On one side, new faces have meant less tolerance for the flippant bigotry that has long been a part of stand-up—Shane Gillis, for example, recently lost a spot on Saturday Night Live after people called out his history of using homophobic and racist slurs. On the other side—which includes some of the biggest names in the business, like Dave Chappelle, Bill Burr, and Ricky Gervais—comedians complain that people can no longer take a joke and that the art is losing its edge because of what they dismiss as “cancel culture.” – The Walrus
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This Nonprofit Website Could Be The Future Model For Thriving Online Journalism
The Conversation, founded in Melbourne in 2011 with university and state government funding, now has ten editions in various countries and 150 employees as well as dozens of freelance contributors; its traffic has more than doubled in the last year alone to 38.1 million monthly site visits. Its specialty is interpreting scholarly research for a general audience, and its articles can be reprinted elsewhere for free. And its outside funding protects it from worry about plummeting ad revenue. Anya Schiffrin looks into how the site’s owners and editors pull it off. – Columbia Journalism Review
Here Are Hollywood’s New Production Rules For Shooting During Pandemic
The instructions detail how to deal with a confirmed case of COVID-19 on a set. Anyone in the cast or crew that was within six feet of the infected person for more than 15 minutes may need to be quarantined, potentially bringing a complete halt to filming. The name of the ill employee must not be disclosed, according to the rules. Physical distancing will be required, which will be a challenge for crowded sets. – Los Angeles Times
National Book Critics Circle Board Members Resign After Discussion Of Black Lives Matter Statement Goes Bad
When the NBCC statement was posted, a foreword was appended which said, in part, “In the course of our committee’s discussion with the rest of the board, a board member responded to the statement with an email that many of us saw as racist. Before a planned vote on the statement today, details from the board’s internal discussion were released on social media, and some board members have announced their resignation.” – The Guardian
Sonny Rollins On Surviving A Pandemic
“This is O.K. for me because I am trying to live in a different world, besides the world of the illness. I’m trying to live in a world of the spirit wherein I am concentrating on things such as the golden rule. This is my big thing; I am trying to live by it. The main thing is do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Sure, everybody knows it, but nobody lives by it. We live in a world where it’s about “I’ve gotta get mine, and—too bad for you—I’ve gotta get mine first.” – The New Yorker
#TakeTwoKnees And The Art Of Transforming Familiar Music In Troubled Times
Anthony McGill, New York Philharmonic principal clarinetist, launched a new mini-genre of musical protest on May 28 when he tweeted a video of himself playing “America the Beautiful,” transposed into a minor key, in honor of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and “the struggle for justice and decency.” David Patrick Stearns surveys some #TakeTwoKnees responses and some similar musical repurposings from earlier years — from Leonard Bernstein’s famous Beethoven 9th at the fallen Berlin Wall to Jimi Hendrix’s “Star-Spangled Banner” at Woodstock to Judy Garland on live TV transforming “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” into a funeral march for JFK. – WQXR (New York City)
Banff Centre Permanently Fires 284 Staff
On Thursday, management laid off 284 staff members, some of whom had worked there for decades and lived in campus housing. An additional 100 people remain on temporary layoff, leaving 123 fully employed. – CBC
Perhaps The Perfect American Artist For This Moment Is One Who’s Been Working For Six Decades
The themes of racial (in)equality and (in)justice that are now starting to get the attention they deserve have been material for Faith Ringgold for her entire career. Yet, faced with the death of her husband this winter and the coronavirus epidemic, this prolific 89-year-old artist found herself creatively paralyzed. Then George Floyd was murdered, the nation erupted in outrage, and Ringgold got back to work. – The New York Times
Awkward: It Appears Netflix Trademarked “Space Force” Before The US Military
The streaming platform’s trademark for “Space Force” dates back to January 2019. The US military’s space warfare service of the same name was founded in December, eleven months later, without ever having registered a trademark for its name. – Futurism
The Pragmatic Art Of The Post-Pandemic Concert
As COVID-19 gets more and more contained on the island, the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan is moving back into live performance, gradually increasing the numbers of both musicians and attendees while keeping safety measures in place. NSOT music director Shao-Chia Lü and executive director Wen-Chen Kuo talk about the logistics involved. – Van