The Coming Backlash?

Continuing my recent desire to comment more on the events which make me shake my head in our daily lives, let's go ahead and include Hollywood and the entertainment industry more and more.

Over the past year, and increasingly since the election, we have been pelted constantly by the message that if you don't match their every little vision and opinion for how this nation should be, you are wrongWrongWRONG! To the level of pitchfork shopping and effigy burning as they loudly pillory themselves upon whatever platform will bother listening.

Furthermore, it's become blatantly stated (as opposed to simply quietly whisperered) that, if you work in Hollywood and don't toe the party line, you will become an absolute pariah in terms of work. The same group which is the first to scream about "diversity," "equal opportunity," and "fairness," has resorted to literally threatening the careers, and very lives of other performers - all based on politics.

Now, we are starting to even hear the bleating threats from the left coast that should they not get their way, the collective lot of them will sit in a corner, pout, and refuse to produce any new material until *we* listen to our betters.

Umm, it seems to me the Dancing Monkeys have forgotten how this whole thing works.

First off, the entertainment machine exists at the consumers whim, and can fail just as quickly as opinion turns. And, apparently a few folks missed the discussion in November when a large portion of the electorate made it very clear they were tired of being lectured too, berated, and humilitated for the unforgivable crime of existing and having different opinions. Despite what the TV and movie industry seem to think, there is far more to this country than New York and Los Angeles - and the days when the opinion of the coasts drove the whole have passed.

For recent examples look at the speed at which The Dixie Chicks had their careers implode following some poorly-made statements regarding the United States at the time. Or, the 2016 NFL season, which saw ratings and attendance drops in the double digits - at least partially attributed to blatant social-political posturings by a number of the players. MTV's rather racist and condescending "Advice for White Guys" video that was pulled in faster time than it took to produce. The list goes on.

Americans in general tend to look down on bullies and busybodies, no matter what their political persuasion - and the Hollywood seem to be finding this out the hard way.

"Bah," you say, "People need their entertainment. They'll ignore a little bit of lecturing as long as we keep producing content."

Ah, but see, they're forgetting the OTHER key lesson, one that many only learn the hard way. NO ONE is irreplaceable. For every A-list actor, there are a hundred talented people waiting in the wings, begging for the chance to perform the part. Talented bands and singers fill nightclubs around the country, perfectly happy to be the next big thing. Plenty of athletes out there would be thrilled to play the game for a thousandth of the salary.

And, quite frankly, if you look at revenue numbers for the past few years, people HAVE been voting with their wallets. Choosing to watch something online, or a Netflix rerun rather than spend the money at a theater. Turning to alternative media sources just as often (if not more) than alternative news sources. Some of the reason, of course, lies in the digital age and the number of options open to us. But - I think a significant part, and one that is about to grow, has to do with people being fed up with their entertainment coming with a side order of screeching and preaching.

If I was a betting man, I would invest accordingly.