WETA, Washington D.C.’s public television affiliate, is launching InReads, a new online community devoted to highlighting the ways that reading is changing in the digital era and exploring the connections between books, culture and technology.
Calling the new site, “the perfect outlet for the young, cool and plugged-in,” Michael Holstein, executive producer of inReads and the associate general counsel of WETA, described the new site an example of “social readia”or an online community where readers can survey a wide variety of cultural experiences and provide a personal response within the community.
“inReads is the new online home and social community dedicated to those of us who love books and can’t get enough talking about them,” Holstein said, “but who also recognize the myriad of ways that reading is changing. WETA recognizes the power of media and the impact technology has had across the board in our community.”
The InRead site allows its users to post their favorite books as well as their reading history. The site offers a series of blogs devoted to books, culture and technology and inRead members can, of course, comment and post to wide variety of social media outlets. Members can “dogear” blog posts to save and circulate and the site offers a variety of original content from published authors. InReads is funded by WETA with additional funding support from the Park Foundation.
InReads executive editor, Felicia Pride, is an independent writer and content producer with more than 10 years in the book publishing industry whose work has been featured in USA Today, NPR and other media outlets. Pride has also been a longtime correspondent for Publishers Weekly, reporting on African American publishing and other topics. Pride told PW that InReads will not offer books for sale, "at this time."
“By broadening the conversation about reading, we are truly encouraging a reading culture,” Pride said. “We have to be more inviting when it comes to books and the way we read, and get more people involved in the conversation—including those who’d rather experience an enhanced e-book on their iPad. The inReads staff, contributors, and advisory board will help the conversation along but the community members will really steer it.”
