Prof. Matthew McDonald’s article “Hitchcock’s Blackmail and the Threat of Recorded Sound”  was published in the current issue of Music and the Moving Image, Vol. 8, No. 3. MacDonald writes “In his first recorded-sound film, Blackmail (1929), the degree to which Alfred Hitchcock exerted control over his sonic material—particularly the voice— indicates that he regarded the advent of recorded film sound not only as a source of new creative possibilities but also as a serious threat to his authority over sonic representation. Recognition of this underlying anxiety opens up a new critical perspective on the film and its significance.”