Malcolm Gladwell Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Reception== ''The Tipping Point'' was named as one of the best books of the decade by ''[[The A.V. Club]]'', ''[[The Guardian]]'', and ''[[The Times]]''.<ref>[https://www.avclub.com/articles/the-best-books-of-the-00s,35774/ "The best books of the '00s"], ''The A.V. Club'', 25 November 2009.</ref><ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/dec/05/books-of-the-noughties "What we were reading"], ''The Guardian'', 5 December 2009.</ref><ref>[http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/book_reviews/article6914181.ece?print=yes The 100 Best Books of the Decade]. ''[[The Times]]'', 14 November 2009.</ref> It was also [[Barnes & Noble]]'s fifth-best-selling non-fiction book of the decade.<ref>[http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/bestsellers-nonfiction-books-decade/379002050/ Bestsellers of the Decade – Nonfiction]. Barnes & Noble.</ref> ''Blink'' was named to ''[[Fast Company]]''{{'s}} list of the best business books of 2005.<ref>[http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/david-lidsky/technology-innovation/fast-companys-best-books-2005 Fast Company's Best Books of 2005]. ''Fast Company''. 5 January 2008.</ref> It was also number 5 on Amazon customers' favourite books of 2005, named to ''[[The Christian Science Monitor]]''{{'s}} best non-fiction books of 2005, and in the top 50 of Amazon customers' favourite books of the decade.<ref name=amazonbest>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/?ie=UTF8&plgroup=1&docId=577695&plpage=2 Best of the Decade... So Far: Top 50 Customers' Favorites]. Amazon.com.</ref><ref>[http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1129/p12s02-bogn.html "Best nonfiction 2005"]. ''[[The Christian Science Monitor]]''. 29 November 2005.</ref><ref>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/?ie=UTF8&docId=593614 Best Books of 2005]. Amazon.com.</ref> ''Outliers'' was a number 1 ''New York Times'' bestseller for 11 straight weeks and was [[Time (magazine)|''Time'']]'s number 10 non-fiction book of 2008 as well as named to the ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]''{{'s}} list of the 50 best non-fiction books of 2008.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2009-02-15/hardcover-nonfiction/list.html Hardcover Nonfiction Bestsellers], ''The New York Times'', 15 February 2009.</ref><ref>Grossman, Lev. [https://web.archive.org/web/20100228034356/http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1855948_1864143_1864154,00.html "The Top 10 of Everything 2008"]. ''Time'', 3 November 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/books/article/The-50-best-nonfiction-books-of-2008-3257259.php The 50 best nonfiction books of 2008]. ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]''. 21 December 2008.</ref> ''Fortune'' described ''The Tipping Point'' as "a fascinating book that makes you see the world in a different way".<ref>{{cite news|access-date=28 December 2010|last=Kelly|first=Erin|title=Bookshelf|work=Fortune |date=6 March 2000|url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2000/03/06/275205/index.htm}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|access-date=28 December 2010|last=Hawthorne|first=Christopher|title=The Massive Outbreak of an Idea|work=San Francisco Chronicle|date=5 March 2000|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2000/03/05/RV99810.DTL}}</ref> The ''Daily Telegraph'' called it "a wonderfully offbeat study of that little-understood phenomenon, the social epidemic".<ref>{{cite news|access-date=28 December 2010|last=Thompson|first=Damian|title=Are You a maven or a connector?|work=Daily Telegraph|date=9 May 2000|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4720659/Are-you-a-maven-or-a-connector.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110206134404/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/4720659/Are-you-a-maven-or-a-connector.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=6 February 2011|location=London, UK}}</ref> Reviewing ''Blink'', ''[[The Baltimore Sun]]'' dubbed Gladwell "the most original American journalist since the young Tom Wolfe."<ref>{{cite web|access-date = 28 December 2010|last=Fuson|first=Ken|title=The Bright Stuff|work=[[The Baltimore Sun]]|date=16 January 2005|url=http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2005-01-16/entertainment/0501150024_1_malcolm-gladwell-subject-medical-matters}}</ref> [[Farhad Manjoo]] at ''Salon'' described the book as "a real pleasure. As in the best of Gladwell's work, ''Blink'' brims with surprising insights about our world and ourselves."<ref>{{cite news|access-date=28 December 2010|last=Manjoo|first=Farhad|title = Before you can say|work=Salon|date=13 January 2005|url=http://www.salon.com/books/review/2005/01/13/gladwell}}</ref> ''[[The Economist]]'' called ''Outliers'' "a compelling read with an important message".<ref>{{cite news|access-date=28 December 2010|title=The road to success: How did I do that?