[Note: Don’t forget that our survey for Booksquare University is still open. We’re giving away one pass to the Tools of Change Conference to one reader as a thank you for helping us.]
About four, five years ago — not long after we went online, the National Endowment for the Arts released a study with the naturally calm, well-reasoned title “Reading at Risk”. The sky was falling, the sky was falling, and we Had To Do Something or reading would be nothing more than another duckbill platypus. It was hard to get worked up then and it’s hard to get worked up now that the NEA has announced that “Reading [is] on the Rise”.
Or, to quote outgoing NEA Chair Dana Gioia:
“This dramatic turnaround shows that the many programs now focused on reading, including our own Big Read, are working. Cultural decline is not inevitable.”
Hallelujah and pass the ammunition! Cultural decline is not inevitable. Romans, we are not.
The reports shows some bright spots, some causes for celebration. These data points, for example: there was a +20% increase in Hispanics who read literature and a 15% increase in African American readers. Is this due to the increase in publisher outreach in these cultures through the publication of novels that reflect non-white communities? I certainly hope so. Oh, and it turns out there’s an increase in reading among men. And this one — oddly worded as it is:
Online readers also report reading books. Eighty-four percent of adults who read literature (fiction, poetry, or drama) on or downloaded from the Internet also read books, whether print or online.
Online reader “also” report reading books? Also? This after, as Carolyn Kellogg of “Jacket Copy” notes:
In his introduction to the executive summary, NEA Chairman Dana Gioia — a poet — sets new media up in opposition to reading. He writes:
A decline in both reading and reading ability was clearly documented in the first generation of teenagers and young adults raised in a society full of videogames, cell phones, iPods, laptops, and other electronic devices.
I’m troubled by the idea that laptops are anti-literature. Clearly, much of the time people are staring at their laptops, they’re reading. I thought perhaps the report would say that the next generation of young adults found their way to literature through all the reading they do with new media.
The 2002 report, published in 2004 (does this mean the 2008 report really reflects 2006 or are these genuine 2008 numbers?), barely acknowledged the type of online reading that people engaged in on a daily basis. By the time this current report was compiled, as a society, we were well-entrenched, halfway through our second decade, in an online reading culture; I’m not sure how to define it, but it’s obvious that we have spent well over a decade increasing our daily consumption of text-based online information. It’s a crazy mix of words — some fiction, some non-fiction, some opinion, some analysis, some bite-sized, some lengthy and detailed.
If you’ve been hanging around BS long enough, you’re not surprised that I’m not surprised that adding online reading to the mix increases the percentage of adults who engage in literary reading, though the range of who, what, when, where, why remain wide open for studying. Since the core questionnaire of the NEA has remained consistent for 26 years (a statistic they cite proudly!) while the entertainment culture we live in — and reading, as defined in this report, is entertainment — shouldn’t the questions reflect this shift?
In the overall “book reading” category, it’s noted that the 18 – 24 group lags the rest of the reading population, while the very same statistic states that this population does a lot of online reading. Since the NEA carves out books required for work or school, it makes sense that this age group remains low, especially if they’re, uh, going to college.
It’s likely that the increase in reading among young adults — 18 – 24 year-olds — has a lot to do with the increase in event books during this time frame. J.K. Rowling and Stephenie Meyer should be factored alongside the NEA’s large “literary initiatives”. Let’s give credit and all that. Instead, nobody really cares about the why of this increase:
The impressive new survey results raise an obvious question—what happened in the past six years to revitalize American literary reading? There is no statistical answer to this question. The NEA survey does not identify the causes either for adult reading or for changes in reading behavior.
Which means that next survey, we’ll be scratching our heads to identify the reasons why the numbers shift again. How do you build upon successes you don’t fully understand? Is it the Big Read and other literacy programs or something else?
I think it’s terrific that reading is on the rise in some populations, but, sigh, again take issue with the basic premise of this study: it defines reading very narrowly. Not only does it refuse to acknowledge that there are many readers who read for pleasure but don’t read “literary” works — think of those readers who derive great enjoyment from a steady diet of, oh, historical biography — but it doesn’t explore different types of reading. Perhaps our view of reading among adults would change if we acknowledged that not everyone “reads” like the NEA believes they should — are audiobooks counted?
