Didn't Hitler model his propaganda off our World War I propaganda? (We want you, etc.) I can't find a source for that now, but I thought I remembered it from somewhere.
regardless of whether the reference to Soviet Russia or Nazi Germany is appropriate, i think it is a legitimate question as to whether the government should be able to direct the content of art it funds. i'm actually somewhat interested in Batman's perspective here- if, for instance Bush had directed the NEA to fund an anti-abortion play, or a movie glorifying the Iraq war, would that be appropriate, or would you shrug and say, hey, NBD- we did it during the '30's?
I'm pretty sure you don't mind having more teabaggers making new posters with the Obama to Stalin/Hitler comparison when you say "direct the content of art it funds", do you mean the govt demanded it with the threat of pulling funding?
My perspective here is that the NEA has been gutted so badly that it has no relevance in my life or in the lives of anyone I know. And I'm an NEA fellow.
Yet instead of simply bringing up the topic for discussion or, gasp, bringing it up in another thread (the very idea!!), you deliberately couched it in such a way that was sure to bring just the kind of reaction you are getting. basso, that was either your intent, or you are Forrest Gump without the brains.
This is troubling in the sense applicants through normal NEA's grant application do not need to identify their political orientation in order to qualify. The normal NEA review process also will not take applicant's political views as a factor in the decision of awarding grants. The goal of NEA's artist community goal is to encourage creativity in the art community, not pushing government's social agenda.
what do you mean by "gutted so badly?" i assume you mean it's funding has been cut back, but i'm honestly not that up-to-date on the inner workings of the NEA.
via James Taranto, it looks like pushing the government's social agenda is exactly what they were doing: Sergant then turns the call over to Thomas Bates from "Rock the Vote," who offers up an example of local environmental activism involving a garbage sculpture. Within days after this call Rock the Vote would launch a "health care design contest." A mere two days after the call a group of 21 art organizations endorsed health care reform. Of those 21 organizations, "16 of the groups and affiliated organizations received nearly $2 million in grants from the National Endowment for the Arts in the 150 days before the conference call."
Yes, I mean that the funding has been cut so badly over the years (and the process is so arduous) that it's hardly worth applying to them anymore. And by anymore, I mean since the 80s.
i don't doubt that, however, it seems that the organization is capable of steering funds to sympathetic artists when it wants to. $125k ($2m/16 organizations- see above) while not a great deal of money by the standards of The MET or the NY Phil, is i would think, a not insubstantial sum to a small community theater.
so endorsing the govt's reform doesn't automatically get you a grant do you have info on how many didn't endorse and how many of them got grants?
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A government funded arts program should not be directed to advocate any partisan message. Why is the "handpicked arts group" never named, btw?
If I compare this to Bush's propaganda machine, it looks very quaint next to some of the tactics like paying for fake "news stories" disguised as unbiased news. When you see this art, there will be no deception about the message or who is presenting it.
I didn't think Repubs cared about the arts... just worthy crafts like the following... Giod Bless the USA! (Based on my Facebook friends, if there were Federal funds available for scrapbooking, Repub moms in Texas would be the largest recipients.)
