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In the days before social media 鈥� and, presumably, media training 鈥� Gerald Ratner鈥檚 description of some of the products sold in his chain of jewellers as 鈥渢otal crap鈥� became a byword for the corporate gaffe. Recently the chief executive of publisher Hachette Livre, Arnaud Nourry, seems to have suffered his own 鈥淩atner moment鈥� when he described ebooks in an as a 鈥渟tupid product鈥�.
The interview, which was intended to address the future of digital publishing and specific issues facing the Indian publishing market, was widely misquoted and Nourry鈥檚 comments taken out of context. But there is no denying the fact that the publisher criticises his own industry (鈥淲e鈥檙e not doing very well鈥�) and attacks ebooks for lacking creativity, not enhancing the reading experience in any way and not offering readers a 鈥渞eal鈥� digital experience.
Some commenters on social media welcomed Nourry鈥檚 comments for their honesty. They highlight his seeming support for the idea that publishers should be championing writers and artists working to exploit the creative potential of digital formats to provide readers with experiences that may be challenging and disruptive, but also exhilarating and boundary pushing.
But many of the 1,000-plus commenters reacting to coverage of the story on The spoke out against 鈥渇iddling for the sake of it鈥� 鈥� claiming they were not interested in enhanced features or 鈥済amified dancing baloney鈥� borrowed from other media. They also listed the many practical enhancements that ebooks and ereaders do offer. The obvious one is the ability to instantly download books in remote locations where there are no bricks and mortar bookstores. But there are other less obvious enhancements, including being able to instantly access dictionary and encyclopedia entries (at least if you have wifi access) and the option to have the book read to you if you have visual impairments.
Elsewhere, Australian researcher has shown how users of Kindle ereaders adapt features such as Highlights and Public Notes for social networking, demonstrating that even if ebooks are not that intrinsically innovative or creative, that doesn鈥檛 necessarily mean that they can鈥檛 be made so by imaginative users.
Nourry clearly isn鈥檛 averse to the provocative soundbite 鈥� in the same interview he went on to say: 鈥淚鈥檓 not a good swallower鈥� when asked about mergers and conglomeration in the publishing industry. On the other hand, he also seems very aware of the special place of books and reading in 鈥渃ulture, education, democracy鈥� 鈥� so his use of the word 鈥渟tupid鈥� in this context is particularly inflammatory and insensitive.
Dear reader
My research on digital reading has taught me that debating books vs ereaders is always likely to arouse strong passions and emotions. Merely mentioning the word Kindle has led in some instances to my being shouted at 鈥� and readers of 鈥渄ead tree鈥� books are rightly protective and passionate about the sensory and aesthetic qualities of physical books that the digital version possibly can鈥檛 compete with.
But, equally, my research has shown that enhancements in terms of accessibility and mobility offer a lifeline to readers who might not be able to indulge their passion for reading without the digital.
In my latest project, academics from Bournemouth and Brighton universities, in collaboration with (a participatory media company), worked with readers to produce digital stories based on their reading lives and histories. A recurring theme, especially among older participants, was the scarcity of books in their homes and the fact that literacy and education couldn鈥檛 be taken for granted. Our stories also demonstrated how intimately reading is connected with self-worth and helps transform lives disrupted by physical and mental health issues 鈥� making comments about any reading as 鈥渟tupid鈥� particularly damaging and offensive.
I would like to know if Nourry would still call ebooks stupid products after watching Mary Bish鈥檚 story: from our project. A lifelong reader who grew up in a home in industrial South Wales with few books, Mary calls her iPad her 鈥渂est friend鈥� and reflects how before the digital age her reading life would have been cut short by macular degeneration.
As well as demonstrating that fairly basic digital tools can be used to create powerful stories, our project showed that the digital also makes us appreciate anew those features of the physical book we may take for granted, the and the special place that a book from generation to generation has in the context of family life.
, Professor of English and New Media,
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