News embargoes are not uncommon when speaking of huge new releases, whether on books, films, or what have you. According to The Washington Post, the embargo for J. K. Rowling’s newest novel, The Casual Vacancy, was set to lift at 1 a.m. for critical reviews and 3 a.m. for book sales. Both the Associated Press and the New York Daily News broke the agreement several hours early.
The embargo lifted some six hours earlier in the United Kingdom, where the book released in its country of origin.
The executive editor for The Washingon Post, Marcus Brauchli, said that the publishing industry is “fighting a losing battle”, and another editor said that the different times for the release on the embargo make “little sense for an Internet age”.
These actions will likely have fierce future consequences for the publications who broke the embargo early. Salon’s Laura Miller said, “Theoretically, if you broke the embargo, they’d refuse access to other embargoed titles in the future, not just this author’s”.
What are your thoughts on the matter? Do you believe it was justified for the Associated Press and the New York Daily News to release their reviews before the embargo? Or were they simply playing the ‘me, too!’ game? Share your thoughts in the comment section down below.
The Casual Vacancy is available in physical form at your favourite book store, and digitally at Amazon’s Kindle Store and on Google Play.
Sources: The Huffington Post, The Washington Post
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