Elite Philanthropy, for better or worse? Depends on your point of view

• In Event: Images and perceptions of philanthropy

Abstract

Concerns have been expressed about the undue economic and political influence exerted by elite philanthropists. Hay and Muller (2013) call for critical attention to the effectiveness of the so-called new philanthropy of this elite. Callahan (2017) wonders why there aren’t rules to moderate undue influence by philanthropists in the public arena. Reich (2018) worries that rules that govern philanthropy in many countries, including the tax treatment of philanthropy, are hard to justify. This public discourse, including the voices above and others such as MacKenzie (2020), Giridharadas (2018), McGoey (2015), McGoey and Thiel (2018), and Villanueva (2018) largely ignores empirical investigation into the motivations and patterns of elite philanthropy.

The focus of this paper is deliberately empirical. It offers a synthesis of the key themes and theories uncovered by an unpublished scoping review that identified around 175 empirically researched papers published between 1984 and 2022. The papers examined include a growing number of studies that investigate elite philanthropy outside the once predominant focus on Western praxis, thereby enriching understanding of elite philanthropy globally.

These empirical papers draw on a range of disciplines and methodologies. Theoretical frames applied by the authors of the papers include Bourdieu, Foucault, Gramsci, Marx, Mauss, Mills and Weber.
I propose that identifying and understanding the theoretical underpinnings of the various contributions to this discourse and drawing attention to empirical evidence will lead to a more balanced assessment of elite philanthropy. The lack of such a balanced assessment potentially inhibits the potential of philanthropy to benefit society, as highlighted by Breeze (2021)

References

Breeze, B. (2021). In Defence of Philanthropy. Newcastle-on-Tyne, UK: Agenda Publisihng.
Callahan, D. (2017). The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age. In. New York: Alfred A Knopf.
Giridharadas, A. (2018). Winners Take All. New York: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.
Hay, I., & Muller, S. (2013). Questioning generosity in the golden age of philanthropy Towards critical geographies of super-philanthropy. Progress in Human Geography, 38(5), 635–653. doi:10.1177/0309132513500893
MacKenzie, M. K. (2020). Democratic Philanthropy. Contemporary Political Theory. doi:10.1057/s41296-020-00431-3
McGoey, L. (2015). No Such Thing As a Free Gift: the Gates Foundation and the Price of Philanthropy In (Kindle Edition ed.). London: Verso Books.
McGoey, L., & Thiel, D. (2018). Charismatic Violence and the Sanctification of the Superrich. Economy and Society, 47(1), 111 - 134. doi:10.1080/03085147.2018.1448543
Reich, R. (2018). Just Giving: Why Philanthropy Is Failing Democracy and How It Can Do Better (Kindle Edition ed.). Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press.
Villanueva, E. (2018). Decolonizing Wealth: Indigenous wisdom to heal divides and restore balance. Oakland: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Author

• John C H Godfrey, John Godfrey & Associates