The myths of empowerment through information communication technologies: an exploration of the music industries and fan bases

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to examine the impact of the digital culture on the music industries through an analysis of official and unofficial web sites, media reports and discussions with musicians.Design/methodology/approach – A critical social theory approach is adopted to examine structures and processes related to communication between artists, fans, the media, as well as commercial and independent labels. The authors draw upon Habermas' theory using the concept of “communicative action” to inform an analysis of three vignettes or short case studies.Findings – At first glance it would appear that technology has brought about greater opportunities for independent musicians to communicate, network, promote and distribute, which previously could not be widely published, and to organise against the commercial power of major labels (Majors).Research limitations/implications – In many spheres of the music industries this “empowerment” does not appear to be realised. For example, previous studies ha...

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