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Originally Posted by fjtorres
Long, detailed read documenting the explosion of content availability across most media types--music, video, books--and the shift of power/control from middlemen distributors towards consumers. Plus a (hopeful) speculation that a new breed of gatekeeper/influencer will come to power.
https://redef.com/original/age-of-ab...media-industry
Much more at the source, with pretty pictures and curves.
A good insight into the new normal for content consumption: they effectively described where we are and where we're moving, though I'm skeptical of the amount of power their influencers will accrue, individually or collectively. They're herding cats.
Still, they're not wrong.
Worth a read. |
The idea of influencers has been around for a while, Gladwell mentioned it in his book Tipping Point. Certainly, people trust word of mouth a lot more than they trust ads. Word of mouth is more important now because one can reach a lot more than just your immediate friends now.
Does this mean they are a new breed of gatekeeper? Probably not. Oprah talking about the latest book/good/show/whatever certainly is influential, but that's been the case for a while and isn't really a gatekeeper per se. You don't have to go through Oprah unless of course, your target audience is Oprah fans. Same for Rush Limbaugh or any media figure with a big following.
Way back when, I discovered David Weber through the recommendation of someone who worked at the SF&Mystery bookstore (who just happened to be related to Weber). She was an infuencer but not a gatekeeper.
To a certainly extent, one can compare twitter/facebook influencers with the radio DJ's way back when. DJ's were never gatekeepers per se, each only had influence over a small set of listeners. Playing a song over and over again might get their listeners to buy it, but that's only true in a small radio footprint.
The idea of a gatekeeper, such as the old music companies or book publishers, is a different dynamic entirely.