Activism, Fantasy and Pig Roasts

Activism.

I suspect that something like what happened to the notion of "hedge funds" is happening to the notion of "activism." Once upon a time, each industry was the province of a few smart pioneers plucking low-hanging fruit and making a lot of money for themselves. But as those pioneers got rich and famous (especially in activist investing, where notoriety is essential), they attracted imitators, ran out of low-hanging fruit, and drifted a bit stylistically, to the point where now it is almost as meaningless to talk about the performance of "activist hedge funds" in the aggregate as it is to talk about the performance of "hedge funds" in the aggregate. Similarly, talking about the effect of "activists" on companies seems too diffuse: Which activists, which companies, which proposals?