Summary: In this episode we talk to David Craig, Clinical Associate Professor at USC Annenberg’s School for Communication and Journalism and a Fellow at the Peabody Media Center, and Stuart Cunningham, Distinguished Professor of Media and Communication, Queensland University of Technology. They are the authors of Social Media Entertainment: The New Intersection of Hollywood and Silicon Valley, in which they interviewed more than 200 online content creators. Social media entertainment has expanded rapidly and the traditional entertainment industry has been forced to cede significant power and influence to content creators, their fans, and subscribers. In this episode we discuss the rise of social media entertainment and its impact on media consumption and production, as well as the "convergence" of these industries, with the example of Indian-Canadian YouTuber Lilly Singh getting her own late night show on traditional television. Yet, who is Lilly Singh's community? How do fandom and audience move across the internet and back to cable? Can online content creators bring their type of unique talent to traditional, legacy media?
