title: Digital photography

text: The first consumer digital cameras were marketed in the late 1990s. Professionals gravitated to digital slowly, and were won over when their professional work required using digital files to fulfill the demands of employers and/or clients, for faster turnaround than conventional methods would allow. Starting around 2000, digital cameras were incorporated in cell phones and in the following years, cell phone cameras became widespread, particularly due to their connectivity to social media websites and email. Since 2010, the digital point-and-shoot and DSLR formats have also seen competition from the mirrorless digital camera format, which typically provides better image quality than the point-and-shoot or cell phone formats but comes in a smaller size and shape than the typical DSLR. Many mirrorless cameras accept interchangeable lenses and have advanced features through an electronic viewfinder, which replaces the through-the-lens finder image of the SLR format.


title: Digital photography

text: While digital photography has only relatively recently become mainstream, the late 20th century saw many small developments leading to its creation. The history of digital photography as we know it began in the 1950s. In 1951, the first digital signals were saved to magnetic tape via the first video tape recorder. Six years later, in 1957, the first digital image was produced through a computer by Russell Kirsch. It was an image of his son.


title: Digital photography

text: The first semiconductor image sensor was the CCD, invented by physicists Willard S. Boyle and George E. Smith at Bell Labs in 1969. While researching the MOS process, they realized that an electric charge was the analogy of the magnetic bubble and that it could be stored on a tiny MOS capacitor. As it was fairly straightforward to fabricate a series of MOS capacitors in a row, they connected a suitable voltage to them so that the charge could be stepped along from one to the next. The CCD is a semiconductor circuit that was later used in the first digital video cameras for television broadcasting, and its invention was recognized by a Nobel Prize in Physics in 2009.


title: Digital photography

text: The first image of Mars was taken as the Mariner 4 flew by it on July 15, 1965, with a camera system designed by NASA/JPL. Later, in 1976 the Mars Viking Lander produced digital images from the surface of Mars. While not what we usually define as a digital camera, it used a comparable process. It used a video camera tube, followed by a digitizer, rather than a mosaic of solid state sensor elements. This produced a digital image that was stored on tape for later slow transmission back to Earth.


title: Digital photography

text: The first published color digital photograph was produced in 1972 by Michael Francis Tompsett using CCD sensor technology and was featured on the cover of "Electronics Magazine". It was a picture of his wife, Margaret Thompsett.


title: Digital photography

text: The Cromemco Cyclops, a digital camera developed as a commercial product and interfaced to a microcomputer, was featured in the February 1975 issue of "Popular Electronics" magazine. It used metal-oxide semiconductor (MOS) technology for its image sensor.


title: Digital photography

text: An important development in digital image compression technology was the discrete cosine transform (DCT), a lossy compression technique first proposed by Nasir Ahmed while he was working at the Kansas State University in 1972. DCT compression is used in JPEG image standard, which was introduced by the Joint Photographic Experts Group in 1992. JPEG compresses images down to much smaller file sizes, and has become the most widely used image file format. The JPEG standard was largely responsible for popularizing digital photography.


title: Digital photography

text: The first self-contained (portable) digital camera was created later in 1975 by Steven Sasson of Eastman Kodak. Sasson's camera used CCD image sensor chips developed by Fairchild Semiconductor in 1973. The camera weighed 8 pounds (3.6 kg), recorded black-and-white images to a cassette tape, had a resolution of 0.01 megapixels (10,000 pixels), and took 23 seconds to capture its first image in December 1975. The prototype camera was a technical exercise, not intended for production. While it was not until 1981 that the first consumer camera was produced by Sony, Inc., the groundwork for digital imaging and photography had been laid.


title: Digital photography

text: The first digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera was the Nikon SVC prototype demonstrated in 1986, followed by the commercial Nikon QV-1000C released in 1988. The first widely commercially available digital camera was the 1990 Dycam Model 1; it also sold as the Logitech Fotoman. It used a CCD image sensor, stored pictures digitally, and connected directly to a computer for downloading images. Originally offered to professional photographers for a hefty price, by the mid-to-late 1990s, due to technology advancements, digital cameras were commonly available to the general public.


title: Digital photography

text: The advent of digital photography also gave way to cultural changes in the field of photography. Unlike with traditional photography, dark rooms and hazardous chemicals were no longer required for the post-production of an image – images could now be processed and enhanced from behind a computer screen in one's own home. This allowed photographers to be more creative with their processing and editing techniques. As the field became more popular, types of digital photography and photographers diversified. Digital photography took photography itself from a small somewhat elite circle to one that encompassed many people.


title: Digital photography

text: The camera phone helped popularize digital photography, along with the Internet, social media, and the JPEG image format. The first cell phones with built-in digital cameras were produced in 2000 by Sharp and Samsung. Small, convenient, and easy to use, camera phones have made digital photography ubiquitous in the daily life of the general public.


title: Digital photography

text: Image sensors are arrays of electronic devices that convert the optical image created by the camera lens into a digital file that is stored in some digital memory device, inside or outside the camera. Each element of the image sensor array measures the intensity of light hitting a small area of the projected image (a pixel) and converts it to a digital value.


title: Digital photography

text: The two main types of sensors are charge-coupled devices (CCD), in which the photocharge is shifted to a central charge-to-voltage converter, and CMOS or active pixel sensors.


title: Digital photography

text: Most cameras for the general consumer market create color images, in which each pixel has a color value from a three-dimensional color space like RGB. Although there is light-sensing technology that can distinguish the wavelength of the light incident on each pixel, most cameras use monochrome sensors that can only record the intensity of that light, over a broad range of wavelengths that includes all the visible spectrum. To obtain color images, those cameras depend on color filters applied over each pixel, typically in a Bayer pattern, or (rarely) on movable filters or light splitters such as dichroic mirrors. The resulting grayscale images are then combined to produce a color image. This step is usually performed by the camera itself, although some cameras may optionally provide the unprocessed grayscale images in a so-called raw image format.


title: Digital photography

text: However, some special-purpose cameras, such as those for thermal mapping, or low light viewing, or high speed capture, may record only monochrome (grayscale) images. The Leica Monochrom cameras, for example, opted for a grayscale-only sensor to get better resolution and dynamic range. The reduction from three-dimensional color to grayscale or simulated sepia toning may also be performed by digital post-processing, often as an option in the camera itself. On the other hand, some multispectral cameras may record more than three color coordinates for each pixel.


title: Digital photography

text: Except for some linear array type of cameras at the highest end and simple webcams at the lowest end, a digital memory device (usually a memory card; floppy disks and CD-RWs are less common) is used for storing images, which may be transferred to a computer later.


title: Digital photography

text: Digital cameras can take pictures, and may also record sound and video. Some can be used as webcams, some can use the PictBridge standard to connect to a printer without using a computer, and some can display pictures directly on a television set. Similarly, many camcorders can take still photographs, and store them on videotape or on flash memory cards with the same functionality as digital cameras.


title: Digital photography

text: Digital photography is an example of the shift from converting conventional analog information to digital information. This shift was a chemical and mechanical process that later became a completely digital process with built-in computers in all cameras.


title: Digital photography

text: The quality of a digital image is a composite of various factors, many of which are similar to those of film cameras. Pixel count (typically listed in megapixels, millions of pixels) is only one of the major factors, though it is the most heavily marketed figure of merit. Digital camera manufacturers advertise this figure because consumers can use it to easily compare camera capabilities. It is not, however, the major factor in evaluating a digital camera for most applications. The processing system inside the camera that turns the raw data into a color-balanced and pleasing photograph is usually more critical, which is why some 4+ megapixel cameras perform better than higher-end cameras.


title: Digital photography

text: Resolution in pixels is not the only measure of image quality. A larger sensor with the same number of pixels generally produces a better image than a smaller one. One of the most important differences is an improvement in image noise. This is one of the advantages of digital SLR (single-lens reflex) cameras, which have larger sensors than simpler cameras (so-called point and shoot cameras) of the same resolution.


title: Digital photography

text: The number of pixels "n" for a given maximum resolution ("w" horizontal pixels by "h" vertical pixels) is the product "n"= "w × h". This yields e. g. 1.92 megapixels (1,920,000 pixels) for an image of 1600 × 1200.


title: Digital photography

text: The pixel count quoted by manufacturers can be misleading as it may not be the number of full-color pixels. For cameras using single-chip image sensors the number claimed is the total number of single-color-sensitive photosensors, whether they have different locations in the plane, as with the Bayer sensor, or in stacks of three co-located photosensors as in the Foveon X3 sensor. However, the images have different numbers of RGB pixels: Bayer-sensor cameras produce as many RGB pixels as photosensors via demosaicing (interpolation), while Foveon sensors produce uninterpolated image files with one-third as many RGB pixels as photosensors. Comparisons of megapixel ratings of these two types of sensors are sometimes a subject of dispute.


title: Digital photography

text: The relative increase in detail resulting from an increase in resolution is better compared by looking at the number of pixels across (or down) the picture, rather than the total number of pixels in the picture area. For example, a sensor of 2560 × 1600 sensor elements is described as "4 megapixels" (2560 × 1600= 4,096,000). Increasing to 3200 × 2048 increases the pixels in the picture to 6,553,600 (6.5 megapixels), a factor of 1.6, but the pixels per cm in the picture (at the same image size) increases by only 1.25 times. A measure of the comparative increase in linear resolution is the square root of the increase in area resolution, i.e., megapixels in the entire image.


