A Climate of Unease for Artists in Syria

In the recently published article in the New York Times by Michael Kimmelman he writes how under President Hafez al-Assad red lines of intolerance are not clear, increasing, not diminishing, the sense of uneasiness and tendency toward self-censorship for Syrian artists.Commercial globalization and the Web, having promised to erode the power of authoritarian regimes and foster new cultural riches, mostly have just concentrated more wealth in the hands of those close to power. And, aside from a...