Privatization and Culture: Experiences in the Arts, Heritage and Cultural Industries in Europe PDF
Preview Privatization and Culture: Experiences in the Arts, Heritage and Cultural Industries in Europe
Privatization and Culture Experiences in the Arts. Heritage and Cultural Industries in Europe Privatization and Culture Experiences in theArts, Heritage and Cultural Industries in Europe edited by PETER B. BOORSMA ANNEMOON VAN HEMEL NIKI VAN DER WIELEN SPRINGER-SCIENCE+BUSINESS MEDIA, B.V. A C.I.P. Catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. CIP Data Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Den Haag Privatization Privatization and Culture: Experiences in the Arts, Heritage and Cultural Industries in Europe ed. by Peter B. Boorsma, Annemoon van Hemel and Niki van der Wielen. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers Subject headings: privatization , the arts and cultural industries , Europe ISBN 978-0-7923-8408-3 ISBN 978-1-4615-5099-0 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-4615-5099-0 Printed on acid-free paper Editing: Boekman Foundation I Twente University Design layout and DTP: Tekstueel, Alkmaar Final editing (EnglishJ: Cathy Brickwood Proof-reading: Mies van Splunter AII Rights Reserved © 1998 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht Originally published by Kluwer Academic Publishers in 1998 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1s t edition 1998 No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the copyright owner Contents Acknowledgements 7 Focusing the Cultural Political Debate in Europe Peter B. Boorsma, Annemoon van Hemel and Niki van der Wielen 8 FOREWORD LI Carla Bodo, Cultural Information and Research Centres Liaison in Europe (CIRCLE) 15 1.2 Theodoor H. A dams, Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Netherlands 18 L 3 Vera Boltho, Cultural Policy and Action Division ofthe Council of Europe 20 2 AN ANALYTICAL INTRODUCTION 2. I Privatizing the Muse 'and all that Jazz' 23 Peter B. Boorsma 3 APPROACHES TO PRIVATIZATION AND CULTURE 3.1 Rethinking the State's Role: Privatization, Economics and Cultural Policy 49 David Throsby 3.2 Beyond Privatization: The Hybridization of Museums and the Built Heritage 58 J. Mark Schuster 3.3 De-monopolizing Culture: Privatization and Culture in 23 European Countries 82 Cas Smithuijsen 4 CASE STUDIES 4.1 The Contradictions of Desetatisation: Museums in France 95 Franfoise Benhamou 4.2 Traditional Policy Tools and New Incentives: Built Heritage in Greece III Effie Karpodini-Dimitriadi 4.3 The Shotgun Wedding of Opera and Industry: Opera Houses in Italy 120 Ugo Bacchella 4-4 Who Laughs Last ... : Film and Broadcasting in Hungary 131 Mihtily Galik 4.5 Unbinding Books: Publishing in the Czech Republic 142 Jifina Smejkalova 4.6 The Conflicts between Profits and Politics: Cultural Industries in Europe 160 Kirill Razlogov 4.7 Unlike Airlines and Phone Companies: Performing Arts in Europe 170 Dragan Klaic 4.8 Mixed Economy and Culture: Britain's Experience 183 Stephen Creigh-Tyte 5 CONCLUSIONS Peter B. Boorsma, Annemoon van Hemel and Niki van der Wielen 201 Appendix A About the Authors 210 AppendixB CIRCLE'S Recommendations to the Council of Europe 213 Board of CIRCLE AppendixC C.I Introduction to the Work of CIRCLE 215 C.2 Introduction to the Work ofthe Boekman Foundation 218 c.3 Introduction to the Department of Public Administration and Public Policy of '!Wente University 220 AppendixD Index 221 6 Acknowledgements The editors received help from many quarters in the process of monitoring the privatization ofthe cultural sectors in Europe, of which this volume is the second step. The first step was the CIRCLE Round Table 'Privatization/ Desetatisation and Culture: Limitations or Opportunities for Cultural Development in Europe?', 11-14 June 1997, held within the framework ofthe Dutch presidency ofthe European Union. Both were made possible with the scientific support of the members of the Cultural Information and Research Centres Liaison (CIRCLE), and with the financial assistance ofthe Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Council of Europe, the European Union, the Dick Meijs Foundation and the European Cultural Foundation. We are most grateful to all of them for their generous support. Above all we should like to thank the authors, with whom we had such pleasurable and fruitful relations. Focusing the Cultural Political Debate in Europe PETER B. BOORSMA ANNEMOON VAN HEMEL NIKI VAN DER WIELEN Since in the 1990S the concept of privatization found its way to the field of culture, it has been one of the main themes in the cultural political debate in Europe. The necessity to find alternative funding sources for the arts and culture makes privatization an extremely hot