Nicole Aschoff

Mythmaking is as central to sustaining our economy as profitmaking, particularly as severe environmental degradation, breathtaking inequality and increasing alienation among youth push capitalism against its own contradictions. Enter the new prophets of capital. In this moment of crisis, a new generation of wealthy mythmakers, masquerading as progressive thinkers, has emerged to reinvent the free market as the solution to society's problems. With Oprah rallying the poor to bootstrap their way into the middle class; Sheryl Sandberg calling on women to 'lean in' to the unequal demands of a sexist world; and Bill & Melinda Gates offering the generosity of the 1% as the solution to a persistent, systemic inequality, the new prophets of capital buttress the exploitative system, even as the cracks grow more visible.

The New Prophets of Capital

"The smartphone is the defining commodity of the twenty-first century, pitting ordinary peoples' desire for entertainment, connection, and justice against government and corporate drives for control and profit"--

Technology, Power, and Resistance in the New Gilded Age

The Smartphone Society

A deft and caustic takedown of the new prophets of profit, from Bill Gates to Oprah. As severe environmental degradation, breathtaking inequality, and increasing alienation push capitalism against its own contradictions, mythmaking has become as central to sustaining our economy as profitmaking. Enter the new prophets of capital: Sheryl Sandberg touting the capitalist work ethic as the antidote to gender inequality; John Mackey promising that free markets will heal the planet; Oprah Winfrey urging us to find solutions to poverty and alienation within ourselves; and Bill and Melinda Gates offering the generosity of the 1 percent as the answer to a persistent, systemic inequality. The new prophets of capital buttress an exploitative system, even as the cracks grow more visible.

Nicole Aschoff

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