cultural industries

 Read the Factsheet and complete the following questions/tasks:

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

Cultural industries mean industries that combine the creation,production,and commercialization of content that is intangible,cultural,and typically protected by interllectual property rights

2) What does Hesmondhalgh identify regarding the societies in which the cultural industries are highly profitable?

He identifies that highly profitable cultural industries thrive in societies with features like large coroporations

3) Why do some media products offer ideologies that challenge capitalism or inequalities in society?

Some media products do it in order for there to be more equality and subvert negative stereotypes that are in society today.

4) Look at page 2 of the factsheet. What are the problems that Hesmondhalgh identifies with regards to the cultural industries?

-corporate concentration

-immense risk and reward imbalance

-commercial pressure

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

They are considered a risky business due to a combination of unpredictable demand,difficulties in assessing finance and intangible nature of their assets

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 believe that in order for a media product to make a profit there needs to be some form of artistic expression.This is because without one consumers would not want to give their money out for a product that does not catch their eye

7) How do cultural industry companies minimise their risks and maximise their profits? (Clue: your work on Industries - Ownership and control will help here) 

-horizontal intergration

-vertical intergration 

-conglomaration

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?

I believe that nowerdays the media is a very dangerous place and cultural industries do reflect the inequalities and injustices of wider society.In some occasions producers should be rewarded more if the content is for good use.However if producers take context out of hand they should be held accountable for their actions.

9) What is commodification? 

The process of turning anything into a commodity

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?

In my opinion diversity is hardly reflected in society because it can easily be taken into the wrong context.Further more i think most producers want to be impartial because of the fact diversity can be seen as biased.