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Title details for Winners Take All by Anand Giridharadas - Available

Winners Take All

The Elite Charade of Changing the World

by Anand Giridharadas
Anand Giridharadas
Audiobook
2 of 2 copies available
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2 of 2 copies available
The New York Times bestselling, groundbreaking investigation of how the global elite's efforts to "change the world" preserve the status quo and obscure their role in causing the problems they later seek to solve. An essential read for understanding some of the egregious abuses of power that dominate today’s news.
Former New York Times columnist Anand Giridharadas takes us into the inner sanctums of a new gilded age, where the rich and powerful fight for equality and justice any way they can—except ways that threaten the social order and their position atop it. We see how they rebrand themselves as saviors of the poor; how they lavishly reward "thought leaders" who redefine "change" in winner-friendly ways; and how they constantly seek to do more good, but never less harm. We hear the limousine confessions of a celebrated foundation boss; witness an American president hem and haw about his plutocratic benefactors; and attend a cruise-ship conference where entrepreneurs celebrate their own self-interested magnanimity.
Giridharadas asks hard questions: Why, for example, should our gravest problems be solved by the unelected upper crust instead of the public institutions it erodes by lobbying and dodging taxes? He also points toward an answer: Rather than rely on scraps from the winners, we must take on the grueling democratic work of building more robust, egalitarian institutions and truly changing the world. A call to action for elites and everyday citizens alike.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    August 28, 2018

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9780525643036
      • File size: 276590 KB
      • Duration: 09:36:13

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Author/narrator Anand Giridharadas has a serious message about economic inequality, but his lively pacing and gently mocking tone provide the spoonful of sugar that makes WINNERS TAKE ALL an engrossing and enjoyable audio experience. He argues that superrich philanthropists are something of a contradiction. They want to make the world a better place but without changing the rigged economic system that advantaged them while exacerbating inequality for everyone else. Giridharadas's voice exudes enthusiasm, sincerity, and a lot of amused disbelief. He states that the market would be fairer and more efficient if companies paid their employees a fair wage instead of government anti-poverty programs making up the difference while shareholders reap the benefits. Thought-provoking and damning but wryly funny, too. A.B. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from July 2, 2018
      In this provocative and passionate look at philanthropy, capitalism, and inequality, Giridharadas (The True American: Murder and Mercy in Texas) criticizes market-based solutions to inequality devised by rich American do-gooders as ultimately counterproductive and self-serving. Giridharadas insists that “the idea that after-the-fact benevolence justifies anything-goes capitalism” is no excuse for “avoiding the necessity of a more just and equitable system and a fairer distribution of power.” He turns a gimlet eye on philanthropists who make the money they donate by underpaying employees; luxurious philanthropy getaways that focus more on making attendees feel good about themselves than on creating profound change; and tech companies such as Uber, which promises to empower the poor with earning opportunities, but has been accused of exploiting its workers. Giridharadas calls out billionaire venture capitalist Shervin Pishevar, who opines that “sharing is caring” but refers to labor unions as “cartels,” and profiles Darren Walker, who came from modest beginnings to end up president of the Ford Foundation, where his entreaties to philanthropists to acknowledge structural inequality fall mostly on deaf ears. In the end, Giridharadas believes only democratic solutions can address problems of inequality. This damning portrait of contemporary American philanthropy is a must-read for anyone interested in “changing the world.”

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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