This week’s AJ stories highlight a cultural sector defined by radical divergence: between financial collapse and encouraging growth, between the “slop” of automation and the organized resistance of human creators.
Economically, the narrative of “arts in crisis” is proving dangerously uneven. The depths of the Metropolitan Opera‘s financial crisis is bracing. The company announced drastic cuts and is considering selling its prized Chagall murals to plug a $55 million hole (ARTnews). Having plundered its endowment for several years, the giant cruise ship of American arts is rapidly taking on water. Texas opera seems to be bucking the trends: the Dallas Opera announced a record $54.5 million campaign (Dallas Morning News), and Houston Grand Opera is riding a wave of critical and industrial success (San Francisco Classical Voice). Is there a lesson? Probably not. But the contrast is stark.
Technologically, “AI fatigue” has transformed into active rebellion. This week saw big pushback to the machines: San Diego Comic Con banned AI art (Artnet), 800 artists signed a “Stealing Isn’t Innovation” pledge (The Verge), and scientists warned that research journals are being clogged with “AI slop” (The Atlantic). The case? Machines can generate, but we don’t have to accept it. And as tests proved this week, AI still “sucks at dancing” (CalMatters). So there.
Finally, we are seeing a “Great Decoupling” of institutions from their traditional political and structural homes. The Washington National Opera is divorcing the Kennedy Center (Washingtonian), Hollywood is abandoning its “progressive sincerity” (The New York Times), and Netflix is reportedly dumbing down dialogue because viewers can no longer pay attention to complex plots (Variety). Maybe there’s no connection between these stories, but they do fit a larger trend of institutional breakdown and adaption to new realities.
Finally — a link to my new weekly essay that tries to give some shape to the 118 stories we collected last week.
All our stories from the week are below.