title: Digital photography

text: Practical imaging systems both digital and film, have a limited "dynamic range": the range of luminosity that can be reproduced accurately. Highlights of the subject that are too bright are rendered as white, with no detail; shadows that are too dark are rendered as black. The loss of detail in the highlights is not abrupt with film, or in dark shadows with digital sensors. "Highlight burn-out" of digital sensors, is not usually abrupt in output images due to the tone mapping required to fit their large dynamic range into the more limited dynamic range of the output (be it SDR display or printing). Because sensor elements for different colors saturate in turn, there can be hue or saturation shift in burnt-out highlights.


title: Digital photography

text: Some digital cameras can show these blown highlights in the image review, allowing the photographer to re-shoot the picture with a modified exposure. Others compensate for the total contrast of a scene by selectively exposing darker pixels longer. A third technique is used by Fujifilm in its FinePix S3 Pro digital SLR. The image sensor contains additional photodiodes of lower sensitivity than the main ones; these retain detail in parts of the image too bright for the main sensor.


title: Digital photography

text: High-dynamic-range imaging (HDR) addresses this problem by increasing the dynamic range of images by either


title: Digital photography

text: Many camera phones and most digital cameras use memory cards having flash memory to store image data. The majority of cards for separate cameras are Secure Digital (SD) format; many are CompactFlash (CF) and the other formats are rare. XQD card format was the last new form of card, targeted at high-definition camcorders and high-resolution digital photo cameras. Most modern digital cameras also use internal memory for a limited capacity for pictures that can be transferred to or from the card or through the camera's connections; even without a memory card inserted into the camera.


title: Digital photography

text: Memory cards can hold vast numbers of photos, requiring attention only when the memory card is full. For most users, this means hundreds of quality photos stored on the same memory card. Images may be transferred to other media for archival or personal use. Cards with high speed and capacity are suited to video and burst mode (capture several photographs in quick succession).


title: Digital photography

text: Because photographers rely on the integrity of image files, it is important to take proper care of memory cards. Common advocacy calls for formatting of the cards after transferring the images onto a computer. However, since all cameras only do quick formatting of cards, it is advisable to carry out a more thorough formatting using appropriate software on a PC once in a while. Effectively, this involves scanning the cards to search for possible errors.


title: Digital photography

text: The primary advantage of consumer-level digital cameras is the low recurring cost, as users need not purchase photographic film. Processing costs may be reduced or even eliminated. Digicams tend also to be easier to carry and use than comparable film cameras. They more easily adapt to modern use of pictures. Some, particularly those that are smartphones, can send their pictures directly to e-mail or web pages or other electronic distribution.


title: Digital photography

text: Manufacturers such as Nikon and Canon have promoted the adoption of digital single-lens reflex cameras (DSLRs) by photojournalists. Images captured at 2+ megapixels are deemed of sufficient quality for small images in newspaper or magazine reproduction. Eight- to 24-megapixel images, found in modern digital SLRs, when combined with high-end lenses, can approximate the detail of film prints from 35 mm film based SLRs.


title: Digital photography

text: A large number of mechanical film cameras existed, such as the Leica M2. These battery-less devices had advantages over digital devices in harsh or remote conditions.


title: Digital photography

text: Turn of the century digital cameras had a long start-up delay compared to film cameras, i.e., the delay from when they are turned on until they are ready to take the first shot, but this is no longer the case for modern digital cameras with start-up times under 1/4 seconds.


title: Digital photography

text: While some film cameras could reach up to 14 fps, like the Canon F-1 with rare high-speed motor drive., professional digital SLR cameras can take still photographs at the highest frame rates. While the Sony SLT technology allows rates of up to 12 fps, the Canon EOS-1Dx can take stills at a 14 fps rate. The Nikon F5 is limited to 36 continuous frames (the length of the film) without the cumbersome bulk film back, while the digital Nikon D5 is able to capture over 100 14-bit RAW images before its buffer must be cleared and the remaining space on the storage media can be used.


title: Digital photography

text: Depending on the materials and how they are stored, analog photographic film and prints may fade as they age. Similarly, the media on which digital images are stored or printed can decay or become corrupt, leading to a loss of image integrity.


title: Digital photography

text: Color reproduction (gamut) is dependent on the type and quality of film or sensor used and the quality of the optical system and film processing. Different films and sensors have different color sensitivity; the photographer needs to understand his equipment, the light conditions, and the media used to ensure accurate color reproduction. Many digital cameras offer RAW format (sensor data), which makes it possible to choose color space in the development stage regardless of camera settings.


title: Digital photography

text: Even in RAW format, however, the sensor and the camera's dynamics can only capture colors within the gamut supported by the hardware. When that image is transferred for reproduction on any device, the widest achievable gamut is the gamut that the end device supports. For a monitor, it is the gamut of the display device. For a photographic print, it is the gamut of the device that prints the image on a specific type of paper. Color gamut or Color space is an area where points of color fit in a three-dimensional space.


title: Digital photography

text: Professional photographers often use specially designed and calibrated monitors that help them to reproduce color accurately and consistently.


title: Digital photography

text: Most digital point & shoot cameras have an aspect ratio of 1.33 (4:3), the same as analog television or early movies. However, a 35 mm picture's aspect ratio is 1.5 (3:2). Several digital cameras take photos in either ratio and nearly all digital SLRs take pictures in a 3:2 ratio, as most can use lenses designed for 35 mm film. Some photo labs print photos on 4:3 ratio paper, as well as the existing 3:2. In 2005 Panasonic launched the first consumer camera with a native aspect ratio of 16:9, matching HDTV. This is similar to a 7:4 aspect ratio, which was a common size for APS film. Different aspect ratios are one of the reasons consumers have issues when cropping photos. An aspect ratio of 4:3 translates to a size of 4.5"x6.0". This loses half an inch when printing on the "standard" size of 4"x6", an aspect ratio of 3:2. Similar cropping occurs when printing on other sizes, i.e., 5"x7", 8"x10", or 11"x14".


title: Digital photography

text: In late 2002, the cheapest digital cameras were available in the United States for around $100. At the same time, many discount stores with photo labs introduced a "digital front end", allowing consumers to obtain true chemical prints (as opposed to ink-jet prints) in an hour. These prices were similar to those of prints made from film negatives.


title: Digital photography

text: In July 2003, digital cameras entered the disposable camera market with the release of the Ritz Dakota Digital, a 1.2-megapixel (1280 x 960) CMOS-based digital camera costing only $11 (USD). Following the familiar single-use concept long in use with film cameras, Ritz intended the Dakota Digital for single use. When the pre-programmed 25-picture limit is reached, the camera is returned to the store, and the consumer receives back prints and a CD-ROM with their photos. The camera is then refurbished and resold.


title: Digital photography

text: Since the introduction of the Dakota Digital, a number of similar single-use digital cameras have appeared. Most single-use digital cameras are nearly identical to the original Dakota Digital in specifications and function, though a few include superior specifications and more advanced functions (such as higher image resolutions and LCD screens). Most, if not all these single-use digital cameras cost less than $20 (USD), not including processing. However, the huge demand for complex digital cameras at competitive prices has often caused manufacturing shortcuts, evidenced by a large increase in customer complaints over camera malfunctions, high parts prices, and short service life. Some digital cameras offer only a 90-day warranty.


title: Digital photography

text: Since 2003, digital cameras have outsold film cameras. Prices of 35mm compact cameras have dropped with manufacturers further outsourcing to countries such as China. Kodak announced in January 2004 that they would no longer sell Kodak-branded film cameras in the developed world. In January 2006, Nikon followed suit and announced they would stop production of all but two models of their film cameras. They will continue to produce the low-end Nikon FM10, and the high-end Nikon F6. In the same month, Konica Minolta announced it was pulling out of the camera business altogether. The price of 35mm and APS (Advanced Photo System) compact cameras have dropped, probably due to direct competition from digital and the resulting growth of the offer of second-hand film cameras. Pentax have reduced production of film cameras but not halted it. The technology has improved so rapidly that one of Kodak's film cameras was discontinued before it was awarded a "camera of the year" award later in the year. The decline in film camera sales has also led to a decline in purchases of film for such cameras. In November 2004, a German division of Agfa-Gevaert, AgfaPhoto, split off. Within six months it filed for bankruptcy. Konica Minolta Photo Imaging, Inc., ended production of Color film and paper worldwide by March 31, 2007. In addition, by 2005, Kodak employed less than a third of the employees it had twenty years earlier. It is not known if these job losses in the film industry have been offset in the digital image industry. Digital cameras have decimated the film photography industry through the declining use of the expensive film rolls and development chemicals previously required to develop the photos. This has had a dramatic effect on companies such as Fuji, Kodak, and Agfa. Many stores that formerly offered photofinishing services or sold film no longer do, or have seen a tremendous decline. In 2012, Kodak filed for bankruptcy after struggling to adapt to the changing industry. (See Photographic film.)


title: Digital photography

text: In addition, digital photography has resulted in some positive market impacts as well. The increasing popularity of products such as digital photo frames and canvas prints is a direct result of the increasing popularity of digital photography.


title: Digital photography

text: Digital camera sales peaked in March 2012 averaging about 11 million units a month, but sales have declined significantly ever since. By March 2014, about 3 million were purchased each month, about 30 percent of the peak sales total. The decline may have bottomed out, with sales average hovering around 3 million a month. The main competitor is smartphones, most of which have built-in digital cameras, which routinely get better. Like most digital cameras, they also offer the ability to record videos. While smartphones continue to improve on a technical level, their form factor is not optimized for use as a camera and battery life is typically more limited compared to a digital camera.


