Amy Graham vs. Genghis Kahn: Digital Revolution Smackdown

3 mins read

Today, we’ll be featuring a debate between two experts on the so-called Digital Revolution in publishing, Genghis Khan, and our own Amy Graham.

Kenny Brechner: While some people are excited that the walls of traditional publishing are threatened by an environment in which everyone can publish content online, others believe that the filters of traditional publishing are a vital part of maintaining the integrity of literature. Genghis let’s start with you.

Genghis Kahn: I’m in love with everything digital, the whole thing is like a virus which saps people’s strength, a knife which cuts the ties that bind and a solvent that dissolves the glue that holds structures together. It’s like racing to storm a walled city and finding that the walls are already down, and the defenders staggering around in a drunken stupor. The possibilities here are incredible!

Amy Graham: While it’s exciting to have all this information at our fingertips, no one has the time to first of all sort through it for quality, and secondly to determine the integrity of its authorship and its information.

KB: Is see. Genghis do you not see any downside here?

Genghis: Let’s face it, at this point Civilization is just a bonfire waiting to happen, and digitization is the torch. The mad delirium of unregulated expression can only end in cleansing with fire and sword. Where is the Khwarezmian Empire now? In the same hollow grave that awaits you all!

Amy: I think Genghis and I have different hopes for the future. Traditional publishing may not be perfect, but it serves a vital purpose. Not just in separating the wheat from the chaff, but in editing the wheat.

KB: Good point. Hmmn. Moving on, are there any books that have particularly delighted you lately?

Genghis: Well, I have to admit that I love Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey Maturin novels. Jack was a great man, he knew wisdom, his leadership was very strong, and he was formidable at the table. Maturin’s cunning is something we all could learn from. Very enjoyable.

Amy: I enjoyed The Cookbook Collector, by Allegra Goodman. It has great character development, reminiscent of Austen, and is set in turn of the this last century. I haven’t read a book I so thoroughly enjoyed in quite some time.

KB: Excellent. Thank you both.

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