The prediction, in brief:

The book is still the best delivery system for new ideas we have, though that will eventually change. The corporate owners and a few of the top trade publishing executives are looking seriously at new technologies, but the trade publishers are still mostly techno-illiterates.

Predictor: Brockman, John

Prediction, in context:

In a 1995 article for Wired magazine, Phil Leggiere interviews John Brockman, author of “The Third Culture,” a co-founder (with David Bunnell of PC magazine) of Content.Com, and a former backer of Andy Warhol’s underground movies. Leggiere asks, “Do you see the Web replacing books?” Brockman answers:”Not in the short run. The most interesting fact about the Net is that people there enjoy reading and writing … The book is still the best delivery system for new ideas we have, though that will eventually change. The corporate owners and a few of the top trade publishing executives are looking seriously at new technologies, but the trade publishers are still mostly techno-illiterates. Many trade editors have e-mail addresses. The problem is that most of them don’t have computers and modems.”

Biography:

John Brockman, founder of Brockman, Inc., a software and literary agency, served as the chairman and cofounder of Content.Com, Inc., a Web-based digital publishing company. He also wrote or edited many books, including “The Third Culture: Beyond the Scientific Revolution.” (Entrepreneur/Business Leader.)

Date of prediction: January 1, 1995

Topic of prediction: Getting, Sharing Information

Subtopic: Publishing

Name of publication: Wired

Title, headline, chapter name: Agent of the Third Culture: John Brockman is the Michael Ovitz of the New Intellectual Elite

Quote Type: Direct quote

Page number or URL of document at time of study:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.08/brockman_pr.html

This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Anderson, Janna Quitney