Industries: Hesmondhalgh - The Cultural Industries

1) What does the term 'Cultural Industries' actually refer to?

The term ‘cultural industry’ refers to the creation, production, and  distribution of products of a cultural or artistic nature.

2) What does Hesmondhalgh identify regarding the societies in which the cultural industries are highly profitable?
 Cultural industries are seen as adding value to society and  individuals. As they are often focused on intellectual property, the  cultural industries are knowledge-based and require a large number  of people in their production, therefore as an industry it will create  employment and wealth.

3) Why do some media products offer ideologies that challenge capitalism or inequalities in society?
This happens because the cultural industry companies need to continuously compete with each other to secure audience members. As such, companies outdo each other to try and satisfy audience desires for the shocking, profane or rebellious.

4) Look at page 2 of the factsheet. What are the problems that Hesmondhalgh identifies with regards to the cultural industries?
Risky business, Creativity versus commerce, High production costs and low reproduction costs, Semi-public goods; the need to create scarcity.

5) Why are so many cultural industries a 'risky business' for the companies involved?

Risk derives from the fact that audiences use cultural commodities in highly volatile and unpredictable ways – often  in order to express the view that they are different from other people. 


6) What is your opinion on the creativity v commerce debate? Should the media be all about profit or are media products a form of artistic expression that play an important role in society?
I think media needs to lean towards being about artistic expression, creativity is valuable.

7) How do cultural industry companies minimise their risks and maximise their profits? (Clue: your work on Industries - Ownership and control will help here) 
Cultural Industry companies minimise risk by either horizontal or vertical integration.

8) Do you agree that the way the cultural industries operate reflects the inequalities and injustices of wider society? Should the content creators, the creative minds behind media products, be better rewarded for their work?
Yes, it reflects the capitalist society we live in because conglomerates have a large amount of power and are able to buy smaller companies. The creative minds behind the products do deserve more recognition and rewards. 

9) Listen and read the transcript to the opening 9 minutes of the Freakonomics podcast - No Hollywood Ending for the Visual-Effects Industry. Why has the visual effects industry suffered despite the huge budgets for most Hollywood movies?
Audiences have more high expectations for realism and many shots of VFXs which makes larger companies want to provide the audience with their wants but they end up usually being rushed due to the output that is demanded by the VFX artists.

10) What is commodification? 
Its the transformation of objects/ products into commonplace.

11) Do you agree with the argument that while there are a huge number of media texts created, they fail to reflect the diversity of people or opinion in wider society?
I agree that they fail to properly represent different groups correctly because of the conglomerates that tend to control many production.


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