"When you’re searching for excellence, even books you might have enjoyed under normal circumstances start looking mediocre, and the process quickly becomes a slog that drains the joy from reading. But the monthly discussions with my fellow jurors — always lively, thoughtful, and respectful — were restorative." - The Ed's Up
Edison Research’s Share of Ear data shows podcast listeners spent a third (32%) of their audio listening time with podcasts. That beats out AM/FM radio by ten points and it’s well above streaming music (18%) or satellite radio (5%). - Inside Radio
"In 1913, on the last day of the history-making Armory Show, … displeased with ... Matisse’s Blue Nude (Souvenir of Biskra), the students accused 'Henry Hair Mattress' of 'artistic murder, pictorial arson, artistic rapine, total degeneracy of color, criminal misuse of line, general esthetic aberration, and contumacious abuse of title.'" - Artnet
Combined, the “white collar” class of creatives, managers and specialists accounted for eight out of ten jobs in Hollywood in 2022, up from seven out of ten jobs in 2013. - Variety
Critic Bilge Ebiri, who's been advocating for such an award for years, walks through, and takes down, the arguments that have for decades been put up against a Best Stunts Oscar. Then he recounts an anecdote that points to the likely truth of the matter. - Vulture (MSN)
Both art institutions and artists face existential challenges in negotiating this AI universe and its emerging financial model. Art-world experts consulted by The Art Newspaper have offered a mix of pragmatic, creative, combative and hopeful responses to the report and to the state of the AI industry. - The Art Newspaper
While he's also angry that the concert started late, the arena was hot, and Madonna was lip-synching, his legal complaint says, "During the performance plaintiff was forced to watch topless women on stage simulating sex acts. Plaintiff felt like he was watching a pornographic film being made." - The Guardian
With funding from the state, Télé-Louisiane has been airing, on Louisiana Public Broadcasting, a weekly news-and-culture program called La Veillée and a children's cartoon, Les Aventures de Boudini et Ses Amis. Legislators have eliminated Télé-Louisiane's funding, and supporters are rallying to reverse that decision. - The Acadiana Advocate
TikTok, that's how. With The Shadow Work Journal, Keila Shaheen has become "perhaps the first self-published nonfiction author to break out in a big way on the platform, a feat she accomplished by fully harnessing its potential not just for marketing, but for direct sales." - The New York Times
"The bill calls for ... making the tradition illegal by the start of 2028. The new law now needs to be signed by President Gustavo Petro, who has been a longtime opponent of these events. Bullfighting … is still legal in a handful of countries, including Spain, France, Portugal, Peru, Ecuador and Mexico." - AP
"Canada’s National Ballet School says it may be forced to rescind or defer offers for its competitive teacher-training program because its status as a career college has caught it in a tangle of jurisdictional red tape over new student immigration rules." - The Globe and Mail (Canada)
"The Forman Arts Initiative, an arts organization that awards grants to local creatives and arts nonprofits, plans to renovate four buildings on American Street (in West Kensington). The multipurpose space will hold a gallery, performing arts venue, and garden area, in addition to FAI’s offices." - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
The decision comes just a week after the Hay Festival cut funding ties with the investment firm. Both festivals cite "intolerable pressure," referring to boycott threats and withdrawals by participants who object to Baillie Gifford's financial ties to the fossil fuel industry and Israel. - The Herald (Scotland)
No media consumer is an easier mark than the guilt-ridden parent, whose perseverations about not paying enough attention can be amplified a millionfold by graphic pop-culture warnings about teen temptations. What’s so different about leaving kids to spend seven hours a day on screens? - Racket News
By interpreting buildings in horror mode, the authors unveil the systemic greed, unsustainable growth, and unchecked power embedded in their foundations. - LA Review of Books
