This morning, Democratic presidential candidate and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (I) tweeted out his support for efforts to unionize the video game industry. He did so in a fashion truly appropriate for the man—one that made it clear that he doesn’t always grasp basic economics:
The video game industry made $43 billion in revenue last year. The workers responsible for that profit deserve to collectively bargain as part of a union. I'm glad to see unions like @IATSE and the broader @GameWorkers movement organizing such workers. https://t.co/Ia5gMG2v0w
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) June 18, 2019
Joe Biden Gets Hit with a Reality Check After Issuing a Statement on ICE Shooting
Trump hits the road to sell economic wins as Republicans brace for high-stakes midterm showdown
Trump admin marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day honoring millions murdered by Nazi regime
Video: To Assure Attacks on ICE Continue, CNN Airs Guest Suggesting ICE Will Begin ‘Putting People in Ovens’
Florida GOP Rep Vern Buchanan to retire, adding to wave of House exits
Minnesota fraud whistleblower says ‘lack of guardrails was pretty shocking’
Iran Suddenly Wants to Strike a Deal After ‘Big Armada’ Arrives: Trump
Anti-ICE Agitators Arrested After Targeting Gregory Bovino’s Hotel
Trump whistleblower Alex Vindman launches campaign to flip Florida senate seat
Late Breaking: Court Clears ICE to Bring the Pain to Minneapolis Agitators Who Step Out of Line
Outrageous: MSNBC Caught ‘Aggressively’ Photoshopping Pretti Picture to Turn Americans Against ICE
Republicans appeal judge’s decision rejecting New York City GOP district lines
Texas teen dies after Jeep-pulled sled strikes curb and tree during severe winter storm
Chinese spies ‘sham marriage’ scandal exposes ‘targeted’ national security threat at major US base: expert
Conservative immigration experts split on whether Trump is ‘backing down’ in MN ICE fight
In the tweet, Sanders confuses “revenue” with “profit.” This is not an insignificant mistake, but it’s one that is common in reporting about large American corporations. All too often, reporters talk about how much money a company takes in without offering any analysis of that company’s expenses. Amazon, for example, despite massive revenues has only recently begun making an actual profit. In the Time story that Sanders links to, writer Alana Semuels similarly fails to differentiate between revenue and profit when covering the efforts to organize.
It’s true that the game industry did bring in $42 billion in revenue last year from customers in the United States (and nearly $140 billion worldwide). But revenue is the money a company brings in before deducting its expenses, like, for example, workers’ wages. So, in reality, video game industry workers did get a cut of those billions. It’s only after such workers are paid (and other expenses are deducted) that we can talk about profit.
Sanders, of course, has a long history of failing to grasp the basics of market economics. He frequently sees marketplace choices as a threat, even as they open avenues and opportunities for our poorest citizens or provide all of us with ever improving mass entertainment.
Story cited here.
