About an hour before landing in Las Vegas last week I was watching the film Jerry Maguire and a cut-throat sports agent declares: “It’s ‘show business’, not ‘show friends.’” The young hustler believes that the businesses of sport, art, and entertainment are totally transactional. And that conclusion is diametrically at odds with U2’s do-gooder desire to do the right thing. The following evening I was reviewing the band’s futuristic production in The Sphere and got to thinking about the endless debate where altruistic artists challenge the tainted values of the entertainment industry. It is a stupid question seeking a sensible answer.…

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