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Biden Restores The President’s Arts And Humanities Commission

That's "an advisory board that was dissolved five years ago after its members resigned in protest over President Donald J. Trump’s reaction to the deadly white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va." - The New York Times

Ed Sheeran Will Stand Trial In The US Over Copyright Of Marvin Gaye Song

The trial is about "claims he copied his hit 2014 song Thinking Out Loud from Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On, after a federal judge rejected the pop star’s efforts to toss out the long-running copyright case." - The Guardian (UK)

Oh, The Humanities

Humanities departments have to face up to what's happening to their students, both undergrad and (here, the news is even worse) graduate students. Where can history majors, for instance, get jobs? "We must do a much better job of providing students with windows into careers." - Inside Higher Ed

Sue Mingus, Who Promoted Her Husband Charles’ Work, Has Died At 92

Sue Mingus "helped secure legacy as one of the 20th century’s greatest musical minds" after his death of ALS at age 56. Incredibly, she "organized three bands, each with different strengths, to wrestle with the more than 300 compositions he left behind." - The New York Times

What Did The Me Too Movement Do For Hollywood’s Craft Services?

Five years on, little has changed, say women behind the scenes. One woman in editorial says, "Realistically, you may have to be willing to jettison your career to break through these behaviors that have been in place for a very long time." - The Hollywood Reporter

Museum Directors Give Official Blessing For The Sale Of Some Art To Care For What’s Left

"Rules around deaccessioning have long been controversial, with some holding that museum collections should not be treated as liquid assets to weather difficult times." But many current and former museum directors say this decision is clear, and limited. - Hyperallergic

A Conductor With Ties To Russia Will Eventually Step Down From A German Orchestra

Teodor Currentzis, who has ties to a Russian state-owned bank and has been criticized for it, will step down when his contract ends - in 2025, announced Stuttgart's SWR Symphony. - The New York Times

Quick Q&As With The Authors On A Prestigious Nonfiction Award Longlist

Andrea Elliott: "The intensity of my reporting stems from a belief that well-told stories—those with depth and nuance—are the product of intimate knowledge. And that comes from being with people, day after day, deeply immersed in their lives." - LitHub

Lyrics Can’t Be Considered Criminal Evidence In California Anymore

"The bill covers all forms of creative expression but is especially salient for hip-hop artists, whose slice-of-life lyrics have frequently been cited by prosecutors in criminal trials as proof of guilt." - Los Angeles Times

Zimbabwean Author Found Guilty Of Inciting Violence With A Six-Word Sign

Tsitsi Dangarembga held a sign in 2020 that read, "We want better. Reform our institutions." On Thursday, she was "convicted of participating in a public gathering with intent to incite public violence," fined, and given a suspended sentence. - The Guardian (UK)

What Cultural Appropriation Really Means

What people think it means: "A member of the dominant culture — an insider — taking from a culture that has historically been and is still treated as subordinate and profiting from it at that culture’s expense. The profiting is key." - The New York Times

Hollywood, That Bastion Of Conservative Attack Ads

In 1934, Upton Sinclair shocked Californians by winning the Democratic primary for governor. Hollywood couldn't - and wouldn't - have it. - Los Angeles Times

After Years Of Protests, The Victoria And Albert Museum Finally Drops The Sackler Name

"This weekend the signs that directed V&A visitors to the Sackler Centre for Arts Education, and to the £2m tiled 'Sackler Courtyard' on Exhibition Road, have gone, as the museum finally jettisons its damaging association with the opioid drug market." - The Observer (UK)

Workers Strike At The Philadelphia Museum Of Art (Signs Of Unrest At Other Museums)

Since the Philadelphia union was formed, organizing efforts have succeeded at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Brooklyn Museum of Art in New York, as well as the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. - The New York Times

The Elusive Search For The Perfect Recording

Tom Port believes that records are like snowflakes — no two are the same. So many things can impact the pressing, including room temperature, the split second the stampers are pressed onto the hot, vinyl biscuit, and unknown factors no human can understand. - Washington Post

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