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Digitalisation and the cultural economy Cultural institutions in the digital age New threats and regulatory challenges in the age of the internet Most FutureLearn courses run multiple times. Every run of a course has a set start date but you can join it and work through it after it starts. Find out more This course is for anyone working in fields related to culture or technology. This includes cultural managers, artists, diplomats, internet professionals, and journalists.

Topics Covered

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Digitalisation and the cultural economy Cultural institutions in the digital age New threats and regulatory challenges in the age of the internet Most FutureLearn courses run multiple times. Every run of a course has a set start date but you can join it and work through it after it starts. Find out more This course is for anyone working in fields related to culture or technology. This includes cultural managers, artists, diplomats, internet professionals, and journalists.

Topics Covered

  • Impacts of the digital on creative industries
  • The rise of transmedia
  • A new era for cultural policy?
  • Crowdfunding culture
  • Digitalised art worlds
  • The emergence of new vulnerabilities
  • Digital platforms as threats for the creative economy
  • Media pluralism in the digital era

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Reviews summary

Digital culture & policy frameworks

According to students, this course offers a comprehensive and thought-provoking exploration of culture in the digital age. Learners particularly appreciate the insightful lectures and strong theoretical foundation provided by the European University Institute, highlighting its focus on cultural policy and regulatory challenges. While the content is often praised for its relevance to professionals like cultural managers, some found the extensive reading materials quite dense. A few learners noted that the course leans heavily academic, with a desire for more practical examples or hands-on activities. Despite the depth, the course is generally seen as providing a valuable critical perspective on how digital transformation impacts creative industries and art worlds.
Involves extensive and often dense reading materials.
"The reading materials were extensive and sometimes very dense, requiring a significant time commitment."
"Be prepared to read a lot; the course is rich with scholarly articles and case studies."
"I found the required readings challenging but ultimately rewarding for a deeper understanding."
Explores topics with strong theoretical and policy foundations.
"The lectures are insightful, drawing on diverse academic perspectives and research."
"I appreciated the focus on cultural policy and regulatory challenges; it's a critical area often overlooked in other courses."
"As a professional, I found the course's authoritative approach from EUI highly valuable for understanding policy frameworks."
Provides a broad, insightful understanding of digital culture.
"This course offers a truly thought-provoking and comprehensive exploration of how digital technologies are reshaping culture."
"I gained a valuable critical perspective on the impacts of digitalization on creative industries and art."
"The material provided a solid framework for understanding new opportunities and threats in the digital cultural landscape."
Concepts can be complex, potentially challenging without prior background.
"Some of the concepts were quite complex and dense, making it hard to follow without a prior background."
"I desired more depth in certain areas, but the broad scope meant some very complex topics felt skimmed."
"The course covers a lot of ground, and beginners to cultural studies or policy might find it challenging."
Tends towards theoretical discussions, less hands-on application.
"I found the course quite academic and theoretical; I was hoping for more actionable strategies for digital media work."
"While the content is deep, some topics felt a bit abstract, and I wished for more practical examples."
"For a 'digital age' course, I expected more on digital tools or platforms, not solely their societal impact."

Career center

Learners who complete Culture in the Digital Age will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Reading list

