a bi-weekly basis. Sean Ward talks pants (and blogs) at Toronto Blog Stars event. Photo by Nick Kozak/Torontoist. When Kara DioGuardi criticized one of the contestants on... continue reading on Torontoist