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The Twittering Machine

How Capitalism Stole Our Social Life
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( 783 ratings, 117 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
The Twittering Machine by Richard Seymour delves into the intricate relationship between humans and social media platforms, particularly focusing on the psychological and societal impacts of constant connectivity. Seymour explores how social media has transformed human behaviour, sometimes to the detriment of our mental health and societal discourse. It offers an in-depth look at the potential perils of living in an environment dominated by algorithms and digital interaction.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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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 insightful exploration if you're intrigued by the influence of digital platforms on society and how they manipulate human behaviour. This book delves into the addictive nature of social media, examining its societal impacts and prompting us to question our engagement with technology. Ideal for readers interested in the intersection of technology, culture, and human psychology.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

If you really want to set yourself free, you should read a book preferably this one. Observer Book of the Week

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

In surrealist artist Paul Klee's The Twittering Machine, the bird-song of a diabolical machine acts as bait to lure humankind into a pit of damnation. Leading political writer and broadcaster Richard Seymour argues that this is a chilling metaphor for our relationships with social media.

Former social media executives tell us that the system is an addiction-machine. Like drug addicts, we are users, waiting for our next hit as we like, comment, and share. We write to the machine as individuals, but it responds by aggregating our fantasies, desires, and frailties into data, returning them to us as a commodity experience.

Through journalism, psychoanalytic reflection, and interviews with users, developers, security experts, and others, Seymour probes the human side of this machine, asking what we're getting out of it, and what we're getting into.

'If you really want to set yourself free, you should read a book - preferably this one.' - Observer's Book of the Week

'Richard Seymour has a brilliant mind and a compelling style. Everything he writes is worth reading.' - Gary Younge, The Guardian

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?

The book by Richard Seymour offers a critical examination of social media's pervasive influence on our lives, analysing how it manipulates and impacts us. Critics praise it for its incisive and compelling arguments that explore the spread of disinformation and the socio-psychological dynamics of online interactions. It is described as a thrilling and thought-provoking read, lauded for its blend of acute psychological analysis and historical context, making it a recommended read for understanding the social media landscape.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781999683382

Publisher: The Indigo Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 15 August 2019

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: The Indigo Press

Illustration: 1 Illustrations, black and white

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 11.0mm

Width: 138.0mm

Height: 216.0mm

Weight: 206g

Pages: 226

About the Author

Richard SeymourΒ is a writer and broadcaster from Northern Ireland and the author of numerous books about politics includingΒ Against AusterityΒ and Β Corbyn: The Strange Rebirth of Radical Politics. His writing appears in theΒ The New York Times, theΒ London Review of Books, theΒ Guardian,Β Prospect,Β Jacobin, and innumerable other places including his own Patreon. He is an editor atΒ SalvageΒ magazine.

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