title: Digital photography

text: Digital photography has made photography available to a larger group of people. New technology and editing programs available to photographers have changed the way photographs are presented to the public. Photographs can be heavily manipulated or photoshopped, and end up looking completely different from the original images. Until the advent of the digital camera, amateur photographers used either print or slide film for their cameras. Slides are developed and shown to an audience using a slide projector. Digital photography eliminated the delay and cost of film. Consumers became able to view, transfer, edit, and distribute digital images with ordinary home computers rather than using specialized equipment.


title: Digital photography

text: Camera phones have recently had a large impact on photography. Users can set their smartphones to upload products to the Internet, preserving images even if the camera is destroyed or the photos deleted. Some high street photography shops have self-service kiosks that allow images to be printed directly from smartphones via Bluetooth technology.


title: Digital photography

text: Archivists and historians have noticed the transitory nature of digital media. Unlike film and print which are tangible, digital image storage is ever-changing, with old media and decoding software becoming obsolete or inaccessible by new technologies. Historians are concerned that we are creating a historical void where information and details about an era would have been lost within either failed or inaccessible digital media. They recommend that professional and amateur users develop strategies for digital preservation by migrating stored digital images from old technologies to new ones. Scrapbookers who may have used film for creating artistic and personal memoirs may need to modify their approach to digital photo books to personalize them and retain the special qualities of traditional photo albums.


title: Digital photography

text: The web has been a popular medium for storing and sharing photos ever since the first photograph was published on the web by Tim Berners-Lee in 1992 (an image of the CERN house band Les Horribles Cernettes). Today photo sharing sites such as Flickr, Picasa, and PhotoBucket, as well as social websites, are used by millions of people to share their pictures. In today's world digital photography and social media websites allow organizations and corporations to make photographs more accessible to a greater and more diverse population. For example, National Geographic Magazine has Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram accounts and each one includes content aimed at the type of audience that is a part of each social media community. It is also important to remember that digital photography has also had an impact in other fields, such as medicine. It has allowed doctors to help diagnose diabetic retinopathy and it is used in hospitals to diagnose and treat other diseases.


title: Digital photography

text: New technology with digital cameras and computer editing affects the way we perceive photographic images today. The ability to create and fabricate realistic imagery digitally as opposed to untouched photos changes the audience's perception of "truth" in digital photography. Manipulation in the digital era allows us to brush up our pictures, shape our memories to be picture perfect and therefore shape our identities.


title: Digital photography

text: As photography in its early stages was mainly used for physically preserving a family's heritage, it has now evolved into a key part of one's self of identity in the 21st century. Internet users often personally photograph and repost pictures that revolve around the ways they want to personally express themselves and their chosen aesthetic. With the invention of digital photography, photographs became less destructible and more easily maintained throughout the years, as they could live across all types of digital devices. Digital photography advanced the use of photos for communication and identity rather than as a means of remembering.


title: Digital photography

text: Digital cameras changed the way we interpret the world around us, which in turn, changed our true vision. With the popular phrase circulating on the Internet "pics or it didn't happen", people today carry a notion that one cannot claim to have seen something unless they have photographed it. The modern mindset that we must photograph and post where we are or where we have been to so we can add it to our "checklists" is a result of digital photography.


title: Digital photography

text: As the disappearance of film photography left a missing piece of nostalgia, digital photography created a way to make up for this gap with filters. Filters that could add film grain, scratches, fading, polaroid borders, and more grew immensely in popularity along with the idea of social photography. Social photography can be defined as a casual sharing of images: a picture of your food at a restaurant, a selfie sent to your mom, or a picture of your dog. Social photos differ from "true" photography as they are not meant to carry the same weight as real "photographed" thing. They are not meant to be scrutinized for lacking the rule of thirds, amazing compositions, and perfect lighting. They are to capture the current moment and for personal enjoyment, not necessarily "art".


title: Digital photography

text: Research and development continues to refine the lighting, optics, sensors, processing, storage, display, and software used in digital photography. Here are a few examples:


title: Digital photography

text: Other areas of progress include improved sensors, more powerful software, advanced camera processors (sometimes using more than one processor, e.g., the Canon 7d camera has 2 Digic 4 processors), enlarged gamut displays, built-in GPS and WiFi, and computer-controlled lighting.


title: Eric Bolling

text: Eric Thomas Bolling (; born March 2, 1963) is an American television personality, conservative political commentator, author, and financial commentator. He has occupied numerous roles as a commentator on financial issues for television, most notably for Fox News. He hosted Fox Business Channel's "Cashin' In" and Fox News Channel's "The Five" before leaving that show to co-host "Fox News Specialists" in May 2017. An outspoken supporter of Donald Trump, Bolling has published two books: "Wake Up America" (2016) and "The Swamp: Washington's Murky Pool of Corruption and Cronyism and How Trump Can Drain It" (2017).


title: Eric Bolling

text: In September 2017, Bolling was ousted from Fox News, after the network conducted an independent investigation following an article published by "HuffPost" reporting that Bolling had sent unsolicited lewd photographs and text messages to three female colleagues. Bolling denied the allegations. He later hosted the television shows "America" on TheBlaze and "America This Week" produced by Sinclair Broadcast Group and carried by their stations as a Sunday morning talk show.


title: Eric Bolling

text: He currently hosts an hour-long afternoon televised program, "Eric Bolling The Balance", on Newsmax TV which premiered Wednesday July 28, 2021 and airs every weekday thereafter from 4 to 5 p.m. ET.


title: Eric Bolling

text: Bolling was born in Chicago and attended grade school at Queen of All Saints Basilica school and high school at Loyola Academy. In 1984 he graduated from Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, with a BA degree in economics. While at Rollins, Bolling played baseball. He was drafted in 1984 by the Pittsburgh Pirates. His baseball career was cut short by a torn rotator cuff injury.


title: Eric Bolling

text: Bolling was a commodities trader on Wall Street. For five years, he was a board member of the New York Mercantile Exchange, later becoming a strategic advisor to the exchange.


title: Eric Bolling

text: Bolling joined Fox Business Network in March 2008 as a financial analyst. In 2008, Bolling was named a co-host (joining Cody Willard and Rebecca Diamond) of "Happy Hour", a market commentary show in the 5 p.m. time slot. After hosting Fox Business Channel's "Follow the Money with Eric Bolling", he became the host of the channel's "Cashin' In" in 2013, replacing Cheryl Casone. The program ran on Saturdays. Bolling also co-hosted Fox News Channel's "The Five".


title: Eric Bolling

text: In June 2011 on the Fox Business Network, Bolling criticized President Barack Obama's decision to meet with Gabon's president, Ali Bongo Ondimba, in the White House. Bolling remarked, "Guess who's coming to dinner? A dictator." He then went on to also criticize Obama for allowing rapper Common to appear in the White House a few weeks before, exclaiming "it's not the first time he's had a hoodlum in the hizzouse." Progressive group Media Matters criticized Bolling, saying "Calling the president of Gabon and Common 'hoods in the hizzy' is not colorful commentary, it is overt racism." Bolling first defended himself on Twitter before later apologizing, saying, "We got a little fast and loose with the language, and we know it's been interpreted as being disrespectful, and for that, I'm sorry." Media Matters also criticized Bolling for his on-air promotion of citizenship conspiracy theories about Barack Obama ("birtherism") and conspiracy theories about the murder of Seth Rich, as well as for his claim in 2011 that "liberal Hollywood was using class warfare" in a Muppets movie "to brainwash our kids" and his claim in 2012 that "Every terrorist on American soil has been a Muslim."


title: Eric Bolling

text: In 2017, Bob Beckel said that Bolling and Roger Ailes saved his life after performing the Heimlich maneuver on him at a restaurant.


title: Eric Bolling

text: While at Fox, Bolling was a guest host on several Fox News opinion shows, such as "The O'Reilly Factor", and "Fox and Friends".


title: Eric Bolling

text: In April 2017, as part of prime-time lineup changes with Bill O'Reilly's exit, Fox announced that "The Five" would be moving to the 9 p.m. time slot. "Fox News Specialists" was created to replace "The Five" in the 5 p.m. time slot, with Bolling serving as a co-host alongside Katherine Timpf and Eboni Williams. The program premiered on May 1, 2017, but was cancelled when Bolling departed the network.


title: Eric Bolling

text: Bolling describes his commentary as "really right wing, hard-core conservative commentaries" and has said, "I think this is what my brand personally is all about." Bolling has been an outspoken and longtime supporter of Donald Trump, vocally supporting him since the launch of his presidential campaign in 2015. Trump and Bolling first met on the set of "The Apprentice" about ten years before Trump's 2016 presidential campaign; the two were introduced by Mark Burnett, a mutual friend, and went on to develop close ties. In November 2016, after Trump's election but before his inauguration, Bolling was considered by Trump for an appointment in the U.S. Department of Commerce, and the following month, Bolling described himself as "fortunate enough to have a close relationship with the incoming administration." Bolling's promotion to hosting his own show on Fox News, effective at the beginning of May 2017, was seen as a victory for the Trump White House. Bolling interviewed Trump more than six times over his presidency.


title: Eric Bolling

text: On August 4, 2017, "HuffPost" reported that several years before and on separate occasions, Bolling allegedly sent unsolicited lewd text messages and lewd photos to three female colleagues at Fox News or Fox Business Network. He is also accused of making "wildly inappropriate" comments to female employees. After the article was published, Caroline Heldman, a former Fox News guest, alleged that Bolling made numerous unwanted sexual advances towards her.


