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Posts from the Frontline of The Media Industry
Science, Religion, and Philosophy News @ Aug 15 2015
The Democratization of Book Reviews Via Amazon
Have you ever noticed how the same books get reviewed in all the major magazines and newspaper book review sections? This is usually because:1) The book is being published by a major New York publisher with good connections to these media2) The writer is a member of the New York media cabal and has personal ties to the reviewers and/or their publications3) The book is written by a celebrityIn many cases, all 3 criteria may apply. With the same books getting reviewed by all the major media, this means very little space is left for those new voices that don't meet the above criteria. The comment by author Peter Schwartz about his book "In Defense of Selfishness" is typical:And to all who have read my book, let me thank those who have posted reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. And let me encourage others to do the same because as of now that’s the only public forum in which IDS is being reviewed. Unfortunately, despite numerous review copies having been sent out, no reviews have appeared yet in any other significant media.
