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The Influencing Machine paperback cover

". . . What makes the book so notable is its style. It's presented almost entirely in drawings, like a textbook in comic-book or graphic-novel form. . . . It's easy to imagine The Influencing Machine becoming mandatory reading in journalism classes around the country."
— Associated Press

"The Influencing Machine is more than graphic nonfiction. It's a media studies course in itself."
— Cartoon Movement

". . . A rollicking and rambling tour of the historical role of the media and its relationship to people and politics. . . . [Begs] second and third readings to absorb and enjoy all the information and droll asides."
— Miami Herald

"It's the kind of graphic novel that demands repeated readings and dog-eared pages of relevant facts. It's the kind of book that should be in the hands of every high school student as a primer in the way minds and citizenry function in the free-for-all called American-style democracy, and how that ties in with the vast march of human perception."
— North Adams Transcript

". . . Often brilliant and always thought-provoking."
— Graphic Novel Reporter

". . . This analysis of contemporary journalism is as incisive as it is entertaining, while offering a lesson on good citizenship through savvy media consumption."
— Kirkus (Starred Review)

"Gladstone . . . and noted illustrator Neufeld . . . make a formidable pair in this fascinating history of media's influence."
— Publishers Weekly

Work

The Influencing Machine

Featured by the New Yorker, Newsweek, National Public Radio, the Associated Press, the Miami Herald, the Atlantic, The Nation, Columbia Journalism Review, Publishers Weekly, the Library Journal, BoingBoing, and many others!

Influencing Machine book trailer

The Influencing Machine is a collaboration with journalist Brooke Gladstone, co-host of WNYC's On the Media, distributed by NPR.

Publisher W.W. Norton calls The Influencing Machine, "a visionary and opinionated work of graphic nonfiction on the media and its discontents. It debunks the notion that 'The Media' is an external force, outside of our control, since we've begun directly constructing, filtering, and responding to what we watch and read. It shows that we have met the media and it is us. So now what?"

Publishers Weekly and the Library Journal both declared The Influencing Machine to be one of the best comics/graphic novels of 2011. In addition, The Influencing Machine has been listed on a number of 2011 holiday gift guides, including New York Magazine and BoingBoing. Since its publication, The Influencing Machine has been translated into Italian and Korean.

Samples and excerpts:

• "Meet the Author," "The Body Electric," and "In the Beginning" [Scribd]
• "Objectivity" [Slate]
• "The Goldilocks Number" [Slate]

Blurbs:

"The Influencing Machine is so remarkable that it is hard to describe. The best I can do is: it’s a book about the history and current controversies of the media, all done as a Spiegelman-style comic-strip narrative. Brooke herself (or at least an avatar) leads you through it all, and her ‘voice’ — well known after her years as host of NPR’s On the Media — comes through loud and clear, thanks to Josh Neufeld's witty drawings. I learned a lot, including a lot that I should have known already, and enjoyed every minute."
— Michael Kinsley

"The Influencing Machine is an indispensable guidebook for anyone who hopes to navigate the mirages and constantly shifting sands of our media landscape. Brooke Gladstone’s text and Josh Neufeld’s images illuminate one another with crackling wit and intelligence."
— Alison Bechdel

"A first-rate comics manifesto. The Influencing Machine has influenced me to think much more deeply about the media landscape we live in. Gladstone and Neufeld can show and tell with the best of 'em."
— Scott McCloud

"Like Malcolm Gladwell or Michael Lewis or Michael Pollen, Brooke somehow takes a subject most of us don't give a damn about and makes it completely entertaining."
— Ira Glass

The Influencing Machine: Brooke Gladstone on the Media. 170 pp., $23.95.
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All contents © Josh Neufeld and Brooke Gladstone. Please do not use images without permission.