How Germany Keeps Amazon at Bay and Literary Culture Alive

[HiPointDem]

89. "part of a privileged few". exactly. the same as the unknown "self-published" authors amazon

touts who've succeeded in coming to public attention.

amazon's talking points are as honest as its list of "self-published" authors; easy to "self-publish" when you own the publishing business:

william blake: owned a printing business.
james joyce: paid to have a political pamphlet printed as a student.
william morris: rich man who owned two magazies and a small press (kelmscott press)
walt whitman: founded his own newspaper, the Long Islander (still extant).
virginia woolf: owned a small press with her husband (hogarth press).

and that's *fake* populism, btw.

the kind of fake populism that touts even bigger global monopolists as "good for the people".

oh, & btw: a well-known blogger like the rude pundit makes less than a reporter used to & has double the expenses.

and no, quality won't necessarily get you eyes. what gets you eyes is mostly having friends in high places to talk you up in high-profile outlets and the magic of big money behind the scenes.