Animal rights vs. art rights

American arts organizations are fighting legislation that criminalizes the distribution of images of animal cruelty, according to Artinfo.net.

Groups like College Art Association believe the legislation will prevent artists from making work and is tantamount to censorship. Value judgments about art are not tenable under the legislation, according to the CAA.

The legislation comes in the wake of shows like “The Wings of God,” by artist Adel Abdessemed. The show contained videos of animals being clubbed to death and being pitted against each other in gladiator-style death matches. The show faced protest and criticism by animal rights activists when it went on to show in Italy and New York this spring.

Agent Mustard in the study with the iPhone

The classic board game Clue is being reissued by Hasbro, but this time with a technological twist, reported The New York Times. “CLUE: Secrets & Spies” employs text messaging to help aspiring detectives solve international crimes. It’s the first time Hasbro has employed text messaging in a board game.

Taking on themes of undercover operations and technological espionage, the new Clue features an evil enemy plot, “C.L.U.E.” (Criminal League for Ultimate Espionage), that players (Agent Mustard, etc.) must bring to justice.
Cellphones not included, but an ultra-violet decoder is.

Are there laser beams in my cornflakes?

Cereal giant Kellogg’s is quite literally re-branding its signature breakfast staple Corn Flakes. Kellogg’s is producing a trial edition of the cereal that features the company’s logo laser-etched into the surface of the flakes, according to The Daily Mail.
The laser-cut cereal is meant to deter consumers from enjoying non-Kellogg’s corn flakes, which are not made by the Kellogg’s company. Apparently knock-offs have been growing in recent years and Kellogg’s believes that reinforcing its company’s image on individual flakes will assure customers of superior quality.

The trial of the branded cereal will include a few flakes in new boxes of cereal and if the campaign is successful, may extend to other Kellogg’s breakfast brands, like Raisin Bran and Special K.

The return of a classic

The Most Exciting Announcement of the Week Award goes to Polaroid, who announced last week the reintroduction of its classic line of instant film.

Just when there was about to be another surge of the old cameras in thrift stores and garage sales, Polaroid has told the world to hang on to their old cameras for another year. At a press conference in Hong Kong, the photography brand said that it would hope to ready new stock of Polaroid film by the middle of 2010, according to the Seattle P-I.

The Polaroid company faced bankruptcy last year and ceased production of the instant film, saying instant images had been taken over by digital cameras. Much disappointment ensued, even to the point where Polaroid enthusiasts bought an old factory to try and reproduce the film. Prices of expired Polaroid sky-rocketed and even expired stock continues to be difficult to acquire.

Published in Volume 64, Number 8 of The Uniter (October 22, 2009)