{"id":868,"date":"2024-05-21T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-05-21T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/?p=868"},"modified":"2024-05-21T14:43:13","modified_gmt":"2024-05-21T14:43:13","slug":"for-live-functioning-artists-the-end-comes-not-with-a-bang-but-an-email","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2024\/05\/21\/for-live-functioning-artists-the-end-comes-not-with-a-bang-but-an-email\/","title":{"rendered":"For Live, Functioning Artists, The End Comes Not With a Bang, But an Email"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the never-ending, fruitless search for economy, actors are being replaced by algorithms<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
When the arts chooses to go algorithmic, careers die. (Digging a new grave at Blunsdon Cemetery by Gareth James, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The \u201crace to the bottom\u201d in today\u2019s economy is well-documented. It has always been well-documented, railed against, and ultimately won the day. From the obscenity of 400 years of enslaving Black people to prop up a weak economy in the United States to a smaller vulgarity of recruiting cheap, Bangladeshi customer service centers for \u201cAmerican\u201d products, business leaders have continually destroyed the lives of people on this planet in order to make money for themselves. Add generous dollops of racist tropes, scoops of disingenuous attempts of outreach, and heavy truckloads of meaningless treaties to the mix, and you end up with an outrageously inequitable country filled with fear, which leads to hate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That race to the bottom has been exacerbated by the introduction of personless privilege. Using various versions of artificial, mindless, automatic machine intelligence (aka \u201cAI\u201d), the proposed elimination of paid actors lay at the heart of last year\u2019s SAG-AFTRA strike. And while there was a solid majority of workers<\/a> who approved the deal with the studios, not every union leader was convinced that the studios wouldn\u2019t replace the actors with AI versions regardless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI cannot endorse a contract that compromises the independence and financial futures of the performers. It is purposefully vague and demands union members to release their autonomy…. Consent is surrender.\u201d <\/p>Matthew Modine, actor and SAG-AFTRA board member<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It turns out that Modine\u2019s fears were well-founded, just as the fears of Indigenous Americans whose treaties were constantly broken by a Puritan nation that really didn\u2019t care whether they lived or died were well-founded. The \u201cwell, it\u2019s better than nothing\u201d tactic has rarely served the workers or the oppressed population, and it didn\u2019t do so here, either. When Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA\u2019s executive director and chief negotiator said, \u201cI\u2019m very happy with the result,\u201d followed closely by \u201cIf we set aside the AI issue, it would have been ratified by 99% of members probably,\u201d he tacitly acknowledged that the problem of actors being replaced by code was going to be a continuing problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the US, it wasn\u2019t a big story. In fact, if you don\u2019t live in the UK, you well might have missed it entirely. Rolling Stone<\/em> carried it, entitling it \u201cAI Debate Stirs in U.K. as Actress Replaced on BBC Project by Artificially Generated Voice.\u201d It seems that actress Sara Poyzer, who has played the role of Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia <\/em>for 10 years on the West End, shared an email that not only told her that her voice services were no longer required by the BBC for an upcoming project where she deftly recreated a voice of a prominent (unnamed) individual, but with striking callousness, why.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
She later posted a response to her earlier post that called the situation \u201cgrim\u201d and \u201cproper shit.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As described in the Rolling Stone<\/em> article, \u201cNews of Poyzer\u2019s artificial replacement comes less than a week after BBC director general Tim Davie said that the broadcaster would \u2018proactively deploy\u2019 AI \u2018on our terms\u2019 but added the technology would never compromise \u2018human creative control.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trying desperately (and, in my belief, poorly) to deflect the outrage among even its most benevolent benefactors and artists, the BBC issued a strange obfuscation defined as a \u201cstatement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are making a highly sensitive documentary which features a contributor who is nearing the end of life and is now unable to speak. We have been working closely with their family to explore how we might best represent the contributor\u2019s voice at the end of the film when words they have written are read out. In these very particular circumstances and with the family’s wishes in mind we have agreed to use AI for a brief section to recreate a voice which can now no longer be heard. This will be clearly labelled within the film.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, instead of a talented, professional voice actress with dozens of years of experience creating and re-creating voices doing the work, a machine will. In neither case will it be the person whose voice is being characterized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Imagine Ken Burns insisting that the real voices of Abraham Lincoln, Ulysees Grant, Robert E. Lee, and all the various characters depicted in his 1990 documentary The Civil War<\/a> <\/em>be so authentic as not to be portrayed by the panoply of superstar speakers such as Sam Waterston, Julie Harris, Jason Robards, Morgan Freeman, Paul Roebling, Garrison Keillor, George Black, Arthur Miller, Christopher Murney, Charles McDowell, Horton Foote, George Plimpton, Philip Bosco, Terry Courier, Jody Powell, Studs Terkel, Jeremy Irons, Derek Jacobi, Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., Gene Jones, Jerome Dempsey, Laurence Fishburne, Betsy Apple, Carol Craven, Marissa Copeland, Halo Wines, David Marks, Pamela Reed, Ronnie Gilbert, M. Emmet Walsh, Hoyt Axton, John Hartford, Walt MacPherson, Colleen Dewhurst, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Bradford Washburn, Jesse Carr, Wendy Tilghman and Joe Mattys. Instead, the cast list might have looked something like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Didn’t you just love ?e.promise().done(n.resolve).fail in “Code on a Hot Tin Keyboard”?