What I've Been Reading (August 2023)
Traffic: Genius, Rivalry, and Delusion in the Billion-Dollar Race to Go Viral, by Ben Smith
Traffic: Account of the history of online publications like Gawker and Buzzfeed. It’s a fun book - especially since Smith, who was editor in chief of Buzzfeed news - is part of the story itself. It’s also a wistful look back at a more innocent time, when the internet felt a bit less serious and the stakes a bit lower: we weren’t debating whether Facebook could determine an election, but instead if The Dress was blue and black or white and gold.
I do wish it had gone more in-depth on one or two specific topics, as opposed to being more of a survey course. That being said, here are a few ideas and takeaways I appreciated:
“Snark v. Smarm”: Much of the book is set up to contrast Gawker (“Snark”) and Buzzfeed (“Smarm”). Ultimately, Smith seems to suggest, smarm (and Buzzfeed) ‘won." While Gawker was always enjoyable to read, it didn’t work as well in the social media age. While you might’ve enjoyed reading it, you didn’t want to be seen as the kind of person who enjoyed it given how snarky and negative it could be. (That being said, Caity Weaver’s piece on spending 14 hours in a T.G.I. Friday’s eating nothing but “endless mozzarella sticks” might be my favorite pieces of internet writing.1)
Value creation v. value capture: While they made huge contributions to “the culture,” (like the aforementioned dress) these publications didn’t capture much value for shareholders or employees. Buzzfeed, now a public company, is currently worth about $75 million, down from the $1.5b valuation it received in 2015. (For comparison, the New York Times Company is worth about $7.5b). Gawker declared bankruptcy after losing a lawsuit filed by Hulk Hogan where it was ordered to pay $140 million. One reason for Buzzfeed’s early success was their close relationship with Facebook - they’d share insights and perspectives on how Facebook could improve its news feed and algorithms, which would often benefit Buzzfeed. But as Facebook moved to privilege content from friends over external websites, Buzzfeed found itself as a disadvantage. Being the “flea on the elephant” can work for a small amount of time, but isn’t necessarily the safest long-term strategy.
How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures, by Sabrina Imbler: Essays on a number of a sea creatures, like pet goldfish who are released into the wild and become feral, growing to the size of melons or mother octopuses who starve to death while guarding their eggs. These essays are pretty cool on their own (and what I assumed the book was about when I saw it at my library), but what makes the book even better is how every essay is part science and part a personal essay or reflection by Imbler. What if we are like goldfish, just waiting for the right environment in which to flourish? How do people find communities in harsh environment, the way creatures living 30,000 feet under the sea do? Even if we don’t starve ourselves to death, how does becoming a parent change who we are? Definitely one of the more interesting books I read this year.
A close #2: The Awl on chopped salads.