Which is why even those who indulge in solitary exercise like jogging, have earphones plugged. But the irony is: reading, as an act, is a form of silence. Perhaps that’s why it’s gasping for survival.
Let’s just put it this way – people are, on average, reading less but watching and listening more than ever before. They are consuming words, which are obviously written by someone, but not reading them. Words have to be converted into image and audio. Otherwise, they die before they are born. Or they float alone in cyberspace, in someone’s unread blogpost, like a dead astronaut in a space suit – persona non grata even in death – suspended in a faraway galaxy.
Think about what happens when we watch a show on YouTube – John Oliver, Dhruv Rathee, or Trevor Noah. They all have to perform the piece, which is, in essence, a longish op-ed. This is what works nowadays. The hosts tackle weighty issues in their shows. Some of the material is written by them, the rest by a team of writers.
While consuming these shows/content, there comes a point when I start to wonder why I’m watching a reasonably pleasant-looking man, reading off a teleprompter/autocue, talking at express pace, rushing through the material, deploying forceful tonal voice modulation, manipulating facial expression and using a lot of hand gestures. I feel like a passive student in a non-interactive classroom, with an energetic teacher putting on a jolly good show.
Reading, on the other hand, is interactive. One reads a bit, then stops, reads a little more. The mind, meanwhile, wanders, makes connections.Writers will break up an article into 3-line paragraphs, which are then shared on Instagram stories, or threads on X. The fear is that otherwise no one will bother clicking on the ‘link in bio’. The gist is what matters. No one cares about the intricate stitching and embroidery, the flow of argument, how one paragraph hands on the baton to the next, the quiet punchline. People will avoid reading as far as possible. Even videos are headed in that direction, with the option to speed up videos and voice now available.
While The Onion has announced a print edition, humour writing, in general, is on the way out. Standup comics, too, have to enact their written gags and jokes. The written word has become performance art.
The paradox is that while reading is given short shrift, people love to consume podcasts that go on for hours and binge-watch seasons of OTT shows. Attention spans haven’t shrunk that much.
One explanation offered by those who don’t read is that reading is not for everybody. But there was a time not too long ago when everyone who was literate at least read the newspaper end-to-end. In Hindi, the phrase was: ‘Paper chaat jaana’ – literally lick the paper clean. On long-distance train journeys, one had to guard one’s newspaper more than one’s luggage. The passenger sitting next to you kept an intrusive eye on you when you’d reached the end of the sports page, which was his cue to politely request to borrow it. But before you had even opened your mouth, the paper would be snatched and shared with other passengers.
Then there’s the argument proffered by Very Busy People that one can listen to an audiobook or a podcast, while working or commuting — basically it aids multitasking. Except that when you are multitasking, you’re reading Very Boring Puff, like email, memos, and bills. Or preparing PPTs. Might as well read the good stuff.
The writer is editor, House Spirit: Drinking in India
