28 May 2018

Prof Ingrid Jeacle (University of Edinburgh Business School) is guest editing a Special Issue in Accounting History.

‘Let me entertain you’ is not a catchphrase that we typically associate with accountants or accounting work. Indeed, the stereotypical image of the accountant is the boring beancounter rather than the charismatic entertainer. Yet behind the business of entertainment, whether it be the pop concert or the classical opera, lie the inevitable demands for accountability, profitability and performance measurement.

The role of accounting and accountants in organisations that deliver entertainment is still relatively under researched within accounting scholarship. How, for example, do cost considerations and budgetary concerns influence the actual content of entertainment? How does the accountant shape the contours of the entertainment experience? Do accounting issues influence public investment in entertainment? Equally, what is the role of audit or assurance work more generally in the entertainment business? What impact might the auditor have in this world of spectacle and showbiz? And returning to our accountant stereotype, how has this persona been portrayed in the entertainment industry? How has the mass media used, and sometimes abused, the role of the accountant in the name of entertainment?

This special issue welcomes research which furthers an understanding of the linkages between accounting and entertainment in historical perspective. For example, submissions are encouraged which explore the role of accounting, audit, or forms of accountability within, but not restricted to, the following modes of entertainment:

  • The spectatorship of sporting activities
  • The cinema going experience
  • Theatrical or operatic performances
  • Concerts and music festivals
  • Comedy
  • Casinos and gaming
  • Circuses, theme parks and visitor attractions
  • Mass media: television and radio

Submissions can encompass a wide range of historical periods and draw on an array of theoretical approaches.

Submissions written in English and in accordance with the Accounting History style guidelines should be submitted electronically, as per the . The closing date for submissions is 1 June 2019. Potential contributors are welcome to contact the Guest Editor to discuss their proposed topics.

Guest Editor:

Ingrid Jeacle, University of Edinburgh (ingrid.jeacle@ed.ac.uk)