Content Creators...Speak Up or Shut Up? How either one can destroy your business.

It is no secret that we are going through very tumultuous times in the world, and specifically the United States. To add to that, there seems to be this feeling that if you don’t have the “right wording” or “appropriate thoughts” when it comes to the world today, you are bound to destroy your career as a photographer.

All you have to do is spend some time on social media and it will become glaringly obvious to you that if you don’t have the same opinion as those in the “majority” regarding everything that has been happening then you are just wrong. There is a damn good chance that you will be labeled everything from a racist, to homophobic, and just about everything in between. That doesn’t mean you are those things, that is just the tactics used to label you because the adults in the room have forgotten that people are allowed to have a differing opinion regarding all kinds of matters.

I personally spent some time this evening reading articles on Fstoppers.com, which for those of you that don’t know, it is a site regarding everything content creating. What saddened me the most after reading some articles is that tone in which people use to address other’s opinions about a situation. Take for example the journalist that lost an eye in Minneapolis during the riots, yes folks they aren’t protests when you start to break shit and destroy communities. She is now suing the city, the police, etc. for losing her sight after supposedly being struck by a foam or rubber bullet used as part of crowd control. While I believe that the suit is completely without merit and absolutely asinine on her part, god forbid you are to be focal with that opinion. A dissenting opinion will get you taken to task left and right within the content creator’s world.

For the most part, well-paid and famous photographers tend to lean towards the left when it comes to their political views. While I find absolutely nothing wrong with that, as we are all entitled to base on opinions and believes on the people that we best think represent us, what I find disturbing is the treatment within the community of content creators when you do not agree with the left-leaning base. Very rarely will you stumble across a right lean photographer that does very well for themselves and is at all public about where they stand. It is not the popular thing to do, and most of the time can be very detrimental to their business.

Now, I primarily work within an industry that doesn’t care what your political affiliation, sexual orientation, etc. is. Contrary to what you read and hear in the news, the motorsports industry is one of the most diverse in all of the sports. I have touched on this before with the niche that I am in within the industry, and that is drag racing. In drag racing, your age, sex, intelligence, skin color, etc. doesn’t matter one damn bit. And while everyone has an opinion on everything, and a lot of the time it does in fact vary from the person pitted next to you, it also doesn’t cause you to be ostracized from the industry for that belief. I could comfortably be an open Democrat, Republican, Homosexual, etc. and it would not affect my standing within the industry. The same cannot be said for many other content creators.

Look at the wedding industry or the celebrity industry for example. If you are not leaning whichever way is the popular way, you are not going to get those jobs. Do you really think that Oprah is going to bring in a photographer that opening supports Donald Trump to photograph something for her? I highly doubt it, and it doesn’t matter how great he/she is behind the camera. That is exactly my point with this entire thing. It is very easy to voice your opinion as a creator when that opinion is the same as the masses, but it’s a very different situation when you are really in the minority regarding your viewpoints within the industry.

What is a content creator to do regarding this entire thing? What are they to do when social media is flooding with crap regarding “rona” or “blm” or whatever else the flavor of the day is for the mainstream to rail upon? Are we all just supposed to “shut up” and get in line? There are a couple of options that one can do regarding this and still save your business. The first of which is completely obvious and that would be to just keep your mouth shut at all times regarding current events and politics. That option I personally believe is complete bullshit and serves no one but the bully in the room. The second option that you have is to be vocal but do so in a respectful and intelligent manner. There are always going to be people that will take the low road on you for having a different viewpoint…let them. Don’t feed into their ignorance and don’t give them the satisfaction of upsetting you. The best thing that you can do to a bully is smiling at them and refuse to feed into their bullshit. The second option is a tougher road, and one that you may lose clients and you may lose money, but you can bet your ass that you will gain respect if you do it in the right manner.

So what I am saying is that you, the content creator has to make the decision about what road you are wanting and willing to take. The road of silence and ease, or the rough road that garners the respect of people for standing up and believing in yourself, your viewpoints, your talent, and your ability to not be bullied. Standing up and not being silent isn’t always easy. Just because you aren’t behind a “cause” that everyone says you should be, doesn’t mean that you are anything more than a human being with different thoughts and beliefs.