ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Writing may be a lonely profession, but thinking isn’t. That’s been one of the great gifts of this writing process—the opportunity to think together and learn from some extremely smart and morally thoughtful people. This book wouldn’t be the same—and wouldn’t be much—without a large team of (sometimes unwitting) collaborators. What follows is my best attempt to credit those who contributed directly. But there’s an even larger number whose scholarship or writing or philosophy gave structure to my thoughts or forced me to think in a new way: Larry Lessig, Neil Postman, Cass Sunstein, Marshall McLuhan, Marvin Minsky, and Michael Schudson come to mind as a start. What’s good in this book owes a lot to this broad cadre of thinkers. The errors, of course, are all mine.
Ann Godoff and Laura Stickney, my editors at Penguin Press, are the other two members of the triumvirate that brought this book into existence. Ann’s wisdom helped to shape what this book is about and for whom I’ve written it; Laura’s acute eye and gentle questions and provocations helped me see the gaps, leaps, and snags in the text. I’m indebted to both.
There’s another trio that deserves a great deal of credit, not just for getting this book across the finish line in (more or less) one piece, but for inspiring some of the best insights in it. Research assistants Caitlin Petre, Sam Novey, and Julia Kamin scoured the Internet and dug through dusty library books to help me figure out what exactly was going on. Sam, my resident contrarian, constantly pushed me to think more deeply about what I was saying. Julia brought a keen scientific skepticism to the task and protected me from dubious scholarship that I might otherwise have embraced. And Caitlin’s great intelligence, hard work, and thoughtful critique were the sources of some of my favorite aha moments. Guys, I couldn’t have done it without you. Thank you.
One of the best parts of the writing process was the opportunity to call up or sit down with extraordinary people and ask them questions. I’m thankful to the following folks for responding to my inquiries and helping inform the text: C. W. Anderson, Ken Auletta, John Battelle, Bill Bishop, Matt Cohler, Gabriella Coleman, Dalton Conley, Chris Coyne, Pam Dixon, Caterina Fake, Matthew Hindman, Bill Joy, Dave Karpf, Jaron Lanier, Steven Levy, Diana Mutz, Nicholas Negroponte, Markus Prior, Robert Putnam, John Rendon, Jay Rosen, Marc Rotenberg, Douglas Rushkoff, Michael Schudson, Daniel Solove, Danny Sullivan, Philip Tetlock, Clive Thompson, and Jonathan Zittrain. Conversations with Ethan Zuckerman, Scott Heiferman, David Kirkpatrick, Clay Shirky, Nicco Mele, Dean Eckles, Jessi Hempel, and Ryan Calo were especially provocative and helpful. Thanks to Nate Tyler and Jonathan McPhie at Google for considering and responding to my inquiries. And strange though it may seem, given my topic, thanks also to my Facebook friends, some real, some virtual, who quickly responded to my queries and were helpful when I was looking for an anecdote or colorful example.
During the writing process, I’ve received invaluable help from a number of institutions and communities. I don’t know where I’d be without the summer months I spent researching and writing at the Blue Mountain Center: many thanks to Ben, Harriet, and my fellow fellows for the space to think, advice (especially from Carey McKenzie), and late-night swims. The Roosevelt Institute was gracious enough to offer a place to hang my hat for the last year: thanks to Andy Rich and Bo Cutter for the intellectual stimulation and great conversations. Micah Sifry and Andrew Raseij, two great friends of online democracy, gave me the space to first make this argument at the Personal Democracy Forum. David Fenton has been there to help with every step of this process, from lending his home for writing and thinking to consulting on the title to helping the book find an audience. David, you’re a good friend. And Fenton Communications—especially my kind, thoughtful friend Lisa Witter—generously supported the early investigations that set me on the personalization trail.
There’s little I can say to sufficiently thank Team MoveOn, past and present, from whom I’ve learned so very much about politics, technology, and people. Carrie, Zack, Joan, Patrick, Tom, Nita, Jenn, Ben, Matt, Natalie, Noah, Adam, Roz, Justin, Ilyse, and the whole crew: You’re some of the most fiercely thoughtful and inspiring people I’ve ever met, and I feel lucky to have worked alongside you.
The manuscript was ready to read only weeks before it was due. Wes Boyd, Matt Ewing, Randall Farmer, Daniel Mintz, my parents, Emanuel Pariser and Dora Lievow, and of course Sam, Caitlin, and Julia were all kind enough to put aside busy lives and plow through it. I shudder to think of what might have gone to print without their notes. Todd Rogers, Anne O’Dwyer, Patrick Kane, David Kirkpatrick, and Jessi Hempel were all kind enough to look at pieces of the book, as well. And I can’t say thanks enough to Krista Williams and Amanda Katz, whose brilliant editorial thinking helped nurse some somewhat sickly chapters back to health (Krista, a second thanks for your friendship). Stephanie Hopkins and Mirela Iverac provided invaluable last-minute assistance with the manuscript.
I’ve saved the greatest and most personal debts for last. I’ve benefited immeasurably in my life from a string of great teachers: to name a few, Karen Scott, Doug Hamill, and Leslie Simmons at Lincolnville Central School; Jon Potter and Rob Lovell at Camden-Rockport High; and Barbara Resnik and Peter Cocks at Simon’s Rock, among others. Whatever perspicuity I have I owe these folks. And I’m lucky enough to have some truly wonderful friends. I can’t list all of you here, but you know who you are. I’m especially grateful for the support and love I’ve received—in good times and bad—from Aram and Lara Kailian, Tate Hausman, Noah T. Winer, Nick Arons, and Ben and Beth Wikler. It’s one of my goals in life to be as good a friend as you’ve been to me.
My family has also encouraged me and sharpened my thinking every step of the way. Big hugs and even bigger thank-yous to my mother, Dora Lievow, my father and stepmother, Emanuel Pariser and Lea Girardin, and my sister, Ya Jia. Eben Pariser, my brother, not only egged me on but made amazing pizza when I was flagging and helped finalize the manuscript. He’s as good a brother as he is a musician (check out his band, Roosevelt Dime, and you’ll see how high that compliment is). Bronwen Rice may not be an official family member, but I’ll include her here anyway: Bronwen, thanks for keeping me true to myself all of these years.
There are four final people whose generosity, intelligence, and love I appreciate more than I can fully express:
Wes Boyd took a big gamble on a twenty-one-year-old, trusted me more than I trusted myself, and mentored me through eight years at MoveOn. This book draws on many of our conversations over the years— there’s no one I enjoy thinking with more. Peter Koechley, my true friend and coconspirator, encouraged me when the going got rough—in the writing process and outside of it. I’m grateful to have a friend who is simultaneously so talented and so decent. Vivien Labaton: I have no sufficient superlatives, so I’ll just go with the colloquial. You’re the best. And finally, there’s Gena Konstantinakos. Gena, you’ve borne the brunt of this project more than anyone—the months of working weekends and late nights and early mornings at the office, the stress during revisions, and the constantly extended deadlines. You took it in stride and then some, giving me pep talks, helping me sort out chapters on note cards, and cheering me on all the way. I’m still amazed, some days, to wake up with someone so smart, beautiful, talented, principled, and good-spirited in my life. I love you.
FURTHER READING
Alexander, Christopher, Sara Ishikawa, and Murray Silverstein.
Anderson, Benedict.
Battelle, John.
Berger, John.
