Alfred Hermida, centre, winner of the 2015 National Business Book Award (The Canadian Press Images photo/National Business Book Award)
UBC journalism professor Alfred Hermida won the 2015 National Business Book Award for Tell Everyone: Why We Share and Why It Matters.
The $20,000 literary award recognises the most outstanding Canadian business-related book.
“I wrote the book to help readers make the most out of social media,” said Hermida. “As individuals and as a society, we are sharing more of our experiences, perspectives and insights with more people than ever before using the technologies of social media.”
“We are all being affected by the transformation in how we communicate,” he said. “We’re doing something inherently human, though in new ways and in new spaces, affecting the way we think and live.”
Hermida’s book examines how social media are fuelling our human urge to share, affecting the information we depend on to make smart decisions, from choosing politicians to doing business to raising money for charity. Tell Everyone, published by DoubleDay Canada, analyzes the way we chose and share news and information using social media.
The award is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Hermida accepted the award on Thursday April 16 during a luncheon in Toronto, co-sponsored by PwC and BMO Financial Group.
“Social media and the ways in which people communicate with one another are evolving at an incredible rate,” says Tahir Ayub of PwC Canada. “Understanding new media and its impact on the world, namely your customers and how they interact with each other and your brand, is critical to business leaders making informed decisions.”
The shortlist of finalists included Jacques Poitras’ Irving vs. Irving: Canada’s Feuding Billionaires And The Stories They Won’t Tell, and Clive Veroni’s Spin: How Politics has the Power to Turn Marketing on its Head.