title: Eric Bolling

text: Bolling denied the allegations against him. The day after the article was published, Bolling was suspended from Fox News pending an investigation, which the network commissioned the law firm Paul, Weiss to conduct. A few days after the article was published, Bolling filed a summons and "notice of an intent to file a defamation lawsuit" in New York state court for $50 million against freelance writer Yashar Ali, who wrote the story for "HuffPo". Bolling's summons did not specify the statements he contended were defamatory, and he did not bring an actual complaint against Ali. Ali and "HuffPo" stood by the accuracy of the article; Ali's lawyer, in a letter to Bolling's lawyer, wrote that any lawsuit would be frivolous because Bolling is a public figure, because "Mr. Ali conducted a thorough investigation and verified his information with 14 independent sources," and because "truth is always a defense to defamation."


title: Eric Bolling

text: On September 8, 2017, the same day as his son's death, Bolling was ousted from Fox News. In a statement, the network said that "Eric Bolling and Fox have agreed to part ways amicably." As a result of his departure, "Fox News Specialists" was canceled by the network.


title: Eric Bolling

text: Bolling joined the Conservative Review's CRTV in the summer of 2018. CRTV merged with TheBlaze to form Blaze Media in 2018; in December 2018, Bolling signed an agreement to stay with Blaze Media through 2021. Bolling hosted the television show "America" on TheBlaze.


title: Eric Bolling

text: Bolling began hosting "America This Week", which is produced by Sinclair Broadcast Group and carried by their stations as a Sunday morning talk show, in 2019. At Sinclair, Bolling repeatedly promoted Trump's campaign to discredit voting by mail and baselessly suggested that mail-in voting was prone to fraud.


title: Eric Bolling

text: In 2020, Bolling conducted an interview for "America This Week" with Judy Mikovits, a discredited researcher featured in the video "Plandemic". The video included the suggestion that Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. government's chief infectious disease scientist, "manufactured" COVID-19. In the segment, Bolling also interviewed Mikovits's lawyer, the right-wing conspiracy theorist Larry Klayman. During the interviews, Bolling made no meaningful attempt to challenge Mikovits or Klayman on their claims. After the plans to air the segment on local Sinclair stations across the U.S. generated an outcry, Sinclair postponed the segment to "rework" it before dropping the segment entirely two days later. Bolling said he did not endorse Mikovits' claims. In January 2021, Sinclair announced the cancellation of the show.


title: Eric Bolling

text: After his Sinclair program was canceled, Bolling launched a podcast co-hosted with former football player Brett Favre.


title: Eric Bolling

text: In June 2017, Bolling publicly mulled running as a Republican for U.S. Senate after his contract with Fox expired; Bolling opined that some Republicans were insufficiently right-wing. In early 2021, Bolling considered a congressional run in 2022, looking into a possible Republican primary challenge in South Carolina to either Representative Tom Rice (who voted to impeach Trump over his role in the 2021 United States Capitol attack) or Representative Nancy Mace.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: American folklore encompasses the folklores that have evolved in the present-day United States since Europeans arrived in the 16th century. While it contains much in the way of Native American tradition, it is not wholly identical to the tribal beliefs of any community of native people.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales, stories, tall tales, and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Native American cultures are rich in myths and legends that explain natural phenomena and the relationship between humans and the spirit world. According to Barre Toelken, feathers, beadwork, dance steps and music, the events in a story, the shape of a dwelling, or items of traditional food can be viewed as icons of cultural meaning.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Native American cultures are numerous and diverse. Though some neighboring cultures hold similar beliefs, others can be quite different from one another. The most common myths are the creation myths, which tell a story to explain how the earth was formed, and where humans and other beings came from. Others may include explanations about the Sun, Moon, constellations, specific animals, seasons, and weather. This is one of the ways that many tribes have kept, and continue to keep, their cultures alive; these stories are told as a way of preserving and transmitting the nation, tribe, or band's particular beliefs, history, customs, spirituality, and traditional way of life. According to Barre Toelken, "Stories not only entertain but also embody Native behavioral and ethical values."


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Although individual tribes have their own sacred beliefs and myths, many stories have much in common. Myths about floods are almost universal amongst Plains tribes, stories of a flooded earth being restored. There are many "hero stories" immortalising the adventures of heroes with supernatural powers, who right wrongs and defeat evils. Animal tales are common, some explaining how features of certain animals occurred, some using animal characters for narration, and others using animals symbolically. There are also myths where supernatural beings appear in the form of animals, with the bear, elk, eagle, owl, and snake frequently referred to.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: The founding of the United States is often surrounded by legends and tall tales. Many stories have developed since the founding long ago to become a part of America's folklore and cultural awareness, and non-Native American folklore especially includes any narrative which has contributed to the shaping of American culture and belief systems. These narratives have varying levels of historical accuracy; the veracity of the stories is not a determining factor.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Christopher Columbus, as a hero and symbol to the then-immigrants, is an important figure in the body of American myth. His status, not unlike most American icons, is representative not of his own accomplishments, but the self-perception of the society which chose him as a hero. Having effected a separation from England and its cultural icons, the United States was left without history—or heroes on which to base a shared sense of their social selves. Washington Irving was instrumental in popularizing Columbus. His version of Columbus' life, published in 1829, was more a romance than a biography. The book was very popular, and contributed to an image of the discoverer as a solitary individual who challenged the unknown sea, as triumphant Americans contemplated the dangers and promise of their own wilderness frontier. As a consequence of his vision and audacity, there was now a land free from kings, a vast continent for new beginnings. In the years following the Revolution the poetic device "Columbia" was used as a symbol of both Columbus and America. King's College of New York changed its name in 1792 to Columbia, and the new capital in Washington was subtitled District of Columbia.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: In May 1607, the Susan Constant, the Discovery, and the Godspeed sailed through Chesapeake Bay and thirty miles up the James River settlers built Jamestown, Virginia, England's first permanent colony. Too late in the season to plant crops, many were not accustomed to manual labor. Within a few months, some settlers died of famine and disease. Only thirty-eight made it through their first year in the New World. Captain John Smith, a pirate turned gentleman turned the settlers into foragers and successful traders with the Native Americans, who taught the English how to plant corn and other crops. Smith led expeditions to explore the regions surrounding Jamestown, and it was during one of these that the chief of the Powhatan Native Americans captured Smith. According to an account Smith published in 1624, he was going to be put to death until the chief's daughter, Pocahontas, saved him. From this the legend of Pocahontas sprang forth, becoming part of American folklore, children's books, and movies.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Plymouth Rock is the traditional site of disembarkation of William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims who founded Plymouth Colony in 1620, and an important symbol in American history. There are no contemporary references to the Pilgrims' landing on a rock at Plymouth. The first written reference to the Pilgrims landing on a rock is found 121 years after they landed. The Rock, or one traditionally identified as it, has long been memorialized on the shore of Plymouth Harbor in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The holiday of Thanksgiving is said to have begun with the Pilgrims in 1621. They had come to America to escape religious persecution, but then nearly starved to death. Some friendly Native Americans, including Squanto, helped the Pilgrims survive through the first winter. The perseverance of the Pilgrims is celebrated during the annual Thanksgiving festival.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799), the country's first president, is the most preeminent of American historical and folkloric figures, as he holds the place of "Pater Patriae". Apocryphal stories about Washington's childhood include a claim that he skipped a silver dollar across the Rappahannock River at Ferry Farm. Another tale claims that as a young child, Washington chopped down his father's cherry tree. His angry father confronted the young Washington, who proclaimed "I cannot tell a lie" and admitted to the transgression, thus illuminating his honesty. Parson Mason Locke Weems mentions the first citation of this legend in his 1806 book, "The Life of George Washington: With Curious Anecdotes, Equally Honorable to Himself and Exemplary to His Young Countrymen". This anecdote cannot be independently verified. Samuel Clemens, also known as Mark Twain, is also known to have spread the story while lecturing, personalizing it by adding "I have a higher and greater standard of principle. Washington could not lie. I can lie but I won't."


