For creative people this hits especially hard as social media’s invention of “personal brands,” “influencers,” and the “Creator Economy” turned the few remaining aspects of life that hadn’t yet been marketized into the last ways we could make a living without working for somebody else. Gradually and then suddenly creative people found themselves do... See more

there are three cultural ‘roles’ that people are commonly divided into, namely ‘producer’, ‘participant’, and ‘observer’. In recent years, as social media has taken over so much of our social lives, the role of cultural participant feels as if it’s fading away. Herded into the opposing camps of producer and observer, we feel increasingly under pres... See more

But did I really make anything? Or did I just consume via prompts? That distinction - between creation and consumption used to feel obvious. Am I filming or watching a movie? Now it doesn’t.

As generative tools become faster, more aesthetic, more automatic, “creation” starts to feel like consumption. Creative tools stop behaving like neutral platfor... See more