Howdigitaltechnologyisupendingthetraditionalcreativeindustries--andwhythatmightbeagoodthingThedigitalrevolutionposesamortalthreattothemajorcreativeindustries--music,publishing,television,andthemovies.Theeasewithwhichdigitalfilescanbecopiedanddistributedhasunleashedawaveofpiracywithdisastrouseffectsonrevenue.Cheap,easyself-publishingiserodingthepositionofthesegatekeepersandguardiansofculture.Doesthisrevolutionheraldthecollapseofculture,assomecommentatorsclaim?Farfromit.InDigitalRenaissance,JoelWaldfogelarguesthatdigitaltechnologyisenablinganewgoldenageofpopularculture,averitabledigitalrenaissance.Byreducingthecostsofproduction,distribution,andpromotion,digitaltechnologyisdemocratizingaccesstotheculturalmarketplace.Morebooks,songs,televisionshows,andmoviesarebeingproducedthaneverbefore.Nordoesthismeanatidalwaveofderivative,poorlyproducedkitsch;analyzingdecadesofproductionandsalesdata,aswellasbestsellerandbest-oflists,Waldfogelfindsthatthenewdigitalmodelisjustassuccessfulatproducinghigh-quality,successfulworkastheoldindustrymodel,andinmanycasesmoreso.Thevauntedgatekeeperroleofthecreativeindustriesprovestohavebeenlargelymythical.Thehighcostsofproductionhavestifledcreativityinindustriesthatrequireever-biggerblockbusterstocoverthelossesonever-more-expensivefailures.Arewedrowninginatideofculturalsilt,orlivinginagoldenageforculture?TheanswersinDigitalRenaissancemaysurpriseyou.
songs publishing television DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION MUSIC SONGS PUBLISHING TELEVISION distribution
