Fame now precedes wealth in the attention economy

Evidence

This attention wealth prevails as soon as it is recognized that ‘money now flows along with attention’: people become rich because they have become famous (more often than they become famous because they are rich). Citing Thomas Mandel and Gerard Van der Leun who wrote in Rules of the Net4 that ‘attention is the hard currency of cyberspace’, he predicted that, ‘As the Net becomes an increasingly strong presence in the overall economy, the flow of attention will not only anticipate the flow of money, but eventually replace it altogether.’ — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 139

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s platform/surveillance reading purpose — this is the core attention-as-currency thesis underlying platform economics. — connects to: Public attention is a self-reproducing form of value convertible into fame — Michael H. Goldhaber, The Attention Economy and the Net, 6; Fame shifted from costly earned status to broadcast and reality-driven attention; Celebrity functions as stored attention convertible into commercial influence — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 150 (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Attention inequality forms a distinct axis of class alongside money #expands (0.79) — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 183
• Public attention is a self-reproducing form of value convertible into fame #qualifies (0.75) — Michael H. Goldhaber, The Attention Economy and the Net, 6
• Fame shifted from costly earned status to broadcast and reality-driven attention #expands (0.72)
• Attention functions as convertible capital that individuals and institutions can bank and trade #qualifies (0.72) — Michael H. Goldhaber, The Attention Economy and the Net, 14
• Celebrity functions as stored attention convertible into commercial influence #qualifies (0.70) — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 150