Book · 2024 · Business & Economics
Burn Book
A Tech Love Story
- mentions
- 13
- people
- 3
- podcasts
- 2
- episodes
- 2
- critical mentions
- 0
Burn book by Caris swisser is a great book and I mean classic To Kill a Mocking Bird.
What they say about it
- Discussing book contents“characters that you have in the book”4
The best things said about it
A memoir talking about your interactions with the tech community and your reporting over the years.
Let's talk a little bit about the people building these products. It would be fun to just go through a couple of the characters that you have in the book.
This notion of these people aren't saviors, and it kind of goes to, like, the first sentence of your book, so it was capitalism after all.
As I was reading through the book, I was trying to think about what is—if there's a through line between what makes a successful leader, what is it?
You write a lot about the media business and journalism in the book.
Why people recommend it
Burn Book by Kara Swisher is a memoir that recounts the author's decades of reporting on the technology industry and her direct interactions with prominent tech leaders. Gretchen Whitmer recommended the book on The Ezra Klein Show, comparing it favorably to classic literature. Alex Kantrowitz also discussed the work with Swisher on Big Technology Podcast, congratulating her on its bestseller status and exploring the colorful portraits she painted of figures within the tech community. During the interview, Kantrowitz and Swisher reviewed specific tech personalities featured in the book, including sharp remarks about Mark Zuckerberg and his metaverse ambitions, as well as perspectives on Sam Altman as an earnest leader. Swisher also mentioned that material from the memoir might influence her future writing. Kantrowitz connected Swisher's overarching thesis—that tech leaders should not be viewed as messianic saviors—to the opening sentence of the book, which underscores the role of capitalism in the industry. Additionally, both discussed figures praised in the text, such as Mark Cuban, reinforcing the memoir's blend of personal reflection, sharp critique, and historical reporting on Silicon Valley's most powerful figures.
Every mention
Gretchen Whitmer burn book by Caris swisser is a great book and I mean classic To Kill a Mocking Bird 1
“burn book by Caris swisser is a great book and I mean classic To Kill a Mocking Bird”
Alex Kantrowitz So congratulations, best-selling book. Thank you. You signed a two-book deal. This one, obviously, a memoir… 9
“So congratulations, best-selling book. Thank you. You signed a two-book deal. This one, obviously, a memoir talking about your interactions with the tech community and your reporting over the years.”
“So, let's talk a little bit about the people building these products. It would be fun to just go through a couple of the characters that you have in the book.”
“Zuckerberg. So you have some very colorful language about Zuckerberg in the book. Yeah, I do. You say, fuck your metaverse.”
“Towards the end of the book, you talk about Sam Altman also. And Sam kind of strikes me as an earnest leader in the real deal. What's your perspective on Sam?”
“You brought it up a couple times, but this notion of these people aren't saviors, and it kind of goes to, like, the first sentence of your book, so it was capitalism after all.”
“And you praise him in the book, and I'll do it here, too. He seems—at least when I've spoken with him, someone who's just the person that he is.”
“So as I was reading through the book, I was trying to think about what is—if there's a through line between what makes a successful leader, what is it?”
“And you haven't – I mean, you haven't retired, and you even write in the book about, like, your decision to even – like, you wrote right after you wrote about your stroke that you're like, I just want to work.”
“You write a lot about the media business and journalism in the book. So on our AI theme, do you think AI is going to not kill, but seriously injure the media business?”
Kara Swisher I think I'll probably have a little bit of what's been in burn book at the end in it. 3
“I think I'll probably have a little bit of what's been in burn book at the end in it.”
“I think they think that they're – I say – I always say – I think in the book I say this, it's a – they think it's a meritocracy. It's a meritocracy. And they somehow think they did it all.”
“Like I have regular people. I meet them all the time. On this book tour, it was an eye-opener. It's my podcast audiences who's buying all my stuff or listening to me.”
Also mentioned in the same episodes
Other mentions (4: passing, ad reads, own books)
“and then I think she was like gearing up to bring out that the burn book prop like she was like prop that was rough and a half the burn book didn't land”
“Cara Swisher is here to talk with us about the state of tech leadership, AI, journalism, the media business, and her best-selling burn book.”
“Kara Swisher is here. She's the author of Burn Book, which you can get in your bookstore of choice.”
“The book is Burn Book. It's by Kara Swisher. Bestselling book. You can pick it up at your bookstore of choice.”