 Field recordings were presented to the public as chance encounters to seem more genuine, yet they typically were arranged.Perspectives on the reason White record companies invested in marketing race records vary, with some claiming it was “for the purpose of exploiting markets and expanding the capital of producers.” Advocates of this philosophy emphasize the control that the companies had on the type and form of songs that artists could create.Another perspective points to evidence such as the fact that “race records were distinguished by numerical series… in effect, segregated lists,” to support the claim that White owned companies aimed to maintain the racial divisions in society through race records.