According to Bloomberg.com http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=ap7gUJzSjIYsOct. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Senator Barack Obama writes poetry, gets props from Bruce Springsteen and Jay-Z, and is the first White House contender to include a far-reaching arts plank in his platform.
The proposals range from increased support for arts education and the National Endowment for the Arts, to changing the federal tax code for artists.
``It is unprecedented,'' said Robert L. Lynch, president and chief executive officer of Americans for the Arts, a Washington- based arts advocacy group, explaining that no presidential candidate in recent times has addressed cultural issues in such detail.
``In a time of economic turmoil, the arts is the last thing on anyone's mind, and yet it's the most important time to support the arts,'' Elizabeth Currid, an expert on urban policy and the economic impact of the arts at the University of Southern California's School of Policy, Planning and Development, said in an interview.
Presidential hopefuls have used the glamour of culture to help them get elected, and winners have brought in stars of Hollywood and the Metropolitan Opera to mingle with royalty at White House dinners. Jacqueline Kennedy drew a connection between her husband's term and the ``shining city on a hill'' envisioned by King Arthur in ``Camelot,'' a Broadway hit at the time.
Arts and Economics:
The extent to which the arts contribute to the economy is well-documented. ``In Los Angeles and New York, the arts account for 5 percent of the workforce, about the same as the financial sector,'' Currid said. ``The artists make cities more attractive to live in and they are incredibly important for tourism. Nobody comes to New York to look at the law firms.''
Yet states have cut their arts budgets by a total of almost $100 million in the past two years. Federal funding of the NEA got a $20.1 million boost last year, to $144.7 million -- 82 percent of its 1992 appropriation of $175.9 million.
Senator John McCain, who has consistently voted for cuts in the NEA budget, says arts funding is a local issue. A brief statement on his Web site says that where ``local priorities allow, he believes investing in arts education can play a role in nurturing the creativity of expression so vital to the health of our cultural life and providing a means of creative expression for young people.''
Culture Club:
Obama began forming his culture plank in the spring of 2007, long before winning the Democratic nomination. He brought together a committee of artists and arts professionals, headed by Hollywood writer, director and producer George Stevens Jr. and Broadway producer Margo Lion.
The committee's members include novelist Michael Chabon, Broadway director Hal Prince, musicians Eugenia and Pinchas Zukerman, Museum of Modern Art president emerita Agnes Gund, as well as Lynch, of Americans for the Arts.
The committee developed a program that advocates: the creation of an ``Artists Corp'' of young artists trained to work in low-income schools and communities; the expansion of public- private partnerships to increase cultural-education programs; increased funding for the NEA; a commitment to ``cultural diplomacy''; attracting foreign talent in the arts; and providing health care to artists.
Obama also backs the ``Artist-Museum Partnership Act'' introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy, the Vermont Democrat. It would amend the Internal Revenue Code to allow artists to deduct the fair market value of their work, rather than just the cost of materials, when they make charitable contributions.
Supporters of the legislation have said that the result would be more art in public spaces. It also demonstrates the roots of Obama's reasoning in economic as well as philosophical realities.
``When you talk to policy makers,'' said Currid of USC, ``they tend to want numbers.''
To contact the reporter on this story: Jeremy Gerard in New York at jgerard2@bloomberg.net.
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