Should we pay people to read? Saturday 29 June 1.30 - 2.30pm

The debate

The number of Australians who read for pleasure is rapidly diminishing. And it's not only "young people" who are preferring devices over pages; it's the over 60s as well.

Malcolm Knox, journalist, author and columnist wrote, "Australia, which is undergoing one of the sharpest declines in reading in the developed world, is one of the countr

The number of Australians who read for pleasure is rapidly diminishing. And it's not only "young people" who are preferring devices over pages; it's the over 60s as well.

Malcolm Knox, journalist, author and columnist wrote, "Australia, which is undergoing one of the sharpest declines in reading in the developed world, is one of the countries doing least about it" (Age 11/11/2023).

He went on to say that it's mature people whose reading habits have changed dramatically since 2019, with a third of older Australians never reading a book at all.

Is reading a lost art? Can it be revived? should we as a society and an economy do something about it?

Show Less