Episode

The Money Runs Out

Podcast
The Culture We Deserve
Published
Feb 11, 2026
Duration seconds
6510
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https://08b5f6c4-c5fc-4bcc-a25b-73b360099d87.libsyn.com/the-money-runs-out
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Markdown
/podcast/the-culture-we-deserve-6690403/the-money-runs-out.md

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Summary

Our major arts institutions are broke. The Met Opera has been reduced to begging for money from the Saudis, and meanwhile they can't sell out their theater even for premieres. Colleges are dipping into endowments, theater companies are shutting down, and the MFA Boston is laying people off. The cosmopolitan globalized art model is falling apart, and (now that Epstein is dead) no one has any new ideas except to head out to the petrostates hat in hand. Jessa and Nico look into the state of affairs, and wonder why we're here in the 21st century using 20th century ideas about what art is for and how to fund it. Shownotes and references: http://theculturewedeserve.substack.com