People vs Algorithms

The end of calendar years tend to be times for resets. We like to use them as an excuse for a fresh start. This is why we have Sober January and even Veganuary, which I find far more popular in the UK for some reason, and gyms are crowded and I see people very red in the face out for their firs run in many, many months. 2023 is a year of reset expectations and that’s because, as we’ve discussed on this show, we are closing out an era and entering a new one whose contours are only coming into focus. The teetering economy will cause further stresses as all aspects of the economy and society begin to fully emerge not just from the pandemic era but a long run of economic growth. Let’s face it: Expectations will be adjusted. We have seen this start in the technology industry, both with valuation expectations and worker expectations, and it will spread undoubtedly throughout the downstream economy, notably in media. We discuss the ramifications of these reset expectations for advertising, publishing and technology this week.Show notes:Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletterBrian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletterUniversal EntitiesFollow Alex, Brian and Troy on TwitterTh This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

We’re closing out the year with a series of conversations that look at the trends that will define these patterns in media, technology and culture in the year ahead. Last week we started with artificial intelligence. This week, we’re looking ahead to platforms, in particular social platforms, as they are in a time of transition. We look ahead and discuss what trend to expect as we sort through the role platforms will play as they’ve grown too big and too powerful perhaps for their and our own good.Show notes:Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletterBrian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletterUniversal EntitiesFollow Alex, Brian and Troy on TwitterMeta’s Galactica AI & The End Of Science This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

Thanks to AI, 2023 will likely be the year when we fall in love again with the magic that can be technology and also confront the thorny questions around misinformation, the nature of ownership and copyright and, oh by the way, will those of us who have mostly typed words for a living need to be retrained to do something else? There is also the grand existential question: Is it going to replace us?Links:The People vs Algorithm NewsletterThe Rebooting NewsletterThe Rebooting PodcastsUniversal Entities This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

This week, Troy, Alex and Brian discuss the fate of the open web through the lens of building sustainable publishing business models. One key shortcoming is around micropayments. Logic says this should exist. Even the most successful publishers convert only a small fraction of their total audience to paying subscribers. And that’s because of misaligned incentives. What makes sense for the audience does not make sense for publishers. The other lens is this week’s big deal between Yahoo and Taboola, the leading content recommendation ad network. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

In this week's episode, Troy, Brian and Alex examine why we seem to be more susceptible to cults than ever before. We all have our own versions of reality, after all. For some, Elon Musk's slash-and-burn approach to "fixing" Twitter is insanity, but to others his extremely hard core approach part of a broader correction that is bring the expectations of workers back to reality. Plus: trolling as communication and why offices and podcasts are good products. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

Between the collapse of FTX and the endless chaos and drama at Elon Musk's Twitter, this wasn’t a great time to be an all-knowing oracle. FTX is now bankrupt Meanwhile, over at Twitter, Elon Musk and his merry band of podcasters/hangers on continue to throw spaghetti against the wall, seeming without rhyme or reason. We break down why very smart and successful people like Sam Bankman-Fried and Elon Musk are stumbling so badly. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

We live in a period of transitions. These periods are only clear in retrospect, of course. But much of the world is moving from an old era to a new era that is… unsettled. We don’t fully know, for instance, what the post-pandemic era, the new normal or whatever, will actually look like because we’re not there yet. So we exist in this uncomfortable in-between state.This week, Troy and Brian discuss what in-between state, as the consumer tech industry and advertising industries start to decouple. The publishing industry is already in the midst of a transition from the pageview and scale era to, well, something new, which in my view will end up being smaller and more meaningful.As always, we welcome your feedback. My email is bmorrissey@gmail.com. Thank you to Jay Sparks of PodHelp.us for editing this podcast. The theme music was created by Alex Schleifer of Universal Entities. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

This week we discuss what's making everyone feel so pessimistic. Plus Lex, Ye, the Coffee Lady, TikTok and rebranding Jesus. Brian's intro: "This is our ninth episode of this show. We started out with a rough idea of what it would be, and we'll continue to evolve it as we go. One big help to us as we think through how to improve is to get your feedback. This week we're talking about catastrophic. I was a history major and I still love reading history. Part of that is because there are patterns that exist in history.The old saying is that history doesn't repeat itself, but it rhymes. Mark Twain probably said that, and even if he didn't, he'd get credit for it on Twitter. Now, reading history helps you put what's happening around you, and it always seems like you're living through particularly chaotic and challenging times in some perspective, and I often feel.Though what is now called the discourse is unhelpfully catastrophic? Yes, I know. There's war in Europe. Hundreds are dying every day of Covid still. We have political instability and retrograde forces. The economy is overheated and heading into perilous territory. Climate change is moving from uh, cause to a possible extinction event.I could go on in short, it is not a good time if you are naturally inclined to anxiety. Yet this catastrophic warranted in areas like climate change for sure is likely counterproductive in the long run. You just need to go back to Cassandra.She warned of impeding doom so much through her prophecies that when she warned of a real impending disaster, nobody believed her. We run that risk in our fragmented and tribalized media culture where it's popular to throw around terms like late capitalism and hellscape. Now ignoring problems is in the answer, but perhaps a bit of humility is, after all, none of us has all the answers to life's riddles."Links:The People vs Algorithm NewsletterThe Rebooting NewsletterThe Rebooting PodcastsUniversal Entities This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

This week, we are talking about the future of work, but not the way it is usually discussed these days. Instead of focusing on the how of work, we examine the what of work in an age of AI. Each day brings new advances in generative AI tools, showing a clear path to how technology will alter the nature of creation in profound ways. We also discuss how the coming AI boom will differ from the dot-com and Web 2.0 booms, which happened when people largely still saw technology advancements as hopeful progress, not threats. Finally, we give early impressions of Semafor, the new global news brand launched this week. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com

Big topic this week. Troy and Brian discuss AR/VR, AI art, and the many other ways humans are being turned into cyborgs. Troy's got a contrarian take on Meta's metaverse ambitions. Brian's got some stories about the good old days of Second Life. It's a good one.Links:The People vs Algorithm NewsletterThe Rebooting NewsletterThe Rebooting PodcastsUniversal Entities This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.peoplevsalgorithms.com