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799) was an attorney, planter and politician who became known as an orator during the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. Patrick Henry is best known for the speech he made in the House of Burgesses on March 23, 1775, in Saint John's Church in Richmond, Virginia. With the House undecided on whether to mobilize for military action against the encroaching British military force, Henry argued in favor of mobilization. Forty-two years later, Henry's first biographer, William Wirt, working from oral histories, tried to reconstruct what Henry said. According to Wirt, Henry ended his speech with words that have since become immortalized: "I know not what course others may take; but as for me, Give me Liberty, or give me Death!" The crowd, by Wirt's account, jumped up and shouted "To Arms! To Arms!". For 160 years Wirt's account was taken at face value. In the 1970s, historians began to question the authenticity of Wirt's reconstruction.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Betsy Ross (January 1, 1752 – January 30, 1836) is widely credited with making the first American flag. There is, however, no credible historical evidence that the story is true. Research conducted by the National Museum of American History notes that the story of Betsy Ross making the first American flag for General George Washington entered into American consciousness about the time of the 1876 centennial celebrations. In the 2008 book "The Star-Spangled Banner: The Making of an American Icon", Smithsonian experts point out that accounts of the event appealed to Americans eager for stories about the revolution and its heroes and heroines. Betsy Ross was promoted as a patriotic role model for young girls and a symbol of women's contributions to American history.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Other Revolutionary War heroes who became figures of American folklore include: Benedict Arnold, Benjamin Franklin, Nathan Hale, John Hancock, John Paul Jones and Francis Marion.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: The tall tale is a fundamental element of American folk literature. The tall tale's origins are seen in the bragging contests that often occurred when men of the American frontier gathered. A tall tale is a story with unbelievable elements, relayed as if it were true and factual. Some such stories are exaggerations of actual events; others are completely fictional tales set in a familiar setting, such as the American Old West, or the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. They are usually humorous or good-natured. The line between myth and tall tale is distinguished primarily by age; many myths exaggerate the exploits of their heroes, but in tall tales, the exaggeration looms large, to the extent of becoming the whole of the story.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Other historical figures include Titanic survivor Molly Brown, Wild West showman Buffalo Bill Cody, and sharpshooter Annie Oakley.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Other folkloric creatures include the Chupacabra, Jackalope, the Nain Rouge of Detroit, Michigan, Wendigo of Minnesota and Chessie, a legendary sea monster said to live in Chesapeake Bay.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, or simply "Santa", is a figure with legendary, mythical, historical and folkloric origins. The modern figure of Santa Claus was derived from the Dutch figure, Sinterklaas, which may, in turn, have its origins in the hagiographical tales concerning the Christian Saint Nicholas. "A Visit from St. Nicholas", also known as "The Night Before Christmas" is a poem first published anonymously in 1823 and generally attributed to Clement Clarke Moore. The poem, which has been called "arguably the best-known verses ever written by an American", is largely responsible for the conception of Santa Claus from the mid-nineteenth century to today, including his physical appearance, the night of his visit, his mode of transportation, the number and names of his reindeer, as well as the tradition that he brings toys to children. The poem has influenced ideas about St. Nicholas and Santa Claus from the United States to the rest of the English-speaking world and beyond. "Is There a Santa Claus?" was the title of an editorial appearing in the September 21, 1897, edition of The (New York) Sun. The editorial, which included the famous reply "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus", has become a part of popular Christmas folklore in the United States and Canada.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: The Headless Horseman is a fictional character from the short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by American author Washington Irving. The story, from Irving's collection of short stories, entitled The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, has worked itself into known American folklore/legend through literature and film.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: "Rip Van Winkle" is a short story by the American author Washington Irving, first published in 1819. It follows a Dutch-American villager in colonial America named Rip Van Winkle who meets mysterious Dutchmen, imbibes their liquor and falls asleep in the Catskill Mountains. He awakes 20 years later to a very changed world, having missed the American Revolution.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Inspired by a conversation on nostalgia with his American expatriate brother-in-law, Irving wrote the story while temporarily living in Birmingham, England. It was published in his collection, "The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent." While the story is set in New York's Catskill Mountains near where Irving later took up residence, he admitted, "When I wrote the story, I had never been on the Catskills."


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Native Americans were the earliest inhabitants of the land that is today known as the United States and played its first music. Beginning in the 17th century, immigrants from the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Germany and France began arriving in large numbers, bringing with them new styles and instruments. African slaves brought musical traditions, and each subsequent wave of immigrants contributes to a melting pot. Folk music includes both traditional music and the genre that evolved from it during the 20th-century folk revival. The term originated in the 19th century but is often applied to music that is older than that.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: The earliest American scholars were with The American Folklore Society (AFS), which emerged in the late 1800s. Their studies expanded to include Native American music but still treated folk music as a historical item preserved in isolated societies. In North America, during the 1930s and 1940s, the Library of Congress worked through the offices of traditional music collectors Robert Winslow Gordon, Alan Lomax and others to capture as much North American field material as possible. Lomax was the first prominent scholar to study distinctly American folk music such as that of cowboys and southern blacks. His first major published work was in 1911, Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads, and was arguably the most prominent US folk music scholar of his time, notably during the beginnings of the folk music revival in the 1930s and early 1940s.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: The American folk music revival was a phenomenon in the United States that began during the 1940s and peaked in popularity in the mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, and performers like Burl Ives, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, and Oscar Brand had enjoyed a limited general popularity in the 1930s and 1940s. The revival brought forward musical styles that had, in earlier times, contributed to the development of country & western, jazz, and rock and roll music.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Slavery was introduced to the Thirteen Colonies beginning in the early 17th century in Virginia. The ancestors of today's African-American population were brought from hundreds of tribes across West Africa and brought with them certain traits of West African music. This included call and response vocals, complex rhythmic music, syncopated beats, shifting accents, incorporation of hums and moans, which are sounds with no distinct meaning, and a combination of sound and body movements. The African musical focus on rhythmic singing and dancing was brought to the New World, where it became part of a distinct folk culture that helped Africans "retain continuity with their past through music." Along with retaining many African elements, there was also a continuation of instruments. Enslaved Africans would either take with them African instruments or reconstructed them once in the New World. The first slaves in the United States sang work songs and field hollers. However, slave music was used for a variety of reasons. Music was included in religious ceremonies and celebrations, used to coordinate work, and to conceal hidden messages, like when they were commenting on slave owners. African American slave songs can be divided into three groups: religious, work, and recreational songs.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Protestant hymns written mostly by New England preachers became a feature of camp meetings held among devout Christians across the South. Most slaves were either animists or Muslims, so they did not know about Christianity. To destroy any remnants of African culture or make more people disciples, slaves would be encouraged and taken to church. They became attracted to the grace and freedom that was preached within the church, which was very different from the lives they were living. Slaves would learn the same hymns that their masters sang, and when they came together they developed and sang adapted versions of these hymns, they were called Negro spirituals. It was from these roots, of spiritual songs, work songs, and field hollers, that blues, jazz, and gospel developed. Negro spirituals were primarily expressions of religious faith. These songs provided them a voice for their longing for freedom and to experience it. Around the 1840s, slaves knew that in the northern states slavery was illegal, and some northerners wanted the complete abolishment of slavery. So when they sang about heaven, it was also about possibly escaping north. In the early 19th century the Underground railroad was developed, containing a network of secret routes and safe houses, and it greatly impacted slaves’ religious music. When there was any mention of trains, stations, etc. in spirituals they were directly referencing the Underground Railroad, such as the song “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” These songs were designed so that slave owners thought that slaves were only singing about heaven.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Work Songs at least had two functions: one to benefit the slaves and another to benefit overseers. When a group of slaves had to work together on a hard task, like carrying a heavy load, singing would provide a rhythm that allowed them to coordinate their movements. When picking crops, music was not necessary, but when there was silence it would be uncomfortable for the overseers. Even though there was a presence of melancholy in songs, Southern slave owners would interpret that their slaves were happy and content, possibly because of their singing.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Even if slave owners attempted to forbid things like drums or remnants of African culture, they did not seem to mind them learning European instruments and music. In some cases, black string players would be invited to play to entertain white audiences. Between the week of Christmas and New Years’, owners would give their slaves a holiday. This provided a chance for slave families who had different masters to come together, otherwise, they would not go anywhere. Some slaves would craft items, but masters detested industrious slaves. So most slaves would spend their recreational time doing other things, like dancing and singing. Masters approved of such activities, but they may not have listened carefully to the songs that were performed.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: The original Thirteen Colonies of the United States were all former British possessions, and Anglo culture became a major foundation for American folk and popular music. Many American folk songs are identical to British songs in arrangements, but with new lyrics, often as parodies of the original material. Anglo-American traditional music also includes a variety of broadside ballads, humorous stories and tall tales, and disaster songs regarding mining, shipwrecks and murder.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Folk songs may be classified by subject matter, such as: drinking songs, sporting songs, train songs, work songs, war songs, and ballads.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Other American folksongs include: "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain", "Skewball", "Big Bad John", "Stagger Lee", "Camptown Races" and "The Battle Hymn of the Republic".


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Work songs sung by sailors between the 18th and 20th centuries are known as sea shanties. The shanty was a distinct type of work song, developed especially in American-style merchant vessels that had come to prominence in decades prior to the American Civil War. These songs were typically performed while adjusting the rigging, raising anchor, and other tasks where men would need to pull in rhythm. These songs usually have a very punctuated rhythm precisely for this reason, along with a call-and-answer format. Well before the 19th century, sea songs were common on rowing vessels. Such songs were also very rhythmic in order to keep the rowers together.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: They were notably influenced by songs of African Americans, such as those sung whilst manually loading vessels with cotton in ports of the southern United States. The work contexts in which African-Americans sang songs comparable to shanties included: boat-rowing on rivers of the southeastern U.S. and Caribbean; the work of stokers or "firemen", who cast wood into the furnaces of steamboats plying great American rivers;and stevedoring on the U.S. eastern seaboard, the Gulf Coast, and the Caribbean—including "cotton-screwing": the loading of ships with cotton in ports of the American South. During the first half of the 19th century, some of the songs African Americans sang also began to appear in use for shipboard tasks, i.e. as shanties.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Shanty repertoire borrowed from the contemporary popular music enjoyed by sailors, including minstrel music, popular marches, and land-based folk songs, which were adapted to suit musical forms matching the various labor tasks required to operate a sailing ship. Such tasks, which usually required a coordinated group effort in either a pulling or pushing action, included weighing anchor and setting sail.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: The Shakers is a religious sect founded in 18th-century England upon the teachings of Ann Lee. Shakers today are most known for their cultural contributions, especially style of music and furniture. The Shakers composed thousands of songs, and also created many dances; both were an important part of the Shaker worship services. In Shaker society, a spiritual "gift" could also be a musical revelation, and they considered it important to record musical inspirations as they occurred. "Simple Gifts" was composed by Elder Joseph Brackett and originated in the Alfred Shaker community in Maine in 1848. Aaron Copland's iconic 1944 ballet score Appalachian Spring, uses the now famous Shaker tune "Simple Gifts" as the basis of its finale.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Folk dances of British origin include the square dance, descended from the quadrille, combined with the American innovation of a caller instructing the dancers. The religious communal society known as the Shakers emigrated from England during the 18th century and developed their own folk dance style.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Other locations and landmarks that have become part of American folklore include: Independence Hall, Monument Valley, Ellis Island, Hoover Dam, Pearl Harbor, the Vietnam War Memorial, and the Grand Canyon.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Other cultural icons include Rosie the Riveter, the United States Constitution, the Colt Single Action Army, Smokey Bear, the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, Columbia, and apple pie.


