Category: issues

All of the strategizing and positioning that goes on behind the scenes to create an authentic image makes many companies come off as, well, inauthentic. Working hard to find a niche or an angle that makes a specific company appear both appealing and honest simply makes the company look like it’s trying too hard — and that’s a big turnoff for consumers. In fact, a lack of authenticity has been deemed the “fastest way to kill your brand.”

Alberto Ibarguen: “Over the course of three years — from 2009 to ’11 — Knight and Gallup spoke with 43,000 people in 26 communities around the country. Our question was simple: What attaches people to the place where they live? The study was called “Soul of the Community” and we found that, contrary to conventional wisdom, social offerings and aesthetics bind people to place and to each other even more than what we had expected: education or jobs.”

Louis Menand: “‘Privacy’ is an odd name for the good that is being threatened by commercial exploitation and state surveillance. Privacy implies ‘It’s nobody’s business,’ and that is not really what Roe v. Wade is about, or what the E.U. regulations are about … The real issue is … liberty. This means the freedom to choose what to do with your body, or who can see your personal information, or who can monitor your movements and record your calls — who gets to surveil your life and on what grounds.”

“The Daniel Island Performing Arts Center … was to be a multipurpose new venue that featured a 400-seat proscenium theater, with balconies and an orchestra pit, available to various local and touring theater companies, plus dance programming, classes and more.” In early June, the board abruptly decided to end the project; said one director, “After a year of the board studying the launch of full campaign, it became evident that the building couldn’t be built on donations alone.”

“Deutsche Bank has set an opening date of 27 September for its new cultural forum, located in an historic building in central Berlin and to be called Palais Populaire. [The new center] will host exhibitions, concerts, readings, talks, workshops, sporting events and a cafe.”

Arts Everywhere, which kicked off its second year in April, has drawn the ire of students with public programs and artworks (including painted pianos) spread across campus. Students believe the campus-wide arts celebration disregards the seriousness of research by artists and art historians on campus, obscures systemic bias in Art Department hiring and retention practices, and ignores the pressing need to fix Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) violations in campus art facilities.

The appointment marks the first time in the NAC history that they have promoted as president and CEO from within, and the move is telling. Starting as a Tour Manager in 1987, Christopher Deacon worked his way up through the National Arts Centre Orchestra, eventually becoming Orchestra Manager in 1989, then becoming Managing Director in 1996.

In rationalizing the AP World changes, the College Board spokesman Zachary Goldberg cited survey and performance data suggesting that too many students and teachers drown in the information overload and ultimately fail to gain value from the course.

“Research by the Institute of Fiscal Studies has found that … people who study degrees in the creative arts – subjects such as drama, dance, music and design – were found to make about £20,000 annually five years after graduation. This is 15% lower than the average and 35 percentage points below those who studied the highest earning degrees.”