Book Reviews
You Are What You Read: Learn About Propaganda
The internet has greatly changed the information environment. People now have access to far more information than ever before, and from greater distances instantaneously. This means a person is no longer reliant on a major news outlet alone to receive information about a far-flung place – they can just as likely interact with people in that distant land online through social networks, forums or other internet-based media. While the internet has presented the opportunity to become better acquainted with the world, it has also facilitated the manipulation of information and perspectives at alarming rates.
Considering the average person now spends 8 hours a day consuming media (more than 10 hours for those living in the Americas and Eastern Europe), often on multiple devices at once, people are essentially plugging into a media matrix whereby, on one hand, they can access more information than ever before, and on the other, are positioned to be more susceptible to manipulation.
How prepared are you for this new, fast-paced and immersive information environment?
Below is a collection of book reviews aimed at helping you cope in a Digital Age. Fostering a better understanding of how the media matrix works and some are using it to shape your perspective can help you control your own experience.
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This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things
This book is amazing. Full stop. This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things by Whitney Phillips…

Snow Crash
At some point earlier this year someone wrote an article related to information warfare that…

Fantasyland
While the results of the 2016 U.S. presidential election weren’t as surprising around here, if they…

The Influencing Machine
I was recently given a copy of The Influencing Machine for speaking at a NATO…

Carnage and Connectivity
Carnage and Connectivity: Landmarks in the Decline of Conventional Military Power by Dr. David Betz is…

Propaganda, Power and Persuasion: From World War I to Wikileaks
Most of the propaganda books I have read to date have been by a single…

Post-Truth: The New War on Truth and How to Fight Back
Post-Truth: The New War on Truth and How to Fight Back by Matthew D’Ancona is…

The Hybrid Media System: Politics and Power
Andrew Chadwick’s book, The Hybrid Media System: Politics and Power, offers a much-needed understanding on…

Five Came Back
If you haven’t tuned into the new series “Five Came Back” yet – and are…

The Fourth Revolution
What Dr. Luciano Floridi puts forward in The Fourth Revolution: How the infosphere is reshaping human…

Propaganda and Counter-Terrorism
Dr. Emma Briant’s book Propaganda and Counter-Terrorism: Strategies for Global Change is a timely and must-read…

Invisible Influence
I should probably preface what follows with the fact that I am a big fan of…

Propaganda & Persuasion
If your aim is to really understand propaganda, this is the one book you absolutely must…

The Mind Club
The Mind Club is an amazing book. It’s the sort of rare non-fiction book a reader can just…

Predictably Irrational & (Dis)Honesty
Someone recently asked me for recommendations on Behavioural Economists, and I am kicking myself for…

Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
La Generalista Review For anyone interested in how our minds can be persuaded – even when…

Spin
Spin is an extremely enjoyable read. A talented communicator, Clive Veroni writes in a simple and clear…

Propaganda: The Formation of Men’s Attitudes
What La Generalista has to say: Ellul’s work, Propaganda: The Formation of Men’s Attitudes, is…

True Enough
What La Generalista has to say: While published a few years ago, True Enough is…

What Every Russian Knows (and You Don’t)
What La Generalista has to say: What a lovely book! Anyone studying or interested in…

The Caucasus: An Introduction
What La Generalista has to say: For some, this book is quite controversial – I…

McMafia
What La Generalista has to say: “McMafia” is an excellent read. This is an insightful…

Nothing Is True and Everything Is Possible
What La Generalista has to say: Pomerantsev’s book is certainly an entertaining and compelling read.…

Notes from the Internet Apocalypse
What La Generalista has to say: Wonderful satire of our virtual world and the perils…

4 Books to Feed Your Brain
As Joseph Addison was to have said, “reading is to the mind what exercise is…

Trust Me, I’m Lying
What La Generalista has to say: This is a must-read, tell-it-like-it-is book chronicling the state of…

Propaganda
What La Generalista has to say: From the father of modern public relations (and nephew…

Propaganda: Power and Persuasion
What La Generalista has to say: This is a tidy, pictorial history of modern propaganda.…

Spinfluence
What La Generalista has to say: Spinfluence is an entertaining and easy-to-read primer on all…

Contagious
Contagious: Why Things Catch On by Jonah Berger is an insightful study of what sort of…