The author of Silicon Valley satire I Hate the Internet on the evils of social media, and how novelists have failed to tackle itWhen the novel I Hate the Internet came out in the US earlier this year, it had every likelihood of sinking without trace. It was self-published, it was by a young unknown – Jarett Kobek – and its main selling point was naked, gleeful contempt for the devices and technology platforms that are an essential part of all our daily lives. “Nothing says individuality like 500 million consumer electronics built by slaves,” he says at one point. “Welcome to hell.” Hell, for Kobek, a 38-year-old American of Turkish heritage, became daily life in San Francisco, where the novel is set. Along with many of the city’s artists and writers, he found himself driven out by the forces of gentrification, moved to Los Angeles, where he’s now based, set up his own small press, and wrote this book – a scorching satire of how a few hypercapitalist companies in Silicon Valley have come to dominate everything. I Hate the Internet didn’t sink without trace. It found a readership thirsty for its funny, acerbic edge, got a rave review in the New York Times, went to the top of the bestseller charts in Germany and has now been published here by Serpent’s Tail.So, do you actually hate the internet, Jarett?Not particularly. There’s part of it that I find really contemptible. The title is offered like the sneer of a 15-year-old into Twitter, after they’ve just seen a meme of... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2016-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Folio Society has awarded its media account to Total Media, as the 64-year-old publisher tries to overcome the market challenges presented by ebooks. Continue reading at Media Week
[ Media Week | 2011-08-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 28/07/2011 - 09:00 Members of the Poetry Society, including poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy, have started a petition to reinstate Judith Palmer as director of the embattled society in hope of a "new start". The petition follows the departure... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 27/07/2011 - 07:20 The Society of Authors' petition against the cuts to BBC Radio 4's short story programming has now amassed over 5,000 signatures. SoA general secretary Nicola Solomon and assistant general secretary Jo McCrum will present... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Wed, 27/07/2011 - 15:05 A former director of the Poetry Society has said her resignation was caused by an "extraordinarily stubborn and ill-considered sequence of actions", as the fallout of a row involving the board and senior staff continues. read... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Tue, 26/07/2011 - 11:52 Arts Council England (ACE) has confirmed it is withholding the Poetry Society's quarterly grant payment of almost £78,500, in the wake of the major internal row and resignations. The payment was due to the Poetry Society at... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Mon, 27/06/2011 - 10:01 Titles on waves, malaria and spiders webs have been longlisted for the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books. The 13 titles also include titles by Matt Ridley, Tim Flanney and Alex Bellos. Chair of judges, author Monica... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Mon, 27/06/2011 - 10:01 Titles on waves, malaria and spiders webs have been longlisted for the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books. The 13 titles also include titles by Matt Ridley, Tim Flanney and Alex Bellos. Chair of judges, author Monica... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Rachel Bradley Publication Date: Fri, 17/06/2011 - 08:07 A guide to astronomy and a pop-up guide to how the world works are among the shortlisted titles for the first Royal Society Young People's Book Prize in three years. The £10,000 prize was not awarded between 2008 and 2010 due... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 15/06/2011 - 08:21 Twenty-one writers shared £76,000 of prize money at the Authors' Awards last night presented by Joanna Trollope. Among them Anjali Joseph won the £10,000 Betty Trask prize for Saraswati Park (Fourth Estate). As previously... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Larry Hackett, managing editor of People magazine, has been re-elected president of the American Society of Magazine Editors today at its annual meeting. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-06-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Mon, 06/06/2011 - 08:59 The outgoing Children's Laureate Anthony Browne has warned society "will pay the price in the long term" for closing school and public libraries. In a letter to his successor, Browne urged them to campaign against their... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Tue, 31/05/2011 - 08:00 Poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy has organised a benefit for the Poetry Book Society, which faces an uncertain future following the withdrawal of all its Arts Council funding. The event, to be held at London's Institute of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Internet advertising in the U.S. totaled $7.3 billion in the U.S. in the first quarter of 2011, up 23 percent over the same period in 2010 and set the highest first quarter level ever for the industry, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-05-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Barbara Casassus Publication Date: Mon, 23/05/2011 - 15:35 French culture minister Frédéric Mitterrand has said internet companies must contribute more to financing creativity. Setting the tone for the e-G8 forum, to be held in Paris May 24-25, he said in an interview with the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) shared in its 2010 full year report that annual Internet advertising revenues increased by 14.9 percent from 2009 to 2010, rising from $22.66 million in 2009 to $26.04 billion in 2010. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-04-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 04/04/2011 - 09:16 The Arts Council has defended its funding cut to the Poetry Book Society (PBS), claiming its "reach and distribution was not as wide or effective as other applicants'". In a letter to the Times, Antonia Byatt, director of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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We continue to look at the events that made the Internet into what it is today. In this part we examine blogs, Napster, Skype, online books, Facebook, and more. Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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