Chris Hedges: Empire of Illusion

I like what little I've read of Chris Hedges. He's not afraid to take on anyone -- liberals and conservatives alike. And yes, even atheists, too. His books have been on my list, but I've never read anything other than his articles/essays.

I think this is an important speech, although I'm only about half way through it. He's not the greatest public speaker, but his message is important. I would encourage you to find the time to listen to it. He has some pretty dire predictions for the US. I hope he's not right.   - Dallas

Journalist Chris Hedges discusses his recent book Empire of Illusion: the End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle. In it, he charts the dramatic rise of a post-literate society that craves fantasy, ecstasy, and illusion. Hedges argues we now live in two societies: one, the minority, functions in a print-based, literate world and can cope with complexity and can separate illusion from truth; the other, a growing majority, is retreating from a reality-based world into one of false certainty and magic where serious film and theater, as well as newspapers and books, are being pushed to the margins.

Chris Hedges, author of War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, is currently a senior fellow at The Nation Institute and the Anschutz Distinguished Fellow at Princeton University. He writes for many publications, including Foreign Affairs, Harpers, The New York Review of Books, Granta, and Mother Jones. He is also a columnist for Truthdig.com.

Co-sponsored by the Writing Program | http://www.newschool.edu/writing
Department of Media Studies and Film | http://www.newschool.edu/mediastudies
and the Vera List Center for Art and Politics | http://www.newschool.edu/vlc and http://www.veralistcenter.org

Location: Theresa Lang Community and Student Center, Arnhold Hall.
12/08/2009 7:00 p.m.

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Additonal links:

Chris Hedges on Amazon.com
Chris Hedges on Wikipedia.com
Chris Hedges on Truthdig