“Buskers in Covent Garden have claimed victory over the market’s owner, saying proposals to halve the number of performances allowed on the site have been withdrawn following huge public outcry.”
Tag: 04.01.08
Celebrities Argue For Restored Funding For National Endowment for the Arts
Actor Robert Redford and singer John Legend want funding restored for the National Endowment for the Arts and cultural programs.
Canada’s Giller Prize Gets A Healthy Boost
“Organizers announced Tuesday that the purse for the annual fiction-writing honour would increase to $70,000 — $50,000 for the winner and $5,000 to each of the four other finalists.
Learning To Love Wikipedia?
“The English version of Wikipedia has over 2 million articles, and it has been translated into over 250 languages. It has become so massive that you can type virtually any noun into a search engine and the first link will be to a Wikipedia page. A generation of students was warned away from this information siren, but we know as professors that it is the first place they go to start a research project…”
Rarity – Artists Advocate For Censorship
The artists were protesting a show of videos a the San Francisco Art Institute that showed animals being killed by a hammer. “The shock of the protest lies not only in its vehemence but also in the fact that it involves the rare spectacle of artists, including many SFAI faculty members, advocating censorship.”
Actor Jules Dassin, 96
His Naked City (1948) was one of the first police dramas shot on location. He was forced to leave the US in the 1950s after being blacklisted because he had joined the Communist Party in his youth. “I was one of the lucky ones. I was only unemployed five years … others never worked again.”
Network Radio Thrives While Local Media Swoons
Advertising on network radio is healthy. “Up 4% in 2007 to $1.2 billion, the health of network radio stands in stark contrast to the rest of the on-air radio business, which declined 3% to $18.5 billion. “
Big Media Stocks Take A Beating
“The stocks of major media and entertainment companies tumbled during the first quarter, with all sector biggies except for Viacom hitting new 52-week lows amid weaker overall markets and concerns about the advertising market outlook fueled by fear of a recession.”
U2 Concert Deal – An Indicator Of Where The Music Business Is Heading
“U2 have signed a 12-year deal with the world’s biggest concert promoter, Live Nation, to handle the band’s merchandising, digital and branding rights. The contracts indicate the direction in which the music industry is heading. As income from CD sales declines and pirate downloads eat up profits, artists are starting to realise that the money lies in touring and merchandising.”
Warning: Internet Is Harming Writers
“The internet is awash with unlicensed free digital copies of individual chapters, or in some cases, entire books. It’s hitting hardest the writers who write books that you dip in and out of: poetry, cookbooks, travel guides, short stories – books that you don’t have to read the whole of.”