title: Folklore of the United States

text: Historical events that form a part of American folklore include: the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, Paul Revere's Ride, the Battle of the Alamo, the Salem witch trials, the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, the California Gold Rush, the Battle of the Little Bighorn, the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Attack on Pearl Harbor.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The Belvedere name was first used for a new hardtop body style in the Plymouth Cranbrook line for the 1951 model year. In 1954 the Belvedere replaced the Cranbrook as the top trim and became a full model line with sedans, station wagons, and convertible body styles. The Belvedere continued as Plymouth's full-sized car until 1965, when it became an intermediate, and was replaced after the 1970 model year by the Satellite, a name originally used for the top-trim level Belvederes.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The nameplate "belvedere" is Italian for "beautiful sight" or “fair view”. Chrysler also had the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Belvidere, Illinois which began production in 1965.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: Introduced on March 31, the 1951 Plymouth Cranbrook Belvedere is a two-door pillarless hardtop. It was Plymouth's first such body design and was introduced in response to the 1950 Chevrolet Bel Air, and the Ford Victoria, the first two-door hardtop in the low-priced American market.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The Cranbook Belvedere was the name for the two-door hardtop version of the Cranbrook and built on the same wheelbase. Powering the Belvedere is the Chrysler flathead straight-6 engine with a 7.00:1 compression ratio producing (SAE gross).


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: For 1952, Plymouth kept the Cranbrook Belvedere largely unchanged. The biggest alteration was to the color scheme; to further distinguish the top-level Belvedere from other Plymouths, the two tones now flowed from the roof over the beltline onto the trunk, which has been referred to as the "saddleback" treatment. Two-tone color schemes were "sable bronze" over suede, black over "mint green", and gray over blue. Overdrive was made available as optional equipment in the 1952 Plymouth. In overdrive, the engine made three revolutions for each rear wheel revolution and four without overdrive. The engine was a complete carryover from 1951. Production for 1951 and 1952 totaled 51,266 units.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The Belvedere remained a part of the Cranbrook series through the 1953 model year, which saw all Plymouth models completely restyled. Major style changes include a shorter wheelbase, a one-piece windshield, flush rear fenders, and a lower hood line. In April 1953, Plymouths received the Hy-Drive semi-automatic transmission. The engine was carried over from 1952 with the only enhancement being a slight increase in the compression ratio to 7.10:1, which yielded a rating of .


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The Belvedere replaced the Cranbrook as the top-line offering for 1954. Now, a separate model instead of just a two-door hardtop, it was also available as a convertible, two-door station wagon, and four-door sedan. The two-door hardtop version was now called the "Sport Coupe". The 1954 Belvederes featured full-length rocker sill moldings.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: Minor styling updates adorned the carry-over body design. For the first time, small chrome tailfins appeared on the rear fenders. An entry-level nameplate was introduced, called the Plymouth Plaza sharing the same design and technology at a lower price.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: In March 1954, Plymouth finally offered a fully automatic transmission, the Chrysler PowerFlite two-speed. Also new was a larger standard engine: a I6 that was also used by the Dodge Division. Power was now rated at .


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: All Plymouths underwent a major overhaul for the 1955 model year. This was the first year of Chrysler stylist Virgil Exner's "Forward Look." The Belvedere returned as top-of-the-line, and the Plaza remained the entry-level model. Chrysler promoted the all-new appearance, showing cars built at the Lynch Road Factory in a featurette movie Here. Midway through the model year (on February 26), the engine's stroke was increased by a quarter inch, increasing displacement from and increasing power from .


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: For 1956, Plymouth styling evolved from that of the 1955s. Most notable would be the introduction of the first push-button automatic transmission to appear in an American automobile, and a more dramatic rear-end treatment highlighted by a pair of rakish tail-fins. In early 1956, the Fury joined the Belvedere line as a special-edition high-performance coupe. Belvedere remained the top full-line series through 1958. In 1956, Plymouth added seat belts.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: In 1956, Chrysler's chief engineer in a public relations campaign took a Belvedere and had a Chrysler turbine engine fitted instead of the standard gasoline engine, and was driven across the US.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The 1956 models came with more V8 power upgrades, up to 180 bhp 270cid V8, 187 bhp 277cid V8, 200 bhp 277cid V8, with a 240 bhp 303cid V8 for the Fury. Tail fins featured for the first time, in what Exner described as the "Forward Look".


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The 1957 model year had high sales for the Chrysler Corporation, and for the Plymouth line. Plymouth's design was so revolutionary that Chrysler used the slogan "Suddenly, it's 1960!" to promote the new car.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: Standard on all body styles except the convertible was the "Powerflow 6" L-head engine. The convertible was only V8 powered and V8s were available in other Belvederes with an optional "Fury" version as well as a "High-Performance PowerPAC" at extra cost. A manual transmission was standard with the push-button two-speed PowerFlite optional and the push-button three-speed TorqueFlite automatic also optional on V8 cars. The front suspension introduced Chrysler's Torsion-Aire Torsion bar suspension shared with all Chrysler products starting in 1957. In 1957, Chrysler products offered an appearance of either single or dual headlights. Plymouth installed the headlights in a facia that accommodated dual headlights while offering both single and dual lamps. This appearance can be seen with front turn signal lamps installed inboard, next to the headlight, while vehicles installed with dual headlights offered a concealed turn signal above the headlights in the headlight alcove.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The Belvedere would once again return as a top-level trim for 1958 for the last time. Styling was a continuation of the 1957 models. A big block "B" engine of 350 in V8 with dual four-barrel carburetors dubbed "Golden Commando" was optional on all models. For 1959, the Fury became the top range with a full array of sedans and coupes, and the Belvedere became the middle range. The Savoy became the least expensive model, and the Plaza was discontinued.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The 1957-58 Belvedere two-door hardtop gained notoriety from the movie "Christine" (1983) based on the novel by Stephen King. In the opening scene, in which the titles set as "Detroit, 1957", Christine appears near the end of the assembly line as a lone bright red car in a long line of Buckskin Beige Furys being built for the new model year (1958). (In the novel it is revealed that her first owner, Roland Lebay had ordered her with custom paint, as the standard 1958 Fury came only in beige.) For the movie, Christine was painted "toreador red" with an "iceberg white" top.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: Starting in 1960, Belvederes got a brand-new standard inline six-cylinder engine replacing the venerable valve-in-block "flathead" six. Colloquially known as the Slant Six, it displaced , featured overhead valves, and a block that was inclined 30 degrees to the right to permit a lower hood line with maximum displacement. This engine used a single-barrel Holley carburetor, and became known for its extremely rugged construction, exceptional reliability and longevity. The V8 engines continued to be optionally available, in displacements of and .


