Abstract
This article addresses the phenomenon of user production. Upon addressing critically the concept of convergence, it suggests autonomia as an alternative perspective that is exceptionally sensitive to the novelty of digital-media work. However, its value remains limited due not only to a residual technological determinism, but also due to lacking a means of concrete, historical analysis of practice. We propose melding the insights of autonomia with a sustained analysis of practice through the cultural materialism of Raymond Williams. The article concludes with an analysis of user involvement at the cable-television and internet commercial company Current TV, which demonstrates the value of this melded perspective for making sense of user production.
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