Editorial Reviews编辑推荐
From Publishers Weekly
ABC News correspondent Stossel mines his 20/20segments for often engaging, frequently tendentious challenges to conventional wisdom, presenting a series of "myths" and then deploying an investigative journalism shovel to unearth "truth." This results in snappy debunkings of alarmism, witch-hunts, satanic ritual abuse prosecutions and marketing hokum like the irradiated-foods panic, homeopathic medicine and the notion that bottled water beats tap. Stossel"s libertarian convictions make him particularly fond of exposés of government waste and regulatory fiascoes, which are usually effective but lead inexorably to blanket denunciations of "monster government" and sermons on the wisdom of the market. Sloganeering—"Myth: The EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) will make America less sexist. Truth: The EEOC will torment people and enrich lawyers"—sometimes crowds out objectivity. The author"s complacent glosses on overpopulation and global warming ("we can build dykes and move back from the coasts") are especially glib and one-sided. Fans of Stossel"s similarly opinionated bestseller Give Me a Breakwill eat up this new book, but other readers may wince when the author"s ideology overshadows the facts.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From AudioFile
To follow a similar book that sold well, John Stossel of TV"s "20/20" offers another exposÉ, this one on how many widely held beliefs are wrong. Once again, the author"s TV roots betray him as this book predictably dumbs-down its material. Using sound clips from TV interviews breaks up the drone of Stossel"s narrative sensationalism but contributes little to his stated goal of providing listeners with the truth. If you"ve endured the TV show, you pretty much know what to expect from Stossel, charming as ever in this recording but not whom you want to turn to if you"re really interested in understanding anything about how the world works. T.W. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine
From Booklist
Investigative reporter for ABC"s 20/20, Stossel is well known for his impatient "Give Me a Break" reports uncovering wrongdoing. With a writing style that is similar to his television personality--lots of questions and exclamatory statements--Stossel debunks several popular misconceptions from media bias to world overpopulation. In separate chapters, he turns an investigative eye toward the media, business, government, education, the sexes, consumers, law, experts on everything, religion, health, parenting, and the pursuit of happiness. In the business section, he takes a generally pro-business position, attacking myths regarding the notion that big business is anti-consumer and exploits workers. He counterbalances by examining the myth that American business believes in free markets. The Truth: most businesspeople don"t care about free markets, and will stifle competition if it serves their interest. Regarding government, Stossel attempts to strike a similar balance, attacking the myths that Republicans shrink government and that government helps the needy. Stossel tackles more mundane subjects in the health section, exploding myths that being cold gives you a cold and chocolate is bad for you. Each debunking is backed up with research and interviews. He concludes with a chapter that acknowledges readers" natural curiosity about where he stands politically with a myth-buster about himself: Myth: John Stossel is a conservative. Truth: he"s a classical liberal. For fans of Stossel and readers who appreciate pokes at conventional wisdom. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Chicago Sun-Times
"Stossel scores a hit with Myths, Lies, and Downright Stupidity. . . a worthwhile investment of your money and your time."
Bill O’Reilly
"Reading Myths, Lies, and Downright Stupiditywill immediately make you smarter than your friends. And that’s no lie."
Stephen J. Dubner, coauthor of Freakonomics
" Myths, Lies, and Downright Stupidityis John Stossel at his very best: blunt, brilliant, counterintuitive . . ."
Publishers Weekly
"Snappy debunkings of alarmism, witch-hunts, satanic ritual abuse prosecutions, and marketing hokum."
Forbes
"Most folks will learn more in this wee volume than they probably did during four years of college . . ."
Book Description内容简介
Now in paperback: The major national bestseller that the New York Times says "tosses sand on liberal sacred cows"John Stossel -- award-winning journalist, tireless consumer-rights crusader, and anchor of ABC"s newsmagazine 20/20 -- has built his reputation on his willingness to debunk conventional wisdom, no matter the source. In his latest New York Times bestseller, which has sold more than 200,000 copies in hardcover, he busts the myths, lies, and downright stupidity clogging media outlets on all sides of the spectrum. Taking a shovel to the heaps of misinterpretations and outright mistakes passing for "fact" these days, Stossel proves:--That contrary to popular belief, Americans have more free time now than ever before; --How DDT could actually save millions of lives annually, if only we hadn"t been wrongly convinced it caused cancer; --That Republicans don"t shrink government -- they expand it; --Why bottled water is a rip-off (hint: not only doesn"t it taste better than tap, it"s no healthier either!); --How "defective product" lawsuits end up depriving us of safer products; --Why it"s okay to marry your cousin; --And much, much more.Bursting with facts, sharp insights, and plain old common sense, Myths, Lies, and Downright Stupidity is a modern muckraking classic.
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