Why People No Longer Read Books | Between the Lines with Palki Sharma
Summary
TLDRThis video script serves as an obituary for the written word, reflecting on the decline of reading in the digital age. It highlights how distractions like smartphones and social media have reduced the time spent on books. Despite this, the script notes a slight resurgence in reading during the pandemic and a shift towards self-help and personal development books in India. It emphasizes the irreplaceable joy of reading and calls for a return to the habit, suggesting that the love for books might yet defy the trend.
Takeaways
- 📚 The script serves as an 'obituary' for the written word, reflecting on the decline of reading books in the digital age.
- 🌐 The global trend shows a significant reduction in the time spent reading books, with many people not picking up a book for days, months, or even years.
- 📈 The script highlights the historical significance of books, from the first printed book, the Diamond Sutra, to the Gutenberg Bible and the best-selling book, the Bible.
- 📉 There's a noted decrease in reading among the younger generation, with only 26% of under-18s reading daily according to a 2019 survey.
- 📱 The rise of digital addiction, particularly smartphone usage, is identified as a major factor contributing to the decline in reading habits.
- 📊 The pandemic saw a temporary increase in reading as people were at home, but this was not sustained post-pandemic.
- 📖 In India, the shift towards reading self-help and personal development books post-pandemic is seen as a positive change.
- 📉 Global book sales have declined, with 2022 seeing a more than 10% drop compared to 2021, and the lowest revenue in five years.
- 🏪 Bookstores are closing at an alarming rate, especially in countries like Japan, where there's been a 30% drop since 2012.
- 🔍 Despite the decline, there's hope that the experience of reading a book cannot be replaced by short social media posts or videos, and there's a call to action for people to continue reading.
Q & A
What is the main theme of the video script?
-The main theme of the video script is the decline of reading books and the impact of digital media on the reading habits of people.
When was the first printed book, the Diamond Sutra, created?
-The Diamond Sutra was printed on 11th May in 868 A.D.
What is the significance of the Gutenberg Bible in the history of books?
-The Gutenberg Bible is significant as it was the first mass-produced book, marking a major milestone in the history of printing and the dissemination of knowledge.
Which book has sold the most copies worldwide?
-The Bible is the best-selling book ever, with more than seven billion copies sold.
What is the most expensive book ever sold, and who purchased it?
-The most expensive book ever sold is the Codex Leicester, which is Leonardo da Vinci's science diary, purchased by Bill Gates in 1994 for 30.8 million dollars.
How did the pandemic affect reading habits according to the script?
-The pandemic saw a shift in reading habits, with people spending more time at home and many taking to reading books, leading to an increase in the average time spent reading in the US from 19 to 20 minutes in 2020.
What is the current trend in book sales according to the script?
-Global book sales were down by more than 10% compared to the previous year, and the global revenue was the lowest in five years, indicating a decline in the traditional book market.
Why are bookstores closing at an alarming rate in some countries, as mentioned in the script?
-Bookstores are closing at an alarming rate in some countries due to the shift towards online book purchases, e-books, and audiobooks, as well as the decline in traditional reading habits.
What is the impact of social media and digital media on reading, as discussed in the script?
-Social media and digital media are impacting reading by reducing attention spans and promoting instant gratification, which leaves little room for the quiet contemplation that books offer.
What is the script's stance on the future of reading?
-While the script acknowledges the decline in traditional reading, it also suggests that there is hope, as some people continue to read physical books and the value of reading is irreplaceable for understanding intricate plots and exploring human emotions.
How does the script encourage viewers to engage with books?
-The script encourages viewers to pick up a book and share what they are reading, emphasizing the unique experience that books provide compared to digital media.
Outlines
📚 The Decline of Reading and the Written Word
The script begins by highlighting the rarity of reading in the modern world, where distractions like phones and TVs have largely replaced the act of reading books. It poses the question of when was the last time the audience read a book without any distractions. The paragraph discusses the historical significance of books, from the first printed book, the Diamond Sutra, to the Gutenberg Bible, and the evolution of book formats. It also mentions the Bible as the best-selling book and the Codex Leicester as the most expensive book. The paragraph concludes by pointing out the decline in reading habits, especially among younger generations, due to digital addiction and the rise of social media.
