“By proving just as immune to hostile reviews on the screen as on the page, Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code raises the question of whether printed and broadcast opinion matters at all. Has our culture now created a sort of genetically modified turkey – the critic-proof product?”
Blog
Columbia Campus Vs. The Neighborhood
“When Columbia announced its plans to build a much-needed new campus in a corner of Harlem called Manhattanville, it saw a gritty neighborhood of auto-repair shops, tenements and small manufacturers that would probably pose little obstacle to its ambitions. Columbia says that the project will advance a vital public interest and help revitalize parts of Upper Manhattan. Yet the university has met remarkable resistance. One man’s urban improvement, it seems, is another man’s urban debacle.”
Toronto Arts Groups Seek Funding For Buildings From Feds
Six major Toronto arts organizations take their case for added funding for building projects to the federal finance minister. “The institutions, including the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Royal Conservatory of Music and the Royal Ontario Museum, are looking for a $49-million investment from the Harper Conservatives to help them complete various building projects.”
ITV Opposes BBC Rate Hike
The British commercial TV network ITV is opposing the increase the BBC is asking in the home license fee. “The BBC has asked the government for a rise of 2.3% above inflation for the next seven years, meaning the licence could rise to £180 by 2013. But an independent report commissioned by ITV argues the corporation needs a licence fee – currently £131.50 – rising only at the rate of inflation.”
Cooper-Hewitt Thinks More Modest
“A year after exploring a $75 million expansion that would create three new floors underground, the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum has decided on a relatively modest $25 million renovation that involves little construction.”
New Licensing Scheme Killing UK Live Music?
A new venue-licensing regulation in the UK is killing live music in small venues, say musicians. “Reports have been received by Equity branches that the work involved in getting an entertainment license now means many venues have simply stopped using live performers altogether and reverted to using recorded music.”
Is Berlin Tiring Of Rattle?
The critics are starting to turn on conductor Simon Rattle, four years into his reign atop the Berlin Philharmonic. He’s being accuse of “being boring and predictable, and inducing ‘mild despair’ in his audiences.”
An Architect Planning The Gulf Coast
Andrés Duany is the prophet of new urbanism. “Opponents cast this architect as an imperious enemy of progressive design and a threat to the Gulf Coast, where he has been involved in plans to redesign communities that were devastated by Hurricane Katrina.”
Public Lines Up To Play New Kimmel Organ
As part of the inauguration of its new organ, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center offered the public an opportunity to pay to play it. “Fifty-four people put down $25 a minute or $75 for a five-minute block for the afternoon event. A student from New England Conservatory’s Preparatory School in Boston drove six hours for a minute. An organist from New York City bought 10 minutes.”
Writers Want Voice In TV Product Placement
Product placement in TV shows is getting bolder. The Writers Guild of America says they “recognize ad integration is here to stay. What they want is to negotiate with networks a process that gives creators a say in what can and can’t be done, and they said the networks haven’t been willing to put that on paper.”