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The BBC, despite their protestations to the contrary, has entered the race to the bottom. No doubt the Hollywood studios have already found ways to subvert the spirit of the new contract and are in the race as well. Ultimately, history tells us, they\u2019ll win, and free (or next-to-free) labor will win the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So the question I ask is this: why? Why is it so urgent to create the kinds of technology that will absolutely put thousands, if not millions of people out of work? If the pandemic taught us nothing else, it reminded us that work is \u201cthat thing we do until we retire\u201d or \u201ca way to make enough money to live as comfortably as we can,\u201d not \u201cour legacy\u201d or \u201cour purpose.\u201d Work can be fulfilling, but it\u2019s really just something to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there were no need to eat, breathe, drink, or sleep, would we? Maybe. But that\u2019s not the world in which we live. So we\u2019re here. We don\u2019t really know (or often care) why we\u2019re here. Why would we ever choose to have technology replace us? To make rich corporations richer? And their insatiably avaricious CEOs and shareholders \u2013 even at the Beeb?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Here are the salaries of the BBC’s director-general and the executive committee. Note: \u00a3525,000 = $658,503, give or take.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, as this is in actuality a discussion meant for nonprofit arts organizations in the US (and beyond), does your work quantifiably make lives better? A few lives? Or are you just here to fulfill some anointed artistic god\u2019s vision of whatever it is they want to do and it doesn\u2019t really matter if anyone gets service from it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And, in the context of this article, would you eliminate human beings from the process to make your art better? Have you? Did you create a \u201cmini\u201d version of a larger show? Hmm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a>
If you haven’t already done so, you’re going to want to order a bunch of these for your board retreats, staff meetings, and other key get-togethers. To get a substantial discount for 25 or more, just visit https:\/\/bit.ly\/bulkbookstore.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the never-ending, fruitless search for economy, actors are being replaced by algorithms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":869,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,100,40,32,19,18,17,99],"tags":[63,112,50],"class_list":{"0":"post-868","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-culture","8":"category-book-recommendation","9":"category-change","10":"category-charity","11":"category-leadership","12":"category-nonprofit","13":"category-nonprofit-arts-organizations","14":"category-scene-change","15":"tag-ai","16":"tag-artists","17":"tag-nonprofit-management","18":"entry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/grave-digger.jpg?fit=1000%2C742&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":457,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2023\/06\/20\/warning-the-following-column-was-completely-written-by-a-i-as-such-it-should-terrify-you\/","url_meta":{"origin":868,"position":0},"title":"Warning: The Following Column Was Completely Written by A.I. As Such, It Should Terrify You.","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"June 20, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"For my nonprofit arts colleagues worldwide who are agonizing over whether they might be replaced, be assured. You likely will.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Enhanced-AI-typing.jpg?fit=1200%2C711&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":607,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2023\/11\/07\/cmon-now-its-not-the-end-of-the-world-for-the-nonprofit-arts-sector\/","url_meta":{"origin":868,"position":1},"title":"C\u2019mon, Now. It\u2019s Not the End of the World for the Nonprofit Arts Sector.","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"November 7, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Blame is meaningless. The solution is obvious. You just have to want to change. (Oh right. That.)","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/the-wheel-of-blame.jpg?fit=1200%2C650&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/the-wheel-of-blame.jpg?fit=1200%2C650&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/the-wheel-of-blame.jpg?fit=1200%2C650&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/the-wheel-of-blame.jpg?fit=1200%2C650&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/the-wheel-of-blame.jpg?fit=1200%2C650&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":896,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/2024\/04\/12\/special-post-rewarding-bad-nonprofit-theater-behavior-by-using-trickle-down-just-say-no\/","url_meta":{"origin":868,"position":2},"title":"SPECIAL POST: Rewarding Bad Nonprofit Theater Behavior By Using Trickle-Down? Just Say No.","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"April 12, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The S.T.A.G,E. Act is right now on in committees at the House and Senate. 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No argument. Nonprofit arts organizations are not art, and therefore are not a universal good. 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Now That the Waves Have Hit, Maybe It\u2019s Time to Swim Awhile","author":"Alan Harrison","date":"August 15, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"All the pandemic did was rush oblivion along.","rel":"","context":"In "Arts and Culture"","block_context":{"text":"Arts and Culture","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/category\/arts-and-culture\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/COVER-ART-for-ArtsJournal.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/COVER-ART-for-ArtsJournal.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/COVER-ART-for-ArtsJournal.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/868","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=868"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/868\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":942,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/868\/revisions\/942"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=868"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=868"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/scenechange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=868"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}