Podcast: CBC Ideas with Nahlah Ayed: Reading — and Thinking — in a Digital Age

“In the modern digital landscape, we are exposed to a near-unlimited library of online text. In terms of sheer “reading miles,” as book historian Adriaan van der Weel puts it, the average person is arguably consuming more written words each day than ever before in history. But higher-level reading, which is associated with a slew of essential critical thinking skills, is declining — and generative AI is accelerating that trend. IDEAS asks: As our digital landscapes become increasingly splintered and strewn with disinformation, is the decline of reading affecting our collective ability to think well?”