🤔 Is TikTok wrecking taste?

Welcome to a very special (and very rare!) free episode of Off the Grid Clubhouse!

Today I am joined by the one-and-only

Taylor Elyse Morrison

to talk about what it means that Tiktok’s owner Bytedance is publishing print books now — and why we both got the ick upon reading the announcement.

Together we unpack:

• The craftsmanship of creating a book + why it’s a community effort

• How fast Tiktok curates taste + colonizes our attention

• The dangers of data-optimizing art

• Books vs movies vs music in the age of algorithms

• The power of taking back our attention

“Taste was the people with power, and now it’s the algorithm with power.”

Links + resources:

🕸️ Visit Taylor’s website + join her newsletter

🤖 Here’s the announcement about Bytedance entering print media

📲 Here’s the podcast episode Taylor mentioned about testing how many Tiktok videos you need to watch to get hooked on the app.

🫠 More on the leaked Tiktok docs

💕 Also mentioned in the episode: Aesthetics: A Very Short Introduction, I Saw the TV Glow, His Three Daughters, Self Care by Leigh Stein, Sower Books, The Sapling Cage by Margaret Killjoy

This episode is free for all to listen! But only paid subscribers can join us in the comments. If you’re a Clubhouse member, I’d love to know:

• Do you use TikTok? How does it impact your taste?

• What do you think of Bytedance moving into publishing?

• Where do you get book/movie/music recommendations?

P.S. Don’t forget I’m hosting a FREE event this Wednesday at 12pm CT. It’s called Crystal Clear: How Our Businesses Create Change. You can learn about it in this episode of Off the Grid podcast and RSVP here to join us. 💠