MEDIA REPRESENTATION OF BOUTIQUE FESTIVALS IN THE UK DURING THE PERIOD 2007 – 2010: A DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF ONLINE MEDIA SOURCES CATHERINE ANNE HUMPHREYS B.A. (Hons) Events Management 2017 Cardiff Metropolitan University (CMU) School of Management MEDIA REPRESENTATION OF BOUTIQUE FESTIVALS IN THE UK DURING THE PERIOD 2007 – 2010: A DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF ONLINE MEDIA SOURCES A critical investigation of the common themes, trends and issues associated with boutique festivals in the UK as represented to the public by the UK media. Catherine Anne Humphreys B.A. (Hons) Events Management April 2017 i Declaration ‘’I declare that this Dissertation has not already been accepted in substance for any degree and is not concurrently submitted in candidate for any degree. It is the result of my own independent research except where otherwise stated’’. Signed …………………………………………. Name …………………………………………. ii Abstract This study critically investigated the key themes, issues and trends within boutique festivals in the UK as represented by the UK media over the ten-year period 2007 - 2017. This was achieved through a discourse analysis of UK magazine and newspaper articles. All media data was sourced online using the search engine ‘Google’. In order to achieve the aim the researcher first created a set of objectives to be met. These objectives began with a critical review of the current literature surrounding the festival industry with specific reference to the boutique genre and focus on associated themes, issues and trends. A conceptual framework was created from the discussed secondary data within the literature review. A suitable research methodology was created and secondary data was collected through the search engine ‘Google’ specifically ‘Google/news’. The secondary data consisted of online newspaper and magazine articles from UK publications, relevant to the boutique topic that is the focus of this study. The researcher used qualitative discourse analysis to identify common thoughts, themes, trends and issues within the examined data, followed by a discussion and analysis of the researcher’s interpretation of the results. The study found that the boutique festival market in the UK is continually growing, and as the public's disillusionment with the developing issue of a corporate culture within the festival giants develops, boutique festivals are continually gaining popularity. Sponsorship, commercialisation, event and environmental sustainability issues are found to be common regarding boutique festivals. Boutique festivals are found to be multi-genre, multi-generational, family-friendly events, independent from corporate ownership, involving a wide range of activities, workshops and more creating an immersive environment. The key defining factor of boutique festivals is found to be that they offer a unique experience. Creativity, innovation and consumer participation are found to be a focus within boutique festivals, and fancy dress is found to be a growing trend. This study has made valuable contributions to the existing body of academic knowledge and provides a platform for father related research in the future. Word Count: 13,855 iii Acknowledgements I would firstly like to thank my dissertation supervisor Diana James for her constant support, advice and guidance throughout this Dissertation project. I would also like to thank Karen Davies who provided invaluable guidance is refining the Dissertation topic and overall aim. I would also like to thank all my tutors at Cardiff Metropolitan University for the support and education that led to my interest and understanding of the discussed topic. I would finally my amazing circle of friends and family for continually supporting and encouraging me throughout my time at university. iv Contents ABSTRACT .....................................................................................................................................III ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................................. IV LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ........................................................................ VII LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................................... VIII CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................... 1 1. INTRODUCTION & BACKGROUND TO RESEARCH ........................................................ 1 1.1 DISSERTATION AIM ........................................................................................................................ 3 1.2 DISSERTATION OBJECTIVES .......................................................................................................... 3 1.3 SUMMARY OF DISSERTATION STRUCTURE ................................................................................... 3 1.4 CHAPTER SUMMARY ...................................................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER TWO............................................................................................................................... 5 2. LITERATURE REVIEW............................................................................................................... 5 2.1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 5 2.2 FESTIVALS ..................................................................................................................................... 5 2.2.1 Defining Festivals ................................................................................................................ 5 2.2.2 History of Festivals .............................................................................................................. 6 2.3 DEFINING BOUTIQUE FESTIVALS ................................................................................................... 7 2.3.1 Independent Boutique Music and Arts Festivals ............................................................ 8 2.4 SPONSORSHIP AND COMMERCIALISATION .................................................................................... 9 2.4.1 Two Broad Trajectories within the Festival Market ........................................................ 9 2.5 THE EXPERIENCE ECONOMY ....................................................................................................... 10 2.5.1 Consumer Participation .................................................................................................... 11 2.6 THE BOUTIQUE AUDIENCE .......................................................................................................... 12 2.7 CULTURE AND AUTHENTICITY ..................................................................................................... 12 2.7.1 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 13 2.7.2 Authenticity ......................................................................................................................... 13 2.8 EVENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY........................................................................... 13 2.8.1 Event Sustainability .......................................................................................................... 13 2.8.1.1 Festival Failure ........................................................................................................................... 13 2.8.2 Environmental Sustainability ........................................................................................... 14 2.9 THE MEDIA ................................................................................................................................... 14 2.10 CHAPTER CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................ 15 CHAPTER THREE......................................................................................................................... 16 3. METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................................................... 16 3.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 16 3.2 QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH ............................................................................ 16 3.2.1 Quantitative Research ...................................................................................................... 16 3.2.2 Qualitative Research ........................................................................................................ 16 3.2.3 Justification ........................................................................................................................ 17 3.3 PRIMARY AND SECONDARY RESEARCH ...................................................................................... 17 3.3.1 Primary Data Collection ................................................................................................... 17 3.3.2 Secondary Data Collection .............................................................................................. 17 3.3.3 Justification ........................................................................................................................ 18 3.4 DISCOURSE