Changing Relationships, Changing Industries
Nancy Baym, University of Kansas
Tuesday, June 22, 12:30 pm
Berkman Center, 23 Everett Street, second floor
Entertainment industry professionals have generally related to their audiences in terms of economic (market) exchange while fans have generally related to one another in terms of social (gift) exchange. In the case of music, audience members have long exchanged albums, mixtapes, bootlegs, and friendship with one another while exchanging little but money for product with musicians. The internet has enabled audiences to connect with one another, to share music, and to become visible to and interact directly with artists in new ways. As a consequence, music industries, like all entertainment industries, are forced to rethink how they work. I argue they are increasingly pushed toward models of engagement with audiences that integrate social and economic exchange. This talk will address how this happens in the innovative case of independent Swedish artists and music labels and raise questions about how new systems of value and reward may be developing.
About Nancy
Dr. Baym's main interests include interpersonal communication in online communities, the relations between online and offline social life, and perceptions of the internet as a social medium. Nancy is the author of Tune In, Log on: Soaps, Fandom, and On-Line Community (2000) from Sage Publications. She was a co-founder and past-president of the Association of Internet Researchers and serves on the editorial boards of several journals including the Journal of Communication, New Media & Society, The Information Society and others. Her most recent book, Personal Connections in the Digital Age (Polity 2010), can be previewed and purchased here.