A new modernity?

Abstract

This article looks at the arrival of ‘creative industries’ within mainstream policy discourse in China. It attempts to situate this ‘modernising’ discourse within the wider historical conflicts around modernity and modernization in China, suggesting that the progressive function of the ‘creative industries’ discourse frequently claimed by its supporters cannot be taken for granted. The article ends by asking some pointed questions about the immediate future of this agenda in China, with particular reference to the large eastern cities.