Preface.- Acknowledgement.- 1 A cultural approach to studies of arts and media organizations.- 2 Performing legitimacy as civil opera houses.- 3 Legitimation work in state funded arts organizations.- 4 The crisis of public service broadcasting reconsidered.- 5 The legitimation rhetoric of public service broadcasters.- 6 Dynamics of legitimation work.
“Larsen is advancing a cultural approach to organizational legitimacy in contrast to neo-institutional approaches. As a coherent piece of work, it is a major achievement that can be expected to be discussed internationally, especially since it raises issues of general importance, theoretically and politically.” (Karin Widerberg, Professor of Sociology, University of Oslo, Norway)
“This is an important and most original contribution to the field of comparative cultural sociology. Larsen convincingly adopts a pluralist approach to theory and his empirical research generates very significant insights. This book should be compulsory reading for anyone interested in the field.” (Jean-Pascal Daloz, CNRS Research Professor, University of Strasbourg, France)