I think you’re mainly correct, but it’s a bit of both. We have laws and subsidies protecting the livelihoods of farmers. The way democracy works, the winning coalition will cater to its constituents by passing laws which benefit those folks. So plausibly, the winning coalitions which passed/protected intellectual property laws included some support by artists, too. (This is especially plausible if you think about how Disney influences copyright law.)
Given the current reaction to AI art, I think it’s plausible (but very uncertain) that enough people would side with artists here to democratically protect artists now/soon. People enjoy consuming art, but doing so also creates some degree of emotional connection to the artists themselves (a parasocial relationship).
I think you’re mainly correct, but it’s a bit of both. We have laws and subsidies protecting the livelihoods of farmers. The way democracy works, the winning coalition will cater to its constituents by passing laws which benefit those folks. So plausibly, the winning coalitions which passed/protected intellectual property laws included some support by artists, too. (This is especially plausible if you think about how Disney influences copyright law.)
Given the current reaction to AI art, I think it’s plausible (but very uncertain) that enough people would side with artists here to democratically protect artists now/soon. People enjoy consuming art, but doing so also creates some degree of emotional connection to the artists themselves (a parasocial relationship).