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People Get Ready

The Fight Against a Jobless Economy and a Citizenless Democracy
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( 125 ratings, 15 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
People Get Ready by Robert W. McChesney and John Nichols is a compelling exploration of the accelerating relationship between technological advancements and democracy. It addresses the impact of automation and digital communication on employment, political participation, and economic inequality. Through a detailed examination, the authors advocate for proactive measures to ensure technology serves the societal good rather than exacerbating existing disparities.
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Format: Hardback
$9100

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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you are interested in understanding the intersection of media, politics, and democracy in the modern digital age. The authors explore how changes in communication technology impact political discourse and the challenges faced by democratic institutions. This read may appeal to those who are passionate about media reform and its implications for future political systems.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

This rousing critique sounds the alarm on how job automation, combined with stagnant capitalism, will generate unemployment and misery. The only solution is a renewal of democracy that lets citizens-not multinational corporations-chart the future.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Humanity is on the verge of its darkest hour—or its greatest moment. The consequences of the technological revolution are about to hit hard: unemployment will spike as new technologies replace labour in the manufacturing, service, and professional sectors of an economy that is already struggling.

The end of work as we know it will hit at the worst moment imaginable: as capitalism fosters permanent stagnation, when the labour market is in decrepit shape, with declining wages, expanding poverty, and scorching inequality. Only the dramatic democratisation of our economy can address the existential challenges we now face.

Yet, the US political process is so dominated by billionaires and corporate special interests, by corruption and monopoly, that it stymies not just democracy but progress.

The great challenge of these times is to ensure that the tremendous benefits of technological progress are employed to serve the whole of humanity, rather than to enrich the wealthy few. Robert W. McChesney and John Nichols argue that the United States needs a new economy in which revolutionary technologies are applied to effectively address environmental and social problems and used to rejuvenate and extend democratic institutions.

Based on intense reporting, rich historical analysis, and deep understanding of the technological and social changes that are unfolding, they propose a bold strategy for democratising our digital destiny, before it's too late—and unleashing the real power of the Internet, and of humanity.

People Get Ready offers a compelling vision for a future where technological advancements benefit all of humanity, not just an elite few.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

People Get Ready by Robert W. McChesney and John Nichols is a spirited critique of inequality and underemployment, analysing these issues through the neglected American progressive story. The narrative urges radical reforms to reclaim power from corporations and envisions transforming digital technology positively, provided the public is engaged and informed. Acclaimed figures like Naomi Klein and Noam Chomsky praise its compelling arguments for resisting concentrated economic powers and striving for societal improvements.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781568585215

Publisher: Avalon Publishing Group

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 08 March 2016

Country: United States

Imprint: Nation Books

Illustration: charts and graphs

Audience: Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 38.0mm

Width: 166.0mm

Height: 236.0mm

Weight: 660g

Pages: 368

About the Author

John Nichols, a pioneering political blogger, has written The Nation's Online Beat since 1999, is their Washington, DC, correspondent, and is a contributing writer for The Progressive and In These Times. He is also the associate editor of the Capital Times, the daily newspaper in Madison, Wisconsin, and a cofounder of Free Press. His articles have appeared in the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and dozens of other newspapers, and he frequently appears on MSNBC, NPR, BBC and other broadcast media outlets as a commentator on politics and media issues. Nichols lives in Madison, WI, and Washington, DC.Robert W. McChesney is the Gutgsell Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the author or editor of 23 books. His work has been translated into 30 languages. He is the cofounder of Free Press, a national media reform organization. In 2008, the Utne Reader listed McChesney among their 50 visionaries who are changing the world." He lives in Madison, WI.

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