Tech Startups and Cynicism
By: Bridget, Madelyn, Raney and Shane
Reading:
Pfeilstetter, Richard. 2017. “Silicon Utopias: The Making of a Tech Startup Ecosystem in Manchester (UK)”. Suomen Antropologi: Journal of the Finnish Anthropological Society 42 (1):91-102. https://journal.fi/suomenantropologi/article/view/65081.
Summary:
“Silicon Utopias: The Making of a Tech Startup Ecosystem in Manchester (UK)” by Richard Pfeilstetter (2017) dissects the public perception and government’s role in the promotion of tech startups in Manchester, UK. Pfeilsetter’s (2017) primary objective is to reveal the dichotomy between how tech startups are often portrayed as utopian, innovative, idealistic, and community-oriented versus how they actually operate, as capitalist “dystopias,” thriving off of corruption and corporate gain. The text adds to our understanding of cynicism (Savell 2015) and corruption (Smith 2010) by describing the underlying corruption that exists when community organizers, government advisors, and businessmen are “embraced simultaneously” (Pfeilstetter 2017, 98), reinforcing their connection with and monetary support from the government. Specifically, we learn that the Tech Nation Initiative provides government support to tech entrepreneurs and is funded by taxpayers when it should benefit the community and local businesses. Pfeilstetter (2017) argues that the utopic view that tech startups value and aid people, the planet, and profit is impractical because profit is typically put above everything else. The conflation of the conflicting principles of self-interest and profit and community interest and community building reinforces cynicism amongst the rest of society.
References
Pfeilstetter, Richard. 2017. “Silicon Utopias: The Making of a Tech Startup Ecosystem in Manchester (UK)”. Suomen Antropologi: Journal of the Finnish Anthropological Society 42 (1):91-102. https://journal.fi/suomenantropologi/article/view/65081.
Savell, Stephanie. “‘I’m Not a Leader’: Cynicism and Good Citizenship in a Brazilian ‘Favela.’” Political and Legal Anthropology Review 38, no. 2 (2015): 300–317. http://www.jstor.org/stable/45214796.
Smith, Daniel Jordan. “Corruption, NGOs, and Development in Nigeria.” Third World Quarterly 31, no. 2 (2010): 243–58. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25677769.
How would you describe the “taste” of the text?
The text has an acerbic taste as it dispels mythical utopias and the entrepreneurial dream as an invention of the government. The author highlights the role of cynicism in understanding this topic, giving this text a dark tone. It focuses on distrust in government, the power and money-hungry nature of people, bureaucracy, and false realities. These themes and the general tone of the author throughout the text reminded us of music that portrays similar sentiments towards government and songs that take a cynical tone towards the role of capitalism in society.
How does this playlist complement the text?
The songs selected for this text complement the text in a variety of ways. To encapsulate both the vibe of the author and themes of cynicism, capitalism, bureaucracy, and corruption in government, we selected songs that would emphasize and complement these notions. Some of the songs such as “Money, Power, Glory,” “Everything’s Just Wonderful,” and “C.R.E.A.M” acknowledge the systems we are forced to partake in. Still, the artists accept corruption as inevitable and part of day-to-day life. Other songs emphasize the corrupt nature of government and money-driven endeavors as a grave danger to society, such as in the songs “Man in Black” and “American Idiot.” In “Man in Black,” Johnny Cash is mourning as he wears all black for the people in poverty who are taken advantage of by the government and wealthy politicians. In contrast, “American Idiot” is a song that Green Day uses to express anger toward the government and feeling tired of being a part of a system that makes them feel like American idiots. Finally, we ended with songs of resilience to underscore how people feel when they arrive at the conclusion of feeling misled by the government or deceived, themes the author highlights. By ending with songs like “Take the Power Back” and “Anarchy in the U.K.,” we aimed to develop how an audience may react to the text, a realization that the entrepreneurial dream is not what they were told.
How did you decide on the order and transition between each song?
We wanted to capture the development of cynical feelings towards the government, institutions, and the capitalist system with the transition through this playlist. We chose to begin with songs that had a more neutral tone and acknowledged but seemed to accept the role of corruption in a moralist manner. Starting with “Money, Power, Glory,” Lana del Ray acknowledges the role that wealth plays in power and the role of capitalism in our lives. However, she plays into the system and hopes to gain money, power, and glory. As the playlist continues, song selection reflects a growing distaste for the systems many feel forced into by the government, and the corrupt nature of government takes on a revisionist perspective. The cynical sentiments in the music eventually result in a full-blown rebellion and uprising against the government and institutions, such as capitalism. Though the author does not mention rebellion in his text, we felt that ending the playlist with a tone of resistance would complement the audience's mood after reading this text. The author calls out the nuances that people are expected to overlook, which we felt may inspire defiance in a reader, as portrayed by the last few songs in our playlist. The last song we selected was “Anarchy in the UK” because the article focuses on Manchester, UK, and to leave the playlist on a note of anarchy in this setting further emphasizes the role of cynicism towards the government and the public perception of government corruption.