Publics and Publishing in Transition - Case Study Example

Name: Tutor: Title: Publics and Publishing in Transition Course: Date: Publics and Publishing in Transition When publishing changes, so does society. Investigate and compare the impact of two publication technologies Introduction When publishing changes, so does society. In regard to this, the research is going to compare two publication technologies which in this case are cave paintings and the internet. In addition, the research is also going to delve into their effects on the creative industry which is a very critical part of the society.The creativeindustry generally refers to a variety of activities that mostly deal with production or use of certain knowledge or information.” (Venturelli 2008). Cave Paintings Cave paintings are dated back to 40,000 years ago. They were used during the pre-historic times as a way of communication, for religious purposes and even as a mark of some events. Most of the cave paintings were found on cave walls and on top of the caves. Initially, there were problems encountered by those who were trying to find the age of those cave paintings. The first cave painting discovered was about 40,000 years ago in Spain. Another discovery for the second cave painting was done around 35,000 years ago in France.Other discoveries have been made in Australia that date back to around 30,000 years ago. The cave paintings discovered in Spain come at the same time as the discoveries of Homo sapiens. The cave paintings found in Australia mostly contained charcoal drawings” (Venturelli 2008). Most cave paintings were those of wild animals like antelopes, auroch and horses which were used as a reference point for the animals that were hunted during those times. There were also other cave paintings that contained animals such as bulls, an indication that these paintings were used as some sort of reminder of the animals that used to be hunted then. Figure 1: A cave painting of bulls Without doubt, it is very logical to presume that this cave painting among others have been distributed worldwide. This has made them to be of great importance to the general development of various countries. They are without doubt at the heart of creative industry. This cave painting of a bull has now acquired a new level in as far as the creative industry is concerned as opposed to the past where art was not of much value. In fact, sometime back such kind of cave paintings were regarded as mere entertainment. According to Venturelli, these pieces of art were “…mere entertainment, or candy floss: most certainly not something of real value.” (Venturelli 2008) However, carvings, cave paintings and arts in general has gained so much attention and is of much higher priority to people currently than before. They have become part of day to day life. This has in turn affected the creative industry and helped a lot in the development of this industry. Most have argued that these pieces of art and art in general has transformed too much that it has set up a structure that has assimilated the entireness of day to day life experiences hence having so much effect on the establishment of “values, on the selection of priority public issues, on the characteristics of public and nongovernmental spaces, and on the legitimacy of rules and of the players involved.”(Moneta 2000) For that reason, cave paintings as art have played a very important part in both the political and social arenas. From a wider perspective it is very reasonable to ascertain that they also have a major role as far as relations between people, countries and societies in general are concerned. They have helped build good relations between people by creating favorable conditions and environment for both regional and international integration and cooperation (Florida 2004). There are various reasons given as to why people used to make cave paintings. One of them is for the purpose of decoration. Some of the cave paintings made acted as an archive of their adventures. The other reason is so purposes of remembrance. Cave paintings helped them remember things that they had shown interest in. A classic example is that of horses (Florida 2004). Impacts of Cave Paintings on the Creative industry This particular publication technology has helped in the creation of jobs worldwide and a very major source of income, largely exemplified by commercial cultural corporations and artists all over the world. According to Wyszomirski “…in the information age, intellectual property has become a key economic resource…” (Wyszomirski 2000) Commercial cultural corporations and artists as well as nonprofit arts organizations are agents of very many enormous accumulations cultural content that comes in different forms ranging from museum contents to historical archives. This is in addition to their important roles they play in the creation of intellectual property. Cave paintings have brought some form of education as they help people appreciate the world as well as appreciating oneself as a person. According to Hesmondhaugh, cave paintings were and still are important as they help in circulation of creativity that they bring about. (Hesmondhalgh 2002) The impacts of publication technologies such as cave paintings on the creative industry may be on economical basis whereby they may be supplied or even in terms of service. There are many people who contribute to the growth of a state’s economy through small businesses whereby they sell these paintings, solitary proprietorships and independent contractors who are normally involved in their creation (Florida 2004). The internet The origin of internet dates back to 1960 in the United States of America. This was done so as to enable enormous communication through computer networks to be achieved. The internet is another form of publication technology. It is a medium for networking and sharing information. It is a worldwide structure of interconnected computer networks which use the