ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

Stories

When Oprah Picks An Argument With You Even As She Picks Your Book

Novelist Ann Packer is OK with that. “As any veteran author knows, books that get people talking have a better chance of bubbling up on the best-seller list, even without celebrity endorsement.” - The New York Times

Gamers Are Running Scenarios In Fortnite To Prepare For ICE Raids

One of the organizers: “It’s a way to get folks to know or get used to what might look like. … What their rights are as bystanders, as citizens, as noncitizens, as folks who are documented, undocumented.” - Wired

Protesters Interrupt Performance Of Carmen At The Met

“While it was not immediately clear what they were protesting, eyewitnesses said one of them had denounced David H. Koch, the billionaire industrialist, a polarizing figure who poured much of his fortune into right-wing causes and a campaign to discredit the idea of climate change.” - The New York Times

The Wicked Sequel Is Doing Solid Box Office Numbers, But Can It Win Over Oscars Voters?

“One oddly uniting factor among Best Picture sequels is how few of them managed to compete in the acting categories.” - Vulture

Ireland’s Alt-Music Scene Was Nowhere – And Now It’s Spreading Throughout The World

“A generation of gen Z and millennial artists are reckoning with what it meant to come of age through recession, austerity and the tail end of the Troubles. The music pulsates with the sense of promises made and withdrawn.” - The Guardian (UK)

Who Is AI Nostalgia Slop Even For?

“It’s hard not to see the platform as a place where users are encouraged to double down on familiar archetypes instead of making something truly original, or even remotely interesting. … So where is the good stuff?” - The Verge (Archive Today)

What Happened To Al Rockoff’s Historic Photos Of Cambodia Is A Cautionary Tale Of Fame And Poverty

A man who said he would help Rockoff - one of the last photographers in Phnom Penh as the Khmer Rouge marched in - has all of the negatives, but what is he planning to do with them? And where will any money go? - The New York Times

Top Hollywood Agency Takes On New Client: Parmigiano Reggiano. No, Not Some Drag King, The Actual Cheese.

“The Parmigiano Reggiano Consortium has revealed that United Talent Agency (UTA) has signed the governing body for ‘the king of cheeses’ to get the supermarket staple placement in films, TV shows and streaming projects around the globe.” - The Hollywood Reporter

Superman Comic No.1 Sells For Record Price

A copy of Superman No 1 that was discovered in an attic in California last year has become the world’s most expensive comic book after selling for US$9.12m (£6.96m, A$14.14m). - The Guardian

How The New York Times Crossword Became Political

In an excerpt from his book Across the Universe: The Past, Present, and Future of the Crossword Puzzle, crossword constructor and former Will Shortz assistant Natan Last describes not only how it happened, but why it was probably unavoidable. - The Nation

BBC Is Now Losing $1 Billion/Year In Lost Licensing

The BBC is now losing more than £1bn a year from households either evading the licence fee or deciding they do not need one, according to a cross-party group of MPs who warned the corporation is under “severe pressure”. - The Guardian

Research: Students Learning With AI Say They Learn Less

The data revealed a consistent pattern: People who learned about a topic through an LLM versus web search felt that they learned less, invested less effort in subsequently writing their advice, and ultimately wrote advice that was shorter, less factual and more generic. - The Conversation

Louvre President, Under Fire, Defends The Museum

Some, including a prominent art critic, have said she should lose her job, and she has been called to testify twice before Parliament. The criticism is particularly charged given the tumultuous state of French politics. - The New York Times

Donald McIntyre, Great Wagnerian Bass-Baritone, Is Dead At 91

His powerful voice, authoritative presence and incisive musicianship led him to a major international career including the Met, Covent Garden, and La Scala. He had a 23-year relationship with the Bayreuth Festival, where he took the role of Wotan/the Wanderer in the landmark 1976 Chéreau/Boulez production of the Ring cycle. - Moto Perpetuo

Three Bids To Buy Warner Bros. Discovery

Netflix, Paramount and Comcast submitted bids to acquire the Hollywood colossus, which owns the Warner Bros. movie studio, HBO, and cable networks like CNN and TNT, four people with knowledge of the proposals said. - The New York Times

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