State-Controlled Media Shun Mark Levin's Best Selling Book

WILDFIRE

Shunned By Media, Levin Book Set To Sell One Million Copies







While the state-controlled media continues to shun him, syndicated radio talk host Mark Levin's Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto is on track to sell a stunning one million copies, if it hasn't already done so. More than that number have now been printed by Simon and Schuster, its publisher.

And late today, it was revealed that the book will appear as number one on the New York Times Bestseller List for the ninth time in the past ten weeks. At Amazon, it remained in first place in books for over a month and has since generally found a home in the top ten or close to it (it ranks 12 at the moment).

But while conservative outlets have reviewed and discussed the book widely, the state-controlled mainstream media has almost completely ignored Liberty and Tyranny. Despite topping their sales list, you won't even find a review of the book in the New York Times. Don't bother checking other daily newspapers, either, as they've also found it unworthy of discussion.


To get a sense of what it all means, particularly since this is the most successful conservative book release in many years, your Radio Equalizer checked in with Levin himself. From the interview:


RADIO EQUALIZER: Mark, despite its success, I've not been able to find any real mainstream media coverage of your book. Why do you think that is the case?


MARK LEVIN: The mainstream media want to anoint our representatives and spokesmen. They have no connection with the conservative grassroots. They have disdain for them. They're not confident debating a thinking, principled conservative who promotes a viewpoint and way of life that differs from their own. Most of the mainstream media have become propagandists for the statist agenda.


TRE: Why do you believe the book has done so well despite the lack of press attention? What does it say about the future of the conservative movement?


LEVIN: First, I do want to thank my brothers and sisters in talk radio who asked me to appear on their programs to discuss Liberty and Tyranny. Also, Rush and Sean have been behind the book from the start. And Fox & Friends and Neil Cavuto helped launched the book as well. In particular, my wonderful audience has been receptive to the book, the contents of which we discuss at length during the program.

The book touches a nerve because it explains why we must be informed about our principles and confident in advancing them, especially during dire times such as these. The book resonates not only with conservatives but others because it goes back to first principles, from the great classical philosophers and the founding fathers to more recent thinkers and statesmen.

It takes on the big issues and deconstructs them from a conservative perspective. The book also examines the thinking and motivations of the statist, who doesn't share our reverence for the fundamental greatest of our society. It's a serious book about serious times.


TRE: Do you believe its strong sales will lead to a flood of new books with political themes, especially from conservatives?


LEVIN: It's already apparent that some publishing houses are trying to imitate the success of Liberty and Tyranny. What's that old line -- imitation is the sincerest form of flattery? Let me put it this way: I am becoming increasingly flattered.

The story not being told in the mainstream media is that this book is the most popular and successful non-fiction book in the country, and has been for over two months; and it has succeeded without a single major media story or ad buy. This is a harbinger of a grassroots sentiment.


Levin is correct: a flood of copycats is expected to hit later this year, with shifty-eyed, credibility-challenged MSNBC Morning Host / Resident Squish Joe Scarborough kicking things off next week.

As the state-controlled media truly does enjoy selecting its own "conservative" leaders, one might expect Scarborough's book to generate the publicity that has eluded Levin.


For conservatives, the lesson here is that they don't need the mainstream media to promote their work. Word of mouth, in addition to talk radio and the blogosphere can ignite the sales of a high-quality book to levels that have their state-controlled foes green with envy.



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