Michael
Jan 22nd 2009, 02:44 PM
Oprah's Book Club, The New York Times wrote when the talk show queen revived it in 2005, is "a boon to authors and publishers."
OBC has certainly been good for authors who lie and the greedy publishers who put out their books.
Source (http://www.altweeklies.com/books/oprahs_book_club_is_dumbing_down_readers_and_rewar ding_mediocrity/Story?oid=828937)
Check out the link for a list of the various books that have been written by frauds that have been featured by Oprah's Book Club. Seems there is a notable pattern here of 'fraudulent maudalin' being plugged on Oprah's show.
Indeed, looks like the supply channel is being 'gamed' to fit Oprah's choices - which means 'maudalin, maudalin and more maudalin'. That's what Oprah recommends, therefore, the publishers and writers are manufacturing it for that market (and in some cases, just making up the stories to present as "true accounts").
This is not the first time I've seen various significant critiques of Oprah's book club. Apparently this seemingly noble endeavour is fraught with questionable dealings on every side.
Oprah claims she was duped by greedy, lazy publishers. Yet her website still recommends the fake books by Frey and the Rosenblats (this makes it look like Oprah gets a cut or kickback from the publishers).
As a side note, I'd be curious to know if there has been any measured 'increase' in adult literacy levels or adult reading levels in the USA over the last dozen years due to the success of OBC. Shouldn't be hard to find - I've already seen substantial data on the reading habits of teenagers being radically altered by the Harry Potter phenomena (recent stats show teens in USA & UK are spending more time reading and reading more books than ever - with a notable 'spike' in readership beginning with the publication of the 1st Harry Potter books).
Where's the stats showing OBC doing the same? If it is half as successful as it is made out to be, it should be showing up as a statistical effect. I've seen nary a mention of it. That kind of statistic would certainly shut down the critics, but the absense of that information suggests it isn't there (if it was, they'd be screaming it at us in defense of Oprah who is very popular).
OBC has certainly been good for authors who lie and the greedy publishers who put out their books.
Source (http://www.altweeklies.com/books/oprahs_book_club_is_dumbing_down_readers_and_rewar ding_mediocrity/Story?oid=828937)
Check out the link for a list of the various books that have been written by frauds that have been featured by Oprah's Book Club. Seems there is a notable pattern here of 'fraudulent maudalin' being plugged on Oprah's show.
Indeed, looks like the supply channel is being 'gamed' to fit Oprah's choices - which means 'maudalin, maudalin and more maudalin'. That's what Oprah recommends, therefore, the publishers and writers are manufacturing it for that market (and in some cases, just making up the stories to present as "true accounts").
This is not the first time I've seen various significant critiques of Oprah's book club. Apparently this seemingly noble endeavour is fraught with questionable dealings on every side.
Oprah claims she was duped by greedy, lazy publishers. Yet her website still recommends the fake books by Frey and the Rosenblats (this makes it look like Oprah gets a cut or kickback from the publishers).
As a side note, I'd be curious to know if there has been any measured 'increase' in adult literacy levels or adult reading levels in the USA over the last dozen years due to the success of OBC. Shouldn't be hard to find - I've already seen substantial data on the reading habits of teenagers being radically altered by the Harry Potter phenomena (recent stats show teens in USA & UK are spending more time reading and reading more books than ever - with a notable 'spike' in readership beginning with the publication of the 1st Harry Potter books).
Where's the stats showing OBC doing the same? If it is half as successful as it is made out to be, it should be showing up as a statistical effect. I've seen nary a mention of it. That kind of statistic would certainly shut down the critics, but the absense of that information suggests it isn't there (if it was, they'd be screaming it at us in defense of Oprah who is very popular).