If attention is the new oil, Traffic is the story of the time between the first gusher and the perceptible impact of climate change. The curtain opens in Soho in the early 2000s, after the first dot-com crash but before Google, Apple, and Facebook exploded, when it seemed that New York City, rather than Silicon Valley, might become tech's center of gravity. There, Nick Denton's merry band of nihilists at his growing Gawker empire and Jonah Peretti's sunnier team at HuffPost and BuzzFeed were building the foundations of viral internet media. Ben Smith, who would go on to earn a controversial reputation as BuzzFeed's editor in chief, was there to see it, and he chronicles it all with marvelous lucidity underscored by dark wit.
Traffic explores one of the great ironies of our time- The internet, which was going to help the left remake the world in its image, has become the motive force of right populism. People like Steve Bannon and Andrew Breitbart and Chris Poole, the creator of 4chan, all initially seemed like minor characters in the narrative in which Nick and Jonah, were the stars. But today, anyone might wonder if the opposite wasn't the case. To understand how we got here, Traffic is essential and enthralling reading.
"Engrossing and suspenseful." -The New York Times
"Expertly pulls readers in . . . Graced with akeen eye and sharp wit." -The Guardian
The origin story of the post-truth age- the candid inside taleof two online media rivals, Nick Denton of Gawker Media andJonah Peretti of HuffPost and BuzzFeed, whose deliriouspursuit of attention at scale helped release the dark forcesthat would overtake the internet and American society.
If attention is the new oil, Traffic is the story of the time between thefirst gusher and the perceptible impact of climate change. The curtainopens in Soho in the early 2000s, after the first dot-com crash but beforeGoogle, Apple, and Facebook exploded, when it seemed that New York City,rather than Silicon Valley, might become tech's center of gravity. There,Nick Denton's merry band of nihilists at his growing Gawker empire andJonah Peretti's sunnier team at HuffPost and BuzzFeed were building thefoundations of viral internet media. Ben Smith, who would go on to earn acontroversial reputation as BuzzFeed News's editor in chief, was there to seeit, and he chronicles it all with marvelous lucidity underscored by dark wit.
Traffic explores one of the great ironies of our time- The internet, whichwas going to help the left remake the world in its image, has become themotive force of right populism. People like Steve Bannon and AndrewBreitbart initially seemed like minor characters in the narrative in whichNick and Jonah were the stars. But today, anyone might wonder if the oppositewasn't the case. To understand how we got here, Traffic is essentialand enthralling reading.
