Category: issues

“It was probably the most cinematically perfect space in New York. It had that stylishly streamlined modern look – elegant crystal chandeliers here, a revolving dance floor there, long velvety draperies beyond. … Now, as it has for more than three years, the Rainbow Room sits empty on the 65th floor of 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, the victim of a fight between a powerful landlord and a famous restaurant operator.”

“In bringing together such a distinguished and varied line up of leading thinkers and operators across the areas of culture, technology, politics and industry we are reaffirming the key role that culture plays in the success of nations today.”

“A survey of business traffic commissioned by trade body UKinbound during the three weeks of the London games has found that 82 percent of tourism-oriented businesses suffered lost business versus the same period of 2011. Two-thirds said the numbers of tourists fell more than 10 percent.”

“The public was more concerned with things like access to culture and equitable distribution of resources. So why is “making Chicago a global cultural destination” on the list of ten priorities?”

“Prosecutors say that in the 11 months during which he managed the library, Mr. De Caro stole hundreds of its volumes. Investigators found boxes of valuable books, many with the library’s stamp, in garages and private homes in several cities as well as in auction houses abroad.”

“There is no minimizing what a distinctly representative moment this is for Vladimir Putin.” Indeed, his regime is not looking so good as it squares off against a punk-feminist collective.

“Today, as widespread civic enthusiasm for “creative” projects has begun to spawn skepticism, the Northern Warehouse may be one of the clearest case studies of the role of artists in rejuvenating decayed neighborhoods–and sticking around afterward.”

“Would-be performers in Liverpool city centre must now sign up to a mandatory licensing scheme and obtain a photo ID card before they can book a two hour slot to play in council-designated pitches. The scheme requires that entertainers be bound by a number of restrictive terms and conditions.”

“Unglue.it works with copyright holders to determine a fair price to release their works under a Creative Commons license that allows a book to be copied and shared for free. The site then runs Kickstarter-style campaigns to get pledges up to the amount that would get the book released. In a blog post Thursday, Unglue.it says an account manager with Amazon Payments has told the company to void all pending payments. “Amazon has decided against ‘boarding fresh crowdfunding accounts at this time,'” the post says Unglue.it was told.”