Quote:
Originally Posted by ATDrake
Also, I'm mildly disturbed by in-name corporate hijacking of literary prizes. Simple sponsorship is one thing, but what next? The McDonalds-Pulitzer?
Unless this was created as the "Scotiabank Giller Prize" to begin with. In which case I question the taste and sense of appropriateness of the corporate sponsor's PR department. And I say this as someone with a Scotiabank account.
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I am less put out. Scotiabank -- I am a retail customer and have no other connection -- are true partners of cultural organisations they support. They don't just write cheques: their organisation and reputation are put on the line to ensure the event / festival is successful. Scotiabank has been associated with the Giller prize since 2005.
Another example is the Scotiabank Northern Lights Music Festival six evenings of classical and jazz concerts for young musicians and seasoned professionals get together over a two week period for intense study and professional development. The location is Guadalajara, Mexico and the young musicians are local, the whole thing backed by Scotiabank as lead sponsor.
http://2010northernlightsmusic.blogspot.com/
If some naming rights go along with this level of multi-year commitment and corporate energy, I am all for that. Too many corporations just write the cheque and show up for a gala; Scotiabank picks its sponsorships carefully and becomes a true long-term partner.
The alternative is a bunch of government bureaucrats in Ottawa paid vast government salaries to hand out tax payer grants to their buddies. No thanks.
At least, that's the way it appears to me as an everyday consumer.