Cultural subsidy
A
cultural subsidy is a payment to cultural industries to ensure that some public policy purpose in culture (e.g.
multiculturalism,
bilingualism,
Canadian Content, the
French language, preservation of
ballet or
opera or
circus arts) is preserved or perhaps overtly promoted as superior.
They are considered a form of industrial subsidy usually by their opponents, and a form of public interest communication, such as public broadcasting, by their supporters. A common means of providing a cultural subsidy is to have public broadcasters pay for program development.
See also: arts grant