David Hesmondhalgh is a British Sociologist who is currently a professor of media, music and culture at the University of Leeds. He wrote a book called ‘Cultural Industries‘ published in 2002. He is acknowledged as a key figure in developing the “cultural industries” approach to media, which emphasises the complex and contradictory nature of cultural production under capitalism. A critical reflection highlights that there is a ‘myth‘ about how the creative industry really is and how much work they require. Leaving people vulnerable to the illusion that they will be a ‘star‘ if they have some sort of creative talent.

David states networking is also incredibly important in the industry, its all about who you know and who you have ties to. Without this it is much harder to achieve the spotlight, even if you are better or a hard worker.

‘for every individual who succeeds, there are many who do not. For many, it will be the result of a perfectly reasonable personal decision that the commitment and determination required is not for them’ (p. 20)

David also states that its a risky business. It is competitive as those are fighting for the spotlight but its also determined on the opinions of the audience or the producers. This means creative people are competing for the majority in order to be liked and successful.

The creative industry is divided into 3 groups:

Production– people who create thing e.g write a song, make a movie, make a painting.

Distribution– people who promote and market things to reach the target audience using advertisements.

Consumption– The audience consuming the information e.g by going to the cinema, going to a concert; to consume the product.

Key Quotes:

“the distinctive organisational form of the cultural industries has considerable implications for the conditions under which symbolic creativity is carried out“

“in its utopian presentation, creative work is now imagined only as a self-actualising pleasure, rather than a potentially arduous or problematic obligation undertaken through material necessity” (2009, p. 417)

Media buisnesses are reliant upon changing audience consumption patterns”– The media and creative industry is based off of audience preference, taste, and how audiences will react to productions.

Risk is minimized by many different things:

• ‘Fan culture’, if productions develop a strong, reliable and loyal fan base, producers can almost rely on a positive reaction from these consumers towards future productions.
• Marketing and advertising, the use of advertisement allows creative/ media products to gain the attention of their target audience
• Trying not to create a ‘monopoly’, often, large, worldwide companies such as ‘Disney’ and ‘Apple’ leave one aspect of production, distribution or consumption to a third party company in order to create a legal monopoly.
• Repetition; Producers stick to their strengths and create similar products time and time again to create a loyal fan base so that they don’t have to continue finding new target audience.