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What makes you think people ever paid attention to thinkers?
Most people can't explain what philosophy is, much less name five philosophers.
I'm pretty sure most people with a bit of education could name philosophers like Aristotle, Plato, Socrates, Marx, Nietzsche and Kant. And especially in case of political philosophers like Marx, people sure seem to have paid attention to him.
Sorry to bust your bubble, but most people don't have a college education. In the USA, the average reading level is below middle school.
https://www.snopes.com/news/2022/08/02/us-literacy-rate/
In the UK, about 20% of the population is considered functionally illiterate.
And even of those who do, how many actually took a philosophy class? And of those who passed, how many have read a philosophy book in the past year?
And quartz, of course.
People paid very well in the past - although most of it publishers and the like. Still: Professionals could somewhat live from the scabs.
Today, however, all these business models are obsolete, even though they brought in billions until around the turn of the millennium.
My statement is quite simple: in the future, no one will even try the hopeless anymore, because there is not even a dream to be chased.
The conclusion is pretty obvious: there will only be AI slop, which is not even close to being a substitute for what has been lost.
There is already a term for this, which has long been a reality in many areas: Dead Internet - and this affects all industries that depend on this medium; without exception, this includes all entertainment industries that have ever existed. In other words: the entire cultural industry, which is doomed to die and is consequently dying.
Ayn Rand was one of the best selling authors of the 20th Century, and she's probably the best known philosophers in US history.
She died broke.
What does that add to the statement in the post? There are hundreds of thousands of such examples.
It doesn't change the statement: writers, artists, and all other creative professions are now in a much worse position than they have been ever before - and yes, disproportionate pay for even extraordinary achievements has always been been the case historically for these very important people. But with LLMs we have reached the point where it's not even enough for a dream scenario. There is no business model for this anymore.
There is no longer any money to be made because consumers do not pay for quality, but for mass and free content. The best example of this is the decline of journalism, which had always been financed mainly by advertising - this has not worked for twenty years because Google and social media platforms have completely taken over this business, which is why there is no longer any serious journalism today. It can no longer be financed because consumers cannot cover the costs, even if they wanted to, which is the case at all.
Basically, what you're saying is the philosophical equivalent of saying music is dead because people aren't interested in opera any more.
Try looking around a bit. A few years ago, Marvel Comics did a story line called "Civil War." The government asked all the heroes to register. Iron Man and Spider-Man said yet, Captain America and his allies said no.
Plenty of discussions of the rights and responsibilities of the heroes.
Or watch a show called 'Pluribus.' Or any oldie but goody called "The Prisoner.' Or 'The Good Place.'
Heck, the trolley problem is on the front page here every day.
No, what I'm saying is that the people that draw the marvle comics, animate them or write the plot won't make a living from that anymore for much longer. It's really as simple as that. Why? Because they make their living creative work, which is great.
But they already earn their living more from autographs at conventions than from the payment for their outstanding work. That too will soon be a thing of the past, because Marvel will not be renewing their contracts - leaving these talented people out on the street because they can no longer sign autographs if they are neither authors nor illustrators, nor animators or whater.
Look at OnlyFans.
A quick look shows that a few folks there are making a lot of money. $200,000 a year. Others make a good deal less.
That's always been the case with creative folks. A few will rise to the top, and the rest are going to be amateurs.
Fine dining didn't die when fast food was invented, and live music held its own even after recordings became a thing.