Silicon Valley and "The World is Flat"

An article on Mercury News discusses the popularity of Thomas Friedman's book The World is Flat
From the Article:

How obsessed has Silicon Valley become with "The World Is Flat," the bestselling book about globalization?

Ash Lilani, head of Silicon Valley Bank Global, not only read it, he bought 50 copies of the book by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman as gifts for employees and colleagues.

More from the Article:

Peter Schwartz, a Friedman friend and chairman of the Global Business Network, a futurist think tank in Emeryville, said the author has taken something very complex that many in the valley have been struggling to explain and put it in a language easily understood.
"It's not radically new," Schwartz said. "But he articulates it in such a way that it speaks to everyone."

As one might imagine, there are those that disagree with the book:

Of course, Friedman has his detractors. Kevin Danaher, co-founder of Global Exchange, a San Francisco organization fighting growing corporate power, said Friedman fails to acknowledge the dark side of globalization, such as the increasing environmental problems.

"He doesn't really see the dirty underbelly," Danaher said. "The people we work with are pretty critical of Thomas Friedman. They see him as the mouthpiece of the empire."

According to the article, "A 'Flat 2.0' is due out this spring -- with another 100 pages."

Mike Zellers will be leading a roundtable discussion of the book this semester. Contact him for more details.

Read the complete article.

Cross Posted to LCCC's Business Division's Blog