The contract troubles at the St. Louis Symphony have certainly underscored the complex issues surrounding orchestral management. But even moreso, the story has shown the unique place, power, and potential of weblogs as a new form of information media. As newspapers allocate less and less space to arts stories (especially complex and nuanced stories like the St. Louis musician struggle), and as other media such as professional trade magazines, newsletters, and the like are published far less frequently with far less space for feature treatment, arts-related weblogs can be an essential resource for thoughtful, opinionated, and timely conversation.
Witness my weblog neighbor Drew McManus, who has been exploring the St. Louis story with a journalist’s zeal — complete with phone interviews and background research (here’s one example, but there’s a full string if you just visit his main site).
Fellow blogger Greg Sandow also chimed in on the issue of St. Louis.
As in many other industries and issue groups, weblogs can be a public forum (even if they are more monolog than dialog) for issues that may not have critical mass for in-depth public discussion in other media. I’m not saying that weblogs have no drawbacks or blind-spots. I’m just pleased that this medium is showing its potential in the arts, where it is so sorely needed.
