This was a well researched book about different biases we find in media and how it affects our views of others, our view of ourselves and ultimately how we treat those around us. The authors, and their guests, went into detail about ways to recognize and combat these biases, which I found to be very informative. I liked the idea of an audiobook that combined narration and podcast interviews, but I found it to be a little jarring. It was hard to find a good speed to listen to the book and some of the podcast parts could have been condensed down.

I liked Skewed. This is an audio production, with guests popping in every now and then. I would say this is more like a podcast than an audiobook, since it wouldn't exactly be the same written down into a book. Both hosts and guests are likeable, and they cover quite a variety of topics relating to media, while also keeping in mind that they have certain privileges. I feel that's where the guests came in handy, as Caryn and Professor Keon got the chance to bring up aspects and experiences that couldn't be covered by them given their personal advantages and relationship with the media.

While the chapters ranged from fashion, to tv shows, gender and ageism, it's not exhaustive by any means; then again, I don't think anything that covers media and personal experience is.

Franklin works through this material with content partner Keon West in an approach that feels like binging an interesting podcast. Further taking full advantage of the possibilities of the audiobook format, guests are brought in and we have their voices, too: Michelle Elman, Juno Roche, Natasha Devon, etc. This keeps the audiobook engaging throughout. The media bias being explored here is on sexism (women treated as sex objects), ageism, gender expression, ableism, etc. Studies and data are brought in to make the cause of the harmful effect this has through the media with the media here being largely advertising and entertainment.

A great social commentary, ‘Skewed’ features not only the two authors, but several guest speakers that share their personal experiences on bias in the media, in society at large, and in our personal spheres. Though, the book is very information dense, it is entertaining and informative. Authors personal experiences help to make the material more relatable and bridge the information between chapters. A valuable listen for those interested in sociology, psychology, or a career that involves worthiness with other people (aka- anyone).

This book is fascinating. For anyone looking to learn more about the male gaze and the objectification of humans in the media, this book cannot be missed.

4.5 stars.

ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL LISTENING FOR ALL!

Firstly, this audiobook sounds very much like a great podcast (without all of the hellos and goodbyes)! Long-time fashion producer Caryn Franklin and research psychologist + professor Keon West have used the audio format to their greatest advantage.

WHAT I LOVED ABOUT THIS BOOK:
* the absolutely essential tackling of this subject!
* the fabulous use and range of audio.
* the collaboration of the two authors' vastly different worldviews.
* the way that chapters are broken down into specific aspects of skewed media, and then contained everything from personal anecdotes, to interviews from a a diverse range of humans, to collections of research studies to show how the relevant aspect of skewed media plays out throughout various parts of the world and its consequences on real people.
* the inclusion of so much scientific data, as well as a look at the challenges of designing certain scientific studies.


WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN DONE BETTER:
* could absolutely have been shorter.
* Although this book was already absolutely long enough, I would have liked to have seen an even more diverse range of consequences on modern society (ie Indigenous, Asian, etc).
* some of the studies cited were really old. I would have liked to know why: were they absolutely the best available on that particular subject? Was there nothing newer, done well? Did they have the biggest pool of subjects? Were they the most neutral?
* I would have liked to see each chapter/subject wrapped up with a quick reiteration of the subject, what was looked at AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, any potential ways that the authors could see to reverse these effects. The summations would also have been extremely valuable in the longer chapters.

Ultimately, I think that this audiobook is an INCREDIBLE and valuable addition to the discussion on how skewed the information that we take in everyday is, and how this skewed media alters everyone's worldview. Everyone should be ingesting all available media with these principles in mind. The continuation of this skewed media and ignorance by the vast majority of the general public creates a WORSENING of our culture every single day, especially for those who live in marginalized bodies (and minds).

BASICALLY - GIVE THIS AUDIOBOOK A LISTEN, AND BECOME MORE AWARE OF WHERE YOU HAVE TAKEN ON THESE HARMFUL PERCEPTIONS AND JUDGEMENTS! KNOWING HOW SKEWED MEDIA IS CAN HELP MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER, MORE INCLUSIVE PLACE FOR ALL.

Huge gratitude to W.F. Howes Ltd and NetGalley for a free, advanced copy of this audiobook, in exchange for my honest review.

