Archives for April 2025
International Booker Shortlist
Book Are Spared For Now, But….
Documentation indicates that standard printed books are exempt from the extensive tariffs imposed by executive order last week. But there are tariffs on imported paper, including that used in book printing. As book printer Sheridan had advised last month, “Tariffs will likely lead to some cost fluctuations across imported printing materials. Some publishers may wonder if switching to U.S.-sourced materials is a viable option. While this is a consideration, past trends have shown that increased demand for domestic alternatives typically leads to price shifts in those materials as well.” (Ironically, tariffs on imported book paper could make printing in other […]
Obituary: Jesse Kornbluth
Journalist and author Jesse Kornbluth, 79, died on Thursday of Lewy body dementia. He was a contributing editor for Vanity Fair, New York, and Architectural Digest, and wrote for The New Yorker and The New York Times. He also wrote or co-wrote nine books, including the novels Married Sex and JFK and Mary Meyer: A Love Story. Kornbluth also founded Bookreporter.com with Carol Fitzgerald in 1996, and launched the culture site HeadButler.com. “Jesse was curious, kind, funny and brilliant,” Fitzgerald wrote in the Bookreporter newsletter. “He made my writing better; he liked ‘snappy copy.’ He could shape copy in a […]
People 4/7
Work Must Be Human-Authored for Copyright, US Report States
The US Copyright Office issued Part 2 of its report on generative AI, which examines whether works that use generative AI can be copyrighted. Consistent with the paper they issued in early 2023, the office reasserts the existing framework that a work must be human authored to be copyrighted, and that “questions of copyrightability and AI can be resolved pursuant to existing law, without the need for legislative change.” The report also assesses the copyrightability for AI-created work, and compares US policy to those around the world. The report does take on the subtler questions around uses of AI by […]