CARRIE MAE WEEMS

Right now, some of America’s greatest artists are contributing their time and creative talents to remind voters in Georgia what is at stake in this year’s elections. And a couple of national billboard companies are refusing to let People For the American Way share some of those images with voters. The billboard campaign is designed to expose hard truths to voters in a way that makes these attacks real—and motivates people to vote. “Artistic expression can inspire people to channel their energy into voting for a better future for everyone.”The billboard campaign is also part of a broader long-term project to engage artists in making political and social change. “If this artwork offends you, wait to see what happens if you don’t vote.”Ben Jealous serves as president of People For the American Way and Professor of the Practice at the University of Pennsylvania.

Now featuring a surveillance-state “Hamlet,” the Park Avenue Armory is a magnet for the arts on a grand scale.

Joni Mitchell has received honorary membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the century old institution where general inductees have ranged from Henry James and Georgia O’Keeffe to Sonny Rollins and Jasper Johns.

(AP Photo)NEW YORK – One of the country's oldest cultural instititutions, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, is undergoing some of its biggest changes in more than a century. AdHarjo, the first Native American to be appointed U.S. poet laureate, said she looked forward to having an influence on future academy choices. “There are so many incredible Native visual artists,” she told the AP, while also citing such authors as N. Scott Momaday and Leslie Marmon Silko. But the academy will still call itself an academy, while working to make itself more accessible to artists and to the general public. Besides choosing members, the academy also gives dozens of prizes and grants each year, totalling more than $1 million.

Here’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music platforms this week. One nominee, “Judas and the Black Messiah," arrives on HBO Max (as well as in theaters) on Friday. Ad— Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo's last writing partnership turned out pretty well. Ad— AP Film Writer Jake CoyleMUSIC— Sia’s Golden Globe-nominated directorial debut, “Music,” will be accompanied with a 14-track album. Ad— “Silence of the Lambs” is three decades in the rearview mirror, but only a year has passed as CBS’ “Clarice” picks up the story of FBI Agent Clarice Starling.