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: Unit body construction was introduced throughout the line, though it appeared on certain Plymouths in earlier years such as the 1953 hardtop coupe. This eliminated the frame and was advertised as Unibody.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: Under Chrysler president William Newberg, Virgil Exner's styling team was encouraged to go "over the top" with distinctive styling, leading the 1960 models to be popularly dubbed the "jukebox on wheels" and the 1961 models were not well-received and "unfairly maligned just for being different... the cleaner, finless look was certainly on the way in, and today the Belvedere looks distinctive." Despite being good cars in performance, handling, modest weight, and appealing interiors, sales suffered. Plymouth yielded third place in U.S. sales to the 1960 Ramblers.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The 1962 model year full-size Plymouths were "downsized", with more compact outside dimensions. American car buyers at the time were in the thought mode of "bigger is better", and sales of these models suffered. However, the smaller Plymouth provided greater owner approval in their actual use. A Plymouth Belvedere with a six-cylinder engine and automatic transmission was compared to the intermediate-size Ford Fairlane and the compact-size Chevrolet Chevy II in an economy test by "Popular Mechanics" and the road test concluded that the Belvedere was "a very pleasant transportation package." Another advantage of the smaller and lighter body was in drag racing.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The 1963 and 1964 models used the same unibody platform as the 1962s, but were restyled to look longer and wider.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The 1964 Belvedere (and corresponding Fury hardtop coupes) featured a new "slant-back" roofline that proved to be popular, and sales improved significantly over the previous design.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The 1964 Belvedere was also the car used to introduce the 426 Chrysler Hemi engine, which used a canted large-valve arrangement. This was such a significant high-RPM breathing improvement that Hemi-equipped Plymouth Belvederes won first, second, and third at NASCAR's 1964 Daytona race. One of the winning drivers was Richard Petty.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: In 1965 Plymouth once again made the Fury a full-size car, and Belvedere ostensibly became the intermediate size offering, though the Belvedere was little changed, and most dimensions and weights remained the same—the Fury was merely enlarged, restoring a full-sized line which Plymouth had been lacking. The Belvedere line was divided into the Belvedere I, Belvedere II and Satellite subseries, the latter available only as hardtop coupe and convertible, and featuring the "LA block" V8 as standard equipment. The line was restyled in 1966, and the high-performance GTX was added in 1967.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The pilot episode for the television show "Adam-12" featured a 1967 Belvedere as the standard LAPD police cruiser.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: In 1968, the Belvedere - along with the rest of Chrysler's B-body offerings - was reskinned with "Coke bottle styling." The Belvedere II was dropped, but the Sport Satellite was added to the overall lineup, using the same sheet metal.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The new LA-style lightweight 318 engine was introduced this year and would remain available on the Belvedere throughout its production. The Plymouth Road Runner was introduced as a low-price, high-performance alternative to the GTX. Richard Petty won the Grand National championship in NASCAR in a Belvedere. The GTX came standard with the 440 CID engine and the Road Runner with the 383 Magnum, with the 440 six-barrel or the 426 Hemi engines optional.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The Belvedere name was dropped at the end of the 1970 model year, replaced by the Satellite name originally reserved for higher-end Belvederes. It lasted only through 1974, becoming the Fury in 1975 when the longer-wheelbase Fury model became the Gran Fury.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: Belvederes were used in police service from the late 1960s to the early 1970s, when they were replaced by the Plymouth Gran Fury. They were prominent in both the LAPD and New York Police Department.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The Plymouth Belvedere was also produced by Chrysler Australia. The first model, based on the 1953 US Plymouth, featured a high level of Australian content, with body panels pressed in Chrysler Australia's Keswick facility in South Australia and matched with a 217.8 cubic inch (4107cc) side-valve six-cylinder engine, imported from Chrysler UK. It was produced as a four-door sedan and as a locally developed two-door coupe utility, along with similar Cranbrook and Savoy models, until it was replaced by the Chrysler Royal in 1957. The Belvedere was reintroduced to the Australian market in early 1958 when Chrysler Australia began assembling the current model Belvedere four-door hardtop which was imported from the US in knocked-down form. The 1959 model was equipped with a 318 cubic inch V8 engine and push-button automatic transmission. Chrysler Australia replaced their Plymouth Belvedere, Dodge Custom Royal and De Soto Firesweep models with the Dodge Phoenix in 1960.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: During Oklahoma's 50th anniversary, a new 1957 Plymouth Belvedere was sealed in a concrete enclosure as a time capsule in downtown Tulsa on the grounds of the brand new county courthouse. It was unearthed June 14, 2007, during the state's centennial celebrations, and was publicly unveiled on June 15. In line with the Cold War realities of late 1950s America, the concrete enclosure was advertised as having been built to withstand a nuclear attack. The concrete enclosure, however, was not airtight and allowed water to leak in, which caused significant damage to the vehicle.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The controversial televised vehicle customizer Boyd Coddington was to have been the first to start the unburied car, had it been operable.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: The car was the prize of a 1957 contest to guess the population of Tulsa in the year 2007. The winning entrant, Raymond Humbertson, guessed 384,743 versus the actual figure of 382,457. However, Humbertson died in 1979 and now only distant relatives remain.


title: Plymouth Belvedere

text: A second car, this time a Plymouth Prowler, was encased in a vault in Tulsa's Centennial Park (formerly Central Park) in 1998 to celebrate the city's centennial. After it was discovered what had become of the 1957 Belvedere, the Prowler was moved above ground, and a mound was formed over it. It is to be revealed after the same period of time as the Belvedere, in 2048.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Mark Robert Rypien (born October 2, 1962) is a Canadian-born former American football quarterback who played 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Washington State and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round of the 1986 NFL Draft. He was the first Canadian-born quarterback to both start in the NFL and be named Super Bowl MVP, doing so in Super Bowl XXVI with the Redskins. He also played for several other NFL teams. His nephew Brett plays in the NFL for the Denver Broncos.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Born in Calgary, Alberta, Rypien moved to the United States in 1965 and was raised in Spokane, Washington. He was a star three-sport athlete at Shadle Park High School. All three of his varsity numbers (football, basketball, and baseball) were later retired by the school.


title: Mark Rypien

text: He accepted a football scholarship to Washington State University in Pullman, and joined the Delta Tau Delta fraternity. A knee injury in spring drills in 1982 redshirted him for that season and he nearly left football and WSU in November 1983. After a good showing as a late replacement to the roster in the Senior Bowl, he was selected by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round of the 1986 NFL Draft, the 146th overall pick and the eighth quarterback selected.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Rypien spent his first two years as a professional on the Redskins' injured reserved list, first with a bad knee in 1986, then a bad back in 1987. He watched from the sidelines as the Redskins won Super Bowl XXII under coach Joe Gibbs in January 1988 behind the quarterbacking of veteran Doug Williams.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Rypien became the second stringer after Jay Schroeder, who lost his job to Williams late in the 1987 season, was traded to the Los Angeles Raiders. In Week 4 against the newly relocated Phoenix Cardinals, Rypien got his first chance to start for an injured Williams and threw for 303 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-21 loss. In six starts, he went 3-3 and he appeared in nine games overall, including a four-touchdown game in a rematch against the Cardinals. He threw for 1,730 yards in those games and finished with three more touchdowns than Williams had, by a count of 18–15.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Named the starter for 1989 ahead of the injured and aging Williams, Rypien emerged as a star quarterback as he threw for 3,768 yards with 22 touchdowns and led the Redskins to a 10-6 record. The team missed the playoffs but Rypien received a bid as an injury replacement for Joe Montana and Don Majkowski in that year's Pro Bowl (NFC coach John Robinson elected to bring only one injury replacement for his intended starter and #2 quarterback).


title: Mark Rypien

text: A running joke among sportswriters in Washington was that Rypien could only throw "ducks" in a ten-yard game of catch going during warmups, but threw such a beautiful, accurate deep ball that from 60 yards away, he could play catch with someone sitting down. According to former head coach Joe Gibbs, "Rypien's sideline throws would wobble and didn't look all that pretty. But that man could seriously throw the deep stuff." A 1992 "Sport Magazine" article touted him as one of the best deep passers ever.


title: Mark Rypien

text: The 1991 season was Rypien's best: he threw for 3,564 yards and 28 touchdowns with 11 interceptions, leading the Redskins to Super Bowl XXVI after recording a 14–2 regular season record. He was named the MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the game, passing for 292 yards and 2 touchdowns and leading his team to a 37–24 win over the Buffalo Bills. Rypien, a native of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, became the first foreign-born player to earn the honor. Rypien was named to the Pro Bowl in both 1989 and 1991.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Rypien was one of several players to benefit from the team's success following their championship season. The Redskins signed him to a 3-year, $9 million deal entering the 1992 season. However, the team battled age and injuries and finished the regular season with a 9–7 record, barely making the playoffs. His passing yardage was a respectable 3,282 yards, but his passer rating fell from 97.9 in 1991 to 71.7 in 1992 and his interceptions outnumbered his touchdowns 17–13. Although a dominant team performance in the playoffs brought victory over the Minnesota Vikings in an NFC Wild Card away game, the Redskins eventually lost on a rainy, muddy field in a bruising game vs. the San Francisco 49ers, and the Rypien era was essentially over. Under new head coach Richie Petitbon, Rypien had his best training camp in 1993 and expectations were high following a Monday Night win over the defending Super Bowl Champion Dallas Cowboys. However, Rypien injured his knee in Week 2 against the Arizona Cardinals and the team began a precipitous slide toward a 4–12 season finish.


title: Mark Rypien

text: When he was healthy enough to return, Rypien performed spot duty, sharing time with the newly acquired Rich Gannon. The Redskins hired Norv Turner as their head coach in 1994. Rypien participated in offseason workouts, but the team later released him. He went on to become a backup, serving with the Cleveland Browns in 1994, the St. Louis Rams in 1995 and 1997, and the Philadelphia Eagles in 1996. His last NFL touchdown pass came in relief of Eagles quarterback Ty Detmer, an 8-yarder to Irving Fryar with five seconds remaining in a 37-10 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. He signed with the Atlanta Falcons for the 1998 season but never played in Atlanta. His son's death from a malignant brain tumor that August caused Rypien to leave the game.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Rypien returned to football with the Colts in 2001. In August 2002, Rypien was signed by the Seattle Seahawks as a backup quarterback, played in two preseason games and finished 13-of-21 passing for 97 yards, but was cut early in September. His last professional game was on June 10, 2006; as part of a promotional gig, Rypien played one game for the Rochester Raiders of the Great Lakes Indoor Football League.


title: Mark Rypien

text: In 11 NFL seasons, Rypien completed 1,466 of 2,613 passes for 18,473 yards and 115 touchdowns, with 88 interceptions. He rushed 127 times for 166 yards and 8 touchdowns.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Rypien had a brief stint in NASCAR racing as a team owner, and was the original owner of the 2004 Nextel Cup championship-winning No. 97 team driven by Kurt Busch, having sold it to Jack Roush's Roush Racing in 1997.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Rypien's cousins include NHL players Rick Rypien and Shane Churla, and his nephew is NFL quarterback Brett Rypien.


title: Mark Rypien

text: Rypien's daughter, Angela, played the 2011 season for the Seattle Mist of the Lingerie Football League; she is currently playing for the LFL's Baltimore Charm.


title: Mark Rypien

text: An avid golfer, Rypien has been known to participate in charity tournaments at various locations across the nation. He has played in one PGA Tour event (Kemper Open in 1992), and one Web.com Tour event (Buy.com Tri-Cities Open in 2000), and missed the 36-hole cut by a substantial margin both times.


title: Mark Rypien

text: He has been a regular competitor at the American Century Championship, the annual competition at Lake Tahoe to determine the best golfers among American sports and entertainment celebrities. Rypien won the inaugural event in 1990, and won his second crown 24 years later in 2014; he has a total of 11 top ten finishes. Televised by NBC in July, the tournament is played at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course in Stateline, Nevada.


