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Malcolm Turnbulls new memoir, which is due to be published on Monday, is a sweeping account of events from his early childhood in Sydneys eastern suburbs to being forced out of the prime ministership in 2018. Given Turnbulls tumultuous exit from public life, and the history wars that have followed, many readers will be interested in the former prime ministers reflections on Scott Morrison, the man who replaced him. Here are some of the standout passages from A Bigger Picture.

Turnbull says his first encounter with Scott Morrison happened in 2001, when the then-businessman was mulling options to enter politics and Morrison was the state director of the Liberal party. Morrison, Turnbull says, wanted him to be the New South Wales party leader, and hatched an ingenious idea in 2001 that involved a Liberal member of the Legislative Council retiring, my taking up the casual vacancy and then becoming leader of the opposition, running for a seat in the lower house at the next election, due in 2003. Turnbull wasnt interested in state politics and was bemused by the unconventional pathway to leadership that Morrison war-gamed with him. He was also concerned Labor would go after him for being wealthy an out-of-touch plutocrat. Morrison apparently had an answer, and spreadsheets, at the ready. Weve been throwing your name into our polling in western Sydney. And you know what? The battlers like you, Morrison told him. They admire your success; they reckon youre self-made its all about aspiration. Australians dont want class wars. According to this account, Morrison told Turnbull Kerry Chikarovski would make way for him if he signed up to the plan. But the Malcolm for Macquarie Street fizzled.

Turnbull portrays the current prime minister as always ringside, either in person or through surrogates, during the corrosive leadership battles that erupted shortly after the Coalition came to power in 2013. Turnbull says Morrison began to sniff out interest in removing Abbott as early as 2014, only a year after the Coalitions election victory, when the majority of colleagues were not countenancing a change.

There was talk of moving Turnbull to Treasury to replace Joe Hockey after the disaster of the 2014 budget. I was careful to play no part in this. Abbott would never move me to treasurer, Turnbull says. And I felt I was being used as a stalking horse by others, especially Scott Morrison, to position themselves.

Turnbull says the agitation persisted, and on 10 December, he had dinner with Morrison, who wanted to replace Abbott as party leader. It was the first time he laid out, fairly comprehensively, his thinking on Abbott, who he felt would have to go by the middle of 2015 if his performance didnt improve. He said Hockey should go now and he was making the case to Abbott to replace him with me. He was closely in touch with the key figures at News [Corp], he told me, and said they were getting ready to dump Abbott. And he made it clear he saw himself as the successor.

After the reshuffle at the end of that year that moved Morrison out of immigration and into social services, Turnbull says Morrison was furious and this was the first time I recall him saying we will need to remove him before the budget. By 19 January, Turnbull says Morrison had a list of names who would support tipping Abbott out of the leadership. Morrison wanted the job, but didnt want to be seen to challenge him. He felt the rightwing commentators (by whom he meant Alan Jones and Ray Hadley) would never support me. Morrison also, according to Turnbull, wanted to marginalise Julie Bishop, but later backed off that idea, and the three later agreed Turnbull would be the leader in the event the campaign to remove Abbott succeeded.

Throughout this period, Turnbull notes Morrison was vocal in his support for Abbott and publicly denied discussing leadership issues with me. Of course, hed done so on many occasions, and every indication was that hed encouraged, if not masterminded, the [first] spill itself.

Turnbulls ire is directly predominantly at Mathias Cormann and Peter Dutton for the coup that terminated his prime ministership in 2018, but he concludes after some equivocation (its never possible to be 100% certain about these things) that Morrison was playing a double game: professing public loyalty to me while at the same time allowing his supporters to undermine me. It was, of course, precisely what hed done in 2015 when he said hed voted for Abbott in the leadership ballot but worked closely with me to ensure his supporters voted against Abbott.

Turnbull says he knew on the morning he spilled the leadership, while I was prepared to accept Morrisons assurances of continued loyalty, I knew that some of his supporters were starting to urge him to make a move himself. He says he was aware of the risks of tactical voting by Morrison supporters in the first ballot. Turnbull says Morrison sent him a note while the ballots were being distributed. The note said: I dont know why we didnt discuss this. But thats your call. Turnbull is on my ballot. I replied, Thanks! Its the right call. The room has to make up its mind.

Scott is a control freak and Id seen before ... how hed publicly vote one way while ensuring his supporters voted the other way

When the result was 48 votes for Turnbull and 35 for Dutton, I wondered whether some of Morrisons supporters had taken the chance and voted for Dutton, hoping they didnt accidentally deliver him a win. Subsequent accounts of these events indicate that Stuart Robert and Alex Hawke had organised about half-a-dozen of them to vote for Dutton enough to lift his numbers up to a level that damaged me but didnt get Dutton over the line. If Morrisons friends had voted the way he said he did, the Dutton insurgency would have been utterly dead that morning.

