I wrote a piece for
@TheAtlantic
about how, just like we've seen with financial arbitrage, the internet makes it a lot harder to engage in "cultural arbitrage" and why that may be contributing to the feeling of cultural stasis
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In 2024, it seems clearer that the inherent information equality of the internet age is not killing off cultural arbitrage, but just pushing people back into what is now referred to as "gatekeeping" — i.e. intentionally refusing to share information online
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@wdavidmarx
@TheAtlantic
So is AI is the pinnacle of cultural arbitrage? I thought about this and my conclusion was no as I think of it like a bell curve where all the interesting and relevant moments might come from the outliers.
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@Tanmedia
@TheAtlantic
AI inherently recycles cliches so I don't think it's applicable to this particular discussion other than another vector that pushes culture back into stasis
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@wdavidmarx
@TheAtlantic
Great piece. I'm interested in your distinction between 'good taste' and what seems in some cases to be knowledge.
My prior assumption is that 'taste' is actually more valuable now in helping people wade through the infinite options presented to them.
Yes, the knowledge of a…
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@wdavidmarx
@TheAtlantic
What you write about cultural arbitrage is, I think, what people used to just call "trade," albeit just in cool stuff in your case. But you may be hinting at something bigger...that all trade could just be in information.
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@wdavidmarx
@TheAtlantic
There are no diminishing returns on having good taste. No amount of words will change this.
There's value and there's empty space. The more empty space there is, the more valuable the value is.
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@wdavidmarx
@TheAtlantic
great article. i trafficked in that currency reading the english music rag The Face where i gleaned all the articles on Afro pop, king sunny Ade, Fela, Nusrat Fatah Ali Khan, etc and introduced their music to my friends.
and showing academy screeners of unreleased movies
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