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1. Well researched
   Bernstein’s passion and dedication reflects in the subjects he writes. Well researched and interesting.

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2. Communication, Politics and Technology
   Having read and enjoyed some of Bernstein’s earlier books, I picked this one up with much anticipation. I was not disappointed. Bernstein has a flair for story-telling and masterfully compiles and narrates stories of hundreds of cases where communication technology intersects with politics. His history of communication technology matches my own studies on he subject (I’m a professor of MIS), yet he goes beyond with lurid details of political movements and their use of technology to either suppress the masses or overthrow the powers that be. Just the history is fascinating.I found only one aspect to this book disappointing. His basic premise – that decentralized communication technology enables democracy where as centralized communication technology enables despots – was only partially established. The last chapter of the book concedes that more is needed than just technology, in which I fully agree. But his notion that culture is the last ingredient was not satisfactory, especially because he doesn’t spend any time in the book talking about how culture plays a role.Overall, I think this book is worth reading and a good introduction to the intersection of politics, communication, and technology.

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3. Amazing – opened my mind
   Never thought that spacing between words is a way for productivity increase. Amazingly well researched and thought out.

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4. The Wordsmiths of History
   Bernstein manages to encapsulate the manner in which media has shaped our world in an easily understandable format. He begins before the scriptoria and ends in our world with the development of the Internet. And of course he ties the development of the word to the times and events that the word changed or the times and events that changed the word. His rendition of the development of the Internet is the most concise and most easily understood that I have read. If you have any interest in language and its effect upon our history, you will enjoy Mr Bernstein’s eye on the Wordsmiths of History.

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5. I was somewhat disappointed that there was no mention of the Windtalkers of …
   I was somewhat disappointed that there was no mention of the Windtalkers of WWII. That was an important communication genius. Without that who knows maybe we would be talking Japanese or German or both.Other than that it was a very well written book, an I plan to use it in a future paper.

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6. An insightful view of history
   Bernstein has, with his usual highly researched and well informed insight, shown how the technologies of communication–all those beyond simple speech–have shaped the power structures of humanity ever since the first such technologies, early handwriting, were invented. Fascinating; detailed; a must read for fans of his other histories.

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7. a good survey
   I’ve read all of Dr. Bernstein’s books. This is a survey of the history of the ability to communicate in ways other than face-to-tace speech. The upshot is that, provided despots don’t starve their populations, soldiers aren’t willing to shoot their nation’s citizens, and people get basic physiological needs met, then the net, twitter, etc., should lead to better and more truthfully informed democracies. The book was written before the “Arab Spring” was revealed to be nothing more than a deliberately false narrative, before Snowden blew the cover on the US intelligence service, before Pelosi killed efforts to require probable cause to intercept all electronic information, before the Director of the National Intelligence Service committed perjury in Congressional testimony, and before it was revealed that Silicon Valley companies are now being pressured to give up account user names and passwords. The later would allow others to send emails using your account and bearing your “signature.” Paper and pen will make a comeback, I predict. A good history. I hope a Second Edition with updated material will be forthcoming.

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8. Another great book from Bernstein
   I have read each of William Bernstein’s book and each time he impresses me more. This book is a masterful ride though the history of communication and its impact on world events. It sets a somewhat optimistic tone in regards to our future as a world where our media is in our pocket and no one power can completely control it. It would be nice to hear what Bernstein’s take is on the recent and ongoing NSA revelations as hope may have dimmed slightly for a more democratic world.

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9. It is very hard to keep track of the main narrative and idea when the author injects random historical stories and events with random people and random locations for no apparent reason. How do I keep track of countless random names and how can I understand what is happening since there were never any descriptions of the “setting” and who the heck are these people? Am I supposed to know the entire history of the world the be “in the know”?Why write about persons parents, their names and their upbringing to never relate it to the story and never mention those names again. If you know something, it doesn’t mean you should write it down and waste everyone’s time.The half of the book can easily be deleted, because it brings nothing to the main narrative and idea.

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10. Thoroughly enjoyed this. It swept me along. I loved the nuggets of fascinating historical info that didn’t seem pertinent at first but then became so after you read on. Recommend this for anyone interested in the history of the word and the power struggles underlying mass literacies.

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11. As a communications professional, I found this book particularly interesting. Allowed me to see history through a completely different lens.

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12. fully satisfactory

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13. Husband delighted with this book.

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