The Frustration with the Free Press

Friend of Pod Freddie is here because his recent posts have been very much in the HoS wheelhouse. We talked Hollywood’s collapse, the endurance of David Foster Wallace as boogeyman in media, Freddie’s differences with The Free Press over the Israel issue, and, finally, how the NFL is consumed by the public. Quite a conversation and I was glad to have it. Hope you enjoy.

Timestamps come via the Astute Sam Schuette:

What’s Driving Hollywood’s Collapse? (1:30)

* Convincing the audience that products are worth less through monthly subscription services

* Netflix as the intermediary offering your product below market value and divvying it up to shareholders: how do you make a profit?

* The interests of streaming services are contrary to Hollywood’s

The Level of TV isn’t Good (12:50)

* How it relates to newspaper subsidizing and ESPN charging twice the fees of their competitors

* Concentrating more money in the hands of fewer people

* The streaming boom sucks money out of the system

Is Economics or Ideology to Blame for the Downfall? (21:10)

* Reboot fatigue

* Streaming has shaken up the entire structure of Hollywood

Substack’s Economic Model and the Pros and Cons of Unbundling (26:40)

* How the unbundling of media affects Substack creators like Ethan & Freddie and the audience that supports them

* The independence and freedom that unbundling allows, that big bundled outlets don’t allow

* Can traditional journalism survive in the 21st country?

What Models Work (32:00)

* Local papers & media Twitter being overtaken by the New York Times

* The struggles of the Washington Post, The New Yorker, etc

* The Ringer succeeds by subsidizing with an overload of analysis content rather than reporting content. Is this the blueprint?

The Antagonism Towards Paying for Things You Enjoy (36:20)

* The Napster concept of devaluing media and content by inflating their access and supply

* People are unwilling to grapple with real prices because they’re used to such bargains via streaming

* Why Freddie plans to soon retire from his Substack

Freddie’s Differences with The Free Press (43:30)

* Why aren’t they covering students who’ve gotten jobs rescinded over their criticism of Israel?

* Why is it important for nations and people to be considered the underdog?

Freddie’s Recent Piece: Mimetic Collapse (55:50)

* Why is David Foster Wallace still a boogeyman years after he died?

* How TikToks about the annoyingness of Gen Z “lit bros” went viral

* Why do people criticize lit bros when they don’t exist?

People falling victim to refinement culture (1:06:00)

* Refinement culture and customers experiencing the same product from different competitors.

* How does this apply to people sharing the same universal opinion?

* Hating certain archetypes is fashionable within the wider culture

Do People Like Anything? (1:12:10)

* It’s now important to agree on what you hate more than what you like

* Do lefty creatives like anything?

* Stan culture vs hater culture – which is more dominant?

What Sports Freddie Enjoys (1:16:30)

* Why the NBA should cut the season amidst the load management crisis

* The NFL injury dilemma: how the injury frequency ironically gives the NFL appeal

What Drives Opinions in Sports? (1:22:10)

* Small margins swing NFL opinions so heavily. Is this good or bad?

* Does the NFL media reward hot takes even when they’re baseless?

* Brock Purdy, Josh Allen, Bryce Young, Justin Herbert and distorted quarterback opinions

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