This audiobook was much longer than I anticipated (clearly I didn't check the length when requesting it). I didn't realise it isn't based on a written book - that it's primary format is audiobook. But it felt like a podcast & audiobook mixed together. The interviews & conversations scattered throughout felt less clean & scripted (obviously) which made for a strange back & forth w/ the scripted "book". I wonder if it would have worked better as a shorter audiobook w/ just the scripted book. Then they could have created a related podcast to have the conversations and interviews there. The podcast might have driven folks to discover the book then.
Great topics covered. It was obviously very thorough given the length. I appreciated the evidence-based research presented.
Narrators did a nice job.
I could see a teacher using sections of this for a variety of courses - another reason the podcast being a separate entity might be good.
I'd have rated it 4 stars if I hadn't found myself noticing the length of the book & thinking "there's still that many hours to go with this?" as often as I did (despite finding the content good stuff!).

'Skewed' by Caryn Franklin and Professor Keon West is a sweeping look at how the choices we make with our media consumption, and the choices we don't make with our advertising consumption, can give us impressions that we don't even know we have. From sexism to agism there seem to be commonly held 'truths' that underpin what we see on a daily basis that the authors want us to question.

In terms of medium I have to say I didn't enjoy the loose, long-podcast feel of this audiobook. Chapters are either one or the other of the authors relaying information and introducing a topic in a slightly stilted manner, or interviews with guests that sound like podcast interviews and don't have that narrative tightness that you get with scripted interviews. I found it difficult to concentrate on the subject at hand with the authors gushing about how (truly) amazing their guests are and asking slightly leading questions.

The content itself is a good overview of the way bias can shape our perceptions, but I think there are other books that look at each of these perceptions (race, age, beauty etc) in more depth and with much more nuance. There isn't much balance to the book and political opinions are frequently given assuming that the listener has those same opinions and without much discussion of why people may think differently. The authors frequently give examples of biased media and then say 'I know one example isn't enough' and then leave it there.

There were a few good points made by the authors but I feel that those nuggets don't make up for the loose format of the audiobook and attempt to make a general overview of a small selection of media seem like a complete review of all media.

At 19 hours long, I was a bit apprehensive at first as to whether this would keep my interest, but I couldn't have been more wrong. Keon and Caryn alternate chapters between them and are joined by a number of contributers, giving this almost a podcast feel at times, which I really enjoyed.

Covering a multitude of bias themes, this is an incredibly interesting and rounded audiobook on what is a really complex topic.

I thought this was fantastic and really suited the format. I've never listened to anything delivered by multiple people like this other than separate episodes of a podcast. I hope there are more audiobooks like this in the future. It was like an extended podcast that I could dip in and out of, offering a nuanced exploration of media bias.

I liked the inclusion of interviews rather than just referring to an expert's research. More than one contributor meant I didn't get bored of one person's voice and the change in delivery gave me more chance to reflect. I was initially concerned this might be aimed at academics studying media and while I think it would be very useful for such people, I was pleased to find it accessible while challenging my thinking and offering great insight too. A worthwhile listen! Thank you to the authors, publisher and NetGalley.

This was probably the most intense non fiction book I have listened to. It is heavy and has big topics. Some were worthy of discussions with family some were worth self discovery.

Chapters of sex and body were very relatable to me whereas chapters of race were a bit more stretched I felt. Like any other non fiction book there were parts which felt repetitive in the middle.

It is more like a podcast as there were interviews with people from different fields of life. The hosts were funny and witty. 19 hours is long but the topics covered justify the time.

Thank you @tandemcollectiveuk for sending me a copy of the audiobook. #ad #prproduct

I've never listened to an audiobook quite like this before - it's a series of interviews with experts and absolutely perfect for people who enjoy listening to podcasts. Skewed explores the media bias that becomes ingrained in our psyches from birth because we're constantly bombarded with messages about the sexes and our gender roles. I found it particularly interesting to hear them discuss the ways Disney characters contribute to our biases. Both contributors very easy to listen to and they were clearly experts in their fields. It was an interesting listen and I highly recommend.

An absolutely fantastic read on how the media and society at large are skewed by bias, across topics like fashion, Disney, aging. Deeply effective as an audiobook as it features interviews throughout. I think this could be a particularly good listen for young people building media literacy and critical thinking skills.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the authors for the opportunity of listening to this interesting audiobook.

I have only just finished this but already want to listen to it all over again, with a pen at the ready to take notes! This was a fantastic listen and I feel like I’ve learnt a lot and had my way of thinking challenged entirely.

There was so much covered within this and so many studies cited that I just wish I could remember it all. It would be great for future discussions around race, sex, age, gender, fashion, tv, advertising!

