The death of the book means trouble
From The Lowdown from Nick Cohen by Nick Cohen
April 20, 2026 · 49 min · Season 1 · Episode 127
About this episode
Nick Cohen discusses the implications of declining literacy and the rise of autocracy with James Marriott.
We have the i-Phone to thank for the fast death of literacy & rise of autocracy "What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book because there would be no one who wanted to read one." — Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death This week, Nick Cohen talks to essayist and Times j ournalist James Marriott about Marriott's essay on "The dawn of the post-literate society" and his upcoming book "The New Dark Ages." James argued that mass literacy, which emerged in the 18th century, was fundamental to democracy, science, and philosophy, but that modern screen-based technologies like smartphones are replacing reading and leading to mass cognitive decline. James and Nick discuss how television and now social media platforms like TikTok are changing political discourse, making it more emotional and less rational, with examples like Donald Trump's anti-vaxx stance and the rise of populist leaders who thrive on screen. James concludes that democracy may not be sustainable in our current information environment, as it relies on abstract thinking that doesn't translate well to visual media formats Read all about it…
People in this episode
Host: Nick Cohen
Guest: James Marriott
Topics covered
- literacy
- autocracy
- political discourse
- screen-based technologies
- democracy
- cognitive decline
Keywords
- literacy
- autocracy
- political discourse
- smartphones
- cognitive decline
- democracy
- populism
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: The Times, TikTok
Books & works: Amusing Ourselves to Death, The New Dark Ages
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