|newspaper=[[The Economist]]|date=11 December 2008|url=https://www.economist.com/node/12758320}}</ref> [[David Leonhardt]] wrote in ''The New York Times Book Review'': "In the vast world of nonfiction writing, Malcolm Gladwell is as close to a singular talent as exists today" and ''Outliers'' "leaves you mulling over its inventive theories for days afterward".<ref>{{cite news|access-date=28 December 2010|last=Leonhardt|first=David|title=Chance and Circumstance|work=The New York Times Book Review|date=30 November 2008|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/books/review/Leonhardt-t.html}}</ref> Ian Sample wrote in ''The Guardian'': "Brought together, the pieces form a dazzling record of Gladwell's art. There is depth to his research and clarity in his arguments, but it is the breadth of subjects he applies himself to that is truly impressive."<ref name="IanSample"/><ref>{{cite news|access-date=28 December 2010|last=Reimer|first=Susan|title=Pill Inventor Gave Women Protection But Lost His Religion |newspaper=The Baltimore Sun|date=5 October 2009|url=http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2009-10-05/news/0910040057_1_rhythm-method-pill-john-rock}}</ref> Gladwell's critics have described him as prone to oversimplification. ''[[The New Republic]]'' called the final chapter of ''Outliers,'' "impervious to all forms of critical thinking" and said Gladwell believes "a perfect anecdote proves a fatuous rule".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newrepublic.com/article/63687/mister-lucky|title=Mister Lucky|magazine=The New Republic|date=3 February 2009|access-date=20 July 2016}}</ref> Gladwell has also been criticized for his emphasis on [[anecdotal evidence]] over research to support his conclusions.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/18/books/18kaku.html|work=The New York Times|first=Michiko|last=Kakutani|title=It's True: Success Succeeds, and Advantages Can Help|date=18 November 2008}}</ref> Maureen Tkacik and [[Steven Pinker]] have challenged the integrity of Gladwell's approach.<ref>{{cite web|access-date = 19 November 2009|url=http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091123/tkacik |title = Gladwell for Dummies|work=[[The Nation]]|date=4 November 2009|url-status=dead|archive-date=13 November 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091113051459/http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091123/tkacik}}</ref><ref name=nyblog>{{cite news|access-date=19 November 2009|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/15/books/review/Pinker-t.html|title=Malcolm Gladwell, Eclectic Detective|work=The New York Times|date=7 November 2009|first=Steven|last=Pinker|author-link=Steven Pinker}}</ref> Even while praising Gladwell's writing style and content, Pinker summed up Gladwell as "a minor genius who unwittingly demonstrates the hazards of statistical reasoning", while accusing him of "cherry-picked anecdotes, post-hoc sophistry and false dichotomies" in his book ''Outliers''. Referencing a Gladwell reporting mistake in which Gladwell refers to "[[eigenvalue]]" as "Igon Value", Pinker criticizes his lack of expertise: "I will call this the Igon Value Problem: when a writer's education on a topic consists in interviewing an expert, he is apt to offer generalizations that are banal, obtuse or flat wrong."<ref name=nyblog/> A writer in ''[[The Independent]]'' accused Gladwell of posing "obvious" insights.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/book-of-the-week-outliers-by-malcolm-gladwell-1027343.html|work=The Independent|location=London, UK|title=Book of the Week: Outliers, By Malcolm Gladwell|first=Boyd|last=Tonkin|date=21 November 2008|access-date=12 May 2010}}</ref> ''[[The Register]]'' has accused Gladwell of making arguments by weak analogy and commented Gladwell has an "aversion for fact", adding: "Gladwell has made a career out of handing simple, vacuous truths to people and dressing them up with flowery language and an impressionistic take on the scientific method."<ref>{{cite web|last=Vance|first= Ashlee|author-link=Ashlee Vance|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/01/20/freak_tipping_point/ |title=Abortion or Broken Windows – How can the US be safer?|website=[[The Register]]|date= 20 January 2007}}</ref> In that regard, ''The New Republic'' has called him "America's Best-Paid Fairy-Tale Writer".<ref>Gray, John (22 November 2013), [https://newrepublic.com/article/115467/malcolm-gladwells-david-and-goliath-fairy-tales "Malcolm Gladwell Is America's Best-Paid Fairy-Tale Writer"], ''New Republic''. Retrieved 17 January 2016.</ref> His approach was satirized by the online site "The Malcolm Gladwell Book Generator".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://malcolmgladwellbookgenerator.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110207221117/http://www.malcolmgladwellbookgenerator.com/|url-status=dead|archive-date=7 February 2011|title=The Malcolm Gladwell Book Generator|publisher=The Malcolm Gladwell Book Generator|access-date=9 July 2013}}</ref> In 2005, Gladwell commanded a $45,000 speaking fee.