I suppose the point is that the channels of distribution are now more open than ever before. Art is created all the time by hundreds of thousands of artists–that’s a given. But it is just as important to consider how this art reaches an audience of any size.

For better and for worse, art’s delivery to the public at large is now in the hands of the artist. The implications of this are staggering–not the least of which is how does an individual artist gain attention these days? But also: how is the good separated from the bad? “Great” art is not always recognized, and “poor” art is frequently rewarded for the wrong reasons.

But the answers to these questions, for now, are less and less in the hands of corporate profit-makers.

I love Radiohead. I even went to a wacky college that let me design and teach a course on their music, as an undergrad. Yet… I listen to little Radiohead these days, while my respect for the writing of Billy Corgan has only grown. The whys of that are another issue.