The London School of Economics and Political Science Image, Information and Changing Work Practices The case of the BBC’s Digital Media Initiative José-Carlos Mariátegui A thesis submitted to the Department of Management of the London School of Economics and Political Science for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, London, November 2013 Declaration I certify that the thesis I have presented for examination for the PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work other than where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others (in which case the extent of any work carried out jointly by me and any other person is clearly identified in it). The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without the author’s prior written consent. I warrant that this authorization does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. I declare that my thesis consists of 72,103 words (including footnotes but excluding bibliography and appendices). Statement of conjoint work I confirm that chapter 4 of this thesis incorporated parts of the review “From BetaMax to Blockbuster: Video Stores and the Invention of Movies on Video” (2008) published in Leonardo Reviews, which was jointly co-authored with Professor Jannis Kallinikos; I contributed 70 percent of this work. I confirm that chapters 5 and 7 of this thesis incorporated parts of the work "Video as Digital Object: Production and Distribution of Video Content in the Internet Media Ecosystem" (2011) published in The Information Society 27(4): 281-294, which was jointly co-authored with Professor Jannis Kallinikos; I contributed 50 percent of this work. 2 Statement of inclusion of previous work I confirm that chapter 3 incorporates a selection from “Deconstructing Digital Video: The Ontological and Technical Complexities of a Medium” presented at the 27th EGOS Colloquium “Reassembling Organizations” in Gothenburg, Sweden, July 7–9, 2011, which I completed while studying at the LSE. I confirm that chapters 4 and 7 incorporate a selection from the work “From Electronic Text to Media-Data Space: An Empirical Case of Organizational Change through Digitalization in the Media Industry” presented at the 3rd Latin American and European Meeting on Organizational Studies (LAEMOS) Colloquium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, April 7–10, 2010, which I completed while studying at the LSE. Statement of use of third party for editorial help I can confirm that my thesis was copy edited for conventions of language, spelling, and grammar by Sarah E. C. Smith (English Language Editor). 3 Abstract The media industry is undergoing a comprehensive change due to media convergence and the diffusion of the internet. However, there is a lack of research in the field of Information Systems on how these technological phenomena impact work practices in broadcasting and media organizations. Using the BBC’s Digital Media Initiative (DMI) as a case study, I provide a detailed description and analysis of the implementation of DMI in news and long-form productions. The empirical evidence was gathered from BBC Northern Ireland (BBC NI), where a large-scale digital video production infrastructure based on DMI was implemented. My point of departure is the study and impact of digitalization in work practices associated to the production of video as an image-based artefact, which complements previous studies that focus on information tokens such as electronic text. I seek to assess how work practices at BBC NI were affected by the use of digital video throughout the DMI workflow. In this context, my case study analyzes: 1) DMI’s technical infrastructure and its impact on work practices for the purpose of searching and organizing video content, and how this affected news and long-form productions distinctively; and 2) the domain of video craft editing brought about by the digitization of the video production process. My contribution demonstrates the importance of a semiotic approach to the study of the digitalized image-based artefact, particularly when analyzing the construction of a video narrative. Video narratives are based on work practices that originate not only from particular occupational cultures, but also from the technological characteristics of digital video information. I address the importance of the semiotic character of digital video, in both syntactic and semantic dimensions, and acknowledge its role as a constitutive element for understanding the impact of digitalization and work in the information age. 4 To the memory of my mother To the memory of my father 5 Acknowledgements The following thesis summarizes the last twenty years of my academic work since I began my undergraduate studies in 1993. I had an atypical academic journey that started with biology and then mathematics, while being involved in culture and media arts. I simultaneously worked as a professional in the technology, media, and marketing industries. In the