December 5, 2025 - Tom Stoppard, Spotify Wrapped, and the words of the year

Edgar B. Herwick III,  Culture Show contributor Lisa Simmons  and Culture Show contributor Joyce Kulhawik co-host this week’s arts and culture week-in-review.

First up, the 2025 Words of the Year capture a moment shaped by online overload and cultural tension. Dictionary.com chose “67,” Cambridge went with “parasocial,” Collins selected “vibe coding,” and Oxford tapped “rage bait.” Together, they trace the emotional and technological currents running through daily life.

And a familiar holiday argument has resurfaced, thanks to a ruling from across the Atlantic: British regulators have declared that Die Hard is not a Christmas movie. The verdict has reignited a seasonal debate that refuses to melt away.

Then JPMorgan’s new Midtown tower has made a dramatic entrance on the New York skyline, promoted as a sleek, future-forward skyscraper. Critics, however, see something very different—calling it an environmental “eco-obscenity” that overshadows its sustainability claims.

Finally, Playwright Tom Stoppard, who died at 88, leaves behind one of the most influential bodies of work in modern theater. With five Tony Awards and screenplays like Shakespeare in Love, he brought precision, wit, and intellectual curiosity to both stage and screen. His legacy is defined by a rare ability to put language to the complexities most of us only sense.