Episode 241: The Outrage Economy – Bigger Drama, Bigger Audience, Bigger Problems

Welcome to Biz-Souls, where two people sit down to talk about business and somehow end up discussing the WNBA, soap operas, hockey fights, social media, dictatorships, Canadian violence, Hollywood explosions, potato chips, and Jeffrey’s apparently magnificent legs. Basically, a normal episode of Biz-Souls. This time, Rona and Jeffrey tackle ‘the business of outrage’ and the uncomfortable possibility that outrage has become one of the most successful products in the modern attention economy. It starts with the media frenzy surrounding the WNBA, Caitlin Clark, Sophia Cunningham and all the apparent ‘us versus them’ drama. Is the league deliberately creating controversy? Not necessarily. But the media certainly knows conflict gets attention. And attention, as we all know, is where the money lives. The hosts point out that WNBA viewership has been soaring, raising a deliciously awkward question: if outrage works, why would anyone in the attention business stop selling it? And then the conversation gets considerably more complicated, because this isn't just about sports. Rona and Jeffrey wonder whether we're becoming so accustomed to outrage, violence and sensationalism that yesterday's shocking event barely registers today. So, turn up the volume. The conflict gets bigger. The explosions get louder. The body count gets higher. Hollywood does it. Social media does it. News media does it. And all of this seems to be affecting people in a terrible way. The episode takes the particularly interesting turn when the hosts ask whether social media is actually influencing behavior rather than simply showing us more of the behavior that has always existed. And that's where the Biz-Souls prescription arrives: Critical thinking. Before sharing the outrage, ask why you're being shown it. Before jumping into the fight, ask what happens next. Before believing the headline, ask whether there's another explanation. And perhaps most importantly, ask whether history has anything useful to say about the brilliant new idea currently screaming at you through your phone. The hosts also admit something refreshingly human: they've gotten things wrong, jumped onto trends and been susceptible to the same forces they're talking about. Because apparently even professional commentators occasionally discover that the internet has opinions. Lots of them. And then, because this is Biz-Souls, the solution to the outrage economy apparently involves being polite, wearing dresses, abandoning hoodies and flip-flops, and possibly putting Jeffrey in a kilt permanently. Whether this is critical thinking or not that’s your call. The bigger takeaway, though, is serious. If outrage becomes normal, outrage has to keep escalating to get our attention. What shocked us yesterday becomes background noise today, which means tomorrow needs to be even louder. Until eventually we're all sitting around covered in metaphorical fake blood wondering, ‘Was that supposed to upset me?’ So, tune in, think critically, question the algorithm, and remember… Just because it is on the internet doesn't mean it is true. Still like, follow, share, and subscribe. Related Biz-Souls Episodes: Episode 201: Bayes, Brains, and the Breakdown of Internet Illusion** • https://open.spotify.com/episode/13dd... •    / @biz-souls3926   Episode 151: Bias in the Media •    / @biz-souls3926   • https://open.spotify.com/search/Biz-S... Episode 126: The Truth About Lying • https://open.spotify.com/search/Biz-S... •    / @biz-souls3926   Episode 139: Play for Better Living! • https://open.spotify.com/episode/5EOy... •    • Видео   Episode 125: How to Retrain Your Brain with Kelley Raleigh • https://open.spotify.com/episode/6Sl8... •    • Видео   Episode 137: Just Say No! Maybe. • https://open.spotify.com/episode/5O9p... •    • Видео   #BizSouls #RonaLewis #JeffreyHansler #BusinessOfOutrage #OutrageEconomy #SocialMedia #CriticalThinking #Media #MediaBias #AttentionEconomy #Leadership #Business #DecisionMaking #HumanBehavior #SocialMediaBehavior #CommonSense #ThinkBeforeYouShare #DigitalCulture #BusinessPodcast #LeadershipPodcast #Marketing #Communication #WorkplaceCulture #BizSoulsPodcast #ThinkCritically