The Italian government is considering selling off RAI. “In a country like Italy, where only a tiny percentage of the population derives its political news from printed media, a change in the ownership structure of a television empire such as RAI, which has 45% of the TV audience, would be an issue of intense political concern. But in this case, there is the additional fact that the prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, owns RAI’s main rival, Mediaset, whose channels control 44% of the market.”
Tag: 12.15.04
RIAA Exec: Copyright Serves Us All
An executive of the Recording Industry Association of America is tired of copyright bashing. Strong copyright protection, he writes, is in the public interest. “Folks like Larry Lessig and EFF would have you believe, because it suits their analysis, that copyright protection and the public interest are diametrically opposed. This is merely a rhetorical device, and is a complete fallacy. The public’s interest is represented by the copyright law.”
American Musical, An (Over-The-Top) History
Ethan Mordden’s “The Happiest Corpse I’ve Ever Seen” is a new highly-opinionated histry of the American musical. “Just when you think you’re reading a hip encyclopedia, you find yourself immersed in a flagrant gossip column; just when you feel you are getting essential insights, you are submerged in the most esoteric lore or most intimate revelations.”
In Canada: Young Audiences At More Performances
Statistics Canada reports that young people are a large proportion of the country’s arts audiences. “Young people attended a total of 13,500 performances in theatre, dance, music and opera in 2003, accounting for about one-quarter of the attendance figures, according to a new study from the government agency. In all, 3.8 million young people attended performances in 2003. That compares with 3.6 million in 2001 and 3.4 million in 1999.”
Pacifica Ballet Snags Star, Trains Eye On Big League
Ballet Pacifica, a small professional company in Orange County, California, is making a big step up. American Ballet Theatre star Ethan Stiefel has been chosen to lead the company. “He comes to Orange County with a mandate to remake Ballet Pacifica – which has struggled to survive – into a high-caliber dance troupe with a national and international reputation.”
Canada Renews Crucial Arts Funding Program
“The sense of dread engulfing Canada’s arts community is about to be lifted — for now. Canadian Heritage Minister Liza Frulla will announce today that Ottawa is renewing its Tomorrow Starts Today arts-funding program, the Toronto Star has learned. That translates into about $200 million for 12 months starting April 1, 2005. The decision comes after months of fierce lobbying and parliamentary hearings, as well as fear, anger and frustration. And it removes a big black cloud hanging over the cultural world. The program, which has pumped more than $750 million into the arts over the past four years, was heading for a sunset on March 31, which would have been devastating.”
The Risk of Tweaking A Classic
Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker is one of those works of art about which the public tends to have very strong feelings, and the ballet companies that rely on their annual productions to line their coffers for the year mess with the show at their own risk. This year, the San Francisco Ballet is updating and overhauling its Nutcracker for the first time in nearly two decades, and the hope is that traditionalists won’t be too put off by the changes, innocent and unthreatening as they may be.
Oxymoron Of The Day: Public Radio Hipsters
Public radio audiences aren’t exactly known for their embrace of cutting-edge pop music, but that didn’t stop Minnesota Public Radio from launching a cutting-edge pop show recently, with the aim of demystifying the genre for listeners who like the music, but are intimidated by the insider lingo and youth-dominated club scene. As it turns out, public radio stations around the country could not have been less interested in Pop Vultures, and the show, which was critically praised in the few markets in which it aired, has been killed off after only 22 episodes.
Yes, But We Could Tell They Wanted To Air It
The FCC’s decision to investigate NBC’s Olympics telecast was apparently the result of no more than nine consumer complaints nationwide. The commission is still refusing to disclose exactly what was potentially indecent about the Games. Most of the speculation has centered on the opening ceremonies, which featured some nude dancers posing as classic Greek statuary, but that theory has one big problem: NBC never aired any of the nudity.
Thinking Smaller In South Florida
With no new symphony orchestra in sight, some former members of the now-defunct Florida Philharmonic have banded together to form the Renaissance Chamber Orchestra, with the aim of filling the classical void while maintaining enough organizational flexibility to stay afloat in an area that has not shown a great deal of interest in the genre. The Fort Lauderdale-based group is showing early signs of success, and is already being booked for concert dates as far north as Georgia.