All Media Should Be Free

Why the best stories were never behind a paywall.

All media should be free.
Every song, every book, every TV show, every movie — all of it.

And I’ll tell you why.

We need to go back to network TV.
You didn’t pay for network TV.
You had a pair of rabbit ears — maybe a bent coat hanger — and you were good to go.

No subscriptions. No bundles. No “sign in to continue.”
Just a signal.
A free one.

When TV was over the air, everyone had access.
Sesame Street reached millions of children.
Everyone — no matter their income — could talk about the Saturday Night Update on SNL, or who shot J.R.

We came together because we all had access to the same stories.
The same jokes. The same heroes.

No matter how shitty your life was, you could always tune in to your favorite show.
It didn’t matter if you were broke, lonely, or just hanging on — that glow in the corner of the room was yours too.

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And maybe it’s working again — today.
The internet is the new signal.
The new airwaves.

Nearly all human knowledge, art, and entertainment is right there.
Accessible. Instant. For the most part, free — or close enough.

It’s messy, chaotic, and unfiltered — but so was TV in the beginning.
Maybe we’re just watching the next version of free unfold.

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But what the internet lacks is focus.
Direction.
Purpose.

What is the internet, anyway?
A library? A marketplace? A stage? A landfill?
Maybe it’s all of them — and that’s the problem.

It’s the greatest tool ever built for sharing knowledge —
and the easiest place ever made to waste it.

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But it’s not all lost.
Companies of all sizes are out there trying to focus information for us.
You just have to go out and look for them.

The biggest barrier?
A world driven by profit.

It makes the companies bringing us this media villains.
And sometimes — they really are villains. Literal villains.

I mean, have you seen Elon Musk?
It’s hard to tell if he embodies the stereotype or invented it.

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But there’s good stuff out there too.
Artists who never would’ve had a chance now have a stage.
Even a dumb karate teacher with a wandering mind.

And as artists become more involved in the business side of the business,
the more they’ll profit from the art they create.

The truth is — it’s inevitable.
Socialism is coming for our media,
in the best way possible

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