“A class action lawsuit was filed Monday by the Authors Guild, along with independent scholars and writers, against the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and officials within the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for terminating millions in committed grants from Congressional funds.” - ARTnews
“Today, Audible announced it would begin offering AI-powered narration to select publishers. AI translation services will launch in beta later this year.” CEO Bob Carrigan pointed out that only between two and five percent of all books are available in audio and that the company’s goal is to expand the audio content available. - Publishers Weekly
“Included in the $254 billion budget is an expansion of the New York City Musical and Theatrical Production Tax Credit, known colloquially as the downstate tax credit. The new budget increases the program’s allotment to $400 million (up from $300 million in the preceding budget) and extends the program into 2027.” - Broadway News
“Liz Roche, Artistic Director of Luail, Ireland's all-island dance company, (writes) about the beginnings of the company, as it prepares to make its highly anticipated debut this May with Chora, a triple bill of new dance works.” - RTÉ (Ireland)
Public radio had been explicitly understood as an empathy machine since the dawn of This American Life in 1996. If we allow synonyms for empathy, radio has been understood this way since long before that. - Current
“We are processing a lot of complex emotions in this moment, as we imagine you are too in light of recent agency developments, but know that we remain unwavering in our overall support of all of you and the critical work you do.” - N+1
We all pretended that we knew what close reading meant. We not only talked about it but we did it. We knew it when we saw it, and we knew when it was done badly—but what it was, in the end, we couldn’t exactly say. - The Nation
Even our educational institutions often teach critical thinking as a weapon to dismantle others’ arguments rather than a tool for examining our own. The skill we most desperately need is the very one we’ve neglected to cultivate: the ability to hold our own certainties in suspension. - Psyche
These nine visionaries have released Grammy-winning albums; performed in nearly every major concert hall and to packed audiences from the stage; won record-setting Tony nominations; earned pinnacle titles; and become the first to break barriers in their given fields. - Elle
The country’s film industry is the world’s second largest by output, but the big streaming services who had been commissioning films have cut way back or withdrawn from Nigeria altogether. So actors, directors and screenwriters have been making and posting movies on YouTube at an astounding rate. - The Guardian
CPB leaders denied that request, citing federal law that establishes the independent nonprofit outside of the control of the federal government. The request comes as the president is launching a broad assault against the country's two largest public broadcasters. - NPR
Trump appointed Todd Blanche, his former defense lawyer, as librarian of Congress after abruptly firing Carla Hayden. Library staff resisted, insisting Congress must be involved and barring two other Justice Department officials chosen by Blanche from entering the agency’s headquarters. - The New York Times
The acclaimed new play broke history many times over and recently announced that it holds the all-time record for the highest grossing play in Broadway history and is the first play to surpass a gross of $4 million in a single week. - Deadline
“For over half a century, (he) stood as a towering figure in French cinema, a titan known for his commanding physical presence, instinct, sensitivity, and remarkable versatility. … His fall from grace was completed Tuesday when a Paris court found him guilty of sexually assaulting two women on a movie set in 2021.” - AP
For decades, there has been a nationwide artistic and cultural infrastructure receiving bipartisan support, including through the first administration of Donald Trump. Now that is changing — and drastically. - ABC News