standard Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to serve multiple millions of people who use it. Normally, internet is used transfer information hence offering services such as the inter-linked hypertext documents of the World Wide Web (WWW) and the structures that help in the provision of email and other social sites such as Facebook and Tweeter. A lot of publications occur in these sites and email hence making internet a mode of communication. Publications of books and other documents are now taking place on the internet. Positive impacts of internet on the creative industry The Internet has so many advantages. It enables people to transact business from all the corners of the world. This is due to its easier accessibility since it is even available in mobile phones. More so, mobile phones among other devices have wireless internet hence enabling easier transactions of various things. Those people who have certain ideas can easily share them or even sell them through the internet. YouTubefor example allows one to post music and still play it from there. This piece of art then becomes available to millions of people who are able to view it or even download it. The internet has ensured that working is flexible enough for people to work at the comfort of their homes. In addition to this, high speed connections is now wide spread. Music artists are the most common beneficiaries of internet (Throsby 2001). There are over 6 million users of blogs and other social sites who are able to access music from different artistes who have posted their music on the internet. The internet has helped so much in the growth of the creative industry by creating quicker means of advertising one’s piece of art or selling of ideas. This is because the moment one posts his or her idea on the internet; so many people will have access to it. In addition to that, sites that are available on the internet such as YouTube, one is able to upload pictures and videos. One is able to actually see what he or she intends to buy or is interested in. similarly, one can even get explanations may be regarding certain goods or services from the internet. This is in fact how much easy, the internet has helped in the growth of the creative industry. It has made things so easy that one gets to know new things that were not in mind but are available on the internet. The internet has allowed people communicate by sending messages from anywhere. Similarly, one is able to give some feedback or his or her views on a certain piece of art which will in turn trigger the inventor to make changes to his or her invention for the better (Hesmondhalgh, 2002). Negative impacts of internet on the creative industry But on the other hand, internet has also had its fair share of disadvantages. People can meddle into other people’s ideas hence denying them their right of ownership. When material is posted on the internet it acquires that aspect of multiplicity. So when an artist for example posts his or her music on the internet, it might be accessed by people other than those whom he or she targeted. These people will have unjustifiably attained goods or services. Creativity is the backbone of the creative industry hence the need to protect the inventor’s creations. However, it becomes increasingly difficult to protect material that is reproducible with so much ease (Wyszomirski 2002). Correcting the negative impacts of internet on the creative industry Therefore, there is need for the protection of the inventor’s rights. This is done by copyrights and trademarks. Indeed, a unitingcharacteristic of the creative industries is that innovation protected by copyright is at their core. Governments at times try to do this by limiting what people can access in the internet but it has become increasingly hard for them to fully achieve it (Hesmondhalgh 2002). The internet verses cave paintings The internet has a wider accessibility than cave paintings. Both are forms of communication but for the cave paintings it has very limited parameters. However, the internet provides people with the opportunity to get to see or listen to some piece of art anywhere anytime. The internet has a wider reach than as opposed to the cave paintings. Motion pictures, illustrations and sound are a feature of the internet which is not the case for cave paintings. Cave paintings have no sound nor do they have motion pictures. Both of these publication technologies are different in as far as existence is concerned. One will find that despite the fact that cave paintings survived very harsh conditions for thousands of years, not all of them could be discovered or can be recovered (Vogel 2008). Conclusion The internet is without doubt the better publication as compared to cave paintings. However, it is very critical to note that intellectual property rights and illegal downloads are major problems affecting the internet. These problems aren’t there in cave paintings. Both the internet and cave paintings are forms of publication and they are both intended to deliver a certain message. The mode of delivery is what has actually changed but what is being delivered is still the same in both the internet and in cave paintings. Bibliography Cherbo, J. M., &Wyszomirski, M. J. (Eds), 2000, The public life of the arts in America, Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick, NJ. Florida, R., 2004, The rise of the creative class, Basic Books, New York. Hesmondhalgh, D., 2002, The Cultural Industries, Sage Publications, London, England. Siwek, S. E., 2002, Copyright Industries in the U.S. Economy: The 2002 report, Washington, DC. Throsby, D., 2001, Defining the artistic workforce: The Australian experience.Poetics, Sydney. Vogel, H., 2008, Entertainment industry economics, 4th ed, Cambridge University Press, New York. Williams, R., 1981, Culture, Fontana, London. Wyszomirski, M. J., 2002, Arts and Culture, In L. Salamon (ed.), The State of Nonprofit America, Brookings Institution Press, Washington, DC. Read More