The Cult of the Amateur by Andrew Keen

The Cult of the Amateur, by Andrew Keen, contests that user-generated media is ruining “our economy, our culture and our values.” The front cover of the Cult of the Amateur has a blurb of a review from, Michiko Kakutani of the New York Times boasting: “Keen writes with acuity and passion about the consequences of a world in which the lines between fact and opinion, informed expertise and amateurish speculation are willfully blurred.” Kakutani is referring to Keen’s incessant remarks about a population more willing to read blogs produced by narcissistic, self-involved, regular Joes than sully their hands with the ink of a newspaper. The problem with Kakatuani’s comment comes when one realizes that Keen too, is blurring the lines between fact and opinion. One could argue that his whole polemic is nothing but a straw man’s argument perfectly poised to take the brunt of an argument that blends informed expertise and amateurish speculation because, after all, Keen is only an amateur himself.

The Cult of the Amateur

Andrew Keen. Broadway Business 2008, Paperback, 256 pages, $7.50