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Paul Foot Award, Valuing the Arts

Anne McElvoy explores how we value the arts with sociologist and director of the London School of Economics Dr Craig Calhoun. Plus the winner of the 2015 Paul Foot Award.

As this year's Paul Foot Awards are announced for campaigning and investigative journalism, Anne McElvoy reports from the ceremony and talks to this year's winner.

Also in the first of three interviews with opinion formers from non-arts organisations, Anne talks to the Director of the London School of Economics, the sociologist Dr Craig Calhoun about the things that inspired him to take up a career in the social sciences, what he believes his own discipline can contribute to creating a better society, where it could do better and how those arguments might be applied to the arts. Calhoun discusses his life-long appreciation of E P Thompson's The Making of the English Working Class and African Art.
The artist Alinah Azideh joins Anne in the studio to talk about her latest project, two banners celebrating the 1965 Race Relations Act and the 1897 founding of the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies now hanging in the Great Hall at the Palace of Westminster and commissioned by parliament as part of its on-going celebrations of the 800 years of Magna Carta. The Suffrage Banner uses words from an early feminist play which was uncovered by one of this year's New Generation Thinkers, the actress and academic, Naomi Paxton. They discuss the way in which creativity has been the life blood of social and political movements since time immemorial.

Available now

45 minutes

Clip

Chapters

  • Paul Foot Award 2014

    Anne McElvoy reports from the ceremony and talks to this year's winner

    Duration: 13:25

  • Craig Calhoun

    Anne talks to Craig Calhoun about valuing the arts

    Duration: 18:37

  • The Beginnings of that Freedome

    Artist Alinah Azadeh discusses her new commission with Naomi Paxton

    Duration: 12:15

The Paul Foot Award 2014

joint winners are:

Jonathan Calvert and Heidi Blake for The FIFA Files in The Sunday Times

Richard Brooks and Andrew Bousfield for Shady Arabia and the Desert Fix for Private Eye

'The Beginnings of that Freedome' © UK Parliament/JessicaTaylor

'The Beginnings of that Freedome' © UK Parliament/JessicaTaylor
Part ofÌý'Parliament in the Making’ at theÌýÌýuntil Monday 30 November 2015.

Race Relations Act 1965, Alinah Azadeh. © Houses of Parliament

Race Relations Act 1965, Alinah Azadeh.   © Houses of Parliament
Being displayed as part ofÌý‘The Beginnings of that Freedome’, part of 'Parliament in the Making’ at the Ìýuntil Monday 30 November 2015.

1897 Foundation of the NUWSS, Alinah Azadeh. © Houses of Parliament

1897 Foundation of the NUWSS, Alinah Azadeh. © Houses of Parliament
Being displayed as part ofÌý‘The Beginnings of that Freedome’, part ofÌý'Parliament in the Making’ at theÌýÌýuntil Monday 30 November 2015.

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Anne McElvoy
Interviewed Guest Ian Hislop
Interviewed Guest Craig Calhoun
Interviewed Guest Alinah Azadeh
Interviewed Guest Naomi Paxton
Producer Jacqueline Smith

Broadcast

  • Tue 24 Feb 2015 22:00

The Arts & Ideas Podcast

The Arts & Ideas Podcast

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