What’s New?

There is so much copy-catting going on, it’s sometimes easy to think that artists have run out of original ideas. And yet, it’s not true. “There are original ideas getting traction — spurred by writers, artists, actors and musicians — that are out there if you want to look for them.”

Reinventing The TV Ad

“Marketers are worried about new technology that allows viewers to zap through commercials. So they are pushing reluctant networks to rethink the age-old format of the ad-break — known on Madison Avenue as a ‘pod.’ Among the options: special “pod-puncher” ads — blips as short as five seconds — strategically positioned at the end of a commercial break to get more attention from viewers. At the other extreme, marketers are working on ads lasting several minutes, as well as groups of ads that mirror a program’s theme.”

The Duo Who Fixed The Barbican

In 10 years Graham Sheffield and Sir John Tusa have turned around London’s Barbican. “This dynamic duo have managed to turn a derided behemoth into a cultural powerhouse. Once a byword for unfashionability, the Barbican has become a home for cutting-edge experimentalism and music and performance from around the world. Meeting them in the flesh, the two actually put you in mind more of another high-flying double-act that started out at roughly the same time – that of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, albeit without the acrimony.”

Sony Sued For Anti-Piracy Software

A lawsuit has been filed against Sony for the intrusive software the company embedded on CD’s. “The Texas lawsuit said the so-called XCP technology that Sony BMG had quietly included on more than 50 CD titles leaves computers vulnerable to hackers. Sony BMG had added the technology to restrict to three the number of times a single disc could be copied, but agreed to recall the discs last week after a storm of criticism.”

Sony’s Software Quagmire

Sony’s atrocious behavior in subjecting its customers to malicious software code will cost the company plenty. But “while in the short-term one of the world’s best-known brands has suffered enormous damage, the longer-term implications are even more significant – a fundamental re-thinking of policies toward digital locks known as technological protection measures.”

UK Building – All About The PR

Why do British architects have a difficult time building in the UK? “The big difference between working in Britain and Europe is that here, you are not really expected to debate ideas. Money and marketing are what matter most. We live in an events culture in the UK. Architecture, arts and media are all increasingly driven by events agendas. Ideas are only valid if they fit in with media schedules. Original thinking and debate have been overwhelmed. So we get a lot of slick and often thoughtless architecture put up at speed. It doesn’t matter much how it works, but how it looks, and whether or not it fits the latest fashion profile.”

CPB Staff Asks For Rewrite Of Report

Staff at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting have asked an accounting firm to rewrite sections of a report that questioned some large CPB contracts. “The report’s conclusions questioning the contracts and spending practices of the corporation could be incendiary on Capitol Hill, where conservative lawmakers have often sought to reduce the corporation’s annual budget. In recent weeks, they have proposed cuts in its current $400 million budget to help pay for other programs, like the reconstruction of the South after Hurricane Katrina and an inoculation program against avian flu. Corporation officials said that the request to rewrite the report was made not to prevent the disclosure of embarrassing information, but because some officials had challenged parts of the report as inaccurate.”

Met In The Stolen-Art Crosshairs

Italy says the collection of New York’s Metroplitan Museum (and that of one of its trustees)has more than 30 objects stolen from Italy. Phillipe de Montebello “faces a careful balancing act as he fields questions from Mr. Fiorilli on those Greek and other ancient artifacts. While Italy’s culture minister, Rocco Buttiglione, has emphasized that his government is not out to ‘destroy the cultural potential of American museums,’ the ministry has threatened to deny loans to museums that refuse to cooperate. And in a powerful reminder of the Italians’ determination, a former curator from the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles went on trial in Rome last week on criminal charges of conspiring to import looted antiquities for that museum’s collection.”