The idea that they did that without his knowledge is fanciful. Scott is a control freak and Id seen before in the ballots in 2015 how hed publicly vote one way while ensuring his supporters voted the other way.

When it was clear he had no prospects of retaining the prime ministership, Turnbull actively encouraged Morrisons campaign. Turnbull says he lined up behind Morrison because he believed he was a responsible, safe pair of hands. But Dutton, were he to become prime minister, would run off to the right with a divisive, dog-whistling, anti-immigration agenda, written and directed by Sky News and 2GB, designed to throw red meat to the base. With no constraints, Dutton would do enormous damage to the social fabric of Australia. Its one thing having the tough cop handling border protection and counter-terrorism, but not at the head of our multicultural society.

Turnbull also records the messages he exchanged with his successor after Morrison was sworn in. I messaged him, Turnbull says, Congratulations prime minister and good luck. According to Turnbull, Morrison replied the next morning. Only you can know how I feel today, but I cannot begin to know how you feel. I loved working for and with you. Im really proud of what we did. And that is always how I will always feel and speak of it. I want you to know I am thinking about you a great deal and you know I pray for you. That doesnt change now. I dont know why all this happened, but now it has come upon me, you know I will be relying on my faith, friends and values to overcome and conquer what is ahead Thank you for all youve done for me. But above all as one PM to another, thank you for everything you did for our country. No one knows that contribution better than me.

Love you mate.

Turnbull notes at one point in the memoir that working to prevent the legalisation of same-sex marriage was the most animated Morrison ever got during internal policy debates. Morrison, Turnbull says, wanted a constitutional amendment on the question. Scott explained to me a few days later, I dont want gay marriage. And because referendums are almost always defeated, I think thats a good way to ensure it never happens. Morrison also ran interference on the issue. In the 2016 election, Turnbull says the issue of marriage equality was broadly neutralised until this equilibrium was thrown out in the last crucial week of the campaign by Scott Morrison, who had been the principal advocate of a plebiscite.

During an interview with Leigh Sales on 7.30 on Tuesday 28 June, he refused to say how hed vote if the plebiscite was carried and this immediately raised concerns about the governments sincerity. Scott had a very sincerely held and viscerally intense opposition to same-sex marriage and could have said hed abstain, but I fear his troubled conscience was reserving the right to vote against it. Every other minister was then asked how theyd vote; most sensibly said theyd vote for legalisation if the plebiscite passed. A cautious answer from Julie Bishop was unreasonably portrayed as equivocal. She was a strong supporter of same-sex marriage despite a ferocious anti-same-sex-marriage element in her constituency, led by Margaret Court.

Turnbull recounts a number of instances in the memoir where he asserts Morrison was either leaking government discussions or front-running issues with trusted media surrogates during internal debates about tax reform and about budget measures. Turnbull says he had several tough discussions with Morrison about his behaviour. He says both he and the finance minister Mathias Cormann were at our wits end as to how to manage Scott. He says Cormann said the government had a treasurer problem. In an exchange of messages between the two Turnbull says he replied: [Morrison] operates completely differently from us. We prefer to stay absolutely resolute on course until we decide to change. He wants to flag possible changes way in advance (why?) which reduces optionality and makes us look undecided. I cant work it out because its so counter productive.

[Scott Morrison] was brittle emotionally and easily offended.

Nothing is more corrosive of good government than policy consideration being front-run in the media, Turnbull says. I found it completely incomprehensible and couldnt see how anyones interest or agenda was assisted. Scott adamantly denied any responsibility, but regrettably nobody believed him.

I had no problem whatsoever with Scotts political pragmatism he was, after all, a former state director of the party and looked at issues almost exclusively through a political prism. But working with him was difficult; so much of what we discussed or were thinking about found its way into the media.

Many of my colleagues encouraged me, without success, to mistrust Scott and to see his briefings as malign, the calculated undermining and manoeuvring of a Machiavellian plotter. And yet we enjoyed a close working relationship. Despite Mathiass begging me to be selective in what I told him, I continued to be open with Scott. He seemed to me to be my most likely successor, and as far as I could I preferred to work with him as a trusted partner. Scott, like many politicians, wanted to keep himself constantly in the centre of things. That was the purpose, Mathias maintained, of Scotts constant stream of briefings, mostly to Simon Benson at News Corporation.

Some of the more scathing commentary Turnbull makes about his successor is delivered through passing references to the prime minister. Mathias and I agreed we had to make sure Scott was a success.

We had to recognise he was brittle emotionally and easily offended. At a practical level we both sought to ensure, as tactfully as possible, that he stayed out of negotiations with the Senate. He had a blustering manner that could easily be mistaken for bullying and was often counterproductive.

It should be clear from the preceding references that Turnbull narrates a hostile relationship between Cormann, the finance minister, and Morrison, then treasurer. Turnbull suggests that Cormanns strong support of Dutton during the leadership crisis in 2018 reflected two things a close personal relationship between the two rightwingers, and Cormanns fixed dislike of Morrison.

