David Callahan

Last updated

David Callahan
David Callahan (cropped).jpg
Callahan in 2017
Born1964or1965(age 59–60)
United States
Occupation
  • Author
  • journalist
  • editor
Alma mater Hampshire College (BA)
Princeton University (PhD)
Period1990–present
Notable works Demos co-founder
Inside Philanthropy founder
Relatives Daniel Callahan (father)

David Callahan (born 1964/1965) [1] is an American writer and editor. He is the founder and editor of Inside Philanthropy , a digital media site, and Blue Tent Daily, which offers in-depth reporting on progressive organizations and the Democratic Party. [2] Previously, he was a senior fellow at Demos, a public policy group based in New York City that he co-founded in 1999. He is also an author and lecturer. He is best known as the author of the books The Givers and The Cheating Culture .

Contents

Early life and education

David Callahan is the son of bio-ethicist Daniel Callahan and psychologist Sidney Callahan. [1] [3] He grew up in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. [1]

He received his B.A. at Hampshire College, and in 1997 received a PhD in Politics from Princeton University. [1]

Career

Callahan was a fellow at The Century Foundation from 1994 to 1999;[ citation needed ] his work area was US foreign policy and international affairs.[ citation needed ]

In 1999, Callahan co-founded the liberal think tank Demos. [1] He left Demos in 2013 to start Inside Philanthropy.

Inside Philanthropy

Callahan launched the news website Inside Philanthropy in early 2014. The site's tag line is "Who's Funding What, and Why." [4] It covers news about recent gifts by foundations and major donors, as well as the world of fundraising and trends in philanthropy. The site also includes profiles of funders to help nonprofits find money and publishes a daily newsletter. In addition, it issues its own set of annual awards, the "IPPYs," that include categories such as the "Philanthropist of the Year" and "Foundation President of the Year." [5] Inside Philanthropy is mainly funded by subscriptions, which currently cost $397 a year or $47 a month. [6] The site says that it "has never taken money from the funders we cover and never will." [7]

Writing

In addition to his articles in Inside Philanthropy, Callahan has written articles for The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, Foreign Policy, The American Prospect, and The Nation. [8]

In 1997 he wrote a political-thriller novel, State of the Union, in which Islamic terrorists plot to hijack planes and crash them into the Capitol building during the State of the Union address. [1]

In 2002, Callahan wrote the book Kindred Spirits: Harvard Business School's Extraordinary Class of 1949 and How They Transformed American Business, a history of the Harvard Business School Class of 1949. [9] In an interview about the book with The New York Times, Callahan contrasted this earlier group of business leaders, many of whom frowned on conspicuous consumption, with later generations of business leaders more motivated by greed. [9]

A New York Times review of his 2004 book, The Cheating Culture: Why More Americans Are Doing Wrong to Get Ahead , Chris Hedges called Callahan "a new liberal with old values". [1] The book links the rise in unethical behavior in American society to economic and regulatory trends—particularly growing inequality. The libertarian magazine Reason criticized Callahan for placing too much blame for cheating on the rise of laissez-faire economics. [10]

His 2007 book The Moral Center examines how a market-based economy, i.e. capitalism, with its elevation of self-interest, undermines values that both liberals and conservatives care about. [11] [12] The American Prospect reviewed the book. [13]

His 2017 book The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age looks at top philanthropists such as Michael Bloomberg and Mark Zuckerberg. The book was widely reviewed, including in The New York Times, [14] [15] The Washington Post, [16] The Wall Street Journal, [17] Financial Times, [18] Time, [19] and The Atlantic. [20] The Givers generated wide discussion and controversy in the world of philanthropy, including in industry publications such as The Chronicle of Philanthropy , [21] Stanford Social Innovation Review , [22] and Philanthropy magazine. [23]

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Bloomberg</span> American businessman and politician (born 1942)

Michael Rubens Bloomberg is an American businessman and politician. He is the majority owner and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., and was its CEO from 1981 to 2001 and again from 2014 to 2023. He served as the mayor of New York City for three terms from 2002 to 2013 and was a candidate for the 2020 Democratic nomination for president of the United States. In 2024, Bloomberg received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Joe Biden. He has served as chair of the Defense Innovation Board, an independent advisory board that provides recommendations on artificial intelligence, software, data and digital modernization to the United States Department of Defense, since June 2022.

Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material gain; and with government endeavors that are public initiatives for public good, such as those that focus on the provision of public services. A person who practices philanthropy is a philanthropist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tides Foundation</span> American public charity and fiscal sponsor

Tides Foundation is a left-leaning donor advised fund based in the United States that manages over $1.4 billion in assets. It was founded in San Francisco in 1976 by Drummond Pike. Tides distributes money from anonymous donors to other organizations, which are often politically progressive. An affiliated group, Tides Advocacy, is a "massive progressive incubator." Tides has received substantial funding from George Soros.

<i>The Cheating Culture</i> Book by David Callahan

The Cheating Culture: Why More Americans Are Doing Wrong to Get Ahead is a nonfiction book, authored by David Callahan and published by Harcourt in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jon Huntsman Sr.</span> American businessman and philanthropist (1937–2018)

Jon Meade Huntsman Sr. was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was the founder and executive chairman of Huntsman Corporation, a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals. Huntsman plastics are used in a wide variety of familiar objects, including (formerly) clamshell containers for McDonald's hamburgers. Huntsman Corporation also manufactures a wide variety of organic and inorganic chemicals that include polyurethanes, textiles, and pigments. Huntsman's philanthropic giving exceeded $1.5 billion, focusing on areas of cancer research, programs at various universities, and aid to Armenia.

Philanthrocapitalism or philanthropic capitalism is a way of doing philanthropy, which mirrors the way that business is done in the for-profit world. It may involve venture philanthropy that actively invests in social programs to pursue specific philanthropic goals that would yield return on investment over the long term, or in a more passive form whereby "social investors" benefit from investing in socially-responsible programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Soros</span> Hungarian-American investor and philanthropist (born 1930)

George Soros is a Hungarian-American businessman, investor, and philanthropist. As of October 2023, he had a net worth of US$6.7 billion, having donated more than $32 billion to the Open Society Foundations, of which $15 billion has already been distributed, representing 64% of his original fortune. In 2020, Forbes called Soros the "most generous giver". He is a resident of New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Case</span> American businesswoman (born 1959)

Jean Case is an American businesswoman, author, and philanthropist who is chair of the board of National Geographic, CEO of Case Impact Network, and CEO of the Case Foundation. She is married to AOL co-founder Steve Case.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Bohnett</span> American philanthropist and technology entrepreneur

David C. Bohnett is an American philanthropist and technology entrepreneur. He is the founder and chairman of the David Bohnett Foundation, a non-profit, grant-making organization devoted to improving society through social activism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dustin Moskovitz</span> American billionaire internet entrepreneur (born 1984)

Dustin Aaron Moskovitz is an American billionaire internet entrepreneur who co-founded Facebook, Inc. with Mark Zuckerberg, Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum and Chris Hughes. In 2008, he left Facebook to co-found Asana with Justin Rosenstein. In March 2011, Forbes reported Moskovitz to be the youngest self-made billionaire in the world, on the basis of his then 2.34% share in Facebook. As of June 2024, his net worth is estimated at US$23 billion by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Reeves (British author)</span> Anglo-American writer (born 1969)

Richard V. Reeves is a British-American writer, scholar, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and President of the American Institute for Boys and Men.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philanthropy in the United States</span> Overview article

