Of Media & Monsters

I have been in Silicon Valley long enough to see it transform from a group of outlier revolutionaries to play-safe career chasers. Recently, I have watched arrivistes who, if not in technology, would be running a penny stock brokerage based somewhere in Long Island or producing B-movies, living on the edge of Hollywood. In recent times, the near-zero interest rate fueled a boom in technology, making everyone look like a genius, forgetting that the rising tide lifts all wrecks. Of course, some have become self-proclaimed faces of Silicon Valley. 

And a lot of that has to do with the media, which has given them so much airtime and social credence. CNBC, for example, has returned to its old bag of tricks of giving air time to self-serving blowhards and their shenanigans. Somehow, we don’t learn. This morning, Dan Primack, in his newsletter, devoted his lead to talk about VCs backing RFK Jr. as a presidential candidate. It left me incredulous that so much space would be devoted to a politician (political affiliations don’t matter) with anti-science and dubious ideas about technology, and so-called technology VCs and technology entrepreneurs would back that candidate. (Jack, seriously, what the hell happened to you?)

More importantly, using “VCs ❤️ RFK Jr.” as a subject line is a cheap trick from a responsible industry newsletter. The headline makes it seem like the entire industry supports the candidate with a dodgy hold on science. Individuals can, of course, endorse whomever — even a loon. They can even use their own social media platforms, and media properties to promote those endorsements. 

However, using headlines that create a false equivalence and project that an entire industry is behind a guy who doesn’t know science is just simply wrong. I suppose the lure of “open rates” makes even the most responsible folks don the paparazzi suit. 

The recent behaviors of many of the previous heroes have made me cautious about giving unfettered attention to these folks. Elon Musk’s recent words and actions show he is less Captain America and more Elliot Carver. You have to be stupid to buy into anything he has to sell — you know it is either half-baked or he has cut corners. Imagine a faulty neuralink?

Similarly, why would I give credence to someone who promoted investment schemes? And yet here we are — the media giving these people what they need to grow and do more damage: attention. Inflating the ideas of such people — they have their platforms and should stick to them — creates a massive disinformation risk.

Has the media not learned from the mistakes of the recent past? Forbes 30 under 30 list has more flimflam artists than keynote speakers at a penny stock conference. And let’s not forget how much media helped turn Sam Bankman Friend, the grifter behind FTX, into “Sam the guru.” When battling for attention and wanting to be first to a hot story, you are more than willing to paint outside the lines. If people lose their future when buying dodgy crypto, shady spacs, or taking investments — that’s not a problem. The media herd would have moved on to hyping another meme and another. 

June 8, 2023. San Francisco