ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

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U.S. Cultural Institutions Are Hiring Diversity Officers. It’s A Start.

"At the same time, experts warn, longstanding challenges remain — antiracism goals that are hard to measure; finding funds to pay for these efforts; and assuming that the hiring of one dedicated advocate means the work is done." - The New York Times

The Essential Importance Of Going Out Into The World To Discover Artists First Hand

"These trips were resource-intensive, but through the intrepid efforts of people like David White and Sam Miller, philanthropic support enabled cohorts of Americans to research artists, network with international administrators, and present an array of worldwide artistry throughout the country. This work was often highly subsidized by foreign governments recognizing the importance of global exchange." - VTDigger

Trump Wanted To End Arts Funding. Instead It Grew

“The years and years of work that we had done to create a pro-arts Congress, whether Republican or Democrat, really came through,” said Nina Ozlu Tunceli, executive director of the Americans for the Arts Action Fund. “Congress became a firewall to prevent that termination from happening.” - The New York Times

What New York Could Do To Help The Arts

"So what can the city and/or state do? From grants and loans to small theaters to negotiating with and supporting landlords with non-profit tenants to programs that keep paid staff in their jobs, rather than sending them onto unemployment, to initiatives that care for freelancers and independent contractors who make up so much of our cultural ecosystem, there is...

Election Misinformation Online Dropped A Dramatic 73 Percent After Trump Was Banned From Twitter

Just wow. "The findings, from Jan. 9 through Friday, highlight how falsehoods flow across social media sites — reinforcing and amplifying each other — and offer an early indication of how concerted actions against misinformation can make a difference." - Washington Post

If You’re Feeling Unmotivated Right Now, You’re Not Alone

Hello, extremely upfront journalist: "I’m writing this article because, to be honest, the piece I need to read most right now is why it’s completely okay to feel sort of hopeless and disconnected from the joys of life." - Fast Company

The Movie Soul Is About A Black Man, But In Some Countries, He’s Voiced By A White Guy

Europe, excuse us, but what are you doing? "Asta Selloane Sekamane, one of the activists who criticized the casting ... said in an interview that no one can claim there wasn’t enough Black talent to fill the main roles, because actors of color were hired to voice some of the minor parts. 'It can’t be the constant excuse, this...

Do We Want Uplifting Entertainment In These Difficult Times? Not Me!

"The temptation to simplify morality when social injustice is rife is understandable, but reading Dostoevsky makes me impatient with the schematic bent of our age. To be fully human is to acknowledge, as Prospero puts in “The Tempest,” “this thing of darkness” as our own." - Los Angeles Times

In Ontario, Even Livestreamed Performances Without Audience Are Now Banned

As the number of COVID cases continues to spike, "organizers behind a number of livestreaming concerts and theatre shows in Ontario say the province's stricter stay-at-home orders have forced them to sideline an array of upcoming virtual events. … The changes come after Premier Doug Ford introduced a new directive which, as of Thursday, requires residents to stay home,...

After High-Profile Robberies, Germany To Spend Millions On Security For Arts Venues

"The German government has announced that it will hand out €32 million ($38 million) this year to national cultural institutions undertaking modernization projects, including updating security systems. More than 73 cultural venues across Germany" — and outside the big cities in particular — "will benefit from the grant." - Artnet

This Year’s Kennedy Center Honorees

The Kennedy Center Honors announced today that the lifetime artistic achievement recipients for its 43rd ceremony will be choreographer and actress Debbie Allen; folk singer-songwriter Joan Baez; country singer-songwriter Garth Brooks; violinist Midori; and actor Dick Van Dyke. - New York Magazine

COVID Is Killing American Indian Tribal Leaders And Their Culture

“It’s like we’re having a cultural book-burning,” said Jason Salsman, a spokesman for the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in eastern Oklahoma, whose grandparents contracted the virus but survived. “We’re losing a historical record, encyclopedias. One day soon, there won’t be anybody to pass this knowledge down.” - The New York Times

Here’s How A Few Other Countries Have Been Aiding Arts Workers Through The Pandemic

"In December, owners and operators of theaters and music halls across the United States breathed a sigh of relief when Congress passed the latest coronavirus aid package, which finally set aside $15 billion to help desperate cultural venues. But that came more than six months after a host of other countries had taken steps to buffer the strain of...

While He Was Being Impeached, Trump Gave Two People The National Medal Of Arts. So What Exactly Is That?

The awards to country music stars Toby Keith and Ricky Skaggs weren't even officially announced; word went out in a tweet from Bloomberg News. So the question arose on social media: what is this medal and how big a deal is it? Reporter Jessica Gelt provides an explainer. - Los Angeles Times

France Guarantees Unemployment Funds For Artists

In the U.S., some artists have turned to philanthropic or community support to get by. But in France, dancers, musicians, even the set-builders, costumers and lighting designers who work on the production enjoy regular unemployment support. - NPR

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