Opinion | Notable journalism and media tidbits to catch up on over the weekend
Antlers Do What No Other Bones Can The Atlantic
Ex-CIA Chief Michael Hayden Implies Trump Should Be Executed for Taking Classified Docs National Review
Anger at the Mar-a-Lago ‘Raid’ Can’t End WellAtlantic.: “The same FBI that killed Black Panthers, MLK, etc, is now the hero of the DNC/MSNBC crowd.”
Anger at the Mar-a-Lago ‘Raid’ Can’t End WellAtlantic: “The same FBI that killed Black Panthers, MLK, etc, is now the hero of the DNC/MSNBC crowd.”
Gestapo the Steal James Howard Kunstler. Looks like we’re going to have a lot of speculation and hyperventilation and not much new information.
The Last Sentinel (Clayton White) by Simon Gervais
Ex–Secret Service agent Clayton White
doesn’t miss the relentless danger that defined his career. These days, he’s
enjoying life at sea with his fiancée―who also happens to be the daughter of
the double-dealing vice president, Alexander Hammond. But for the most part,
Clayton has made peace with his old nemesis.
From
the celebrated author of The
Last Protector comes an action-packed sequel about a man whose duty
to his country threatens the life of the woman he has vowed to protect.
Opinion | An important media voice is leaving The Washington Post
'She has been a mentor, sounding board and role model for our media team and the newsroom at large'
Furukawa Hideo Q & A
At Japan Forward Stefania Viti has a Q & A with Furukawa Hideo -- see parts one and two.
Several Furukawa titles are available in English, including Slow Boat and Horses, Horses, in the End the Light Remains Pure, but not, alas, the one discussed at greatest length here, サウンドトラック ('Soundtrack').
Mass Market Paperbacks
At Publishers Weekly Jim Milliot considers Where Are Mass Market Paperbacks Headed ?
The format has been faring poorly in the US, with sales collapsing, down 31.5 per cent in terms of units sold between 2017 and 2021.
Among the interesting points:
All mass market publishers are aware of the price sensitivity around the format, and even as a few publishers have increased the trim size of mass market paperbacks, they are reluctant to go beyond the $9.99 price point.And:
To keep retailers carrying mass market paperbacks, HC conducted extensive research on the format. [CEO of HarperCollins’s Harlequin subsidiary and CEO of HC Canada] Swinwood said it found that 74% of print book buyers prefer mass market and that it’s the cornerstone of any retailers’ book offering.Also of interest: at the end of the article they list the top-selling mass market paperback titles this year, to date (according to NPD Bookscan) -- with actual sales numbers !
As longtime readers know, mass-market paperback-sized is -- by far -- my favorite book format; if it were possible, I would want to read practically everything in that format. I do not understand why it isn't more popular.
Research: We Make More Virtuous Choices When Using Pen and Paper
Harvard Business Review: “From ordering food to buying a new book to making a charitable donation, more and more decisions that used to be made on paper are now being made on digital devices like tablets, phones, and computers. And this trend toward digitalization has many advantages, in particular when it comes to efficiency and sustainability — but could it also be negatively influencing how we make decisions? We conducted a series of studieswith more than 2,500 participants across the U.S. and China to explore the impact of the medium you use to make a decision, with a particular focus on decisions with some sort of moral component, such as whether or not to make a donation to a charity, or whether to choose a healthy or unhealthy entrée at a restaurant. We asked the participants to make a variety of these sorts of choices using either a paper form or a digital tablet, and despite controlling for all other variables, we consistently found that people who used paper made more-virtuous decisions than those who used a digital device: For example, participants who read their options and made a selection on paper were significantly more likely to give money to charity, choose a healthy entrée, and opt for an educational book rather than something more entertaining…”