mid culture
It’s been endlessly argued that algorithms influence too much of what we watch, listen to, read, and even think. Personal taste erodes while decision-making is outsourced to the platform. This globalization, platform persuasion, and general apathy has spilled over into all types of homogenization: the look of our coffee shops, cars, architecture,
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The names of these e-deologies tend to be both fantastical and literal. A “post-civilizationist” might focus on what optimal human survival would look like were civilization no longer possible. A “voluntarist post-agrarianist,” meanwhile, might value anarcho-primitivism skills but see them as integral to realizing a civilization sustained through
... See moreCaroline Busta • The Internet Didn’t Kill Counterculture—you Just Won’t Find It on Instagram
Additionally, dark forest spaces are both minimally and straightforwardly commercial. There is typically a small charge for entry, but once you are in, you are free to act and speak without the platform nudging your behavior or extracting further value
Caroline Busta • The Internet Didn’t Kill Counterculture—you Just Won’t Find It on Instagram
Vigorously participatory curatorial subcultures certainly exist, but in practice, they require too much time and energy to have a broad appeal. People enjoy sharing their discoveries with friends, and they may at least occasionally rate and review items. But most people, most of the time, leave the hard work of curation to others — or to
... See moreRogers Brubaker • Hyperconnected Culture and Its Discontents
So, there you have it. The interiors of our homes, coffee shops and restaurants all look the same. The buildings where we live and work all look the same. The cars we drive, their colours and their logos all look the same. The way we look and the way we dress all looks the same. Our movies, books and video games all look the same. And the brands we
... See moreAlex Murrell • The Age of Average
maybe here, we do have an aesthetic counter to the wallflower non-style of Big Tech: a raging messy semiotic meltdown of radicalizing (if absurdist) meme culture where the only ideological no-go zone is the liberal center. Key here is that most of this activity is happening under the guise of avatars, pseudonyms, and collectively run social media
... See moreCaroline Busta • The Internet Didn’t Kill Counterculture—you Just Won’t Find It on Instagram
Until recently, the entertainment industry has been on a growth tear—so much so, that anything artsy or indie or alternative got squeezed as collateral damage.
Ted Gioia • The State of the Culture, 2024
Both share something that will define the future of our interaction with each other and machines. Algorithmic driven content, interfaces that shift from clicks and pages to a back and forth interactive volley with machines that do more and more to shape and surface deeply customized content, accomplish tasks, automate routines, and step us closer
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