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Erasing The Story Of Civilization

The looting of Iraq’s museums is “a cultural catastrophe. Yesterday the museum’s exhibition halls and security vaults were a barren mess – display cases smashed, offices ransacked and floors littered with hand-written index cards recording the timeless detail of more than 170,000 rare items that were pilfered. Worse, in their search for gold and gems, the looters got into the museum’s underground vaults, where they smashed the contents of the thousands of tin trunks. It was here that staff had painstakingly packed priceless ceramics that tell the story of life from one civilisation to the next through 9000 fabled years in Mesopotamia.”

Echoes Of Other Language

“Is there such a phenomenon in poetry as a ‘shadow language,’ that is, a concealed or tacit foreign language which exerts a strong and sometimes fruitful pressure on the native tongue of a poet? In one sense, of course, the answer is an obvious yes. Much of traditional English poetry would have been the poorer without the pressure of, say, Latin or French.”

Attacking Celebs For Their Political Views

There has been an explosion of “web sites by Americans attacking and frequently urging boycotts against celebrities who are using their fame – and sometimes their own Web sites – to promote political causes. The anticeleb sites present a single-minded view of patriotism in which anyone challenging the U.S. administration or its foreign policy is anti-American or worse. Their names are as colourful and direct as the messages on them…”

US States Sharpen Their Arts Budget Cuts

Across America, states are considering drastically reducing or eliminating arts funding. “State arts funding plunged from $410 million two years ago to around $350 million in 2002-03, and this year looks to be worse. But the proposed cuts have a long way to go before they become law, and by the time they are approved in early summer, reductions may be significantly less severe. In fact, some believe the dramatic announcements are calculated to shock the arts community into accepting more modest cutbacks.” But it’s not all a bluff…

FCC Backing Away From Media Ownership Regulation?

Michael Powell, head of the Federal Communications Commission, indicates that the FCC isn’t interested in more regulation of ownership of media outlets. “The rapid concentration (of ownership) and consolidation has been both good and bad. … Before 1996, radio was on its knees. Sixty percent of stations were not profitable and were in serious straits. A lot of radio stations survived and thrived because of the changes.” Dergulation has resulted in major consolidation of ownership of radio stations in America.

Promoting By Word-Of-Email

What’s the biggest obstacle to getting an audience for your indie movie? Okay, getting it into theatres, of course. But how to promote it to potential fans? There’s “a growing grass-roots movement to promote independent movies and niche projects, particularly those about ethnic groups largely overlooked by mainstream productions” through e-mail. “Community activists for years have used the Internet to promote niche projects, and that strategy is helping boost a trend toward underground marketing tactics to promote films. That is particularly attractive to independent filmmakers with limited budgets.”

Florida Arts Facing State Budget Axe

No matter whether the Florida senate, house or governor wins out, Florida’s arts groups will see drastic reductions in the state’s arts budget. Proposals range from a 50 percent cut to cancelling out funding altogether. Arts officials are outraged: “People use the state money to leverage for other grants and local contributions. I see this as a panic reaction to Florida’s economy at the moment.
Obviously, we find this hurtful. It doesn’t pay attention to how many dollars arts groups circulate in the community. This just makes a tough job harder.”

Pied Piper Of Tap

Brenda Bufalino has spent her career trying to re-popularize tap dancing. “Now in her mid-60s, Bufalino is credited as a major force in the renaissance of tap worldwide. She has formed tap orchestras and tap festivals, and helped inspire a new generation of performers – such as the young black tap superstar Savion Glover. She still tours and performs worldwide, acting as a unique bridge between tap’s ‘golden era’ and its contemporary development.”

For 22 Years She’s Been Most-Borrowed

Dame Catherine Cookson, who wrote more than 70 books and died in 1998, has been the ‘most borrowed author’ for 22 years in British libraries. In 1988 a survey found her books accounted for a third of all British library borrowings.” But her grip on the fiction hearts of Britons is waning – this past year, her books were checked out fewer than 3 million times for the first time.