<ref>Paul Wilner (30 January 2005), "[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/01/30/LVGIDAUHH81.DTL&ao=all In the 'Blink' of an eye: Malcolm Gladwell on the power of first impression]", ''San Francisco Chronicle''. Retrieved 10 June 2012.</ref> In 2008, he was making "about 30 speeches a year—most for tens of thousands of dollars, some for free", according to a profile in ''[[New York (magazine)|New York]]'' magazine.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nymag.com/arts/books/features/52014/|title=Geek Pop Star|last=Zengerle|first=Jason|date=7 November 2008 |publisher=Nymag.com|access-date=9 July 2013}}</ref> In 2011, he gave three talks to groups of small businessmen as part of a three-city speaking tour put on by [[Bank of America]]. The program was titled "Bank of America Small Business Speaker Series: A Conversation with Malcolm Gladwell".<ref>"[http://mediaroom.bankofamerica.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=234503&p=irol-newsarticle&ID=1631079 Bank of America Features Malcolm Gladwell in Speaker Series for Local Small Business Owners]{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}", Bank of America, 16 November 2011; accessed 3 July 2012.</ref> Paul Starobin, writing in the ''[[Columbia Journalism Review]]'', said the engagement's "entire point seemed to be to forge a public link between a tarnished brand (the bank), and a winning one (a journalist often described in profiles as the epitome of cool)".<ref>Paul Starobin (March/April 2012), "[https://www.cjr.org/feature/money_talks_marchapril2012.php?page=all Money Talks: If you cover Wall Street, should you take Wall Street speaking fees?]", ''Columbia Journalism Review''. Retrieved 10 June 2012.</ref> An article by Melissa Bell of ''The Washington Post'' posed the question: "Malcolm Gladwell: Bank of America's new spokesman?"<ref>Bell, Melissa (16 November 2011), "[https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/malcolm-gladwell-bank-of-americas-new-spokesman/2011/11/16/gIQAAE0ASN_blog.html Malcolm Gladwell: Bank of America's new spokesman?]", ''The Washington Post''. Retrieved 10 June 2012.</ref> ''[[Mother Jones (magazine)|Mother Jones]]'' editor [[Clara Jeffery]] said Gladwell's job for Bank of America had "terrible ethical optics". However, Gladwell says he was unaware that Bank of America was "bragging about his speaking engagements" until the ''Atlantic Wire'' emailed him. Gladwell explained: {{blockquote|I did a talk about innovation for a group of entrepreneurs in Los Angeles a while back, sponsored by Bank of America. They liked the talk, and asked me to give the same talk at two more small business events—in Dallas and yesterday in D.C. That's the extent of it. No different from any other speaking gig. I haven't been asked to do anything else and imagine that's it.<ref>Estes, Adam Clark (16 November 2011), [http://www.theatlanticwire.com/business/2011/11/malcolm-gladwell-bank-america-deal-bragging/45081 "Malcolm Gladwell had no idea Bank of America was bragging about him"], ''Atlantic Wire''. Retrieved 13 June 2012.</ref>}} In 2012, [[CBS]]'s ''[[60 Minutes]]'' attributed the trend of American parents "[[Redshirting (academic)|redshirting]]" their five-year-olds (postponing entrance into kindergarten to give them an advantage) to a section in Gladwell's ''Outliers''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504803_162-57389721-10391709/kindergarten-redshirting.-what-would-you-do/?tag=cbsnewsMainColumnArea.1|publisher=CBS News |work=60 Minutes|title = Kindergarten 'redshirting'. What would you do?|date=2 September 2012}}</ref> Sociology professor Shayne Lee referenced ''Outliers'' in a CNN editorial commemorating [[Martin Luther King Jr.]]'s birthday. Lee discussed the strategic timing of King's ascent from a "Gladwellian perspective".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/16/opinion/lee-mlk-youth|title=MLK, born at just the right time|work=CNN|first=Shayne|last=Lee|date=16 January 2012|access-date=24 July 2013}}</ref> Gladwell gives credit to [[Richard Nisbett]] and [[Lee Ross]] for inventing the Gladwellian genre.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/06/books/review/malcolm-gladwell-by-the-book.html|title=Malcolm Gladwell: By the Book |work=The New York Times|date=3 October 2013|access-date=23 November 2013 }}</ref> Gladwell has provided blurbs for "scores of book covers", leading ''[[The New York Times]]'' to ask, "Is it possible that Mr. Gladwell has been spreading the love a bit too thinly?" Gladwell, who said he did not know how many blurbs he had written, acknowledged, "The more blurbs you give, the lower the value of the blurb. It's the [[tragedy of the commons]]."<ref>{{cite news|author=Holson, Laura M.|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/17/fashion/malcolm-gladwell-hands-out-book-blurbs-like-santa-does-presents.html|title=Malcolm Gladwell Hands Out Book Blurbs Like Santa Does Presents|newspaper=The New York Times|date=16 December 2015 |access-date=23 January 2016}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page