last eight years my varied interests led me to my research on technology and media organizations. There was always one theme that remained constant throughout my journey: technology and its impact on culture and society. I am indebted to the people that helped and guided me through this academic journey. During my undergraduate career in biology and mathematics, I had the support of Prof. Alberto Cordero, who gave me academic guidance in the late nineties and continues to be a critical assessor of my intellectual pursuits. Prof. Jaime García- Soccola and Prof. Adolfo Castillo from the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia and my friend and mathematics tutor, Mr. Armando Tori, all encouraged me to complete a BSc degree in Applied Mathematics. I am also thankful to the people that helped me discover and love the fields of technology, art, and culture which developed into my later interest in technology and society. Many of them were fellow colleagues occupied with different cultural and intellectual endeavors: Gianni Toti (in memoriam), Alfonso Castrillón, José Javier Castro, Christopher Csikszentmihalyi, Sean Cubitt, Don Foresta, Jorge La Ferla, Sally-Jane Norman and Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, among others. My longtime friend and business partner Paul Thorndike has been an immense help during the last five years of my PhD by “covering” me during my long stays in London and sometimes even convincing me not to be preoccupied with Lima’s office matters. In addition, my intellectual colleague, Jorge Villacorta, has always supported my (our) intellectual endeavors and how they fit in with my academic ones. Their invaluable support and friendship is something for which I am truly grateful. 6 Family is not something you inherit biologically, but is composed of the people you care about unconditionally and with whom you establish lasting connections. Ximena and Claudio Querol get credit for their advice about pursuing a master’s degree and for their quasi-brotherhood. I was lucky to develop relationships with very special people that I consider part of an extended “familia”: Ernesto Leistenschneider, María Mercedes Luy, Francesco Mariotti, Martín Ossio, Isabel Tunque, and Juan Carlos Verme. A special mention goes to my centennial grandmother, Cucuca, and my aunt Kitty. Throughout my life in Europe, I met people that offered me new and strong friendships. I would like to extend my gratitude to my closest friends in London: Rasheed Araeen, Isabelle and Jean-Conrad LeMaitre, Smadar Dreyfus, David Bovill, and Elena Damiani. I am also especially indebted to Deborah Stolk and Rossella Bracali who were a vital source of inspiration during the final, most intensive, creative, and challenging months of the PhD. The professionals at the BBC were extremely supportive during my research. I would first like to thank the employees at BBC headquarters: Matt Locke (BBC FM&T division), Matthew Cashmore and Ian Forrester (BBC Backstage), Keith Little (former CIO of the BBC), and Spencer Piggott (my day-to-day contact at the BBC). I am also grateful to all the people I came into contact with at BBC Northern Ireland, who were extremely generous with their time. I am particularly grateful to Mervyn Middleby (Head of Technology and Operations, BBC NI) who provided all the necessary resources during my time in Belfast, from office space to organizing a productive agenda that connected me with knowledgeable interviewees. Last but not least, I would like to express my gratitude to everyone in the Information Systems and Innovation Group at the LSE for the stimulating and enriching experiences we shared. I am indebted to my fellow colleagues and greatly appreciate the sense of camaraderie and teamwork that we developed as I pursued my PhD. I am grateful to have shared both the joys and struggles of the last eight years with them: Aleksi Aaltonen, Attila Marton, Cristina Alaimo, and Niccolò Tempini. I would like to thank my second supervisor, Dr. Carsten Sørensen for his research 7 recommendations, especially during the first few years of the PhD. I also would like to thank the Information Systems and Innovation Group for their gracious support in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 with the LSE Research Studentship. A special thanks goes to my friend and colleague, Dionisis Demetis, who has always been generous and with whom I had long discussions about common intellectual interests, many of them related to the topics of my PhD. A final acknowledgement goes to my “maestro”, Prof. Jannis Kallinikos. Through him, I learned that good research requires arduous work and intellectual discipline. I also learned the importance of taking a stand on a position and refusing to let the “blushing of mainstream thoughts” cloud my own judgment. I will always be indebted to him for his academic rigor and also his steadfast friendship. I hope to continue collaborating together in the future.