Frederic Martel
Encyclopedia
Frédéric Martel is a French
writer
and journalist
. Born in Châteaurenard (near Avignon), his most famous pieces of work are The Pink and the Black, Homosexuals in France since 1968 (trans. into English at Stanford University Press
) and De la culture en Amérique, a book about cultural policies and industries in the United States, which was featured on the cover of the New York Times art section in 2006. NYT's journalist Alan Riding wrote : "In Culture in America, a 622-page tome weighty with information, Martel challenges the conventional view in France that (French) culture financed and organized by the government is entirely good and that (American) culture shaped by market forces is necessarily bad".
and several graduate degrees in philosophy, political science and law. After being project manager for the French Embassy in Romania (1990–1992) and the French ministry of culture (1992); and being the cultural policy advisor to the former Prime Minister Michel Rocard
(1993–1994), he served the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, deputy-Prime minister Martine Aubry
, as one of her senior advisors (1997–2000). From 2001 to 2005 he was cultural attaché for the French embassy in the US. He has been a visiting scholar at Harvard University
and New York University
(2004–2006).
He wrote, or currently writes, for numerous publications (including Magazine Littéraire, L'Express
, Dissent
, The Nation
, and Haaretz
) and produces its own radio show, Masse Critique, a talk show on the entertainment and the medias for the French public radio station France Culture
. He is also editor in chief of the Internet based cultural magazine nonfiction.fr. In addition to that, he maintains high-level academic activities by giving conferences in major American universities (such as Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Princeton, Berkeley and the MIT) and by teaching at the Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris
(also known as Sciences Po Paris) and at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales de Paris (also known as HEC Paris).
Since 2008 he is a researcher for the French Foreign Affairs’ Analysis and Forecasting Centre
and project manager for the Institut National de l'Audiovisuel
on a research project concerning creative industries and medias around the world.
Yves Jeuland's movie, Bleu, Blanc, Rose was based on Frédéric Martel's The Pink and the Black (broad. on France 3
, National Public Television) and Frédéric Martel has also codirected the documentary De la culture en Amérique with Frédéric Laffont (broad. on Arte
, French-German TV network).
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
. Born in Châteaurenard (near Avignon), his most famous pieces of work are The Pink and the Black, Homosexuals in France since 1968 (trans. into English at Stanford University Press
Stanford University Press
The Stanford University Press is the publishing house of Stanford University. In 1892, an independent publishing company was established at the university. The first use of the name "Stanford University Press" in a book's imprinting occurred in 1895...
) and De la culture en Amérique, a book about cultural policies and industries in the United States, which was featured on the cover of the New York Times art section in 2006. NYT's journalist Alan Riding wrote : "In Culture in America, a 622-page tome weighty with information, Martel challenges the conventional view in France that (French) culture financed and organized by the government is entirely good and that (American) culture shaped by market forces is necessarily bad".
Biography
Frédéric Martel holds a PhD in sociologySociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
and several graduate degrees in philosophy, political science and law. After being project manager for the French Embassy in Romania (1990–1992) and the French ministry of culture (1992); and being the cultural policy advisor to the former Prime Minister Michel Rocard
Michel Rocard
Michel Rocard is a French politician, member of the Socialist Party . He served as Prime Minister under François Mitterrand from 1988 to 1991, during which he created the Revenu minimum d'insertion , a social minimum welfare program for indigents, and led the Matignon Accords regarding the status...
(1993–1994), he served the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, deputy-Prime minister Martine Aubry
Martine Aubry
Martine Aubry is a French politician. She has been the First Secretary of the French Socialist Party since November 2008 and Mayor of Lille since March 2001...
, as one of her senior advisors (1997–2000). From 2001 to 2005 he was cultural attaché for the French embassy in the US. He has been a visiting scholar at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
(2004–2006).
He wrote, or currently writes, for numerous publications (including Magazine Littéraire, L'Express
L'Express (France)
L'Express is a French weekly news magazine. When founded in 1953 during the First Indochina War, it was modelled on the US magazine TIME.-History:...
, Dissent
Dissent (magazine)
Dissent is a quarterly magazine focusing on politics and culture edited by Michael Walzer and Michael Kazin. The magazine is published for the Foundation for the Study of Independent Social Ideas, Inc by the University of Pennsylvania Press....
, The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
, and Haaretz
Haaretz
Haaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
) and produces its own radio show, Masse Critique, a talk show on the entertainment and the medias for the French public radio station France Culture
France Culture
France Culture is a French public radio channel and part of Radio France. Its programming encompasses a wide variety of features on historical, philosophical, sociopolitical, and scientific themes , as well as literary readings, radio plays, and experimental productions...
. He is also editor in chief of the Internet based cultural magazine nonfiction.fr. In addition to that, he maintains high-level academic activities by giving conferences in major American universities (such as Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Princeton, Berkeley and the MIT) and by teaching at the Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris
Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris
The Institut d'études politiques de Paris , simply referred to as Sciences Po , is a public research and higher education institution in Paris, France, specialised in the social sciences. It has the status of grand établissement, which allows its admissions process to be highly selective...
(also known as Sciences Po Paris) and at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales de Paris (also known as HEC Paris).
Since 2008 he is a researcher for the French Foreign Affairs’ Analysis and Forecasting Centre
Analysis and Forecasting Centre
The Analysis and Forecasting Centre is a French government think-tank. It was set up in July 1973 by the then Foreign Minister, Michel Jobert. It analyses the international environment, makes strategic recommendations and guarantees a French presence in European and international circles of...
and project manager for the Institut National de l'Audiovisuel
Institut national de l'audiovisuel
The Institut national de l'audiovisuel , is a repository of all French radio and television audiovisual archives. Additionally it provides customers with a free and immediate access to archives of countries such as Afghanistan and Cambodia...
on a research project concerning creative industries and medias around the world.
Books and TV documentaries
Frédéric Martel is the author of five books:- Philosophie du droit et philosophie politique d'Adolphe Thiers, LGDJ, 1995 (His thesis in public law published as a book at LGDJ Press)
- The Pink and the Black, Homosexuals in France since 1968, Le Seuil, 1996 ; trans. into English in the US by Jane Marie Todd at Stanford University Press, 1999, ISBN 0-8047-3274-4
- La longue marche des gays, Gallimard, 2002.
- Theater, Sur le déclin du théâtre en Amérique et comment il peut résister en France, La Découverte, 2006.
- De la culture en Amérique (Culture in America), Gallimard, 2006 (2007 France-Amériques prize; translated in Japanese and in Polish).
- Mainstream, Enquête sur cette culture qui plaît à tout le monde (On Mass Culture), publisher: Flammarion, March 2010 (trans. on its way in Germany, Japan, China, Spain, Poland and Italy).
Yves Jeuland's movie, Bleu, Blanc, Rose was based on Frédéric Martel's The Pink and the Black (broad. on France 3
France 3
France 3 is the second largest French public television channel and part of the France Télévisions group, which also includes France 2, France 4, France 5, and France Ô....
, National Public Television) and Frédéric Martel has also codirected the documentary De la culture en Amérique with Frédéric Laffont (broad. on Arte
Arte
Arte is a Franco-German TV network. It is a European culture channel and aims to promote quality programming especially in areas of culture and the arts...
, French-German TV network).