Taking On the System: Rules for Radical Change in a Digital Era
Encyclopedia
Taking On the System: Rules for Radical Change in a Digital Era is a book
(ISBN 0-45122-519-8) authored by American
political blogger Markos Moulitsas of Daily Kos
, published in 2008 by Penguin Group
.
activists
. The book is centered on the argument that in order to bring about change in the Information Age
, activists will need to learn how to bypass traditional barriers to mass communication
by effectively exploiting newly emerging media
such as blog
s, podcast
s and video hosting service
s like YouTube
.
Moulitsas has cited Saul Alinsky
's Rules for Radicals
as a direct inspiration for Taking On the System, referring to his book as "sort of a Rules for Radicals for the digital age":
gave Taking On the System a starred review, describing it as an "informative and entertaining book" that "moves easily among the current campaign cycle, pop culture
phenomena such as Stephen Colbert
and the successes and failures of the progressive movement in America." The review notes that the book's "pragmatic, inclusive tone takes the edge off [Moulitsas's] sometimes didactic insistence that 'there's no reason anyone should whine or complain that they are being shut out of the system.' "
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
(ISBN 0-45122-519-8) authored by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
political blogger Markos Moulitsas of Daily Kos
Daily Kos
Daily Kos is an American political blog that publishes news and opinions from a progressive point of view. It functions as a discussion forum and group blog for a variety of netroots activists, whose efforts are primarily directed toward influencing and strengthening the Democratic Party...
, published in 2008 by Penguin Group
Penguin Group
The Penguin Group is a trade book publisher, the largest in the world , having overtaken Random House in 2009. The Penguin Group is the name of the incorporated division of parent Pearson PLC that oversees these publishing operations...
.
Summary
Taking On the System is presented as a political primer for a new generation of progressiveProgressivism
Progressivism is an umbrella term for a political ideology advocating or favoring social, political, and economic reform or changes. Progressivism is often viewed by some conservatives, constitutionalists, and libertarians to be in opposition to conservative or reactionary ideologies.The...
activists
Activism
Activism consists of intentional efforts to bring about social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing...
. The book is centered on the argument that in order to bring about change in the Information Age
Information Age
The Information Age, also commonly known as the Computer Age or Digital Age, is an idea that the current age will be characterized by the ability of individuals to transfer information freely, and to have instant access to knowledge that would have been difficult or impossible to find previously...
, activists will need to learn how to bypass traditional barriers to mass communication
Mass communication
Mass communication is the term used to describe the academic study of the various means by which individuals and entities relay information through mass media to large segments of the population at the same time...
by effectively exploiting newly emerging media
Media (communication)
In communications, media are the storage and transmission channels or tools used to store and deliver information or data...
such as blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
s, podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
s and video hosting service
Video hosting service
A video hosting service allows individuals to upload video clips to an Internet website. The video host will then store the video on its server, and show the individual different types of code to allow others to view this video...
s like YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.
Moulitsas has cited Saul Alinsky
Saul Alinsky
Saul David Alinsky was a Jewish American community organizer and writer. He is generally considered to be the founder of modern community organizing, and has been compared in Playboy magazine to Thomas Paine as being "one of the great American leaders of the nonsocialist left." He is often noted...
's Rules for Radicals
Rules for Radicals
Rules for Radicals: A Pragmatic Primer for Realistic Radicals is the last book written by community organizer Saul D. Alinsky shortly before his death in 1972...
as a direct inspiration for Taking On the System, referring to his book as "sort of a Rules for Radicals for the digital age":
It’s no secret that I have little love for the old-school street protest model of activism – not because I’m opposed to street theater, but because it’s simply not effective in today’s world. So how do you change the world in today’s world, with its fragmented media landscape, with democratizing technologies, with dramatic changes in how we interact with each other, and with a culture evolving at neck-breaking speeds? That’s what I’m trying to decipher.
Reviews
Publishers WeeklyPublishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...
gave Taking On the System a starred review, describing it as an "informative and entertaining book" that "moves easily among the current campaign cycle, pop culture
Popular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
phenomena such as Stephen Colbert
Stephen Colbert
Stephen Tyrone Colbert is an American political satirist, writer, comedian, television host, and actor. He is the host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, a satirical news show in which Colbert portrays a caricatured version of conservative political pundits.Colbert originally studied to be an...
and the successes and failures of the progressive movement in America." The review notes that the book's "pragmatic, inclusive tone takes the edge off [Moulitsas's] sometimes didactic insistence that 'there's no reason anyone should whine or complain that they are being shut out of the system.' "
Publication data
- Taking On the System: Rules for Radical Change in a Digital Era. (2008) Penguin GroupPenguin GroupThe Penguin Group is a trade book publisher, the largest in the world , having overtaken Random House in 2009. The Penguin Group is the name of the incorporated division of parent Pearson PLC that oversees these publishing operations...
, ISBN 0-45122-519-8.