The ticketseller, which took on giant Ticketmaster, has been a favorite of thousands of arts organizations for selling tickets. But since March, the company has failed to pay event organizers for the tickets they sold. – Seattle Times
Blog
Open Letter From Hollywood Begs Congress To Save U.S. Cinemas
“Dozens of established filmmakers joined with the Directors Guild of America, the National Association of Theatre Owners and the Motion Picture Association to urge Congress to come to the aid of movie theaters devastated by COVID-19. ‘Absent a solution designed for their circumstances, theaters may not survive the impact of the pandemic,’ the letter warns.” (full text included) – Deadline
How Did Humans Fumble Their Stewardship Of The Planet?
In the latter half of the 19th century, when small-scale artisanal methods were giving way to larger-scale industrialization in many areas of resource extraction and use, Homo sapiens was not, in fact, just another species, an organism like any other. To the contrary, H. sapiens was just embarking on a period of more sudden environmental transformation than any single species had ever achieved. Homo sapiens was, in fact, quite special. – Nautilus
The One Patriotic Song That Unites All Americans (Good Thing Most Folks Don’t Know Its History)
“A sharp little scene [in Mrs. America] points out how two political opponents could both relate to [Woody] Guthrie’s generous vision of the US, but it also raises a crucial question about the significance of a song so famous that it has been described as an ‘alternative national anthem’. Not knowing about the story behind the song may make it universal, but is that at the cost of diluting it?” – BBC
100 Prominent Artists Sign Letter Protesting Postponement Of Guston Show
An A-list cadre of contemporary artists and intellectuals have similarly decried the museums’ decision in an open letter that asks them to reinstate the exhibition as planned. – Artnet
Only A Fifth Of Major NYC Productions In 2017-18 Were By Nonwhite Theatermakers: Study
“A new report has found stark disparities in racial representation and pay gaps on the New York stage – the vast majority of writers and directors remain white, while some theater non-profits spent up to six times as much on white actors as actors of color.” – The Guardian
Defendants In Trial For Theft Of African Art Turn Spotlight Back On French Colonizers
“[Mwazulu] Diyabanza, along with four associates, stood accused of attempting to steal a 19th-century African funeral pole from the Quai Branly Museum in Paris in mid-June, as part of an action to protest colonial-era cultural theft and seek reparations. But it was Wednesday’s emotionally charged trial that gave real resonance to Mr. Diyabanza’s struggle, as a symbolic defendant was called to the stand: France, and its colonial track record.” – The New York Times
How Convincing AI-Written Text Could Screw Up The Entire News Ecosystem
“With A.I.-generated writing able to fool many readers, disinformation-as-a-service will become possible, eliminating the need for human-staffed ‘troll farms.’ … [Software like GPT-3] could enable what sociologist Zeynep Tufekci calls ‘modern censorship’ — information campaigns that harass, confuse, and sow mistrust with the goal of undermining individual agency and political action.” – Slate
Six Months Into Pandemic, Performing Arts Orgs Reeling As Revenue Keeps Shrinking
Among the findings in “COVID-19 and the Performing Arts – Six Months After Closure,” the fourth report from TRG Arts on the effects of the coronavirus shutdown, are that ticket revenues are down more than 80% from last year in North America and the UK and that individual donations have fallen by a quarter in North America but by almost two-thirds in Britain. – TRG Arts
Antiquities Smuggling Is A Smaller Problem Than Many Think: Customs Report
“Despite reports from some officials that have characterized the illicit trade in antiquities as a multi-billion-dollar industry and the third largest black market after the drugs and arms trades, the new [World Customs Organization] report reveals that the scale is much more modest. In fact, cultural heritage crime is so minor compared with other risk categories globally that it barely registers on Customs’ radar.” – Artnet