From the Sunday Times top ten bestselling author of The Psychopath Test, a captivating and brilliant exploration of one of our world's most underappreciated forces: shame.
'It's about the terror, isn't it?'
'The terror of what?' I said.
'The terror of being found out.'
For the past three years, Jon Ronson has travelled the world meeting recipients of high-profile public shamings. The shamed are people like us - people who, say, made a joke on social media that came out badly, or made a mistake at work. Once their transgression is revealed, collective outrage circles with the force of a hurricane and the next thing they know they're being torn apart by an angry mob, jeered at, demonized, sometimes even fired from their job.
A great renaissance of public shaming is sweeping our land. Justice has been democratized. The silent majority are getting a voice. But what are we doing with our voice? We are mercilessly finding people's faults. We are defining the boundaries of normality by ruining the lives of those outside it. We are using shame as a form of social control.
Simultaneously powerful and hilarious in the way only Jon Ronson can be, So You've Been Publicly Shamed is a deeply honest book about modern life, full of eye-opening truths about the escalating war on human flaws - and the very scary part we all play in it.
Top comments
furq to aurora
2 Jan 173#3
Which was blatantly a joke...
All comments (17)
ILOVEYOUMAN
2 Jan 17#1
Good find! Heat :wink:
aurora
2 Jan 17#2
Sounds like a good deal. This is the author who is no stranger to a bit of self shaming himself, having had a Twitter meltdown over not getting an award in the New Year's honours list.
furq to aurora
2 Jan 173#3
Which was blatantly a joke...
phillyboy
2 Jan 17#4
Thanks
Badpoet
2 Jan 17#5
It is another enjoyable one from him, the audiobooks are also good if you like his style of writing.
j3remy42
3 Jan 17#6
I listened to a podcast recently with this fella, I'd read this based on that, seems like a good chap.
lemongrab
3 Jan 17#7
Amazing book. Every numpty who puts their life or something stupid on social media before thinking should read this.
Again, that was a joke. It's very obviously a joke. To say it's not a joke would require you to be either remarkably stupid or a newspaper that cares nothing for truth or fairness.
themadgoose
3 Jan 171#12
Love Jon Ronson. If you're ever short of something to spend an Audible credit on, I'd recommend any of his audiobooks.
Vishal187
3 Jan 17#13
Thanks, love his books.
wellbourne
3 Jan 17#14
Jon Ronson did an amazing documentary on al-muhajiroun in the late 1990s, where he shadowed one of the founders around London, he made them look like a bunch of buffoons, but it really was rather a prescient documentary.
kim432
3 Jan 17#15
This sounds really interesting, thank you!
gjhancock01
3 Jan 17#16
Cracking book this. Well worth a go at this price. :smiley:
smallsteve
3 Jan 17#17
Listened to the audiobook version and enjoyed it. Never listened to any of his work before.
As others have remarked, everyone should listen to / read this before joining social media. Perhaps they should include this as part of the school curriculum!
Remember folks, once you hit that send button there is no going back!
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Opening post
From the Sunday Times top ten bestselling author of The Psychopath Test, a captivating and brilliant exploration of one of our world's most underappreciated forces: shame.
'It's about the terror, isn't it?'
'The terror of what?' I said.
'The terror of being found out.'
For the past three years, Jon Ronson has travelled the world meeting recipients of high-profile public shamings. The shamed are people like us - people who, say, made a joke on social media that came out badly, or made a mistake at work. Once their transgression is revealed, collective outrage circles with the force of a hurricane and the next thing they know they're being torn apart by an angry mob, jeered at, demonized, sometimes even fired from their job.
A great renaissance of public shaming is sweeping our land. Justice has been democratized. The silent majority are getting a voice. But what are we doing with our voice? We are mercilessly finding people's faults. We are defining the boundaries of normality by ruining the lives of those outside it. We are using shame as a form of social control.
Simultaneously powerful and hilarious in the way only Jon Ronson can be, So You've Been Publicly Shamed is a deeply honest book about modern life, full of eye-opening truths about the escalating war on human flaws - and the very scary part we all play in it.
Top comments
All comments (17)
As others have remarked, everyone should listen to / read this before joining social media. Perhaps they should include this as part of the school curriculum!
Remember folks, once you hit that send button there is no going back!