Philanthropy in the United States is the practice of voluntary, charitable giving by individuals, corporations and foundations to benefit important social needs. Its long history dates back to the early colonial period, when Puritans founded Harvard College and other institutions. Philanthropy has been a major source of funding for various sectors, such as religion, higher education, health care, and the arts. Philanthropy has also been influenced by different social movements, such as abolitionism, women’s rights, civil rights, and environmentalism. Some of the most prominent philanthropists in American history include George Peabody, Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Henry Ford, Herbert Hoover, and Bill Gates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Reich</span> American political scientist (born c. 1969)

Robert C. Reich is an American political scientist and professor. He is the McGregor-Girand Professor of Social Ethics of Science and Technology at Stanford University. He is also the director of Stanford's McCoy Center for Ethics in Society, co-director of Stanford's Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (PACS), and associate director of Stanford's institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI). A political theorist, Reich's work focuses primarily on applied ethics, educational inequality and the role of philanthropy in the public sector, along with other topics in liberal democratic theory.

Jean Shafiroff is an American philanthropist, author, advocate, and socialite. Serving on multiple national and regional philanthropic boards, she is the ambassador and spokesperson for American Humane Feed the Hungry COVID-19 Program. She is the host of the television show "Successful Philanthropy" on LTV.

Inside Philanthropy is a news website about large philanthropic foundations and wealthy donors, created by David Callahan in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cari Tuna</span> American nonprofit businessperson

Cari Tuna is an American nonprofit businessperson. Formerly a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, she co-founded and works for the organizations Open Philanthropy and Good Ventures.

<i>The Givers</i> Book by David Callahan

The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age is a 2017 non-fiction book by David Callahan published by Alfred A. Knopf.

Lisa Zola Greer is an American philanthropist, known for her 2020 book on philanthropy from the perspective of a donor.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Hedges, Chris (June 15, 2004). "A Liberal With a New Emphasis on Old Values". The New York Times .
  2. "About". Blue Tent Daily. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
  3. "Daniel Callahan". Encyclopedia of World Biography. Thomson Gale. 2004.
  4. "Front Page". Inside Philanthropy. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  5. "Philanthropy Awards, 2017". Inside Philanthropy. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  6. "Membership". Inside Philanthropy. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  7. "About Us". Inside Philanthropy. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  8. Demos Expert Bios
  9. 1 2 Holstein, William J. (October 27, 2002). "What a Class of '49 Can Teach the Class of '02". The New York Times . Retrieved October 23, 2010.
  10. Sanchez, Julian (July 2004). "Cheating Heart". Reason .
  11. "The Moral Center: How We Can Reclaim Our Country from Die-Hard Extremists, Rogue Corporations, Hollywood Hacks, and Pretend Patriots". Kirkus Reviews . June 15, 2006. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  12. Sager, Ryan (November 2, 2006). "The Republicans Will Play Solitaire". The New York Sun . Retrieved October 23, 2010.
  13. Stone, Deborah (November 19, 2006). "The Good in Good Politics". The American Prospect . Retrieved April 9, 2012.
  14. Sullivan, Paul (April 14, 2017). "How Top Philanthropists Wield Power Through Their Donations". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  15. Cottle, Michelle (April 28, 2017). "Are the New Megadonors Distorting American Society?". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  16. Kaiser, Robert G. (April 14, 2017). "Opinion | Are you rich enough to be a true philanthropist?". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  17. Moritz, Michael (May 2, 2017). "In Praise of Modern Medicis". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  18. Ben-Ami, Daniel (May 4, 2017). "Donor power and the waning of democracy" . Financial Times . Archived from the original on December 10, 2022. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  19. "'The Givers' Review: The Pitfalls of Giving It All Away". Time. April 13, 2017. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  20. Semuels, Alana. "The Problem With Modern Philanthropy". The Atlantic. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  21. "Opinion: 'The Givers' Are Taking Too Much From Average Americans". The Chronicle of Philanthropy . July 6, 2017. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  22. "Give and Take (SSIR)". Stanford Social Innovation Review . Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  23. "Damaging Solutions in Search of a Problem | Excellence in Philanthropy | The Philanthropy Roundtable" . Retrieved January 18, 2018.