<html>
<body>
<font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=5>Dear friend, relative,
acquaintance, or person who showed up in Bob McChesney’s address
book,<br>
<br>
My new book,
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Death-Life-American-Journalism-Revolution/dp/1568586051/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247782505&sr=1-1">
<i>The Death and Life of American Journalism</a></i>, which I wrote with
my friend John Nichols, has just been published this last week by Nation
Books. I think it is the best and most important book we have written,
and of the utmost importance. It provides a comprehensive and original
explanation of the current crisis in journalism, a critique of the
current favored “solutions” to the crisis, and an argument for strong
public subsidies to create a viable, independent news media. It is based
on years of research, but has been written to address the deep crisis of
the immediate moment and visible future. <br>
<br>
I hope this book will interest you and you will consider reading it. For
a taste of our argument, see last
<a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100125/nichols_mcchesney">
week’s</a>
<a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100125/nichols_mcchesney"> cover
story in
</a><a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100125/nichols_mcchesney"><i>
The Nation</a></i>. We also discussed the book with David Brancaccio on
<a href="http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/603/index.html">PBS’s NOW</a> on
Friday, January 15.<br>
<br>
The argument and the proposals we make are controversial and go against
the conventional wisdom, so we provide considerable original evidence to
make our case. The response from experts who have read the book has been
heartening. Lawrence Lessig calls it a “beautifully crafted and
compelling book.” Juan Gonzalez calls it “the best depiction yet of the
rapid disintegration of America’s old system of news.” Mark Crispin
Miller calls it a “landmark history/diagnosis of our current journalistic
crisis.” Dan Rather said “This is an important book. It offers many new
sunbursts of thought.” After reading the book, Naomi Klein said of us,
“no two people are more dedicated to the transformative, democratizing
power of journalism not as it is, but as it should be.”<br>
<br>
If you wish to purchase it online, in addition to
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Death-Life-American-Journalism-Revolution/dp/1568586051/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247782505&sr=1-1">
Amazon</a> or
<a href="http://www.powells.com/biblio/62-9781568586052-0">Powell's</a>
<a href="http://www.powells.com/biblio/62-9781568586052-0"> </a>or any
other vendor, you might consider ordering it through the website of a
local independent bookstore. (The website of an independent bookstore we
patronize in Madison, <a href="http://www.rainbowbookstore.org/">Rainbow
Books</a>, for example, is offering the book at a discount.) <br>
<br>
Please consider sending this email on to any friends you think might be
interested in the subject. Thanks for your time. I apologize if you get
this email more than once, but my address book is impossibly difficult to
edit, at least for me.<br>
<br>
If you do read the book, I would love to get your feedback.<br>
<br>
Happy new year.<br>
<br>
Bob McChesney<br>
<br>
PSFor my friends outside the United States, John and I think the book
may have value for other nations as they address their crises in
journalism as well. This is an international crisis.<br>
</font><br />--
<br />This message has been scanned for viruses and
<br />dangerous content by
<a href="http://www.mailscanner.info/"><b>MailScanner</b></a>, and is
<br />believed to be clean.
</body>
</html>