Those who read own the world; those who immerse themselves in the Internet or watch too much television lose it. Our civilization is suffering profound wounds because of the wholesale abandonment of reading by contemporary society.

Attention itself becomes the act of resistance

There's something almost defiant about Herzog's claim, especially now when so much of what we consume arrives in quick hits and glowing screens. But he's pointing at something real: reading demands something different from us than scrolling does. When you read, you have to sit still with one person's thoughts for an extended stretch. You can't skip ahead or swipe away when it gets hard. That friction—that requirement to stay put—might actually be where the real work of thinking happens.

The interesting twist is that Herzog isn't really anti-technology. He's anti-passivity. Someone can be immersed in reading about trivial things, just as someone can stumble onto profound ideas through video essays or conversations online. His worry seems less about the medium and more about what we're willing to do mentally. Reading, especially difficult reading, still forces you to be an active participant in meaning-making rather than a receiver of packaged content. In a world designed to distract you, that act of sustained attention starts to feel almost subversive—not because books are inherently superior, but because they demand more from you than most things do.