And Then There's This How Stories Live And Die In A Viral Culture by Bill Wasik

Bill Wasik

And Then There's This How Stories Live And Die In A Viral Culture

This book is by the inventor of internet "flash mobs" or groups of people who spontaneously formed when suggested to by internet messages. Bill Wasik is what might be called a memetic engineer or a person who creates quickly spreading ideas. This book is pure infotainment at its best.

Some of the different categories of idea he writes about are in politics, advertising, corporate culture, and indie rock. The writing is both critical and ironic in content.

There is a very hip, left wing slant to the politics in the book. It is genuine reminder that we don't have to buy into advertising or spin, we have the right to choose what we view on the internet.

Bill Wasik visits some of the "digerati"-- the digital elite to look at how they create spin with new media. He mentions The Huffington Post, Bzzagent, KEXP Online Radio, Youtube, and many other internet sites.

In his view we have started surveiling ourselves to create a kind of giant popularity contest where the most views win. People are absorbed into the public consumption of blogs and other social networks.

This is a fun book to read by a very erudite and funny author. It is a mix of geeky avant garde, new media and social engineering. Bill Wasik is a senior editor at Harper's and has written for Salon magazine. This shows with very smooth prose that sounds like he is talking to you personally.

Daily Thoughts 9/26/2009

The economist James K. Galbraith who has written many books.

Daily Thoughts 9/26/2009

Here I am today. I have The Cost of Bad Behavior, How Incivility Is Damaging Your Business and What To Do About It by Christine Pearson and Christine Porath in front of me. There is an introduction by Warren Bennis. I also put another book on hold, The Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson. It is the first book in a trilogy.

Today is rather quiet. I ordered some promotional material from Westlaw Patron Access yesterday so we can market the database as well as had some bookmarks which we designed printed. The display on graphic novels is doing quite well. A lot of books are being taken out.

I am looking at a novel by Maggie Estep, Alice Fantastic. I usually think of Maggie Estep as a slam poet, but there it was. A novel set in Queens, New York.

I read some more of And Then There's This at lunch time. I had a greek omelette for lunch and my usual two cups of coffee. I am on the third chapter. The author is writing about memes. He writes that one of the common factors that determine if a meme is successfully viral is if it is social in nature and people can relate to to it on a personal level. I was talking to one of our patrons about the book and he commented that this may be due to people being lonely and a bit disconnected.

Daily Thoughts 9/25/2009

Engraving of Captain Nemo viewing a giant squid from a porthole of the Nautilus submarine, from 20000 Lieues Sous les Mers by Jules Verne.

Daily Thoughts 9/25/2009

Right now, I am sitting at my local library. I have the day off and am working tomorrow. I am using their computer to type away. I found one book that looks very interesting; And Then There's This How Stories Live And Die In A Viral Culture by Bill Wasik. I am fascinated with social networking and the internet. I am reading a lot about it lately. It is relaxing to be anonymous sometimes.

Bill Wasik is the inventor of flash mobs, creating instantaneous crowds using the internet. It makes the book quite interesting. The book is quite eclectic. Right now, I am reading about the indie rock music scene on the internet.