ECON 3050: The Economics of Art, Entertainment and Culture

Fall 2002

 

Instructor:         Dr. Michael Rushton, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

Telephone:        404-651-0333

E-mail:              michaelrushton@gsu.edu

Office:              Urban Life Building 1273

Office hours:     Mondays and Tuesdays 1:30 – 3:30 or by appointment

 

Course objectives

 

It is impossible in a single term to cover in depth all the interesting economic aspects of art, entertainment and culture, and so choices must be made at the outset (thus providing us with an early example of a key aspect of economic thinking: making choices when our wants exceed our resources). In this section of the course we will:

  • Learn some of the basic tools of the economic way of thinking, with applications drawn from a variety of examples from the artworld;
  • Consider, from an economic point of view, what makes cultural goods different from other goods;
  • Look in depth at two important contemporary policy issues in the arts:
    • Copyright, including:
      • The economic rationale (if any) for copyright
      • Whether the extension of the term of copyright is justified
      • Whether copyright should be allowed to prevent parodies of works
      • The “moral rights” of artists
    • Government funding of the arts, including:
      • The economic rationale (if any) for government funding
      • How to measure the public’s willingness to pay taxes for the arts
      • Culture and urban development, with special focus on Atlanta
      • Government funding in a multicultural society
      • Whether government should fund art that is offensive to some

 

Evaluation

 

There will be one essay assignment, worth 50 marks, and a final examination worth 50 marks. In this course a grade of 89-100 is an A, 79-88 a B, 69-78 a C, 65-68 a D.

 

 

 

Course outline

 

Note that what follows is a general plan for the course, but some deviations may prove to be necessary.

 

Part 1: Art and the economic way of thinking (August 20 – September 17) 5 weeks

 

  • Instructor’s notes will discuss:
    • Supply and demand
    • How prices are determined in competitive markets
    • Why we think competitive markets are generally a good thing
    • Transaction costs, or the costs of running markets
    • “Market failures”: externalities, public goods, monopolies
    • The importance of knowledge
  • What makes art different?
  • “Cost disease” in the arts

 

Mid-Term Exam 1: September 24 (90 minutes).

 

Part 2: Copyright (September 24-October 15) 4 weeks

 

 

Mid-Term Exam 2: October 22 (90 minutes).

 

Part 3: Government Funding of the Arts (October 22-November 26) 6 weeks