“Booksellers save lives. Period,” Patterson said in a statement released Tuesday through his publisher, Little, Brown and Company. “I’m happy to be able to acknowledge them and all their hard work this holiday season.” - AP News
Just what was Kreskin’s talent? “I am not a psychic, an occultist or fortune teller. I am not a mind reader, medium or hypnotist. I am a scientist, a researcher in the field of suggestion and ‘extrasensory’ perceptions. I perform what I discover.” - The Hollywood Reporter
"Gurira set up Almasi (Collaborative Arts) with film and theatre producer Patience Tawengwa to give Zimbabwean creatives access to the sort of training and skills that she has benefited from since being in the US." - The Guardian
The theater symbolizes the many eccentrics and geniuses that abound in this country. It’s an enabler of dreamers and risk-takers. It’s a place where winners and losers are decided by neighbors, peers and curious tourists — not a panel of elites or know-it-alls. The Apollo Theater is an American temple of memories and untapped possibilities. - Washington Post
Art is a con. That’s why it’s great. I’ve always said art should lower gross domestic product; it shouldn’t be there to bolster efficiency, or do a certain thing. It’s a shamanistic thing that is essentially founded on a belief that you can buy into, or not. - The New York Times
The cultural ideas (what was originally meant by ‘memes’) that are most suited to global dominance crowd out cultural ideas that developed locally and have deep meaning to the communities that created them. - Psyche
The nonprofit Third Coast Music has won the city's request for proposals to develop the site. Its plan is for an $80 million facility to record and produce music, primarily for film and television. The 32,000-square-foot complex will include a soundstage even larger than that of Skywalker Sound in California. - WBEZ (Chicago)
What might appear to be a superficial spat over sweaters and hairstyles could actually be a legal fight that gets at the heart of social media influence. As much as platforms like TikTok and Instagram may seem like free-for-alls, lifestyle influencers exist in an ecosystem that prizes homogeneity. - The New York Times
Several scholarly publishers have forged agreements with technology companies looking to use content to train the large language models (LLMs) that underlie their AI tools. A new tracker aims to catalogue what deals are being made — and by whom. - Nature
For context, 4Culture usually sends out about $10 million to $15 million per year. With Doors Open, the agency’s 2025 grants are increasing to $70.1 million across 720 organizations. - Seattle Times
"The city agency (Metro Arts) is behind schedule because it’s still recovering from last year’s chaotic funding cycle. … This year, (there's) a much smaller pool of money to distribute: $3.2 million, down from over $7 million last year. And this year’s applicant pool is larger than last year’s record high." - WPLN (Nashville)
Justin Davidson: "A new museum wing here can’t just be an exercise in logistics. It’s also a presence in Central Park and a half-billion-dollar embodiment of the museum’s encyclopedic mission. … (Frida Escobedo's design) looks laudably simple because it provides an elegant solution to a tangle of trade-offs and constraints." - Curbed (MSN)
"In the lame-duck session …, support continues to build for a bill that would require AM receivers to be included in vehicle dashboards. Three more House members have signed on as co-sponsors for the proposed AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, bringing the total number of supporters in the House to 271." - Inside Radio
"In the months since the revelations, I revisited Munro’s stories, spoke with members of her family and tracked down a number of her unpublished letters. Munro’s appalling failures as a mother seem to have been an imaginative incitement, instrumental to her artistic project." - The New York Times Magazine
The gift from the family foundation of real estate magnate and former Chicago Tribune owner Sam Zell provides "vital" capital to reduce debt, fund retirement benefits, and pay for tours, special artistic projects and digital initiatives, said a statement from orchestra management. - Chicago Sun-Times
