Popular media is no longer about appointment viewing. It is about . You can be a "fan" of Stranger Things without ever watching a full episode, simply by consuming the edits, the sound bites, and the memes. The Algorithm as A&R (Artists & Repertoire) In the music industry, the shift is even more seismic. The "album era" has given way to the "playlist era." But even playlists are old news. Today, it is about the "For You" Page.
When content becomes infinitely personalizable, "popular media" as a shared concept may fracture entirely. There will be no #1 song. There will only be your #1 song.
For decades, the lines were clear. You went to the cinema for a movie, sat on the couch for a TV show, and put on headphones for an album. “Popular media” meant the Billboard Hot 100, the Nielsen ratings, or the weekend box office. Pick.Up.Lines.40.XXX
Not anymore.
We are approaching a time when you don't watch the next season of The White Lotus —you ask Netflix to "generate an episode of The White Lotus set in Tokyo, starring a young Robert De Niro type, with a jazz score." Popular media is no longer about appointment viewing
Popular media is no longer a collection of products. It is an ecosystem. To survive as a creator or a studio, you must stop thinking about "shows" or "albums" and start thinking about worlds.
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We are currently living in the A Marvel fan must watch 4 Disney+ shows to understand one movie. A Dune fan needs to watch the film, then the sister series Dune: Prophecy on Max, then the YouTube lore videos.
