Debating the Role of Philanthropy in Democracy

Given the largely unaccountable position of power held by philanthropists, what role
should they play in democratic societies? In this recording from the 2017 Philanthropy Innovation Summit, hosted by Stanford’s Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society, Rob Reich, a Marc and Laura Andreessen faculty co-director of Stanford PACS, facilitates a conversation with Reed Hastings, cofounder and CEO of Netflix, and Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation.

They discuss their differing approaches to charitable giving and grantmaking and how in their own ways they aim to inspire public confidence that they are learning from mistakes and improving their effectiveness.
    

Says Walker, “I’m less obsessed with ‘Are we holding these rich people accountable?’ than I am in saying, ‘Are we helping philanthropists have the right approach to their philanthropy,’ and ‘Are we pushing back?’ because there is a lot of arrogance.”

Additional resources:
Does Philanthropy Threaten Democracy?
Democracy and Philanthropy

@darrenwalker
@reedhastings
@robreich