It's Ok to Be Angry About Capitalism and Hypocritial About It Too

 

 

Bernie Sanders is one of those figures in our culture that either engenders deep like or dislike as the poster child of the "left". I like and appreciate his voice as one of the few that points out that the "emperor has no clothes" in our oligarchy of special interests that control things like never before, though I sometimes question the practicality of some of his visions. I was excited about this book which really says nothing new about the state of affairs to anyone paying attention, but is good to hear from a voice of such power like a broken record keeping us on our toes.. Unfortunately it sits on a foundation that undercuts everything it is trying to say.

 Sanders rightly points out the inequities of our society, while pointing to those who have their thumbs on the scale, namely a corporate oligarchy that controls our media and politics and our economic system. For this reason, I am perplexed as to why Penguin Random House was chosen to be the publisher. Penguin Random House is one of the largest concentrations of publishing power in history and the world's largest general book publisher. Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster are two members of what’s called the “Big Five” of publishing, with the other three slots filled by HarperCollins, Hachette, and Macmillan. The Big Five control roughly 80 percent of the trade market for books in the US, and Penguin Random House, with a market share of 25 percent in 2020, is the biggest one of all.

The irony and hypocrisy of a book slamming capitalism that makes no effort to seek out other avenues for publishing dilutes this books message in the sort of hypocrisy that often gets pointed to in our political leaders. He could have easily chosen to publish online in eBook format where proceeds would go directly to him and his organization and not filtered through layers of mega publisher toll taking bureaucracy.  I could make such an eBook in a few minutes. He could have gone the route of science fiction author Cory Doctorow by allowing free downloads, yet selling the print version.

As for print publishing, he could have chosen Vermont's own Chelsea Green Publishing which is known for their publications on progressive politics and sustainable living and is employee owned. Not only is the publisher from his state and has a 40 year history, but their focus is also on the same issues championed by Sanders. I am looking forward to reading the new Dougald Hine book below that just came out from Chelsea Green. I try to make an effort to buy books from such publishers when possible.

 

 The irony of a book decrying the evils of capitalism being published by a company like Penguin Random House that is in many ways the epitome of those evils, weakens the books message. Smaller presses are always struggling to survive in a world where behemoths like Penguin Random House dominate the market,marginalize them and push them out.  So why is Sanders book supporting them and enacting its own mini contribution to the de facto capitalist nightmare?

 The only argument for going with a big publisher would be to use their advertising and reach, but that should not be a problem for a global figure like Sanders who could easily self publish and still sell millions of books.

In the end, the choice was one that bleeds the book of its internal message because of its external bonds with one of the very types of organizations he rails against. As Marshall McLuhan once wrote: "The medium is the message.", so why not a better medium?