Nonfiction Publishing, Under Threat, Is More Important

(newrepublic.com)

20 points | by Hooke 3 days ago

4 comments

  • throwaway27448 2 minutes ago
    This is the first I've heard that Tattered Cover was purchased by Barnes and Noble. I am disgusted. B&N has demonstrated again and again that they do not know how to build or run a bookstore.
  • bryanrasmussen 3 hours ago
    the original title is: Nonfiction Publishing, Under Threat, Is More Important Than Ever

    which totally fits, did HN's title algorithm cut that off? If so it seems silly. "Than ever" is an important modifier, otherwise someone is apt to think that the subject is more important than some other opposing subject, in this case that Nonfiction publishing is more important than fiction publishing. Anyway I think the "than ever" should be added back in

    • Gander5739 2 hours ago
      It's not a title algorithm, it's a character limit.
      • harshreality 2 hours ago
        Full title, "...than ever": 64 characters

        Another title currently on the front page has 74 characters: "The Many Roots of Our Suffering: Reflections on Robert Trivers (1943–2026)"

      • bryanrasmussen 35 minutes ago
        no, as I indicated the full title is within the character limit, to test it I opened up a submit form and it did not say the title was too long.
      • jhbadger 2 hours ago
        There isn't a technical reason why titles have to be that short, memory isn't in that short supply despite the RAM shortages. A function, therefore an algorithm, is deciding to truncate the title for some reason.
  • mitchbob 1 hour ago
    > Cuts in publishing and book reviewing imperil the future of narrative nonfiction, and our understanding of the world around us.

    https://archive.ph/2026.03.23-164808/https://newrepublic.com...

  • stogot 36 minutes ago
    > Nonfiction books are a crucial bulwark against the surging public culture of “alternative facts,” outright lies, and the brazen embrace of ignorance.

    Do they believe someone cannot lie because it’s written down in a paperback? Authors lie in books and books do nothing to help someone who “embraces” ignorance

    • bondarchuk 29 minutes ago
      This was dead, I vouched for it, I think it's a good point. Form does not determine the truthfulness of content.