Matt Yglesias Entirely Misunderstands Why the Book Publishing Industry Exists

Yglesias's piece is mostly a rehash of familiar arguments that often come from people who occupy a similar position to Yglesias's: They are, broadly speaking, outsiders to the publishing world and more closely associated with the broader fields of business, economics, and technology. They appear to believe their outsider status allows them to see more clearly how broken publishing is; they're not captive minds. The insiders tend to respond that the outsiders could stand to be less ignorant of the industry they're criticizing. This fight tends to devolve quickly.