How did we get here, where men who benefit most from our social structures, position themselves as the little guy? This comes from a longer history of political shifts in America and of the rise of mass cultural consumption as a means of political expression. - 3 Quarks Daily
The phenomenon is sped by automation, which usurps routine tasks, leaving employees to handle the nonroutine and unanticipated—and the continued advance of which throws the skills employers value into flux. It would be supremely ironic if the advance of the knowledge economy had the effect of devaluing knowledge. - The Atlantic
"Before Roberts, the romance genre was dominated by tepid and virginal women who were overpowered by brooding men. Roberts changed all that by thrusting romance into the modern era." - The New York Times
Part I, in which "a Lakota playwright, 7 Indigenous actors, and an L.A.-based ensemble survive a pandemic, cross thousands of prairie miles, and confront centuries of history to make a play." - American Theatre
"During the past decade, politics has intruded on daily American life more than at any time since the 1960s; in the same period, technology has given a microphone or printing press to anyone with an internet connection. The result is the feeling that everyone should say something whenever anything happens."Â - The Atlantic
In an excerpt from his new book, Network of Lies, Brian Stelter lays out how, despite Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch being clearly in favor of conceding and moving on, the network first broadcast the conspiracy theories that ended up costing it $787.5 million. (The key figure: host Maria Bartiromo.) - Politico
The Sphere is a distillation of an evolving relationship among art, artist, and technology—somewhere between a warm embrace of and a final surrender to screens. It is an acknowledgment and maybe even a tribute to the ways in which our screens have become extensions of ourselves... - The Atlantic
A growing cadre of music fans have joined the Spotify tattoo craze as a conversation starter or a way to commemorate sentimental favorites like wedding first-dance songs. But while many on social media tout the tats and how well they scan, some are starting to discover that nothing in life is permanent, even tattoos. - The Wall Street Journal
Artistic director Gladisa Guadalupe and president/CEO Michael Krasnyansky, who are married, are alleged to have fired a teacher at the company school's outreach program after seeing a photo of her in class, and then to have fired the outreach program's manager after he complained to HR. - WKYC (Cleveland)
"Manuel Oliver donned a paper mask of the face of Joaquin, who was a 17-year-old senior when he was killed. He grabbed a hammer and turned to a life-size portrait of Joaquin and methodically banged it four times — once for each bullet that had struck him." - The New York Times
Actually, there are two controversies. One is about restoration to the list of some of the epithets that were deemed offensive and eliminated in 2020. More appalling is the addition of some word forms, particularly plurals of irregular nouns, that just don't actually exist in English, such as "feceses." - Slate
"For this work, Smith’s decision to blend her contemporary interviews with historical accounts of Maryland in the mid-1860s is apt. The echoes of history reverberate loudly, revealing the power of historical trauma to shape behavior in the present day." - The Atlantic
"In all my years doing research at the National Archives, I had never cried. …" The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and co-founder of the National Museum of African-American History and Culture writes about the implications of his research into the post-Civil War Freedmen's Bureau. - MSN (The Atlantic)
Vann R. Newkirk II, based on the diaries of Ella Sheppard, the group's first pianist and composer, and on materials in the historically black university's archives, recounts how the group came together in the 1870s to help save the impoverished school — and created a great American genre of music. - MSN (The Atlantic)
The museum's executive director also apologized for the way she discussed the postponement: "There are no excuses for what I said, regardless of my intentions." - The New York Times
"The path to God runs down the New Jersey Turnpike. About an hour from the Holland Tunnel, … a mirage appears: swirls of stone fluffed up into meringue peaks." Architecture critic Justin Davidson visits the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Robbinsville, just a few miles from Exit 8. - MSN (Curbed)
"Over the past four decades, Andrew Wylie has reshaped publishing in profound and, some say, insalubrious ways. He has been a champion of highbrow books and unabashed commerce, making great writers famous and famous writers rich. In the process, he has helped to define the global literary canon." - The Guardian
"'If you want to see a diverse and vibrant cultural community come to fruition, you have to build it," said Guy Ben-Aharon, founder of The Jar, which gathers small, disparate groups of people invited by "conveners" to evenings centered on particular artists from different disciplines. - MSN (The Washington Post)
