Not for me, but a sound tale for the internet era

After reading an article in a newspaper about this book and how public shaming has made a comeback via social media, I decided that this would be a perfect audiobook. I quite like listening to non-fiction (when reading non-fiction, I often need a fiction read on the go for escapism purposes). I can’t say I loved this book though – to me, it was uneven, spending a long time on some topics and a too short a time on others. The book is narrated by Jon Ronson himself. While it was interesting to have him read his own work, at times his voice lacked the power to keep me listening intently.

I’m kind of worried about publishing this review in case I should be publicly shamed or ridiculed but that’s the chance we all take when we share things with virtual strangers, people we know from pre-school and your cousin’s friend’s sister’s ex-boyfriend. Suddenly the world has become a much smaller place and everything on social media is there to be judged by others. Ronson starts with his name being taken over by a Tweetbot who likes strange food combinations. He feels like someone has taken his identity and he goes to reason with the perpetrators who see no issue with it. Ronson then goes on to discuss things with those who have been publicly shamed online, such as Jonah Lehrer (who invented/changes some lines in his book that were attributed to Bob Dylan), Justine Sacco (the infamous ‘hope I don’t get AIDS’ tweet which went viral while she was on a plane) and Lindsey Stone (photo next to a sign at a war cemetery saying ‘silence and respect’ while she’s doing the opposite). He interviews the person who was shamed and also if possible those who did/were involved in the outing.

It’s an interesting philosophy to see what those who shared the picture/retweeted the tweet have to say as is the shamed person’s reason for doing what they did. Pre internet, these photos and messages would have only been shared with a few people. Now everyone is the judge. I must admit that I hadn’t heard of most of the shamed people Ronson interviewed (most of this must explode on social media while I’m asleep) and those that ‘broke’ while I was online, I didn’t really follow. I actually thought Jonah Lehrer was ‘Joan Alhera’ or ‘Joe Nalhera’ for most of the audiobook. Ronson discusses with them how their life changed and how/if it getting back to normal. Justine Sacco went to volunteer in Africa. Lindsey Stone was aided by some digital media people to push down her results on Google by adding new blog posts.

The ending of the book is quite open. It didn’t really summarise or ask how (or if) public shaming can be controlled in the modern world. I felt it was a bit weak, more like a series of vignettes of people who had been shamed rather than examining human behaviour in general. Sure, Ronson does include some psychology in this field (like why you keep driving under the speed limit after one of those ‘Your speed is…’ signs) but it would have been good to include a deeper analysis.

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46 people found this helpful

Insightful, relevant and darkly funny

If you’re a fan of Ronson’s writing then you’ll love this. If you’ve ever witnessed, participated or been on the receiving end of social media embarrassment, this is particularly insightful. Just overall great observational reporting. Helps to ground you and remember the person the other side of a 240 character tweet.

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4 people found this helpful

important and challenging

loved it
memorable - responses to book on twitter so predicted by the discussions in the book (afterword). take the time to read all of it

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2 people found this helpful

A must

Jon Ronson is such a great narrator and writer. Everyone needs to read this book such an insightful view of the social media landscape and social justice warriors but also so much more than that!

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1 person found this helpful

Thoughtful insights on an important topic

This is an important issue to think about, we are in a shame and cancel culture and it is toxic and tragic. Jon explores the issues from a number of perspectives and interviews various people who have experienced a public shaming. It has given me a lot to think about, in terms of what I post on social media and how I respond to others on those platforms, and also in what advice to give younger people on interacting with the world in these ways.

It's a tough listen at times. I found myself quite triggered by the stories, the language and content of the posts he shares. I could only listen to it is small bursts, a lot of it is just so ugly and distressing. But I think it is worthwhile and important.

I struggled with Jon's delivery at times and had to listen on x1.3 in the end. But how can you really argue about about the author reading his own book, particularly when it is non-fiction and recounting of his own stories?!

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A great topic and a great exploration

Great book and very well researched (maybe the topic and content requires absolute tight referencing). The only improvement for me would have been to have a professional artist read the book for this production. Audio books work best with great writing, and great performances. Some authors can pull it off but not all. Just something to think about for the next one. Still, worth a listen to understand what WE can do with the power that technology has given us, the affects it can have, and potentially how we could manage the effects.

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Eye opening and genuinely thought provoking.

Review based on content only.

I am ashamed to say that cannot remember if I have ever played party to piling on someone on social media.
This book discusses a cutting topic and delves into the darker side that I believe may be present in us all.
All of the cases described, regardless of the back story, are honest and worrying.
I believe that he does a great job of separating his opinion whilst describing the various events. He really asked a lot of questions of me during this, forcing me to rack my brain in order to see if I have been part of the problem.
The truth is, I don't remember and I think that is part of the reasons this problem is so pervasive in society.
The fact that i/we could dispose of some sort of flippant remark on someone, whether for notoriety or genuine outraged, and forget about it and move on without having the feedback loop to show the impact is a massive flaw in how we currently interact with each other.
I don't have a fix for that problem, but I think reading/listening to this will help people make people aware.

Get the book, this is the first non fiction work I have listened to in 3-4 years.
The five stars are for a reason.

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People need to get off twitter and read this book

This book reminds us that we are all responsible for this shaming culture and have all been guilty of it. Having seen how destructive platforms like Twitter are, we need to stand up against these public pile ons and punishments. Well narrated by Jon Ronson.

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I was surprised how much I got from this book

I got this book as an editors choice. It was really easy to follow and for someone that's not on social media much it was really interesting

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Important book!

I think everybody who uses social media should read this book! Ronson deals with an absolute live grenade of a topic with respect and insight. Narrated by Salad Fingers himself. A very interesting and enjoyable listen.

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