How Much Does AI Threaten Culture As A Whole?

'The Best It Will Be Is A C'

I have a phrase that has been rattling around in my brain for a couple weeks. “90% of media has always been bullshit”. It arose from an observation I made while replying to a friend who had noted that the new trend of ‘BookTok’ is not responsible for a supposed drop in the quality of fiction writing and that there were always bad romance books. It’s also something known as Sturgeon’s Law, dating back to the 50s. When these books are particularly bad or formulaic, the accusation of being AI generated is often leveraged. The truth is, most books throughout the history of mankind have been formulaic and subpar.

This observation is not an overarching theory which stands up to rigorous application, nor is it particularly original. It is more of a feeling I get from looking more critically at what the culturally idealized recent past was actually like.

Here is an example of 90% of media being bullshit/Sturgeon’s Law in action.

In April of 1985 the book Blood Meridian was released. Despite being widely regarded as a masterpiece of literature, it received little attention at this time, not even making it on to the best seller list. What did top the charts for most of April was the novel Family Album by Danielle Steel, which is about a woman trying to become a Hollywood director while navigating her marriage woes. Most of Steel’s 190 books have been met with lukewarm critical reception and many of those still attained best seller status.

But even though Danielle Steel is the top dog in romance literature with thousands of amateurs writing similar books hoping to compete with her, we don’t remember Family Album. Instead, we remember Blood Meridian. I do not have a copy of Family Album on my desk that I’ve been meaning to finish finally because I know it’s great. I don’t think there is a character from Family Album which inspires the simultaneous dread and awe that Judge Holden does. If I’m wrong and there is a Judge Holden in Family Album, disregard this article and go read Family Album.