E.J. and Nate have censored this post for reasons that are probably obvious.
I swore to myself that I would never write about Amazon, pricing, price checking, and the suckery of NPR ever again, but then of course, NPR has to go and run this insipidly stupid piece about a “predatory” Amazon.
I’m half-tempted to go back to my normal argument that of course they’re predatory, in much the same way all corporations are predatory and take advantage of the system as it exists and tax loopholes and economies of scale and all of that shit. Bottomline: corporations only exist to make money, not to make the world a better place.
Does that disturb me? Hell yes it does. I’m a pretty anti-corporate person, but trying to change the nature of Amazon by complaining that what they’re doing is unfair seems similar to trying to convince people to read translations because it will “make the world a better place.” Not to go all 2002 on this subject, but this is a time when the phrase “don’t hate the playa, hate the game” is pretty fitting.
But I don’t want to talk about Amazon in this post . . . Instead I want to talk about how NPR sucks and is helping make this conversation about Amazon and other corporations really stupid and middlebrow and unproductive.
Let’s start with a little thing called timing. Aside from the bit about Nancy Pearl’s new book series (which no publisher would touch until Amazon decides to publish it at which point everything is EVIL), everything in this article is at least a month old. The Price Check App? We burned that bridge long ago.
And then there’s those pesky little things we call “facts.” This article, which is as typically lazy as all NPR journalism is, implies that the Price Check App applied to books, which is PATENTLY NOT TRUE. But why bother researching things when you can just throw shit at a wall and create a “controversy” by just riding whatever opinions get you the most hits.
But the thing I really want to get at is how this article actually impairs any sort of intellectual discussion about the corporation vs. culture situation. Check this quote from O’Reilly’s publisher, Joe Wikert:
“The word ‘predator’ is pretty strong, and I don’t use it loosely,” he says, “but . . . I could have sworn we had laws against predatory pricing. I just don’t understand why that’s not an issue — because that’s got to be hurting other device makers out there in trying to capture this market.”
Now what should follow this quote? If NPR had any journalistic balls, they would do a bit of research into anti-trust laws, and explain whether Amazon is violating something or not. If not, the discussion could be about whether anti-trust laws need to be updated, or why they’ve been corroded over the past half-century and what that’s resulted int. THAT would be an interesting article, and a fucking useful one.
Does NPR go in that direction?
But Wikert is also well aware that Amazon has made life very convenient for consumers.
GAAAAGGH! This is not journalism, this is explaining that we need air to breathe. Well done,
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My plans for the weekend? Head to the stable and groom and ride my fav horse, read some Canterwood Crest, Harry Potter and horse books, and watch the season premiere of the show heartland!!!!
Ballet and studying Chinese. I hope Kate gets well very soon! Unfortunately, I live a long way away from Rochester, so I won't be able to participate in the signing. I don't want to say exactly where I live, but it is in the West Coast/Sierra Nevada area, so if you could go there for a signing....
AWESOME, i soooo wished i lived in Minesotta, i'm glad that kate might stop having that icky pain. My plans are basically studying, knitting, reading, and looking at lipsmacker lipgloss and wishing what flavor i want next :D
Well tomarrow I have my first horse 4-H meeting and I am suuuupppppeeerrrr excited!!!!! After I am gonna come home and go to our barn to spend some time with my paint horse, Patches. He's a handfull but I'll live:)
P.S. I hope Kate will get well soon and you will have a great turnout for the signing. I wish I could come but I live in the north east part of the US:(
studying Latin, homework, relax, maybe ride, relax, homework, and then more Latin.
Have a great weekend, hope you have a good turnout at B&N.Kate is so going to beat her pain!
Had a soccer game today, friends coming ovah. Going to Falcon Fest, going to a church party. It's a chill-weekend.
Yup, I'm definitely going to be there. :) And I'm bringing a friend too. :)
Cheerleading and reading and studying for tests. Hope K is feeling well praying for her! Please come to the B&N in Cary, NC it would make me really hsppy and probably alot of other people!