Networks, cultural capital and creative labour in the British independent television industry

Abstract

This article examines the significance of networking practices as a means of finding work and developing a career in the British independent television production sector (ITPS). The findings are based on qualitative research carried out between 2005 and 2006, based on in-depth interviews with 20 freelancers working in the ITPS. The article studies the importance of networking not only as a mode of finding work, but also a mechanism of exclusion, favouring individuals with high levels of cultural and social capital. Drawing on sociological theories of networks such as those of Granovetter and Burt, the article considers the emergence of new patterns of hierarchy and discrimination within the ITPS, in a context where formal recruitment procedures are often bypassed in favour of network relationships. It also examines the implications for television workers of the discursive shift towards networking, where the ‘networkextender’ is presented as the ideal within contemporary management discourse.