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Every book Nick Bilton recommended on podcasts
Nick Bilton offers a fascinating look into the darker, highly secretive corners of Silicon Valley and the intensive investigative processes behind non-fiction writing during his appearance on the My First Million podcast. As an author and chronicler of the tech industry, Bilton frequently reflects on the staggering amount of effort required to produce compelling narrative journalism and historical books. While discussing the exhaustive research behind monumental literary works, he pointed to Gabriel García Márquez's 'One Hundred Years of Solitude' to illustrate how master writers construct intricate stories without explicitly spelling out the immense archival and investigative labor involved. Drawing from his own extensive portfolio, Bilton discussed his book 'Hatching Twitter', recounting the tumultuous backstories, intense corporate friction, and deliberate attempts by various players to derail the project. He detailed his hands-on methodology of interviewing numerous different founders and sources behind closed doors to piece together the true narrative of the social media platform's chaotic creation. Through these reflections, Bilton provides listeners with an insider's view of investigative reporting, illuminating the grueling behind-the-scenes realities of uncovering hidden truths within powerful technology companies and translating them into enduring narratives.
Books recommended by Nick Bilton
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Hatching Twitter
Discussed“and I wrote the Twitter book which which we can talk about and this incredible backstories to that that um and uh of people trying to kill the project and so on and so forth”
Where to get it
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One Hundred Years of Solitude
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez is a landmark masterpiece of magical realism that chronicles the multi-generational history of the Buendía family in the fictional town of Macondo.
Discussed“the amount of research that people like Gabriel Garcia mer C put into 100 Years of Solitude and like into chest it's like when you read these they they're not telling you all this they're just telling you a story”
Where to get it
Books Nick Bilton wrote
Appearances
| Episode | Podcast | Date | Books |
|---|---|---|---|
| We talk to the guy who knows Silicon Valley’s darkest secrets | My First Million | 2025-02-26 | 4 |