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Hit makers : the science of popularity in an age of distraction

Author

Thompson, Derek, 1986- author.

Title

Hit makers : the science of popularity in an age of distraction / Derek Thompson.

Format

Book

Published

New York : Penguin Press, 2018. ©2017

Description

xix, 344 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm

Variant title

Science of popularity in an age of distraction

Notes

Includes bibliographical references (pages 311-334) and index.

Contents

• Introduction. The song that conquered the world
• Part I. Popularity and the mind. The power of exposure: featuring Claude Monet, Adele, and Donald Trump
• The Maya rule: featuring ESPN, Spotify, and the first NASA space station
• The music of sound: featuring John F. Kennedy, Barack Obama, and ABBA
• Interlude : The chills
• The myth-making mind I: the force of story: featuring Star Wars, Isaac Asimov, and Hollywood psychohistory
• The myth-making mind II: The dark side of hits: featuring Hungarian vampires, Disney princesses, and cable news
• The birth of fashion: featuring Taylor Swift, the printing press, and the laugh track
• Interlude: A brief history of teens
• Part II. Popularity and the market. Rock and roll and randomness: featuring the Mona Lisa, "Rock around the clock," and chaos theory
• The viral myth: featuring Fifty Shades of Grey, John Snow, and Pokémon GO
• The audience of my audience: featuring Etsy, Bumble, and Moonies
• Interlude : Le panache
• What the people want I: the economics of prophecy: featuring Game of Thrones, Seinfeld, and Shazam
• What the people want II: a history of pixels and ink: featuring the tabloid, the television, and the news feed
• Interlude : 828 Broadway
• The futures of hits: empire and city-state: featuring Mickey Mouse, BuzzFeed, and Kid A.

Summary

In his groundbreaking investigation, Atlantic senior editor Derek Thompson uncovers the hidden psychology of why we like what we like and reveals the economics of cultural markets that invisibly shape our lives. Hit Makers takes readers on a tour through the last century of pop culture blockbusters and investigates the most valuable currency of the twenty-first - people's attention. From the dawn of impressionist art to the future of Facebook, from small Etsy designers to the origin of Star Wars, Derek Thompson leaves no pet rock unturned to tell the fascinating story of how culture happens and why things become popular, and what it takes - in an age of distraction - to make a hit.

Subject headings

Consumers. Popularity--Social aspects. Marketing--Social aspects. Popular culture--Social aspects. Product management.

ISBN

9781101980330 (paperback) 1101980338 (paperback)