One final note — is it me, or do these stats not line up with actual book sales? Does this mean that readers don’t define genres the way we think? Probably…
A new question on the 2008 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts allows reporting of the reading preferences of adults who said they read novels and/or short stories. Presented with the following genres— “mysteries,” “thrillers,” “romance,” “science fiction,” and “other fiction”— 53.0 percent of novel and/ or short story readers said they enjoy reading mysteries. The next greatest percentage (40.8 percent) went to “other fiction,” while thrillers were the third most popular (32.6 percent), followed by romance (28.5 percent) and science fiction (25.4 percent).
- More American Adults Read Literature According to New NEA Study – Study summary and link to fuller information (but not nitty gritty stuff)
19 responses so far ↓
Anastasia // Jan 12, 2009 at 10:55 am
Yes yes yes. The fact that practically no-one counts online reading as READING has bothered me for a few years now. It counts! And so do audiobooks and ebooks and magazines and even assigned school reading. Sheesh.
nicola griffith // Jan 12, 2009 at 11:37 am
I’d love to see a survey measuring how many people immerse themselves in non-film story: novels (on paper or ebooks), creative non-fiction (memoirs and the like), audio fiction, serialised web fiction, etc.
I think it’s *story* that matter, culturally. But I’m biased 🙂
Austin personal trainers // Jan 12, 2009 at 2:42 pm
It might be a demographic thing. Boomers are aging and reaching retirement and have more time for reading.
Rae Lori // Jan 12, 2009 at 3:59 pm
Fabulous news either way! I wonder if the big boom of the e-readers, podcasts and other audio have anything to do with it? And like Anastasia said the amount of time people spend reading online should definitely count.
Kassia Krozser // Jan 12, 2009 at 6:53 pm
Like Nicola, I am convinced that it’s the story that underpins all of this. This is why I don’t worry about booky books as much as story that sucks me in and keeps me there. That might, more than anything, account for the increase in the 18 – 24 group. During the time frame, we also saw *story* that captivated this group.
I like it when comments lead me all sorts of places…beyond what I wrote.
MaryK // Jan 12, 2009 at 8:27 pm
I was wondering what they defined as “literary” and found this on page 3. “In this report, “literary” reading refers to the reading of any novels, short stories, poems, or plays in print or online.”
Heather S. Ingemar // Jan 12, 2009 at 8:42 pm
Words are words, no matter what form they take, more so than ever with today’s technology.
One of these days, the study-writers will realize that.
Austin // Jan 13, 2009 at 9:16 am
The Gioia quote is priceless. Thank you, Big Read (oh, and other programs, too), for singlehandedly reversing cultural decline.
No, reading isn’t dead. We were just saying over at the Manual of Style blog that books and publishing aren’t, either. Our literary culture has plenty of room for improvement, but it’s still more vital than most societies’ throughout history, and the rise of the Internet (still a text-heavy medium, even in the YouTube era) can boost it much more than alarmists realize.
Links for 2009-1-13 « Birdbrain(ed) Book Blog // Jan 13, 2009 at 10:27 am
[…] Booksquare | NEA Study Shows Reading on the Rise, No Idea Why “By the time this current report was compiled, as a society, we were well-entrenched, halfway through our second decade, in an online reading culture; I’m not sure how to define it, but it’s obvious that we have spent well over a decade increasing our daily consumption of text-based online information.” (tags: books) […]
Stan Scott // Jan 14, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Dana Gioia’s quote is wrong on so many levels:
1. As the title of your post says, the NEA does NOT know why reading is on the rise. Gioia does, though: according to his quote, it’s because of all of those “programs”, including Big Read.
2. Has anyone proved the CAUSATION of this change? We know reading is on the rise, and that there are a lot of programs out there, but are the programs really the cause?
3. The comment “Cultural decline is not inevitable” comes out of left field. First of all, as other people have noted, who said it WAS inevitable? Further, though, HOW is “Cultural decline” defined, and WHO gets to define it?
