My dad predicted Trump in 1985 – it's not Orwell, he warned, it's Brave New World

The ascent of Donald Trump has proved Neil Postman’s argument in Amusing Ourselves to Death was right. Here’s what we can do about itOver the last year, as the presidential campaign grew increasingly bizarre and Donald Trump took us places we had never been before, I saw a spike in media references to Amusing Ourselves to Death, a book written by my late father, Neil Postman, which anticipated back in 1985 so much about what has become of our current public discourse.At Forbes, one contributor wrote that the book “may help explain the otherwise inexplicable”. CNN noted that Trump’s allegedly shocking “ascent would not have surprised Postman”. At ChristianPost.com, Richard D Land reflected on reading the book three decades ago and feeling “dumbfounded … by Postman’s prophetic insights into what was then America’s future and is now too often a painful description of America’s present”. Last month, a headline at Paste Magazine asked: “Did Neil Postman Predict the Rise of Trump and Fake News?” Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2017-02-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Other Publishing stories related to: 'My dad predicted Trump in 1985 – it's not Orwell, he warned, it's Brave New World'


Braving the Digital Path

Given that nearly 90% of Russian households are expected to have Internet access by 2012, it is easy to see why ebooks, online retailers, and electronic libraries are getting so much attention (and investment interest) in recent years. Russian publishers, fueled by the success of their U.S.... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #online retailers #russian publishers #service providers #titles online #challenges ahead


Agents warn publishers over digital rates

Written By: Philip Jones and Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 01/04/2011 - 08:50 Literary agent Sonia Land has warned book publishers they will lose control over authors’ digital backlists unless they improve their royalty offer. Land this week announced her decision to publish 100 of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital rates #philip jones #week announced


"Forensic and furious" books up for Orwell Prize

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Thu, 31/03/2011 - 09:00 Titles on feminism, New Labour and the life and times of Christopher Hitchens have been longlisted for the 2011 Orwell Prize for political writing. The announcement was made at an event on Wednesday [30th March]. Eighteen titles... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #orwell prize #christopher hitchens #political writing #real story #gordon brown


Library bodies warn publishers off 'retrenchment' over ebook lending

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 17/03/2011 - 09:23 The Society of Chief Librarians and the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council have signed a joint position on ebook lending in libraries, saying the Publisher Association's baseline position has "limited practical use"... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ebook lending #chief librarians #archives council #publisher association #remote downloading


World Book Day books top charts but sales are down on last year

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 15/03/2011 - 15:56 Sales of the six £1 World Book Day books fell 36% week-on-week, to 159,000 copies sold—a figure down 9% on the comparative week last year—but they nonetheless continue to dominate the sharp end of this week’s Official UK Top... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sales of World Book Night titles 'double'

Written By: Lisa Campbell and Philip Stone Publication Date: Fri, 11/03/2011 - 16:27 Sales of the selected 25 World Book Night titles soared by over 100% at W H Smith, amid a wider trade sales boost, following television coverage, events and book giveaways to mark its inaugural year. On 5th... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book giveaways #inaugural year #5th march #million books #included works #david nicholls #philip pullman


£1 World Book Day books storm to the top of the charts

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 08/03/2011 - 16:01 The latest crop of £1 World Book Day books, led by Cope & Davies' Spy Dog/The Great Pet Shop Panic (Puffin/S&S) take positions one-through-six in this week's Official UK Top 50, with sales totalling 247,235 copies—a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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World Book Night books defy the critics as sales grow

Written By: Philip Stone and Felicity Wood Publication Date: Fri, 04/03/2011 - 09:43 The majority of the books to be handed out tomorrow (5th March) as part of World Book Night have already received a sales boost in 2011. The figures will be a welcome fillip for the organisers, with founder... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sales grow #philip stone #sales boost #live event #trafalgar square #featuring authors #nick cave #margaret atwood #alan bennett


HMV issues second profit warning

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Tue, 01/03/2011 - 09:28 The HMV Group has issued its second profit warning of the year and will breach a bank covenant test when it announces full year results in April. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury predicts 2011 to be "year of the ebook"

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 28/02/2011 - 09:20 Bloomsbury is anticipating 2011 to be the "year of the ebook", as it reported ebook sales were just under 10% of trade print sales in its latest results. For the 12 months ending 31st December 2010, sales were up 4.01%... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A World with Fewer Borders

As the bookstore chains grew in the 1980s and ‘90s, the number of independent booksellers fell dramatically, but those that survived expect little pop from the impending closing of 200 Borders stores as part of the retailer's bankruptcy reorganization. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Retailers finalise World Book Night plans

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 24/02/2011 - 09:42 Final preparations are underway for a medley of events planned to celebrate World Book Night, with independent and national retailers planning to host author readings, quizzes and book swaps. On 5th March, 20,000 participants... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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PPA chief warns of looming 'penalty tax on magazine publishers'

The Royal Mail's request to increase the amount it can charge for bulk mail has been slammed as a "shortsighted" move that could cause long-term damage to the magazine business by Barry McIlheney, chief executive of the Professional Publishers Association (PPA). Continue reading at Media Week

[ Media Week | 2011-02-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Trade gears up for World Book Day

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Tue, 22/02/2011 - 15:42 read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A World of Recipes: The International Cookbook Market

As the Paris Cookbook Fair gets underway next month, cookbook publishers are getting ready to do some shopping--and not just the sort that involves stocking up on Dijon mustard and bonbons from Fauchon. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-02-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Check Google Books data for errors, publishers warned

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 04/02/2011 - 09:01 Publishers are being warned to check their Google Books data online as thousands of titles have been mistakenly attributed to publisher BPR. Independent UK publisher Children’s Story Publishers spotted the mistake after its... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It's a Digital Book World

There was no shortage of debates and discussions at last week's second annual Digital Book World, where about 1,300 members of the trade publishing industry turned out in New York to explore ways to navigate the digital transition. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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