title: Mark Rypien

text: In a 2018 interview with the Spokane "Spokesman-Review", Rypien's wife stated that she believes he is suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) from his years of playing football, with bizarre behavior occurring from time to time. Rypien himself confirmed that he has struggled with mental health issues since his retirement from football, even attempting to take his own life by overdosing on pills before his wife stopped him. On June 30, 2019, he was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence and was charged with fourth-degree assault. The charge was dismissed on August 30, 2019.


title: Mark Rypien

text: In 2020, he was featured in the documentary "Quiet Explosions: Healing the Brain" produced and directed by Jerri Sher.


title: Repressed memory

text: Repressed memory is an inability to recall autobiographical information, usually of a traumatic or stressful nature. The concept originated in psychoanalytic theory where repression is defined as a protective mechanism that excludes memory of painful experiences from consciousness. Repressed memory is a controversial concept, particularly in legal contexts where it has been used to impugn individuals unfairly and inaccurately, leading to substantial harm. At the same time, an American Psychological Association working group indicated that while "most people who were sexually abused as children remember all or part of what happened to them, it is possible for memories of abuse that have been forgotten for a long time to be remembered". Although Sigmund Freud later revised his theory, he initially held that memories of childhood sexual trauma were often repressed (could not be recalled later in life) yet the traumas unconsciously influenced behavior and emotional responding.


title: Repressed memory

text: Despite widespread belief in the phenomenon of repressed memories among laypersons and clinical psychologists, most research psychologists who study the psychology of memory dispute that repression ever occurs at all. While some psychologists believe that repressed memories can be recovered through psychotherapy (or may be recovered spontaneously, years or even decades after the event, when the repressed memory is triggered by a particular smell, taste, or other identifier related to the lost memory), experts in the psychology of memory argue that, rather than promoting the recovery of a real repressed memory, psychotherapy is more likely to contribute to the creation of false memories.


title: Repressed memory

text: In part because of the intense controversies that arose surrounding the concepts of repressed and recovered memories, many clinical psychologists stopped using those terms and instead adopted the term dissociative amnesia to refer to the purported processes whereby memories for traumatic events become inaccessible, and the term dissociative amnesia can be found in the DSM-5, where it is defined as an "inability to recall autobiographical information. This amnesia may be localized (i.e., an event or period of time), selective (i.e., a specific aspect of an event), or generalized (i.e., identity and life history)." The change in terminology, however, has not made belief in the phenomenon any less problematic according to experts in the field of memory. Richard McNally stated: "The notion that traumatic events can be repressed and later recovered is the most pernicious bit of folklore ever to infect psychology and psychiatry. It has provided the theoretical basis for 'recovered memory therapy'—the worst catastrophe to befall the mental health field since the lobotomy era."


title: Repressed memory

text: One of the studies published in his essay involved a young woman by the name of Anna O. Among her many ailments, she had stiff paralysis on the right side of her body. Freud stated her symptoms to be attached to psychological traumas. The painful memories had separated from her consciousness and brought harm to her body. Freud used hypnosis to treat Anna O. She is reported to have gained slight mobility on her right side.


title: Repressed memory

text: Psychiatrist David Corwin has claimed that one of his cases provides evidence for the reality of repressed memories. This case involved a patient (the Jane Doe case) who, according to Corwin, had been seriously abused by her mother, had recalled the abuse at age six during therapy with Corwin, then eleven years later was unable to recall the abuse before memories of the abuse returned to her mind again during therapy. An investigation of the case by Elizabeth Loftus and Melvin Guyer, however, raised serious questions about many of the central details of the case as reported by Corwin, including whether or not Jane Doe was abused by her mother at all, suggesting that this may be a case of false memory for childhood abuse with the memory "created" during suggestive therapy at the time that Doe was six. Loftus and Guyer also found evidence that, following her initial "recall" of the abuse during therapy at age six, Doe had talked about the abuse during the eleven years in between the sessions of therapy, indicating that even if abuse had really occurred, memory for the abuse had not been repressed. More generally, in addition to the problem of false memories, this case highlights the critical dependence of repression-claims cases on the ability of individuals to recall whether or not they had previously been able to recall a traumatic event; as McNally has noted, people are notoriously poor at making that kind of judgment.


title: Repressed memory

text: An argument that has been made against the validity of the phenomenon of repressed memories is that there is little (if any) discussion in the historical literature prior to the 19th century of phenomena that would qualify as examples of memory repression or dissociative amnesia. In response to Harrison Pope's 2006 claim that no such examples exist, Ross Cheit, a political scientist at Brown University, cited the case of Nina, a 1786 opera by the French composer Nicolas Dalayrac, in which the heroine, having forgotten that she saw her lover apparently killed in a duel, waits for him daily. Pope claims that even this single fictional description does not clearly meet all criteria for evidence of memory repression, as opposed to other phenomena of normal memory.


title: Repressed memory

text: Despite the claims by proponents of the reality of memory repression that any evidence of the forgetting of a seemingly traumatic event qualifies as evidence of repression, research indicates that memories of child sexual abuse and other traumatic incidents may sometimes be forgotten through normal mechanisms of memory. Evidence of the spontaneous recovery of traumatic memories has been shown, and recovered memories of traumatic childhood abuse have been corroborated; however, forgetting trauma does not necessarily imply that the trauma was repressed. One situation in which the seeming forgetting, and later recovery, of a "traumatic" experience is particularly likely to occur is when the experience was not interpreted as traumatic when it first occurred, but then, later in life, was reinterpreted as an instance of early trauma.


title: Repressed memory

text: A review by Alan Sheflin and Daniel Brown in 1996 found 25 previous studies of the subject of amnesia of childhood sexual abuse. All 25 "demonstrated amnesia in a subpopulation", including more recent studies with random sampling and prospective designs. On the other hand, in a 1998 editorial in the "British Medical Journal" Harrison Pope wrote that "on critical examination, the scientific evidence for repression crumbles." He continued, "asking individuals if they 'remember whether they forgot' is of dubious validity. Furthermore, in most retrospective studies corroboration of the traumatic event was either absent or fell below reasonable scientific standards."


title: Repressed memory

text: Memories "can" be accurate, but they are not "always" accurate. For example, eyewitness testimony even of relatively recent dramatic events is notoriously unreliable. Memories of events are a mix of fact overlaid with emotions, mingled with interpretation and "filled in" with imaginings. Skepticism regarding the validity of a memory as factual detail is warranted. For example, one study where victims of documented child abuse were reinterviewed many years later as adults, 38% of the women denied any memory of the abuse.


title: Repressed memory

text: Various manipulations are considered to be able to implant false memories (sometimes called "pseudomemories"). Psychologist Elizabeth Loftus has noted that some of the techniques that some therapists use in order to supposedly help the patients recover memories of early trauma (including such techniques as age regression, guided visualization, trance writing, dream work, body work, and hypnosis) are particularly likely to contribute to the creation of false or pseudo memories. Such therapy-created memories can be quite compelling for those who develop them, and can include details that make them seem credible to others. In a now classic experiment by Loftus (widely known as the "Lost in the Mall" study), participants were given a booklet containing three accounts of real childhood events written by family members and a fourth account of a wholly fictitious event of being lost in a shopping mall. A quarter of the subjects reported remembering the fictitious event, and elaborated on it with extensive circumstantial detail. This experiment inspired many others, and in one of these, Porter et al. convinced about half of the participants that they had survived a vicious animal attack in childhood.


title: Repressed memory

text: Critics of these experimental studies have questioned whether their findings generalize to memories for real-world trauma or to what occurs in psychotherapeutic contexts. However, when memories are "recovered" after long periods of amnesia, particularly when extraordinary means were used to secure the recovery of memory, it is now widely (but not universally) accepted that the memories have a high likelihood of being false, i.e. "memories" of incidents that had not actually occurred. It is thus recognised by professional organizations that a risk of implanting false memories is associated with some similar types of therapy. The "American Psychological Association" advises: "...most leaders in the field agree that although it is a rare occurrence, a memory of early childhood abuse that has been forgotten can be remembered later; however, these leaders also agree that it is possible to construct convincing pseudomemories for events that never occurred."


title: Repressed memory

text: Not all therapists agree that false memories are a major risk of psychotherapy and they argue that this idea overstates the data and is untested. Several studies have reported high percentages of the corroboration of recovered memories, and some authors have claimed that among skeptics of idea of recovered memory there is a "tendency to conceal or omit evidence of corroboration" of recovered memories.


title: Repressed memory

text: A difficult issue for the field is that there is no evidence that reliable discriminations can be made between true and false memories. Some believe that memories "recovered" under hypnosis are particularly likely to be false.


title: Repressed memory

text: According to The Council on Scientific Affairs for the American Medical Association, recollections obtained during hypnosis can involve confabulations and pseudomemories and appear to be less reliable than nonhypnotic recall.


title: Repressed memory

text: Brown et al. estimate that 3 to 5% of laboratory subjects are vulnerable to post-event misinformation suggestions. They state that 5–8% of the general population is the range of high-hypnotizability. Twenty-five percent of those in this range are vulnerable to suggestion of pseudomemories for peripheral details, which can rise to 80% with a combination of other social influence factors. They conclude that the rates of memory errors run 0–5% in adult studies, 3–5% in children's studies and that the rates of false allegations of child abuse allegations run 4–8% in the general population.


title: Repressed memory

text: Those who argue in favor of the validity of the phenomenon of repressed memory have identified three mechanisms of normal memory that may explain how memory repression may occur: retrieval inhibition, motivated forgetting, and state-dependent remembering.