Competency p*rn: is there any greater escapism than watching a capable person on TV? (The Guardian)

Watching people calmly and expertly do their jobs has become peak escapism in 2026. In a world that feels perpetually chaotic and mismanaged, audiences find comfort and attraction in shows, videos, and accounts centered on quiet competence, from... See more

People crave imagination, but imaginative, risky media is not what succeeds commercially or algorithmically. The imaginative stuff is out there if you look but most people don't have the time and space to go looking outside the mainstream channels for the art that will resonate with them and take them to new places because they have busy lives.... See more

Presented with an avalanche of opportunity, especially with entertainment — something meant to bring joy — we stick to what we know. After all, what we know feels good .

In Derek Thompson’s book, Hit Makers , he explains this tendency,

“Most consumers are simultaneously neophilic — curious to discover new things — and deeply neophobic — afraid of

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