I found the topics around beauty ideals and ageism particularly influential, perhaps because I could see how much my perspective was skewed on this, and how I really need to spend some time rethinking. I never considered how damaging the media can be and how it impacts how we think about ourselves and others. I have also never really acknowledged or thought about my whiteness and now I realise that is me being part of the issue.

My partner might be glad that I’ve finished this so that I stop with my constant “in my audiobook it’s talking about…”, but I am sad to be stopping my learning and I certainly recommend this to others.

This audiobook felt more like a podcast at points as the authors had multiple different people in to speak about their experiences and backgrounds. I loved hearing from everybody involved. Thank you Caryn and Keon for pulling together such an informative book.

This is more like a podcast in an audiobook and it covers everything from what we watch on TV how we think of what we watch on TV Disney movies how that makes us feel about our self rape assault body image self-esteem and much much more. Okay if I could just do a little aside here when I was a sophomore in college I went blind and at that time and still today I have psoriasis since then I’ve had 19 surgeries want to take my eye out and I feel like if I was a modern day girl I would still be at home crying about going blind and there would be so many things in life I would’ve missed out on. Now having said that that’s a lot I totally agreed with while listening to this audiobook like when they talked about the different term analogy of sexual assault how that affects us how what we see a Disney movies affect little children because everyone should be represented I totally believe that but there were many things I didn’t agree with so to give a star rating I would definitely give this a solid 3 1/2 stars S4 is narration goes it wasn’t a typically narrated book it was more like an ad lib. free-for-all. not to mention The head about half a dozen people who speak on the audiobook. So do I recommend it definitely because I know people take different things from advice and it may help some people. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

☼ tandem listen-along / ad - gifted (thank you) ☼

Skewed: How Bias Distorts Our View of Other People and How to Make It Stop
Caryn Franklin & Professor Keon West
No rating - non fiction

This book shed a whole new light, was very thought-provoking, and educated me even further with a whole new deep rabbit hole that allowed me to explore my mind and beliefs more than ever before. I enjoyed the wide range of important topics covered, and the interviews were so well done and diverse that it was really refreshing to peer into the minds of others. I especially appreciated the sections on topics close to my heart, such as abortion, and I found myself wanting to thank the contributors for speaking so openly about these taboo subjects. This is a book I'd like to force older generations, conservatives, and everyone to read because it truly opens the mind like never before.

→ what’s a subject you feel passionate about?

→ @the52bookclub reading challenge 2023: a book with a subtitle

→ content warnings: abortion, rape, racism, homophobia, transphobia, rape, sexual assault, sexual coercion, sexism

☼ blurb ☼

Skewed investigates the hidden messages we absorb from birth. Caryn Franklin and Keon West explain how our inner worlds are shaped by false information, media trends, and the brain's preference for patterns and stereotypes. They explore biases around gender, sexuality, race, age and appearance, and offer a vision for an alternative future in which we recognise and manage bias.

This was such a unique audiobook. It is presented like a podcast with guest speakers who discuss the various topics introduced throughout the chapters, but also includes enough scientific information and personal stories from the authors to tie everything together. There were some incredibly valuable insights into Media Bias, and I think the combination of examining this topic between someone who works directly in media and someone who works in academia worked really well.

I'm fascinated by our unconscious biases and how they affect how we treat people and behave in certain situations so this book was perfect to help me explore how the media helps to form these skewed views, right from very early childhood.

The book is informal, almost like a podcast, with chats between authors and their expert guests with lived experience in the fields discussed such as gender, sexuality, race.

It made me really think about how much information I take in subconsciously and how much my children will be taking in and challenged my views, especially around gender. It made me realise that we can't stop the constant bombardment of messages, but we can be conscious of these and keep the lined of communication open with family, friends and acquaintances and constantly challenge our views and experiences.

Highly recommended.

This audiobook was very interesting and eye opening. It certainly got me thinking about many different aspects of life. The audiobook was quite long but the chapters were good bite size chunks which were easier to digest.

Really enjoyed listening to this book overall. It was a long listen and some tough topics to have to listen to, but the learnings were invaluable. It had me checking my privilege, biases, and learnings from the early moments of my life to the present day. I listened to this book with the Tandem Collective UK and enjoyed being able to discuss my thoughts with others. I've learned so much from the audiobook and look forward to growing my knowledge in the subjects brought up, in order to help society grow in the years to come.