First, I disagree with some of your factual claims. When I go to my local library there are plenty of people there, and bookstores are still doing quite well.
But to answer your question: you read because it's fun. There's no great mystery to it. I enjoy reading books that expose me to interesting new ideas, or tell an engaging story. And books do both of those things in ways that other media just can't compete with. For example, a book can pull off the "character2 was actually character1 in disguise" twist without you ever seeing it coming, which is flat out impossible in a visual medium.
My question to you is: why on earth would you not bother reading? Given that lots of people still read, they must be getting something out of it. Haven't you wondered, even once, if you would also get something valuable from the experience of reading a book?
Yeah I don't really like reading either, that other stuff is definitely more entertaining, but it's ultimately useless and a waste of my time. If I want to be of any use thinking about or talking about a topic I need the depth that comes from reading. It forces you to think about it. Audiobooks don't usually work as well, because I can hear what they're saying without thinking about it, plus with reading I can spend the time I want on a thought or a piece of the text where audiobooks/videos just move on.
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Notes -
First, I disagree with some of your factual claims. When I go to my local library there are plenty of people there, and bookstores are still doing quite well.
But to answer your question: you read because it's fun. There's no great mystery to it. I enjoy reading books that expose me to interesting new ideas, or tell an engaging story. And books do both of those things in ways that other media just can't compete with. For example, a book can pull off the "character2 was actually character1 in disguise" twist without you ever seeing it coming, which is flat out impossible in a visual medium.
My question to you is: why on earth would you not bother reading? Given that lots of people still read, they must be getting something out of it. Haven't you wondered, even once, if you would also get something valuable from the experience of reading a book?
Yeah I don't really like reading either, that other stuff is definitely more entertaining, but it's ultimately useless and a waste of my time. If I want to be of any use thinking about or talking about a topic I need the depth that comes from reading. It forces you to think about it. Audiobooks don't usually work as well, because I can hear what they're saying without thinking about it, plus with reading I can spend the time I want on a thought or a piece of the text where audiobooks/videos just move on.
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