According to census figures, about 40% of Austin workers are in “creative jobs.” Of those, fewer than half are in the directly “creative” occupations that creative-class auteur Richard Florida dubs the “supercreative core.” And of those, only a small fraction are in the arts, entertainment, and media.
While recent studies suggest that “creative work” makes up more than half the Austin economy, its share of the job market is smaller. Austin has more artists et al. per capita than do most comparable cities, but in employment terms, the Austin entertainment industry is smaller than Dell Computer alone.
This article appears in March 14 • 2003.