issue in most European countries. Because many connect the term with selling public institutions to private firms, it is also an emotionally charged one. One consequence of the long-standing dependence on the state of many cultural institutions in Europe is a fear of privatization on the part of many artists, art managers, researchers and policy makers. What would happen to the cultural institutions if they were forced to survive on the com mercial market? Not surprisingly, discussing privatization and culture has given rise to heated debates and confusing discussions. Carla Bodo, quoting David Throsby clearly puts these feelings into words: , "We should ( ... ) bear in mind that the cultural sector is expected to serve the goals not just of economic policy, but also of cultural policy and ( ... ) pure market solutions are not likely to lead to socially optimal outcomes". The evaluation criterion for any privati zation measure should be its ability to achieve a balance between the necessary improve ment in economic efficiency and productivity on the one hand, and pursuit ofthe desired social and cultural goals on the other.' However, privatization does not have to be simply summarized as 'more market'. There are many other possibilities, such as extending more autonomy ('autonomization') to a state organization, using volunteers, contracting out by transferring the implementa tion of some activities (such as a museum shop) to a private firm, or increasing private funding via sponsoring or via raising entrance fees. Until now privatization in the field of culture has been an uncharted area. Little is known about privatization of different kinds of cultural institutions, in the different cul tural sectors, and about the consequences for cultural policy and development. This vol ume sheds light on that issue, focusing on heritage (museums and built heritage), the per forming arts (theatre and opera) and cultural industries (film and television broadcasting and the book industry). In order to make the debate on privatization and culture more transparent, Peter Boorsma gives an overview of the concept of privatization, outlines the recent history and background of privatization in general and discusses the definitions and the various modes of privatization, resulting in a classification model. He balances the main arguments for and against privatization, illustrated where possible by empirical evi dence in the field of culture. Peter Boorsma's introduction served as a background paper 8 Peter B. Boorsma. Annemoon van Hemel and Niki van der Wie/en for the authors of this volume. All contributors have different backgrounds. They are re searchers, practitioners and policy makers, coming from different cultural sectors and a variety of European countries. They offer a rich spectrum of experiences, perspectives and concepts. The authors wrote their contributions especially for this publication, but the present vol ume still has clear ties with the CIRCLE Round Table 1997 (PrivatizationlDesetatisation and Culture: Limitations or Opportunities for Cultural Development infurope), held in Amsterdam as a joint effort of the Boekman Foundation (study centre for arts, culture and related policy), Twente University (Department of Public Administration and Public Policy) and the Felix Meritis Foundation, all situated in the Netherlands, under the aus pices of the Cultural Information and Research Centres Liaison (CIRCLE, a network sup ported by the Council of Europe). Vera Boltho, Carla Bodo and Theodoor Adams directly refer to this conference in their forewords, the other authors only indirectly. Some used data published in the Conference Reader. The Conference and its Reader were a first step in monitoring the process of privatization and culture in Europe, followed by the second step: this volume. The volume is divided in eight Parts, starting with the Forewords, which are followed by Part II: Boorsma's analytical introduction into privatization in general and more specifi cally in the arts. Part III contains theoretical approaches to privatization and culture. Em~ pirical data may be found in the Case Studies in Part IV. Finally, Part v until Part VIII, con tain the Conclusions, Recommendations to the Council of Europe and an Index. Approaches to Privatization and Culture Cultural policy and the role of the market have long been a key-theme amongst re searchers. In 'Approaches to Privatization and Culture' three authors elaborate their thoughts about the changing role ofthe government, shifts in the organizational structure of cultural institutions and the importance of a strong non-profit sector. In 'Rethinking the State's Role' David Throsby gives a theoretical economic per spective on privatization and culture. He discusses the key issues in this debate, stresses that the role of the government will have to change and indicates the opportunities and challenges the evolving economic environment presents for artists, cultural institutions and consumers. Throsby highlights possible pitfalls for future development of private ini tiatives in the cultural sectors. 