Writing for the Bangkok Post, Kong Rithdee reports that “bloggers and netizens are being tapped by traditional publishers dedicated to the noble goal of passing on the reading bug – while making a few baht in the process.”
He cites the example of one video clip that went viral. It featured a mock interview with a Westerner talking about his first experience of being cursed at by Thai people. “Deftly using comical expletives and po-faced humour, the clip clocked up one million hits within 24 hours. At the end of the five-minute video, called BKK 1st Time, the clip reveals itself to be an advertisement for a new book, a lighthearted piece of non-fiction written by a Thai student. The gist of the matter is that this publication, entitled New York 1st Time, [was] to be launched at the 42nd National Book Fair, the country’s largest annual gathering of booksellers and readers…”
