Cal Newport on the glut of slop
But in the spirit of trying to end 2025 on an optimistic note, I find some solace in the story of paperback books. Just because a certain type of low-quality media becomes immensely popular doesn’t necessarily mean that the deeper alternatives will suffer. Over one billion TikTok videos will be viewed today, and yet, you’re still here, reading a speculative essay about media economics. I don’t take that for granted.