'Privatization has been used so many times by so many people in so many different ways to mean so many different things that it is hard to use it with much confidence,' stip ulates Mark Schuster. In 'Beyond Privatization' he analyses privatization initiatives in the field of cultural heritage from an organizational-structural point of view. Schuster comple ments Peter Boorsma's modes of privatization by adding the notion of hybrids, institutions 'with varying degree of publicness and privateness incorporated into the various elements of the organization's functioning'. He illustrates, for example, how organizational restruc turing decisions can be made and what the consequences can be for cultural institutions in general and more specifically in the field of museums and the built heritage. Focussing on the Cultural Policital Debate in Europe 9 In preparation for the 1997 conference, empirical data on privatization in the cultur al sectors in Europe was needed. A questionnaire, based on Boorsma's scheme of themes and variation in privatizing initiatives, was sent to rapporteurs from 23 European coun tries. In 'De-monopolizing Culture' Cas Smithuijsen analyses from a socio-economical point of view the empirical material gathered. He discusses the varying influence of priva I tization in the arts, heritage and cultural industries and considers the different ways of and motives for privatizing initiatives in these sectors. Smithuijsen highlights the need for the existence of a large non-profit sector, also called the 'third sector', in Western as well as in Eastern Europe. Only this third sector can guarantee a diverse and substantial cultural supply. Case Studies In 'Case Studies' authors from different European countries survey privatization initia tives within the specific cultural sectors, and evaluate these experiences. In 'The Contra dictions of Desetatisation' Franr,:oise Benhamou outlines the French tradition of inter ventionism in the museum sector and the limits placed on this policy by the crisis of legitimacy of public institutions and the crisis of supervision. She elaborates on the possi bilities of bringing about changes in the organization and its structures, the legal environ ment and the financing of museums in France. Benhamou refers to the illusion ofthe prof itability of commercial activity and the contradiction between the tasks of the traditional museum - i.e. collection and research - and the need to make profits once the museum is privatized. Privatization is not a key element of Greek heritage policy, emphasizes Effie Karpo dini-Dimitriadi in 'Traditional Policy Tools and New Incentives: Built Heritage in Greece'. However, the role of the private sector ensuring better funding is fully accepted, and there is a clear tendency to respect heritage activities or heritage property in private hands. There is a growing interest in the re-use of buildings and other monuments of architectural her itage. Still, Greece considers the heritage in general and the built heritage in particular as a primary responsibility of the state. An empirical example of privatization initiatives in the field of the arts in Italy is given by Ugo Bacchella under the revealing title: 'The Shotgun Wedding of Opera and In dustry: Opera Houses in Italy'. The Italian government aims not only at fundraising - by creating incentives for individual and corporate support for culture, for example through tax relief - but also at involving the private sector in the process of reshaping and manag ing cultural institutions. Bacchela describes the transformation ofthe thirteen opera hous es in Italy from the legal status of semi-autonomous bodies into private foundations. The legal modifications needed to realize this were put forward in a decree law in 1996, which faced - and still faces - support as well as opponents. Bacchella outlines the arguments for and against, and the difficulties accompanying the legal implementation process. In Western Europe privatization has had only a moderate impact on culture, as these three contributions prove. It is important, however, to distinguish between Western European privatization policies and privatization policies in the former communist countries. 'Under dictatorship, when culture and politics formed Siamese twins, the term privatiza- IO Peter B. Boorsma, Annemoon von Hemel and Niki von der Wie/en
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