{"product_id":"bread-and-circuses-sebestyzsn-istvzan-9798184673806","title":"Bread and Circuses: The Hidden Machinery of Mass Distraction","description":"Description\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhat if the greatest battle of the twenty-first century is not fought over land, oil, or money-but over your attention?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMore than two thousand years ago, the Roman poet Juvenal warned that a society distracted by \u003ci\u003ebread and circuses\u003c\/i\u003e could gradually surrender its civic awareness without realizing it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eToday, the arenas have changed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eInstead of gladiators, we watch professional sports, influencers, reality television, twenty-four-hour news, social media, luxury lifestyles, celebrity culture, and algorithm-driven entertainment.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBehind them stands an invisible economy competing for the most valuable resource on Earth: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eHuman attention.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eBread and Circuses: The Hidden Machinery of Mass Distraction\u003c\/i\u003e, Sebestyén István explores how advertising, consumerism, politics, sports, Hollywood, influencers, artificial intelligence, personalized algorithms, and the emerging AI-generated internet have transformed distraction into one of the world's largest industries.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis book examines: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- The ancient origins of Bread and Circuses\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- The psychology of attention\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- Why outrage, fear, and entertainment dominate modern media\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- The commercialization of sports, influencers, and celebrity culture\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- Consumerism and the illusion of identity through consumption\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- Luxury, gambling, and the business of desire\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- Artificial intelligence and the future of human attention\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- The Dead Internet and algorithmic reality\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e- How individuals can reclaim their focus in an age of endless distraction\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCombining history, psychology, economics, media studies, and technology, this book offers a compelling exploration of one of the defining questions of modern civilization: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWho controls your attention-and what happens when attention becomes the world's most valuable commodity?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Sebestyén István\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798184673806\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Independently Published\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/28\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 406\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.08lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 1.01d","brand":"Sebestyén István","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":49002110419199,"sku":"9798184673806","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/bread-and-circuses-sebestyzsn-istvzan-9798184673806","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}