Way to Go, Ford!

Ford Bell, president of the American Association of Museums, sent a letter to the editor at the NY Times published yesterday. In his short but strong letter, he explains that

Allowing a museum to peddle its collection to cover operating debts would be like allowing a financial fiduciary, such as a bank, to raid assets held in trust to cover a hole in its own balance sheet.

It would be inconceivable for a financial trustee to subvert a trust to serve its own interests. It should be equally inconceivable for a museum to raid the collections placed in trust with it.

Way to go, Ford--thanks for defending our Code of Ethics!

Museums Beat Casinos, 54-32

More interesting reports regarding museums and the down-turned economy. According to the recently released economic census, museums saw a 54% increase in receipts between 2002 and 2007, whereas theme parks, casinos and other competing leisure time destinations only increased 32%. AAM President Ford Bell is quoted as citing the fact that more museums tend to focus on value-added (my term, not his) ancillaries to round out one's visit to a museum, such as improved dining and shopping experiences. But casinos and theme parks offer all of those "enhancements" (Bell's word) and enticements, too. So why the significant difference in the increases? Is it that the entertainment industry has been offering value-added experiences for longer, so they didn't have as far up to go? Or is that the American public really does love museums that much more than gambling and Mickey Mouse? I sure hope it's the latter rather than the former... What do you think?