A review by servemethesky
Extremely Online: The Untold Story of Fame, Influence, and Power on the Internet by Taylor Lorenz
funny
informative
medium-paced
4.75
Three cheers for Taylor Lorenz! While some reviewers said this book had nothing new to offer, I see it quite differently. There are plenty of books talking about the evolution of various social media platforms, yes, but Lorenz chronicles the evolution of these platforms while focusing on the growth of the creator industry and exploring how the internet democratized fame and influencer. It's a fascinating story that will only be more and more relevant in the years to come. A few miscellaneous thoughts:
-So many of the older generation/legacy institutions still do not understand online culture or how much power and influence online creators hold, and it's to their own detriment.
-It was quite funny to read about things like Fuck Yeah blogs on Tumblr as historical content.
-This started to drag a bit toward the end and then ended pretty abruptly.
All in all, an excellent thorough investigation of what life on the internet has been like, the value of paying creators, and how much power creators truly have. Yes, some of these platforms are practically monopolies and are only motivated by profit, but the creators have power too and should yield it wisely to influence the internet for the better.
Also, damn her cover designers did her dirty with this one.
-So many of the older generation/legacy institutions still do not understand online culture or how much power and influence online creators hold, and it's to their own detriment.
-It was quite funny to read about things like Fuck Yeah blogs on Tumblr as historical content.
-This started to drag a bit toward the end and then ended pretty abruptly.
All in all, an excellent thorough investigation of what life on the internet has been like, the value of paying creators, and how much power creators truly have. Yes, some of these platforms are practically monopolies and are only motivated by profit, but the creators have power too and should yield it wisely to influence the internet for the better.
Also, damn her cover designers did her dirty with this one.