The difference between autofiction and a “loosely” autobiographical novel, broadly speaking, is the difference between Amis’s new book and one he published ten years ago, “The Pregnant Widow.” Both tell the story of a middle-aged baby boomer looking back on a formative erotic encounter that took place in the nineteen-seventies, during the heyday of the sexual revolution. – The New Yorker
Tag: 10.19.20
Live-Streaming Concerts People Will Pay For
Some acts have reaped serious money from ticketed livestreams: Pollstar reports Laura Marling sold 4,500 (UK) tickets at £12 each for her show at London’s Union Chapel in June; YouTube says Japanese artist Reol made $130,000 from a livestream on its platform in August; and BTS’s management company Big Hit said they had 756,000 fans watch their Bang Bang Con live stream in June, each paying between 29,000 won (£19.41) and 39,000 won (£26.10), meaning a minimum gross of £14.6m. – The Guardian
A Social Media Horror Story: “Our Social Dilemma”
In horror, “the narrative is driven by the question of whether the creature can be destroyed.” In The Social Dilemma, the creature is you and me, or at least the tech-addicted, algorithmically-modeled version of ourselves disclosed by big-tech behaviorism. So the film’s horrifying question is this: are you willing to destroy a part of yourself, that Twitter-refreshing creature within? – 3 Quarks Daily
Disney’s Pivot To Streaming Suggests Rough Times Ahead For Traditional Entertainment
Amongst its portfolio of businesses, Disney+ is the only clear winner, with the service gaining over 60.5 million members in just ten months since launch. The COVID-19 pandemic, on the other hand, crushed Disney’s cruise, theme park, cable TV, live sports, cinema and retail businesses, resulting in losses over US$4.7 billion in the financial quarter ended June 27. – The Conversation
People Aren’t Flocking To Europe’s Open Museums
That’s probably good; who wants museums to be responsible for the spread of more Covid-19? And yet it’s also challenging for certain museums. Not great right now: “In recent years, however, governments in many countries, including the Netherlands, have been cutting support of museums, as politicians have encouraged the ‘American model’ of funding, with more reliance on earned income.” – The New York Times