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I once sat in a conservative media outlet’s makeup room. I was an integral component of a performance there. I drove from home to the studio every night for free since I was young and hungry. Despite my gratitude for the exposure, time and effort cost money, and I wanted a salary. I believed I deserved one.As a capitalist conservative, I demanded time compensation. The show’s producer entered the makeup room and I inquired about money.
“You’re getting paid in publicity,”he remarked.
I remember my gut buckling. Without money, I realized I had to leave the concert. It was painful to leave the show, the crew, and our travels. I learnt an important lesson eventually.
“Is the producer getting paid in publicity?” my mum questioned.
He wasn’t, nor were most of the folks around me. I felt ridiculous for investing so much time and effort in a firm that didn’t value it. I was angry and disillusioned, but I never did it again. I’m fortunate, however. RedState and Townhall Media saw my talent and gave me the tools to keep working for them. Others are unlucky. Unfortunately, many conservative artists face the same issue I faced. Conservative media outlets demand the greatest work and steadfast dedication, but also want to pay them less than a Chinese factory and guarantee fame and exposure. Creatives realize that exposure may kill.
Here, conservatives make a huge error that the left seldom makes. Leftist organizations invest time and money on finding the greatest creative talent, whether it’s actors or algorithm writers. They help create compelling, long-lasting stories. As they focus more on message than narrative, left-wing “creative” are losing their creativity, but that’s not the purpose. The left might realize their error at any time and use its infrastructure to win hearts and minds again. Conservatives stick put. They believe chatting for an hour with a microphone and maybe a camera will alter history. To be fair, there are a few out there that will and are quite successful, but not everyone is a Stephen Crowder or a Ben Shapiro.
The conservative “talk about your ideas” market is so crowded that three dozen podcasts, most of which repeat Mark Levin, cost a penny. But what other option do many of these individuals have? Most conservative companies are unwilling to invest in true inventiveness. They don’t want to take a risk at a fresh method. They want safer funding. It’s acceptable, yet they miss out on excellent chances to win hearts and minds, the main aim. Talented conservatives with brilliant ideas can’t find a sponsor. Their innovative ideas that may have changed the cultural war are disregarded or forced to labor for low compensation and “publicity.” They grow resentful, disillusioned, and reluctant to participate, or they are courted by communist groups that use their abilities and progressively shift away from their early convictions under peer pressure. But it is. Conservative groups should be more business-savvy given their capitalist leanings, yet they fail to understand that supply creates demand. Creative, entertaining, and innovative material will generate desire for more and pay for it. This will attract talent for future enterprises.
Pay the creatives doing the tough labor and utilize what’s left after expenses to recruit more. Why does the left use this for story building when the right doesn’t? I hate using “cowardice,” but I have no other term. Most conservatives with money (there are exceptions) are afraid to attempt anything completely new for fear of losing their money and failing. They’re probably accurate, but it’s infrastructure and demand, not creative genius. Conservative media that balances innovation and solid ideas takes time, much like Rome.Create.
The preceding is a summary of an article that originally appeared on Red State.
