The UNSUBSCRIBE movement can be powerful, but without listing the alternatives, it seems difficult. A "stop using *this*, start using *that*" would be inspiring and helpful.
Why do I have to do all the work?! Ha, Michael, I am with you, and have been exploring. Such a movement is big in the EU right now and they have alternatives. I try to find some time to pull it together for you and the gang.
So much is on target here. I would add a couple of issues. As you say, much of Hollywood’s current targeting is infantile, but even there the industry needs to play catch up. By the time today’s teenagers reach high school they have already witnessed more of the world’s wonders and horrors than previous generations could have imagined at the same age, including a worldwide pandemic. That’s why they often seem immune. Social platforms have left them virtually shockproof. As superheroes continue to exhaust themselves, audience fatigue has set in and the need for industry recalibration is real.
Also, the connection you make between politics and Hollwood’s woes is compounded by the same forces. The fragmentation of audiences and the birth of the 15-second performance are reshaping the entire business of attention. This bleeds into politics, news, education, relationships, and identity. It’s much easier now to take sides and play for an online team than to absorb the complexities of an issue when your favorite influencer can do the work for you. I don’t have the answers, but I think the light you shine on these predicaments is a great start.
Yeah, I had to do that exercise for myself for what I suspect was a similar issue for many of us. We see and feel these things, and know they are all of the same thing, but we often still need to knit it all together. It is one of the reason I like writing a newsletter: short of talkng to really smart and compassionate people, nothing helps my thinking as much as writing.
Ted: The parallels are uncanny. Changing the status quo begins by believing change is possible, something that feels uncertain at the moment because despondency is rife throughout the land. But if the past has taught us anything (and that’s in question right now), it’s that small actions are cumulative and through persistence can become big movements that lead to meaningful changes. We didn’t get here overnight and we won’t get out any more quickly, but together we’ll emerge from this darkness and find daylight once again.
Right on, Skip. It is why I feel little things -- operational improvements -- are so important to pursue: they train us to recognize that not only do we make a difference but that collectively we can make a HUGE difference. Round off the sharp edges. Move things to a better place. Make it a bit more beautiful. Step by step the walls come down. The water cuts through the rocks eventually.
Absolutely Ted. As you know the first step in organizing is analysis. Getting to the root cause not the resulting problems. You've done this very well. Immigration? We need to look at the push factors. Why would anyone leave their homes and families and immigrate? Why are we spending 20% of our budget on the military and have over 600 military bases around the world? Why don't we have a comprehensive health system like most other developed countries? And so on. Pick the issue. All roads lead back to rampant corporate capitalism and a couple of blocks in lower Manhattan. A change of the guard is not the answer. Clinton ushered in this massive change with his neo liberal economic policies. I worked within the Green Party for a decade trying to break this stranglehold but it's an uphill battle. I worked on 2 presidential campaigns and witnessed first hand the concerted effort, particularly by Democracy to suppress 3rd parties. Often unachievable petition requirements, lawsuits, no ballot line. This is why I pivoted to making a film. I haven't given up hope and maybe my film will be the proverbial pebble that causes even a small ripple. Perhaps people will see they have power and take action like what you have suggested with disentangling from tech companies.
The UNSUBSCRIBE movement can be powerful, but without listing the alternatives, it seems difficult. A "stop using *this*, start using *that*" would be inspiring and helpful.
Why do I have to do all the work?! Ha, Michael, I am with you, and have been exploring. Such a movement is big in the EU right now and they have alternatives. I try to find some time to pull it together for you and the gang.
So much is on target here. I would add a couple of issues. As you say, much of Hollywood’s current targeting is infantile, but even there the industry needs to play catch up. By the time today’s teenagers reach high school they have already witnessed more of the world’s wonders and horrors than previous generations could have imagined at the same age, including a worldwide pandemic. That’s why they often seem immune. Social platforms have left them virtually shockproof. As superheroes continue to exhaust themselves, audience fatigue has set in and the need for industry recalibration is real.
Also, the connection you make between politics and Hollwood’s woes is compounded by the same forces. The fragmentation of audiences and the birth of the 15-second performance are reshaping the entire business of attention. This bleeds into politics, news, education, relationships, and identity. It’s much easier now to take sides and play for an online team than to absorb the complexities of an issue when your favorite influencer can do the work for you. I don’t have the answers, but I think the light you shine on these predicaments is a great start.
Excellent points all around Steve. Thank you.
Most excellent post Ted!
Thank you for speaking truth to power. Appreciate the links to data, and a possible action plan as well.
Ironic that this appears on Substack, run by the TechBros, and which earns money by platforming actual fascists…
Excellent point. It is not easy. At some point if there is not reform, migration might become necessary.
Thank you, Ted, for clarifying something I've had in my head for a whole now.
Yeah, I had to do that exercise for myself for what I suspect was a similar issue for many of us. We see and feel these things, and know they are all of the same thing, but we often still need to knit it all together. It is one of the reason I like writing a newsletter: short of talkng to really smart and compassionate people, nothing helps my thinking as much as writing.
Ted: The parallels are uncanny. Changing the status quo begins by believing change is possible, something that feels uncertain at the moment because despondency is rife throughout the land. But if the past has taught us anything (and that’s in question right now), it’s that small actions are cumulative and through persistence can become big movements that lead to meaningful changes. We didn’t get here overnight and we won’t get out any more quickly, but together we’ll emerge from this darkness and find daylight once again.
Right on, Skip. It is why I feel little things -- operational improvements -- are so important to pursue: they train us to recognize that not only do we make a difference but that collectively we can make a HUGE difference. Round off the sharp edges. Move things to a better place. Make it a bit more beautiful. Step by step the walls come down. The water cuts through the rocks eventually.
Good overview of how everything is connected and leads back to one source.
Thanks Tom. I'm trying. And we all need to discuss this more, don't you think?.
Absolutely Ted. As you know the first step in organizing is analysis. Getting to the root cause not the resulting problems. You've done this very well. Immigration? We need to look at the push factors. Why would anyone leave their homes and families and immigrate? Why are we spending 20% of our budget on the military and have over 600 military bases around the world? Why don't we have a comprehensive health system like most other developed countries? And so on. Pick the issue. All roads lead back to rampant corporate capitalism and a couple of blocks in lower Manhattan. A change of the guard is not the answer. Clinton ushered in this massive change with his neo liberal economic policies. I worked within the Green Party for a decade trying to break this stranglehold but it's an uphill battle. I worked on 2 presidential campaigns and witnessed first hand the concerted effort, particularly by Democracy to suppress 3rd parties. Often unachievable petition requirements, lawsuits, no ballot line. This is why I pivoted to making a film. I haven't given up hope and maybe my film will be the proverbial pebble that causes even a small ripple. Perhaps people will see they have power and take action like what you have suggested with disentangling from tech companies.