Virtual influencers like Lil Miquela already have millions of followers. Soon, studios will resurrect deceased actors (with estate permission) and fabricate new ones entirely out of code. The legal and ethical battle over "rights of publicity" versus "creative freedom" will define the next decade of popular media .
While this ensures we are rarely bored, it also creates "filter bubbles." If an algorithm knows you like a specific genre of action movie, it will keep feeding you similar content, potentially limiting your exposure to diverse perspectives or new artistic styles. Popular media today is as much about data science as it is about creative storytelling. The Rise of User-Generated Content (UGC)