We've selected 50 books that we think will supplement your learning. Use these to develop background knowledge, enrich your coursework, and gain a deeper understanding of the topics covered in Culture in the Digital Age.
Provides a comprehensive overview of cybersecurity, covering the threats, risks, and challenges facing governments and businesses. It is written by two former Secretaries of Homeland Security and provides insights from their experience in leading the nation's cybersecurity efforts.
This comprehensive history of libraries, from their origins in ancient Mesopotamia to their development into modern institutions, provides a broad overview of the field, covering topics such as the changing role of libraries in society and the challenges they face in the 21st century.
Provides a practical guide to cybersecurity for businesses. It covers a wide range of topics, including risk assessment, threat intelligence, and incident response. It is written by a cybersecurity expert with over 15 years of experience.
Provides a comprehensive overview of digital transformation for business leaders, covering key concepts, strategies, and best practices. It is an excellent resource for understanding the impact of digitalization on businesses and how to leverage it for success.
Considered a foundational text in new media theory, this book examines the principles and aesthetics of digital media and their impact on art and culture. It's crucial for understanding the theoretical underpinnings of digital art and provides a framework for critical analysis. is more theoretical and suitable for those looking to deepen their understanding of the academic discourse around digital art.
Analyzes the impact of the internet and digital technologies on contemporary art, exploring themes like digitality, circulation, privacy, and globalization. It's excellent for diving into current topics and understanding how digital art engages with broader societal and political issues. It's valuable for deepening understanding of the contemporary landscape.
An examination of the practical application of transmedia storytelling, how to build a fictional world across media platforms and engage with audiences across different media.
This anthology highlights critical perspectives on the use of digital technology in art history and museums, addressing theoretical and political aspects. It's highly relevant for those interested in contemporary issues surrounding digitization, data, and the institutional impact on digital art. It's suitable for deepening understanding of current critical discourse.
While not exclusively about digital art, this book is considered a must-read for any artist, including digital painters, seeking to deepen their understanding of fundamental art principles like color and light. It provides a strong foundation in traditional concepts that are directly applicable to digital mediums. is more valuable as foundational reading to solidify artistic understanding rather than a direct reference for digital tools.
This anthology brings together key readings in the field of museum studies, covering topics such as the history of museums, their social and cultural role, and the ethical and practical challenges they face.
Provides a concise and accessible introduction to the field of art history, covering topics such as the different approaches to art history, the major periods and styles of art, and the role of art in society.
Explores the impact of new media on the field of cultural heritage, examining how digital technologies are being used to preserve, interpret, and share cultural heritage in new and innovative ways.
Explores the role of museums in promoting social justice, arguing that museums can be powerful tools for social change. Simon provides a practical guide for museum professionals who want to make their museums more inclusive and equitable.
Provides a comprehensive overview of the field of digital cultural heritage, covering topics such as the digitization of cultural heritage, the creation of digital exhibitions, and the use of social media in museums.
Explores the future of museums, examining the challenges and opportunities facing museums in the 21st century. Hooper-Greenhill argues that museums must adapt to the changing needs of society and find new ways to engage with their audiences.
Provides a comprehensive overview of the field of museum ethics, covering topics such as the ethical issues involved in the acquisition, preservation, and display of cultural heritage, as well as the ethical responsibilities of museum professionals.
This comprehensive guide to crowdfunding with a step by step plan and case studies of successful crowdfunding campaigns. It is appropriate for those just beginning with crowdfunding.
Is specifically geared towards beginners looking to learn digital painting using Adobe Photoshop. It provides step-by-step tutorials and covers fundamental art theory within the context of the software. It's an excellent resource for gaining a broad understanding of digital painting techniques and is particularly useful for those just starting out with the tool.
Provides an art-historical perspective on interactive media art, offering theoretical and methodological tools for analysis. It's valuable for those interested in the theory and aesthetics of interactive digital art and provides a framework for understanding user engagement. It's a good resource for deepening understanding of a specific area within digital art.
Focuses on the role of data analytics in digital transformation, providing technical and practical guidance on how to leverage data to drive business value.
This guide comprehensive introduction to the world of crowdfunding and its different facets. It is written for anyone who wants an overview of how crowdfunding works.
This guidebook is appropriate for students who plan to use crowdfunding to address social issues and change the world through innovation.
A classic in the field of animation, this book provides comprehensive principles and techniques applicable to both traditional and digital animation. For digital artists interested in animation, this book must-read to understand the core concepts of movement and timing. It's a foundational text that solidifies understanding of animation principles.
Focused specifically on the Procreate app for iPad, this book offers step-by-step tutorials and tips for digital painting on a popular mobile platform. It's highly relevant for beginners using or planning to use Procreate and provides practical techniques for creating digital art.
Provides a comprehensive overview of computer security. It covers a wide range of topics, from basic security principles to advanced topics such as cryptography and network security. It is written by a renowned cybersecurity expert with over 40 years of experience.
Offers an introduction to new media art through key debates and theories, covering historical contexts, contemporary forms, and future trends. It's a good resource for gaining a broad understanding of the field and its evolution. It includes case studies and reflections to help readers explore relevant terms and theories.
Covers fundamental concepts and techniques in digital art, including working with digital tools, color theory, composition, and file formats. It's a good resource for beginners to gain a broad understanding of the basics of creating digital art. It can serve as foundational reading or a useful reference.
This insightful book explores the nature of comics as an art form and the principles behind visual storytelling. While not solely focused on digital art, its concepts are highly relevant to digital illustration, sequential art, and visual communication in digital mediums. It's valuable for deepening understanding of narrative and visual language. provides excellent background knowledge for digital artists working in comics or illustration.
Examines the challenges and practices of curating digital art, including its presentation, collection, and preservation. It's highly relevant for those interested in the institutional and logistical aspects of digital art, offering insights into how it is exhibited and maintained. It's valuable for a deeper understanding of the ecosystem surrounding digital art.
Offers a detailed historical perspective on the development of computer art, tracing its origins and key movements. It's valuable for gaining a deeper understanding of the historical context of digital art and its relationship to technological advancements. It provides essential background knowledge for anyone serious about the field.
Provides a practical guide to cybersecurity for beginners. It covers a wide range of topics, from basic cybersecurity principles to specific threats such as phishing and malware. It is written by a cybersecurity expert with over 10 years of experience.
This practical guide introduces the concepts and techniques of generative art, where algorithms and code are used to create artwork. It's highly relevant for those interested in this specific and increasingly popular area of digital art and provides hands-on guidance. It's valuable for exploring contemporary topics and techniques.
While titled for photographers, this book comprehensive guide to using GIMP, a free and open-source image editor widely used by digital artists. It's valuable for learning the tools and techniques within GIMP for digital painting, manipulation, and graphic design. It serves as a useful reference tool for users of this specific software.
To understand contemporary digital art, it's crucial to have a grasp of modern and postmodern art history. This comprehensive survey provides essential context for the artistic movements and theories that influenced the emergence of digital art. It's valuable as foundational reading to provide historical breadth.
Explores the rise of platform businesses and their impact on the economy. It provides insights into how to build and manage successful platform businesses and how to leverage them for growth.
Provides a framework for developing and implementing a digital transformation strategy for businesses. It covers the key elements of digital transformation, including customer experience, data analytics, and cloud computing.
Provides a practical guide to cryptography. It covers a wide range of topics, from basic cryptographic principles to advanced topics such as public key cryptography, digital signatures, and secure protocols. It is written by a renowned cryptography expert with over 30 years of experience.
Provides a comprehensive overview of cybersecurity operations. It covers a wide range of topics, from basic security principles to advanced topics such as incident response, threat hunting, and security monitoring. It is written by a team of cybersecurity experts with over 20 years of experience.
Provides a unique perspective on cybersecurity from the perspective of a former hacker. It covers a wide range of topics, from basic security principles to advanced topics such as social engineering, phishing, and malware. It is written by a renowned cybersecurity expert with over 30 years of experience.
Examines the rise of surveillance capitalism and its implications for democracy, privacy, and human freedom. It provides insights into how to protect ourselves from the potential harms of surveillance technology.
Provides a comprehensive overview of media. It covers a wide range of topics, from the history of media to the latest trends in media technology.

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