Dreams from the New Arts Journalism

Ever since submitting a proposal to the National Summit on Arts Journalism for NewMusicBox/Counterstream Radio, I've been scratching at the concept of "reinventing arts coverage" in my head. If we could close our eyes, click our heels, and start over, what would journalism about the arts look like? If we were just starting to produce it in 2009, would we still fall into the "profile and review" pattern of discourse, or would we get something radically "other" (besides the 2.0 Twitter review and the Facebook bump)? I considered taking up the Hunter S. Thompson method myself once before, and it appears some new kids on the block are going to try out The Onion approach, but as media consumers about media, what are we seriously hunting for? What do we need reported about the arts and how do we want it packaged?

Personally, when it comes to music in the specific, I guess I'm still looking for a feed of actual music (i.e. audio) that helps me sort through the avalanche of new content that flows out of the recording mines every day, but one that also stretches out further than just the coolest indie rock MP3. I'm hunting for gate keepers who can point me in particular directions (and I very much do mean that in the plural), but then I also want enough multimedia at the ready right there on the page to make a judgment call for myself (I'm trapped between paradigms and I'm not sure I want to get free yet). I don't want complete critical autonomy, but I don't want the alternative to require absolute buy-in to the presenter's viewpoint either. I want surface detail to attract my attention--a teaser track, a biographical or philosophical designation--and then the option to dig in much further when something catches my interest. And "much further" need not always be defined as a chronological unpacking of an artist's life story, either. (Where does that leave the "deep think" pieces? Somewhere inside there, but I'm just not sure what they look like.)

And so here's my thinking: If I can log and track those interests as I discover them and keep following artists along as they create more, that's a huge improvement from what I'm doing/getting now. If I can do all this regularly and efficiently, seamlessly and continually refreshing my music library with new picks and knowledge, even better. Now, I know there are plenty of "if you like" sites already running, but I'm asking for a trusted source to help curate mine, pare down my choices and yet make sure it keeps up its diversity. We all need a place to start, and I'd rather not start with the stuff I already know and love too much. I don't want to miss new breakthroughs because I'm still listening to everything that sounds like Will Oldham.

Okay, I'm closing my eyes, clicking my heels, I can see it now. Wait, what? Oh, you want me to tell you how we're going to pay for all this? Damn, I hate when dreams come with accountants and their realistic spreadsheet desires. And I doubt I could sell anyone on a subscription model in this economy.