4. Is “Cultural decline” really the same thing as “media consumption”, specifically print media? I’d suggest, at the very least, that there’s an enormous amount of “culture” that does NOT have to do with print media, whether paper or electronic — symphonies, opera, the plastic arts. Gioia’s view seems very limited, in this context.
If anyone’s interested, there’s a wonderful interview with Clay Shirky on the Columbia Journalism Review site, here: http://www.cjr.org/overload/interview_with_clay_shirky_par.php?page=all
A lot of the topics he addresses are particularly relevant to this post.
Jan // Jan 15, 2009 at 2:22 pm
I know I am reading more today than I was ten years ago and it has nothing to do with the Big Read or any other programs. It is because I am near my computer a lot of the day and I read the daily news on the web, blog, respond in online forums, and I have used the library quite a bit for books which I want to entertain me. I laugh that they have not changed the questionnaire in years! How stupid is that???
Bob Gillham // Jan 15, 2009 at 10:06 pm
Might the increase in reading be specificaly down to the Immersive Qualities of a lot of “Kids Fiction” which is being read by adults too? I’m thinking particulary of Moonlight, Harry Potter & the Terry Pratchett books, Lemony Sickert too.
NB I do my reading on my laptop as first choice. Print books are a poor second to me. I choose the Font and the size of it, Bliss!
Pen // Jan 15, 2009 at 11:47 pm
Bob Gillham:
My grandpa read the Harry Potter series! U might be on to something with the kids book audience thing!
rhbee1 // Jan 16, 2009 at 8:38 am
Blogging, and commenting on Youtube, Facebook, etc., and Twittering, and emailing/texting/andwhatever the hell else you do with your thumbs to play gameboys – it is all reading, deciphering the mix, engaging your brain and should be counted. Understanding this kind of reading, this way of reading, is crucial if we are to really develop our education systems for the new century. Great post by the way, and the links from the commenters are great too. Thanks.
David Thayer // Jan 18, 2009 at 10:30 am
Readers return. Publishers bite the dust.
RCB Bookmarks, Mid-January, 2009 // Jan 18, 2009 at 3:26 pm
[…] NEA Study Shows Reading on the Rise, No Idea Why » Booksquare – Hallelujah and pass the ammunition! Cultural decline is not inevitable. Romans, we are not…If you’ve been hanging around [Booksquare] long enough, you’re not surprised that I’m not surprised that adding online reading to the mix increases the percentage of adults who engage in literary reading, though the range of who, what, when, where, why remain wide open for studying. […]
Friday Finds: January 30 | BOOK CLUB CLASSICS! // Jan 30, 2009 at 9:40 am
[…] Reading is on the rise — but are we reading the right titles? […]
CLCM Monthly Reader: January « Changing Lives, Changing Minds: A Changing Lives Through Literature Blog // Jan 30, 2009 at 8:15 pm
[…] the NEA’s report mean and take issue with the study’s design. Kassia Krozser over at Booksquare says of the report, “It defines reading very narrowly. Not only does it refuse to acknowledge […]
RCB Bookmarks, Mid-January, 2009 // May 28, 2012 at 9:56 am
[…] NEA Study Shows Reading on the Rise, No Idea Why » Booksquare – Hallelujah and pass the ammunition! Cultural decline is not inevitable. Romans, we are not…If you’ve been hanging around [Booksquare] long enough, you’re not surprised that I’m not surprised that adding online reading to the mix increases the percentage of adults who engage in literary reading, though the range of who, what, when, where, why remain wide open for studying. Leave a Comment January 18, 2009 By circlereaderShelved withA Reading Life, Civic Life, Community & Time, Literacy, The History & Future of Books TaggedBookmarks, Books, Civility, Dana Hanley, Digital Literacy, digitalculture, e-books, e-readers, Jason Epstein, Kassia Krozser, NEA, Peter Osnos, Politics, RCBLinks, Reading, Reading on the Rise, SpinStoppers, Voltaire ~ * ~ […]