American Prestige E225 - From The Gilded Age to American Decline w/ Morgan Spector
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Sep 9, 2025 Morgan Spector, an acclaimed actor from The Gilded Age and The Plot Against America, dives into a riveting dialogue on the intersections of politics and Hollywood. He traces his shift towards democratic socialism, driven by experiences from the Iraq War to the Obama era. The conversation critiques capitalism's romanticized figures and explores the looming challenges of financialization and AI on society. Spector urges for a new political vision amid today's crises, discussing how today’s tech titans echo the Gilded Age's oligarchs.
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How War And Disappointment Shaped His Politics
- Morgan Spector traces his political shift from non-radical leftism to democratic socialism through outrage at the Iraq War and disappointment with Obama.
- That heartbreak made Bernie Sanders' structural critique feel like the necessary next step.
Hollywood: Socially Liberal, Economically Center-Right
- Hollywood skews socially liberal on representation but remains center-right on business matters, especially among agents and studio executives.
- The industry is heavily unionized, which preserves decent pay for many workers despite other market disruptions.
Influencers As Self-Exploiting Small Businesses
- Morgan jokes that many influencers think of themselves as small-business owners while also being exploited by the platforms they rely on.
- He notes that self-exploitation doesn't mean absence of exploitation.