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The Pirate Radio Station That Changed British Radio

"Frustrated by the lack of airtime for reggae music in the UK, Lepke setup a mast in his back garden and began to broadcast to a small area of West London every Sunday afternoon. DBC soon expanded to cover all styles of black music." - BBC

How Did Alexa And The Echo Start To Drag Down Amazon?

In a word, sales. "Some much-heralded device innovations, like the ability to place Amazon orders via Alexa, have failed to win over a dedicated audience. In other words, Alexa does not appear to be driving incremental retail sales in any meaningful way." - Fast Company

Stop Looking For The Next Austen

"When we go in search of new Austens or Brontës, we’re imagining we’ll find novels that remind us positively of theirs. We claim we’re searching for something new, and equally original, but in effect we’re seeking out literary echoes, not wholly distinct virtuoso performances." - Washington Post

WALL-E The Movie Got One Thing Alarmingly Correct

That is the prevalence of screens. They're just ... everywhere, all the time. - Slate

When A Musician Is Accused Of Sexual Misconduct, Can Fans Get Refunds?

No, say Arcade Fire fans, or former fans as frontman Win Butler faces at least five accusations. "The ticket retailers, tour promoters, and even Arcade Fire itself aren't offering refunds to the wider public." - CBC

For Suzan-Lori Parks, Theatre Creates Reality Just As Much As The Reverse

"Parks was on set as the writer for a TV show that had to go on hiatus when COVID hit. So she just started writing a short play a day – plays that would eventually become Plays for the Plague Year." - NPR

The Art, Flow, And Waste Of Fast Fashion

Or, why you might get money back for that wrong-sized T-shirt that a large online retailer doesn't even want back. - The New York Times

When Subscription Overload Hits And You Delete Your Whole History

Gmail keeps asking for money, and you start deleting ... everything. "I felt a sudden sense of mourning that I still have not gotten over. And yet, to my surprise, I felt something else alongside it: a conflicting sense of relief and even levity." - The Atlantic

How The Justice Department Sank The Mega Publisher Merger Deal

"While the country's attention was focused on the midterm elections, Judge Florence Pan unsealed her full opinion. In it, she sided with the federal government's persuasive and creative legal thinking, which focused on harms to an unusual victim: highly paid authors." - Salon

Making A Kinder, Gentler Video Game

It takes a lot of effort - but it's worth it, and backed by science. - Wired

A French Actor In A Cannes Movie Has Been Indicted On Charges Of Rape

Sofiane "Bennacer was part of the 32 emerging actors shortlisted for best newcomer at the Cesar Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars. ... But in the wake of the indictment, the Cesar Academy pulled Bennacer out of the nominations process." - Variety

The Oscars Never Satisfy The Masses

It's not because of COVID, and it's not because of the "downbeat" nature of some winners. Let's look at at the slate for 1980, for instance. - Irish Times

What It’s Like To Play Steven Spielberg In A Spielberg-Directed Movie

"In terms of speech, I didn’t bother because who would know what he talked like 60 years ago? And he also didn’t want that. But I wanted to emulate him physically as best I could." - Los Angeles Times

The Sandy Hook Memorial Is Unnervingly Gorgeous

"Suddenly, the project reveals itself: a gentle arc of gravel, loping around the perimeter of the site and wrung with native plantings, including dogwoods, maples, black-eyed Susans, and clump grasses determined to survive the winter." - The New Yorker

Why Some HarperCollins Authors Won’t Cross The Picket Line

"Nobody goes into publishing for the money; it’s a vocation for people who believe in the power of the written word to evoke empathy for and awareness of the human condition. You can’t eat empathy, however." - LitHub

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