Creative-industries policy funded corporate-sponsored art projects instead of public services

Evidence

In the United Kingdom, for instance, the enthusiasm for creativity merged with New Labour’s efforts to advance a kinder, gentler post-industrial neoliberalism through the promotion of the cultural industries (Hesmondhalgh 2008; McGuigan 2009). Rather than seeking to reverse the decline of the manufacturing sector and undo the cuts to and privatization of government services, the Blair government envisioned the nation’s prosperity as rooted in the production of “intangibles.” While, on the whole, cultural institutions enjoyed little additional funding, new monies were made available for limited individual projects that promised economic and social spin-offs. So, rather than fully fund public education and supplementary programs for youth (school lunch programs, recreation, special needs, remedial education), these new initiatives would bring artists into schools and community centres to offer “at risk” youth a chance to “express themselves.” In many cases, funding for such projects was dependent on finding “third party” and “stakeholder” support, which often meant corporate sponsorship. — Max Haiven, Cultures of Financialization, 460

Categorization

• ADDENDUM: Supports the ‘Grafting & Growth’ or cultural-commodification angle: artists deployed as undervalued labor funded by corporate sponsorship rather than public education spending.
• XREF: New Labour’s cultural-industries strategy is the direct policy context for deWaard’s cultural-argument precursor. — connects to: Financialization of cultural industries reduces media diversity and creative stability — Andrew deWaard, Derivative Media: How Wall Street…, 454; Capitalist commodification displaces the aesthetic value of art — Wael Hallaq, Restating Orientalism: A Critique of…, 69; The discourse of creativity masks real needs that capitalism cannot actually satisfy — Max Haiven, Cultures of Financialization, 572 (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Creative-city doctrine gets coopted into capturing worker creativity for capitalist discipline #expands (0.85) — Max Haiven, Cultures of Financialization, 460
• Financialization reshapes cultural industries through macroeconomic shifts. #expands (0.80) — Andrew deWaard, Derivative Media, 58
• Financialization of cultural industries reduces media diversity and creative stability #expands (0.78) — Andrew deWaard, Derivative Media, 454
• Capitalist commodification displaces the aesthetic value of art #expands (0.75) — Wael Hallaq, Restating Orientalism, 69
• The discourse of creativity masks real needs that capitalism cannot actually satisfy #expands (0.72) — Max Haiven, Cultures of Financialization, 572