Creative Citizen Unbound : How Social Media and DIY Culture Contribute to Democracy, Communities and the Creative Economy

The creative citizen unbound introduces the concept of ‘creative citizenship’ to explore the potential of civic-minded creative individuals in the era of social media and in the context of an expanding creative economy.

Drawing on the findings of a 30-month study of communities supported by the UK research funding councils, multidisciplinary contributors examine the value and nature of creative citizenship, not only in terms of its contribution to civic life and social capital but also to more contested notions of value, both economic and cultural.

This original book will be beneficial to researchers and students across a range of disciplines including media and communication, political science, economics, planning and economic geography, and the creative and performing arts.

Ian Hargreaves is Professor of Digital Economy at Cardiff University and Principal Investigator for the AHRC/EPSRC-funded project Media, Community and the Creative Citizen. He was previously a journalist, spending 15 years on the Financial Times, where he became Deputy Editor; followed by Editorships of the Independent and New Statesman. In the late 1980s, he was Director, BBC News and Current Affairs. In 2009 he conducted a review of creative industries policy for the Welsh Government and in 2011, a review of intellectual property issues for the UK coalition Government. He was awarded a CBE in 2012 for services to the creative economy and higher education.

John Hartley is John Curtin Distinguished Professor and professor of cultural science at Curtin University, Western Australia. He is also Professor of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies at Cardiff University, Wales. Author of many books and articles in media, cultural, communication and journalism studies, he pioneered research into the creative economy at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation (2005-12) as ARC Federation Fellow at Queensland University of Technology. He is an elected Fellow of the International Communication Association and Australian Academy of the Humanities. He was awarded the Order of Australia (AM) in 2009.