Are millennials really driving ‘cancel culture’ - or is it their overcautious critics?

Older generations argue that young people’s insistence on equality in all things – including books – threatens to stifle free speech. But is that always true?I wouldn’t normally air my dirty literary linen in public, but here goes. When I finished writing my novel Putney, about a 13-year-old girl who has a “love affair” in the 1970s with an older man and realises decades later that it was actually abuse, my previous editor at Jonathan Cape chose not to publish it. The reasons emerged this year when he was interviewed in the Spectator. “If Lolita was offered to me today,” Dan Franklin said, “I’d never be able to get it past the acquisition team – a committee of 30-year-olds, who’d say: ‘If you publish this book we will all resign.’” He pointed to #MeToo and social media as fundamental factors: “You can organise outrage at the drop of a hat.”Fortunately, Bloomsbury’s acquisition team – overwhelmingly female and mixed aged – were brave enough to take on Putney, which was described in the Observer as “a Lolita for the era of #MeToo”. Whether there was any truth in his words or not, Franklin’s position reveals how much fear now exists in publishing. Related: Putney by Sofka Zinovieff review – a Lolita for the age of #MeToo ‘It’s only about not being an arsehole,’ my daughter said. ‘That’s not so difficult’ Related: Nabokov's Lolita: the latest thing millennials have apparently ruined Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2019-07-10 10:03:01 UTC ]
News tagged with: #including books #finished writing #love affair #older man ##metoo #jonathan cape

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European Commission Drives for Copyright Modernization

The EU Digital Economy and Society commissioner, Günther Oettinger, told a Frankfurt Book Fair audience the EU is striving for a single digital market. The post European Commission Drives for Copyright Modernization appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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List Growth Alone Won’t Drive Success in Email Marketing

Folio: and WhatCounts team up on a survey revealing how publishers need to get a better handle on ROI and content value. The post List Growth Alone Won’t Drive Success in Email Marketing appeared first on Folio:. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2015-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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London China Book Festival sees cultural exchange

The Publishers Association's director for publisher relations Emma House met with Guo Guang, president of China Youth Press International, at the launch of London China Book Festival at Hatchards Piccadilly this week. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-10-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Time Inc. Is in Talks to Buy Jane Pratt's Millennial-Focused xoJane

Time Inc. is close to acquiring Jane Pratt's xoJane and xoVain sites for an undisclosed sum as it looks to increase its content targeting millennial women, sources tell Adweek. The New York publisher is interested in buying Pratt's two sites to build up its focus on digital-only brands, which... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2015-10-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The prevalence of online porn drives Playboy to ditch nudity

Sex sells, there's no denying it. This is one of the reasons that such a huge proportion of web traffic is accounted for by porn sites. Just as the internet has changed the face of music, television, movies, and radio, so it has changed the face of print media -- including porn mags. Magazine... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2015-10-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Konami's canceled 'Silent Hills' featured a horror manga master

Konami didn't just waste the talents of famed director Guillermo del Toro when it canceled Silent Hills -- it also tossed aside a legend of the comic book world. Del Toro has revealed that horror manga master Junji Ito (of projects like Gyo and He... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2015-09-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Zoe Saldana to create digital content for AwesomenessTV's Millennial Mom network

Actress Zoe Saldana is teaming up with new millennial mom-geared network AweStruck to create digital content. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2015-09-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hearst Invests $21 Million in Pop-Culture Network Complex Media

Hearst has made another bet on an emerging pop-culture brand, investing $21 million in Complex Media, a digital-media company that operates websites devoted to music, fashion, food and movies.Hearst, the publisher of Cosmopolitan and Esquire magazines, last year acquired a 25% stake in... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2015-09-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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On my radar: Alexandra Shulman’s cultural highlights

The editor of British Vogue and novelist on Bill Clegg’s Did You Ever Have a Family, Sally Clarke’s recipes and David Hockney’s early drawingsAlexandra Shulman OBE has been editor-in-chief of British Vogue since 1992, making her the longest-serving editor in the magazine’s history. She was born... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-09-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Dugher appointed shadow culture secretary

Michael Dugher has been revealed as the new shadow secretary of state for culture media and sport, under the Labour party’s new leader, Jeremy Corbyn. Dugher, who managed the campaign for Labour leadership candidate Andy Burnham, has been MP for Barnsley East since 2010 and today replaces Chris... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Why Purchase of Millennial Media Brings Verizon Closer to Its Data Dreams

AOL won't talk about it, but the steady stream of mobile activity and profile data the firm now has at its disposal from its new parent Verizon makes its Millennial Media acquisition far more powerful than it would otherwise be. AOL bought mobile ad network Millennial for $238 million... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2015-09-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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AOL Scoops Up Mobile Ad Network Millennial Media for $238 Million

After two months of speculation, AOL has acquired mobile ad network Millennial Media for $238 million, or about $1.75 per share. The Millennial deal is the newest step in building out AOL's tools to compete in mobile advertising against behemoths like Facebook, Yahoo and Google. With the deal,... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2015-09-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jonathan Franzen Is Having More Fun Than His Critics

Jonathan Franzen’s fifth novel, Purity, appears, like his previous one, Freedom, amid the media equivalent of the fog of war. There have been trumpeted interviews and fatuous raves, but also misleading headlines, Twitter diatribes, backlashes to the backlash and a deluge of emptily sassy online... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2015-08-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's PR Troubles Show How Corporate Culture Impacts Brand Perception

Among his other talents, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has been an effective public face of his company. No matter what you may have heard about Amazon, it was hard not to smile when Bezos brought his infectious laugh to such venues as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The Daily Show with Jon... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2015-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Campaigners welcome literacy drive but condemn government hypocrisy

Library groups have welcomed education secretary Nicky Morgan’s drive for all children to have a library card, although campaigners say the news rings hollow at a time when many public libraries are closing. Desmond Clarke, a veteran library campaigner who has spoken out against library cuts in... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Should bloggers be critical? - a blogger's perspective

Should bloggers be critical? It's an interesting question. I suppose it depends on who you feel reviews are for. While I'm happy to share positive reviews with authors, I think reviews are for readers not writers. I know of authors who say they've learned from reviews and can see they can be... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Coates calls for Vaizey to be replaced as culture minister

Former Waterstones’ boss Tim Coates has called for Ed Vaizey to be replaced as culture minister, and for his replacement to “get a really tight grip on what’s happening” with libraries across the UK and help councils. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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PW Asks: Most Millennials Prefer Paper Books

This week, we polled readers on whether Millennials prefer print or digital books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-07-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pearson, the Financial Times and the culture of modern capitalism

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[ The Guardian | 2015-07-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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South Carolina Cancels Book Festival

After nearly 20 years of connecting authors and readers, the South Carolina Book Festival has been cancelled and will be replaced by smaller, statewide events. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-07-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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