Silicon Valley has a solution for everything, but who do its ideas really serve? Every Thursday, Paris Marx is joined by a new guest to critically examine the tech industry, its thought leaders, and the worldview it spreads. They challenge the notion that tech alone can drive our world forward by showing that separating tech from politics has consequences for us all, especially the most vulnerable. But if tech won't save us, what will? This podcast isn't simply about tearing tech down; it also presents radical ideas for tech designed for human flourishing instead of surveillance, acquisitions, or to boost stock prices. A better world is possible, and so is better technology.
How Streaming is Reshaping the Film Industry w/ Peter Labuza
Paris Marx is joined by Peter Labuza to discuss how streaming is reconfiguring Hollywood, what that means for the film and television we consume, and whether it’s time to consider antitrust action against the streaming giants.
Peter Labuza is a lecturer at San Jose State University whose work focuses on the legal, financial, and political history of creative industries. He’s currently writing a book about the history of entertainment law in Hollywood. Follow Peter on Twitter as @labuzamovies.
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Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, support the show on Patreon, and sign up for the weekly newsletter, ⚒️ THE HAMMER ⚒️.
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Also mentioned in this episode:
- Peter wrote an op-ed for the LA Times about what streaming is doing to culture and the need for antitrust action.
- Paris has written about the consolidation in entertainment companies, the need to consider state action, and Amazon’s acquisition of MGM.
- David Graeber wrote that British culture from the sixties was a product of the welfare state.
- Joshua Glick wrote about how Netflix is changing documentary production.
- Jennifer Holt provides an overview of media deregulation in “Empires of Entertainment: Media Industries and the Politics of Deregulation, 1980-1996.”
- FilmCritHulk wrote about the impacts of streaming and industry consolidation on labor, unions, and more.
- In 2020, a judge ended the Paramount Decrees.
- The Writer’s Guild recently went on strike over streaming residuals.
- Salt of the Earth was a film made by blacklisted filmmakers.