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Does anyone have an opinion on the quoted book?
Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business By Neil Postman
He really is great. He based some of his stuff on Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Myth, Metaphor, and Morality by Mark Field. Never read the book but might be worth.
Dusted the podcast and now Still Pretty has pretty good analysis as well although there were some... domestic issues due to one of the hosts which might sour you to listening.
IMO with very few exceptions, journalists have done a good job of reporting every blip but a piss-poor job of helping people understand what those blips add up to. They have made the public savant-idiots: we have heard so much about everything -- blip! blip! blip! blip! -- that we end up knowing nothing at all.
That is exactly why I came to this sub-reddit in the first place, and why I've ended up participating: to try to sort out what is indisputable fact, what is interesting speculation, what is interesting but non-essential, etc.
I have found Seth Abramson's work in my personal sorting-out process to be extremely useful -- and far more useful than the confusing "battle of the talking heads" that goes on at CNN, for example. The coverage at The Atlantic has been stellar, but it tends to be siloed where Seth finds interesting and revealing bridges across silos.
I thoroughly agree that we are at a moment when truth is under daily, cynical assault. But I think Abramson generally does a better job of separating "this is true" from "this might be true" than most of what passes for journalism these days.
P.S. Used carefully, digital as a medium is far superior to TV for purposes of sorting out truth from speculation. CNN, MSNNC, Fox et al are mostly useful for Amusing Ourselves to Death.
Abramson isn't perfect, but he's light years away from spreading Pizzagate-like nonsense. I think most of us can read what he has to say without getting carried away.
I thought you were taking the piss lol, but this is an actual thing https://www.amazon.com/Fire-Blood-Fury-Susceptibility-Authoritarian-ebook/dp/B08JHFDPXS
It's Fire and Fury not Fire and Fire btw.
"The author seems to have confused Daenerys for Sansa Stark. Daenerys is a human rights activist who was vilified by fan fic writers, Benioff and Weiss. Sansa is an ultra conservative villain who benefits from the oppression of serfs. She is closer to Trump than Dany."
Lol the whingers and stans are at it already.
Daenerys for sure gets too much shit. The Dany slander has gone beyond fandom and now there’s a whole ass book dedicated to shitting on Dany.*
Jon gets too little shit in comparison. Jon is of Targ descent too. But everyone is fine with Jon being half Targ and Jon potentially riding a dragon. These aren’t perceived as signs of madness.
*whole ass book: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JHFDPXS/ref=dbs_a_def_awm_bibl_vppi_i0
That is absolutely going to happen. The depth and nuance on this show. Soon, it’ll be listed here for great minds to ponder:
https://www.amazon.com/Popular-Culture-and-Philosophy-125-book-series/dp/B0897GS1YK
There's a book that the hosts on Buffering the Vampire Slayer have referenced a few times that might be interesting if you haven't read it already. Amazon link here
Not that I know of yet, but other books I really enjoyed were I Want My MTV - The uncensored story of the music video revolution, and Sting Ray Afternoons> A Memoir, if you grew up in the 1970s.
Not a doc, but there's an oral history of MTV book that is really great if you're interested in the channel and music of the era. Given the format, it's a brisk read, too.
The invention of the telegraph.
Neil Postman wrote Amusing Ourselves to Death. It's not a historical piece per say. It's about communication theory. One argument he makes is that the way we ingest the news/information suddenly changed once far off, clandestine information could be shared immediately following the invention of the telegraph.
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Information is power, and virtually all other technological progress after its invention would have been impacted by the telegraph. Engineers could talk across the country. Investors, bankers, and wealthy persons could react to news within a week or two of it occurring. Military incursions were felt immediately by a nation. Suddenly, our world became a lot smaller and collective action became a lot more feasible. It doesn't matter how you spin it. Electrically-transmitted information fundamentally altered the way we engage everything.
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Moreover, everything that defines the "modern" information era is a product of the telegraph and the technologies that evolved from it. Its winners are those with the best information and influence as opposed to those with the biggest military, strongest religious argument, deepest pockets, etc. The best possible example? Elon Musk doesn't own amazing companies. He's wealthy as hell because he created a brand that persuaded/influenced people to invest time, effort, and (most importantly) money into his companies, enriching himself. If Twitter didn't exist, Elon would not be half as wealthy as he is today.
If you are a newbie and a fan of stuff, there's a series called "Pop Culture and Philosophy" that starts with some pretty famous properties and discusses some ideas related to those.
Had the same thought, but the source is from a book with cast, writers, and crew interviews. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VN1XCBH/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_3GM0BM4DCS0MT1P5947P
https://slate.com/culture/2012/06/pop-culture-studies-why-do-academics-study-buffy-the-vampire-slayer-more-than-the-wire-the-matrix-alien-and-the-simpsons.html From 2012 - almost a decade after the show was off the air. While I can't find anything more recent I think it will suffice. There are also numerous books about Buffy that you can find on Amazon that explore the thematic, structural, and philosophical aspects of Buffy. https://smile.amazon.com/Buffy-Vampire-Slayer-Metaphor-Morality-ebook/dp/B00BKPAJI2/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3R8N3NZ7CFQ62&keywords=buffy+the+vampire+slayer+myth%2C+metaphor+%26+morality&qid=1577578747&sprefix=Buffy+myth+me%2Caps%2C258&sr=8-1 This one is more of a general overview of those topics but it's interesting enough.
I agree that you don't have to share that opinion but... its kind of like me saying 'I was with you up until you mention Lord of the Rings, gah those books make me want to stab my eyes out.' Generally speaking I try and recognize when something is widely recognized as being culturally significant, resonant, etc. Which I think Buffy qualifies as.
Been wanting to read this book about him ... The Loudest Voice in the Room ever since I heard this story about the book (Fresh Air, Terry Gross). A very compelling listen.
Quick note: I picked up the e-book for Myth, Metaphor, and Morality (the one that PotN uses) and it makes for interesting reading. It's cheap enough, but if you don't want to spring for it, a lot of it comes from this site.
> Best TV show to ever air: Simpsons seasons 1 to 10.
Also the conclusion of this fun book, although one of the critics makes a strong defense of the later seasons.
These Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN
James Andrew Miller's book about ESPN goes into more details of what a Scumbag Mike Tirico is.
If you think this is interesting, I recommend checking out <em>Amusing Ourselves to Death</em> by Neil Postman.
He claims that tv is intrinsically worse than text for some purposes, like the news.
Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business is an excellent read for the "lessons learned" part.
If you really want to know here is a book on Roger Ailes and the making of Fox. You might want to have a little snack before hand though so you don't get the dry heaves.