| Do firms, executives, and industry leaders in software, entertainment, and tourism participate in local politics and philanthropy differently than the traditional urban business community? I investigate how new urban economy firms do business in four areas where traditional urban business communities articulate and enforce consensus to a conservative, pro-growth business agenda: locational motivations, business organizations, campaign contributions, and philanthropy. My data consist of interviews with new urban economy and community leaders, field notes, and secondary data. My research is set in three Southern California communities: Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo. Software and entertainment firms locate in these communities primarily because local natural and cultural amenities attract elite workers who seek a high "quality of life," which leads to environmental and slow growth sentiments; similarly, tourism firms favor the protection of local amenities because tourists pay to experience them. In important ways, software and entertainment firms do not use local business organizations, financing, or developers, which gives them a structural autonomy from the influence of the traditional urban business community. Tourism firms, however, use local business organizations and services because they depend on local markets for business. In local politics, software firms are largely apolitical, while entertainment firms support liberal candidates; only tourism firms subject to governmental intervention back traditional business candidates, but not exclusively. In local philanthropy, software firms give substantially to higher educational institutions, and entertainment firms give substantially to environmentalist organizations, both of which divert generosity and business leadership away from the traditional urban business community's favored nonprofits. Tourism firms give to traditional charities but also join advocacy coalitions with environmentalist organizations and higher educational institutions. I conclude that new urban economy firms have a structural or normative independence that disorganizes the civic network of the traditional urban business community, legitimates certain environmentalist sentiments, and empowers new community actors and nonprofits. |
