Will we be all right? People ask science fiction writer Kim Stanley Robinson versions of this question all of the time. Robinson thinks we might be, with a lot of work. - The New Yorker
Baby steps perhaps aren't enough to entice Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, and subscribers back: "Spotify announced on Sunday that content advisories will be added to 'any podcast episode that includes a discussion about COVID-19.'" - Vulture
Go big or go home? "The rise of streaming video game services ... could sweep Hollywood players into the sector in a bigger way by motivating them to double down on their offerings or, alternatively, exit it for a lack of scale." - The Hollywood Reporter
The actor says, "I think it’s really interesting what happens to you if you grow up thinking there’s something wrong with you because you’re attracted to a certain thing. ... That takes a lot of time and understanding to get over." - The Guardian (UK)
Director Jonas Rasmussed "had been searching for years for a way to tell the story of an Afghan man’s journey as a refugee that the subject ... would be comfortable with. When Rasmussen attended a workshop with animators, the pieces fell into place." - Variety
Questions abound: "Have these institutions acquired any works by Venezuelan artists produced after 2000? How many Venezuelan artists have fled the country? How many Venezuelan curators and scholars live abroad and hold positions in museums in the United States or wherever they have been taken in?" - Hyperallergic
One singer's thoughts: "We share a goal of bringing hundreds or thousands of people together for a few hours in one room. Even if most of our fans remained COVID-free, what if ... our show directly led to the hospitalization of a vulnerable senior?" - The Atlantic
Less than a year after the Israeli airstrikes that destroyed his beloved two-story bookshop, owner Samir Mansour "is now preparing to reopen as both a bookshop and library, in a new location" - with some of the 150,000 books donated from around the world - The Guardian (UK)
The 84-year-old Swiss photographer of the flamenco world fell sometime on the evening of January 19. A homeless person in the area called authorities the next morning, but it was too late. - El Pais
The effort is concerted. "Many parents have seen Google docs or spreadsheets of contentious titles posted on Facebook by local chapters of organizations such as Moms for Liberty. From there, librarians say, parents ask their schools if those books are available to their children." - The New York Times
Or so says cellist and composer Nancy Ives. "Something has to happen where the elements are transmuted into something new in relationship to each other," she says of her piece in honor of Beethoven's 250th birthday. - Oregon ArtsWatch
"The latest developments are escalating pressure on Spotify to clarify how it will weigh promoting the free speech of its content creators against the impact that some can have on public health during the pandemic." - Washington Post
"One of the problems that minority writers face is: How many writers are there? If it’s just you, you’ve got to be pretty careful. As times change, and there are more voices, you can relax a little. But there is still a little voice in the back of my head." - The New York Times
