The Geography of Buzz: Art, Culture and the Social Milieu in Los Angeles and New York

Posted: 27 Apr 2010

See all articles by Elizabeth Currid

Elizabeth Currid

University of Southern California

Sarah Williams

Columbia University

Date Written: May 2010

Abstract

Social scientists have long sought to understand the cultural production system. Such research elucidates the importance of the social milieu to cultural industries. We capture aggregate patterns of the social milieu and the geographical form it takes. We use a unique data set, Getty Images and geo-coded over 6000 events and 300,000 photographic images taken in Los Angeles and New York City, and conducted GIS and spatial statistics to analyze macro-geographical patterns. The five important findings include: (i) social milieus have nonrandom spatial clustering; (ii) these clustering tendencies may reinforce themselves; (iii) event enclaves demonstrate homogeneous spatial patterns across all cultural industries; (iv) the recursive nature of place branding may partially explain resulting cultural hubs; and (v) the media also clusters. These results have unintended consequences for our understanding of clustering more generally and place branding. The use of Getty data provides a new spatial dimension through which to understand cultural industries and city geographic patterns.

Keywords: Los Angeles, New York, GIS, cultural industries, economic development, media

JEL Classification: O10, Z11, O18

Suggested Citation

Currid, Elizabeth and Williams, Sarah, The Geography of Buzz: Art, Culture and the Social Milieu in Los Angeles and New York (May 2010). Journal of Economic Geography, Vol. 10, Issue 3, pp. 423-451, 2010, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1596480 or http://dx.doi.org/lbp032

Elizabeth Currid (Contact Author)

University of Southern California ( email )

2250 Alcazar Street
Los Angeles, CA 90089
United States

Sarah Williams

Columbia University ( email )

3022 Broadway
New York, NY 10027
United States

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