Comments on: Gladwell – tasty, but not nutritious

By: niblettes

niblettes — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 00:00:55 +0000

I can’t argue with the power and importance of delight–its the stuff that often makes life worth living.

But I’m worried that our natural preference mechanisms drive us to delight ourselves at the cost of all else, resulting in a very unhealthy balance.

The marketing of journalists like Gladwell and Friedman and Brooks as authorities when they are really just storytellers, people who repackage other people’s authority, exacerbates the this.

Of course reading Gladwell is a lot more fun than reading Putnam.

By: Gong Szeto

Gong Szeto — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 16:25:55 +0000

interesting. but i think you diminish a person’s natural preference mechanisms. ted vids are snacks, or more accurately, hors d’oeuvres. none are meals themselves. and you could argue that gladwell is serving up a meal in his books, and you’d be right. the real question is what does your overall *diet* consist of. i don’t think it’s all pretense, in fact part of the fun in eating pastries or even sushi is their indulgent flair in presentation. if you’ve ever read gore vidal (whom i love) you are marinating yourself in his inimitable style inasmuch as his substance. also, for any of these high-profile celebs, it’s all performance – so yes, intellectual entertainment it is. vitrivius wrote of design having 3 pillars – firmness, commodity, and delight. the 2 out of 3 rule most often applies to most designed things we interact with. intellectual content often has a gravitas that ignores ‘delight’. the daily show interestingly enough, embodies all 3. rare. humor is his vehicle to disseminate gravitas, which is cool. it works.

By: niblettes

niblettes — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 02:59:51 +0000

I’m certainly not maligning a little entertainment (intellectual or otherwise). But I am maligning entertainment that pretends to be more. It’s the pretense that offends me. And it’s the pretense that I think is dangerous—in the same way eating food products instead of food is.

I dislike Gladwell but I love the Daily Show, because while he pretends to be so much more than he is, The Daily Show is so much more than it pretends.

Of course its possible to be both inspirational and insightful. Check out this video on Richard Feynman.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8777381378502286852

By: Jeff Delkin

Jeff Delkin — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 01:31:45 +0000

Interesting perspective. Malcolm stretches my brain and helps make me *think* of things differently. How I think about thinks influences how I act on them. Epidemics, sneezers and connectors are all a part of my thought patterns. We’ve thought about our business in new ways as a result.

Regarding TED – huh. I hadn’t thought about it, but I followed a similar pattern and thought process. I tend to agree. That is why I’m really intrigued that I recently discovered GEL (http://gelconference.com). There’s a more rich, experiential and participatory component to GEL. I look forward to attending in 09.

And I join you at the table regarding the substance of Michael Pollan’s astute observations. He cuts to the chase, and doesn’t get overly concerned nor distracted with the packaging.

Good post. Thanks.

By: Tom Froese

Tom Froese — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 00:53:25 +0000

^ Correction: Sideshow Bob

By: Tom Froese

Tom Froese — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 00:52:55 +0000

Insightful comparison between Sideshos Bob and Malcolm.

As for the downplaying of Gladwell’s contributions, I disagree. Not that I have been able to measure the actual effects of his books—and I have only read Tipping Point—but he’s darn good at telling those stories and making you think a little. I say this at the risk of sounding like a satisfied consumer of Intellectual Entertainment.

If his function is inspiration and a sense of wonder at social phenomena (in the case of the Tipping Point, at least), then I say he’s done his job.

As for TED talks, I have felt these can be a bit overhyped. But again, some of the talks are incredibly inspiring. Perhaps they’re a bit on the novelty side of things, but I even appreciate the skilled presentations regardless of content. Maybe it’s testament to “it’s all about the package”.

Now, as for the food commentary, that I can sink my teeth into