Every now and then, someone asks me for my hot take on someone else’s social media or pop culture hot take. Or they ask me what I think about something a famous actor or influencer said.

I’d say something snarky here. But to be honest, I probably haven’t heard about whatever controversy the person asks me about. In the rare event I have heard about it, I probably don’t care.

It’s not that these things are totally unimportant. People can do damage with problematic remarks. Rather, it’s that the media figures, podcasters, bloggers (!), et al. who people get worked up about usually have far less influence than people think they do. They have an impact on the world, but not as big as people think they do.

How should we respond to them? In most cases, it’s best to quit paying attention to them. Social media figures and influencers live on the attention people give them. Try giving them less.

So, it’s not that I think pop culture is unimportant. I don’t think that. But I do think pop culture figures are less important than most believe. And their importance depends essentially on the attention we provide them.