📉 Shifts in Reading Trends and the Impact of Technology
This paragraph delves into the changes in reading habits post-pandemic, particularly among urban Indians who have shown an increased interest in self-help and personal development books. It contrasts the decline in book sales globally and the challenges faced by publishers and bookstores, such as closures and layoffs. The paragraph emphasizes the shift towards online book purchases, e-books, and audiobooks, and the cultural shift away from traditional reading. It also touches on the instant gratification provided by social media and short-form content, which has diminished the time and attention people give to reading books. The paragraph ends on a hopeful note, suggesting that the experience of reading a book is irreplaceable and that there are still those who value and continue to read physical books.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Obituary
💡Digital Addiction
💡Printed Word
💡Bookstore
💡Reading
💡Harry Potter Series
💡Self-Help Books
💡Global Book Sales
💡Instant Gratification
💡Codex Leicester
💡Gutenberg Bible
Highlights
The obituary is for the written word, suggesting a decline in reading books.
Reading books has become less frequent for many, with some not picking up a book for days, months, or even years.
The first ever printed book was the Diamond Sutra, dating back to 868 A.D.
The Gutenberg Bible was the first mass-produced book, marking a significant advancement in printing.
Paperbacks were popular among students and the working class due to their affordability.
The Bible is the best-selling book of all time, with over seven billion copies sold.
The most expensive book ever is Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Leicester, purchased by Bill Gates for 30.8 million dollars.
The Harry Potter series sold millions of copies, with the books' length able to circle the equator 16 times if placed end to end.
Books have been integral to many people's childhoods, sparking imagination and curiosity.
Digital addiction is a significant factor contributing to the decline in reading habits.
A study found that teens struggle to focus on homework for more than two minutes without digital distractions.
In 2019, only 26 percent of individuals under 18 were reading every day, indicating a significant drop in reading rates.
The pandemic saw a temporary increase in reading as people spent more time at home.
In 2021, the average American read 12.6 books, down from 15.6 in 2016, showing a continued decline in reading habits.
More than 50 percent of adults did not finish a single book in 2021, highlighting a stark trend.
In India, post-pandemic, there's a shift towards reading self-help and personal development books, especially among urban readers.
Global book sales in 2022 were down by more than 10 percent compared to 2021, with revenue being the lowest in five years.
Bookstores are closing at an alarming rate, with Japan experiencing a 30 percent drop since 2012.
Reading a book requires unplugging from digital distractions, which is becoming increasingly difficult in the modern world.
Despite the challenges, there is hope for reading as some continue to read physical books and find value in the experience.
Transcripts
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foreign
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obituaries we see them in the news all
the time in a world of 8 billion odd
people more than a hundred thousand die
every day but today's obituary is a
little different it's not about a person
it is an obituary for the written word
AKA books it may sound absurd but it
will make sense
when was the last time you picked up a
book when was the last time you spent
hours just reading no phones no TVs no
distractions just pure Blissful reading
for some of us the answer could be
yesterday or in fact even today
but for most people the answer is days
months or even years
the age will pass time of flipping Pages
seems long gone reading has met its
untimely demise books are gathering dust
bookstores are shutting shop libraries
are being replaced by the internet do
you wonder why
hello and welcome to between the lines
I'm palki Sharma and on this show we'll
try to read between the lines the stated
and the unstated the obvious and the
hidden to bring you the full story
foreign
[Music]
do you remember your first book for many
of us it would be a book of nursery
rhymes or numbers or the alphabet
do you know what was the first ever
printed book
this one
the diamond Sutra no one is sure why it
was printed
but we do know this
on 11th May in 868 A.D a man called Wong
ji commissioned a block printer he asked
him to create a 17 and a half foot long
Scroll of sacred Buddhist texts
this is the earliest printed book we
know of
then came the printing press
this invention changed the game it gave
us the first mass-produced book
the Gutenberg Bible
then there were paperbacks
they were very popular among students in
the working class they were followed by
a more durable option hardbound books
and these versions have been around for
centuries you know what's the best
selling book ever the Bible more than
seven billion copies of the Bible have
been sold so far the most expensive book
is the Codex Leicester it's basically
