[Commlist] Call for Papers medien & zeit: From the Creative Industries to the Creator Economy. The Transformation of Cultural Production

Call for Papers

 From the Creative Industries to the Creator Economy. The 
Transformation of Cultural Production.

medien & zeit 1/2027

Editors: Andreas Gebesmair & Katharina Biringer (University of Applied 
Sciences St. Pölten)

The production of cultural goods—such as books, music, films, and video 
games—has always followed a different logic than the production of 
consumer goods in general. Creative professionals are rarely employed 
for extended periods and typically work in project-based teams that 
require a high degree of flexibility and trust. Careers are therefore 
difficult to plan, and sustainable success is hardly predictable 
(Hesmondhalgh & Baker, 2011; Menger, 2014; McRobbie, 2015; Manske 
&Schnell, 2018). Moreover, creatives have long been dependent on 
institutional gatekeepers such as publishers, labels, studios, 
broadcasters, and other distributors, who, due to their market power, 
dictate the conditions of production and distribution and often provide 
insufficient support (Hesmondhalgh, 2019).

The rise of digital platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok has 
dramatically changed the situation for cultural producers. On the one 
hand, these platforms enable easy dissemination of content and direct 
communication with audiences, bypassing major intermediaries. Even 
amateurs can now address their fans directly with minimal resources 
(Bruns, 2008; Jenkins, 2008). On the other hand, competition has 
intensified, and producers have entered new dependencies. Algorithms, 
which mediate between creators and users, are highly opaque, and 
monetization opportunities remain limited. Cultural and media work on 
these platforms is now subject to entirely new rules and constraints, 
which research has described as “platform governance” (Poell et al., 
2022) or “isomorphism” (Caplan & Boyd, 2018).

The thematic focus of medien & zeit 1/2027 is on how cultural producers 
and creators navigate these new rules of the so-called Creator Economy. 
While public and scholarly discourse often centers on the negative 
effects of social media—such as fake news, hate speech, and internet 
addiction—the perspective of producers remains largely overlooked. 
Although numerous studies and several monographs on this topic already 
exist in the English-speaking world (Duffy, 2017; Cun-ningham & Craig, 
2019; Poell et al., 2022; Hund, 2025), research on the Creator Economy 
in German-speaking contexts is still in its infancy, with only a few 
exceptions. For this reason, we invite submissions that address the 
potentials, challenges, and constraints of this new form of cultural and 
media work,particularly in German-speaking regions, from different 
perspectives in particular communication studies, media sociology, media 
history, media economics, or media ethics.

Possible areas of focus include, but are not limited to:

/Continuity and Transformation of Formats/. Platforms have not only 
created new opportunities for distribution but also new genres, formats, 
and modes of communication with audiences. Vlogs, Let’sPlays, and hauls 
may serve as examples from the early days of the Creator Economy, while 
dance challenges and lip-syncs represent more recent additions to the 
repertoire of digital media production. Creators’ self-conception has 
also changed, as they reveal far more about their private lives than 
cultural producers of earlier times and often market themselves 
(sometimes alongside otherconsumer goods) as brands. Questions include:

• How do new forms of the Creator Economy differ from earlier media formats?

• How is creators’ self-understanding changing?

• Can these diverse approaches to production be integrated into a 
professional biography (e.g., creators as book authors, actors as creators)?

/Working in the Creator Economy/. Income among creatives has always been 
highly unequal: a handful of superstars contrasted with a multitude of 
cultural workers earning little or nothing. This remainstrue in the 
Creator Economy (Budzinski & Gaenssle, 2018). Many creators invest 
months or years in platform activities before they can make a living—if 
at all (Duffy, 2017). Unpaid work is not only time-consuming and 
exhausting but increasingly merges with private life. Questions include:

• What economic risks and forms of precarity do creators face?

• How open, diverse, and accessible is the Creator Economy, and what 
forms of discrimination based on gender, origin, etc., persist?

• How does artificial intelligence transform creative work and competition?

/Resources and Strategies/. Another area of interest concerns the 
resources available to creators and the strategies they pursue. While 
platforms like TikTok integrate production technologies into their apps, 
making entry easier for beginners with limited expertise, established 
creators often use more sophisticated tools and receive support from 
agencies and informal networks. Questions include:

• Which resources and competencies are essential for a sustainable 
career in the CreatorEconomy?

• What forms of professionalization can be observed?

• To what extent do creators adapt their strategies to changing 
environmental conditions (new platforms, audiences, etc.)?

We welcome theoretical and empirical contributions on these and related 
topics in German or English. Abstracts (max. 500 words, including a 
meaningful title) outlining the intended contribution will be reviewed 
by the issue editors. Based on this review, authors will be invited to 
submitfull papers (max. 7,000 words, including title, abstract, 
keywords, tables, figures, and references). All full papers will undergo 
double-blind peer review. During the revision phase following review, 
authors may extend their articles to a maximum of 8,000 words, 
considering reviewers’ and editors’ suggestions. medien & zeit is fully 
open access and does not charge authors any article processing fees (no 
APC).

Submission of abstracts: 31 March 2026

Submission of full papers: 31 Aug 2026

Publication of the issue: Issue 1/2027

Please send submissions by email: (_cfp /at/ medienundzeit.at) 
<mailto:(cfp /at/ medienundzeit.at)>_



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