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BBC Radio 4 - Tainted Money

Philanthropy is in question as museums and universities grapple with the ethics of gifts.

David Cannadine questions the ethics of donations made to  museums and universities. Recent philanthropic scandals and  climate change alarm have sharpened the need for scrutiny.

David Cannadine knows a great deal about philanthropy - from the history of the 'robber barons' of the USA such as Carnegie and Rockefeller - to the way that today's museums and universities depend upon private giving. But philanthropy these days can often seem an enterprise fraught with moral ambiguity and possible reputational damage. 

The ways universities and arts organisations raise and take money (and from whom) has rarely been a more urgent topic. 

David speaks to those who support philanthropy (though they call for increased transparency) citing the good it can do. But we also hear from those who maintain that donations often come with strings attached, are fundamentally undemocratic and sometimes a handy reputational whitewash for the corporate or individual giver.

Philanthropy and the idea of 'tainted money' raises larger questions too - is the backlash against private giving simply a symptom of people's rejection of super-wealth and of the power that inevitably comes with it? 

Presented by David Cannadine
Produced by Susan Marling
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