Leonardo da Vinci's science diary Bill
Gates bought it in 1994 for 30.8 million
dollars today it could be worth over 50
million dollars
now not all books are this expensive
but they sure are Priceless like the
Harry Potter series in the early 2000s
millions of Harry Potter books were sold
if all Harry Potter books sold were to
be placed back to back they would go
around the equator 16 times
tells you a lot right
for many of us books defined our
childhood the huge feasts in the famous
five left us hungry you wanted to become
a detective like Nancy Drew Harry Potter
made you wish Hogwarts were real
amarchitra Katha made history
interesting books created a magical
world a world you could disappear into
for hours
so why is that world disappearing now
for many reasons but the most notable
one is this our digital addiction
most of us now live in our phones if you
are watching this video uninterrupted
congratulations you're part of a rare
few
but if you pause this video check the
notifications scroll your Instagram feed
looked at some tweets and have now come
back to this video well welcome back
you're now part of the New World Order
a world that is easily distracted look
at this study it observed teens doing
their homework they were told to work on
an assignment the time given was 15
minutes but most of them could not last
even two minutes without texting or
checking social media
children are reading less now than ever
before in 2019 a survey proved this a
survey of people under 18 years of age
only 26 percent of them were reading
every day sounds dismal it is
the figures are lower than any other
generation young people are not reading
enough many of them said they did not
enjoy it they found reading to be a
futile task and this was a global survey
but India has no exception
although the reasons are different in
India teens are not reading not because
they don't want to but in a lot of cases
because they're burdened by their
studies
fun fact the pandemic saw a shift in
this trend people were at home and many
of them took to reading books we had
some data from the US and average
American spent 20 minutes reading a book
in 2020.
this was an increase of 21 from 2019 but
that's hardly enough to revive reading
in 2021 an average American read 12.6
books in a year that's down from 15.6 in
2016. more than 50 percent of adults did
not finish even a single book in 2021.
in India the trend is a little different
reading was revived after the pandemic
especially for urban Indians but what
they read has changed young Indians are
reading more self-help books
a books on personal development the
numbers are higher than ever before and
that's a good thing any kind of reading
adds value
it's not for nothing that they say books
are your best friends and social media
is undeniably driving a wedge there
it is feasting on our attention spans
leaving little room for the quiet
contemplation that books once offered
why get lost in a Dickens novel when you
can skim through 280 character hot takes
on Twitter
plus there is a Relentless assault of
videos cat reels main compilations
places you must visit they too play a
role in this tragedy who needs to read
when they can watch a 10 second video of
a cat playing a piano
reading it seems is just too slow now
too tedious for our modern sensibilities
and it shows in the numbers again I have
figures from 2022 Book Sales Global Book
Sales were down by more than 10 compared
to 2021. Global Revenue was the lowest
in five years it was around 76 billion
dollars publishing houses are shutting
down like Amazon's Westland
for those that are not shutting shop
there's more trouble like layoffs at the
penguin random house it's the biggest
book publisher in the United States so
teens are not interested Publishers are
in trouble and bookstores are now ghost
towns in some countries they're closing
at an alarming rate like Japan there are
currently
close to 12 000 stores operating in
Japan that's a 30 drop since 2012.
basically people are not reading books
and those who do are buying online or
reading ebooks or listening to
audiobooks although technically people
are not necessarily reading less we read
all the time news alerts articles emails
tweets messages ads but to read a book
you must delve into it to enter the
story you have to unplug and that's what
people are increasingly failing to do
which is a shame to be honest there is
no other experience like reading a book
the pleasure of untangling intricate
plots of deciphering hidden metaphors
understanding history and Concepts and
exploring the depths of human emotion
it has been obliterated by the the
instant gratification of emojis and GIFs
which brings me back to the question is
reading really dead
this is the age of the image and yet
there is some hope I call this episode
an obituary in the beginning maybe that
was premature thanks to those who
stubbornly continue to defy the trend
clutching their paperbacks maybe they
will inspire others and while we are in
the business of making videos we cannot
deny that the best stories cannot be
told in 280 characters or captured in a
fleeting clip or reel
they need a good old book
so pick one and tell us what you're
reading we look forward to hearing from
you
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