Jeremy Hobson, the creator of the weekly evening show called The Middle, "found much of modern public radio’s heavily produced, pre-recorded nature grating, as it appeared the hosts were too scripted, sounded unnatural, and pandered to a single worldview." - The Daily Beast
"Marfa Public Radio Puts You to Sleep, a pledge-drive special released in October, features station staffers reading snooze-worthy documents related to public broadcasting and the details of running a radio station. Featured texts on the show’s 10 episodes ... included NPR’s style guide and the 1967 Public Broadcasting Act." - Current
"A decline in subscription rates, shockingly higher costs, and donations that haven't kept pace with inflation have thrown some arts organizations off-balance and spiraled others into crisis. Museums, music and dance venues have bounced back faster. Theaters struggled, perhaps due to the expense and complexity of staging." - Crain's Chicago Business
Paid attendance and box office income are both nearing pre-pandemic levels, though they're still slightly below those of 2019. Says CEO Jeff Alexander, "We're building our way back. … We're happy. We could be happier." - Crain's Chicago Business
"Even residents are wary of the city’s ongoing crime surge. Barely half (53%) of Cook County residents feel safe spending time in downtown Chicago (according to a Harris poll). If locals feel unsafe in their own city, how can we expect out-of-town visitors to feel comfortable?" - Crain's Chicago Business
"Having seen and enjoyed the show in New York, I now realize that I missed the obvious during my years in Manila. The Marcoses, the now-94-year-old Imelda in particular, had for years captured the affection and votes of ordinary Filipinos by entertaining them." - NPR
"In the past, organized tours of the necropolis were generally only granted to approved groups of academics, students and other specialists." Now, anyone with a ticket has the same access. - NPR
The interview with the former president "was conducted by Enrique Acevedo, an anchor from Mexican network Televisa who is not a Univision journalist. The two media groups merged last year. Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner reportedly helped organize the interview." - Los Angeles 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
With all its decades of episodes, well-known characters, and worldwide brand recognition, Sesame Street has more than 5 billion views on YouTube. That’s impressive, but ChuChu has more than 19 billion. Sesame Street’s main feed has 4 million subscribers; the original ChuChu TV channel has 19 million. - The Atlantic
Jennifer Miller Hammel, who created the channel, called Arcade: “We tried to eliminate that roadblock of, Well, is this going to be too scary for a classical audience? But then also, is there a way that we can introduce some classical music to a gaming audience?" - The New York Times