Mathias regarded Scott as emotional, narcissistic and untrustworthy and told me so regularly.

Mathias regarded Scott as emotional, narcissistic and untrustworthy and told me so regularly, Turnbull says.

Turnbull says Dutton was also hostile to Morrison. Of course, if Mathias had a poor opinion of Scott, Duttons dislike of him was even stronger, he says.

Turnbull suggests the feelings were more or less mutual. Morrison for his part didnt entirely trust Mathias, not because he saw Mathias as a rival for the leadership one day, but because he knew Mathias was close to Peter Dutton. Scott didnt trust Dutton at all and regarded him as deficient in all respects character, intellect and political nous.

Within that troika, Turnbull says, it would be fair to say that each of them trusted me more than they trusted the other.

Cormanns move against Turnbull clearly stung the most. Turnbull says he was hurt personally by the finance ministers decision to agitate on behalf of Dutton, because he thought there was a friendship that eclipsed the transactions of politics. Although he also quotes Cormann describing the move against him by Dutton as madness, and it is terrorism but you have to give in to it.

A Bigger Picture by Malcolm Turnbull is published by Hardie Grant Books (RRP $55). It will be available from 20 April.

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Scott is a control freak: what Malcolm Turnbulls new book tells us about his relationship with Morrison - The Guardian

Our reliance on the media, in all its forms, is heightened in times of crisis, especially those of public health and disease. A recent literature review published in the APAs Health Psychology journal looked at trends in public behavior as a response to media coverage of the current and past crises, some of which are deleterious to public health. There are several general trends worth examining.

First, the authors note that the public depends on the media to convey accurate and up-to-date information in order to make informed decisions, and that during such times, the public may increase their reliance on media. Depending on the quality and flow of information, two things can happen. People may form an accurate perception of risk, in which case they are less likely to engage in dangerous behavior like consumer hoarding, and less likely to experience negative emotions like anxiety, depression and distress.

The alternative outcome is highlighted in the study, which looked at responses to similar health crises, like H1N1, school shootings, and bombings. As has been demonstrated by public reaction to the COVID-19 virus, the proliferation of misinformation, disproportionate exposure to sensationalist or graphic news (both voluntarily and because it can be difficult to avoid), and ambiguity in the news can all result in risky behavior and negative affect.

More specifically, ambiguity during the H1N1 crisis was found to increase feelings of loss of control and anxiety. Because people tend to perceive novel viral threats as more dangerous than familiar ones, ambiguity around new diseases is a particularly powerful trigger. Furthermore, following the Boston Marathon bombings, increased media exposure was positively correlated with acute stress, such that those who reported the highest media exposure reported the highest levels of stress.

Thus, despite the best efforts of official sources like the CDC and WHO, a chaotic and saturated media environment has led to the kinds of behavior that put both the public and healthcare workers at greater risk, such as a global shortage of face masks and respirators, and widespread increases in depression and anxiety symptoms.

The authors repeatedly stress the importance of both conveying and consuming accurate and up-to-date information. The responsibility lies both with the media and the general public, and adhering to best practices will help curb the impact of COVID-19 and hasten its conclusion.

The article, The Novel Coronavirus (COVID-2019) Outbreak: Amplification of Public Health Consequences by Media Exposure, was authored by Dana Rose Garfin, Roxane Cohen Silver, and E. Alison Holman.

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Misinformation and disproportionate media exposure leads to inappropriate public health behavior - PsyPost

With more than 17 years of experience in retail, real estate and the hospitality industry, with extended competences in communication, loyalty, strategy, and management programs, as well as handling complex systems, but at the same time volunteer for different social causes, Raluca Mihaila launched Utopic Brain, a creative boutique for different clients that have in common one thing: they do good around them. More than that, she has 4 books published, the last one being called Glasvand, and is passionate about photography.

By Romanita Oprea

BR talked with Mihaila about her almost 2 years of freelancing and how has her previous extended experience in marketing helped her and influenced her path, as well as the current covid-19 pandemic and its influence on the marcomm industry.

What would you say that have been the most important steps and decisions you took in your career so far and why?

The benchmark of my professional choices was to never stick to what I had to do and always find ways to go the extra mile. Its part of who I am.

The second most important thing was to try and face my fears, up to the point of risking panic attacks. Although it gave me anxiety, it also provoked new ways of looking at life. From facing a vicious boss to denying my conformity to an unethical procedure, there were plenty of occasions when I had to confront my fear of unpopularity and job threat.

The third was to learn the lesson of saying NO. I learnt it the hard way, but its important that I learnt it after all. I am still too young to be too late J. Plus, after understanding this, I realized that what remained as a YES was a choice worthwhile.

What determined you to choose your independent path and why did it happen precisely at that time?

The time I decided to take this step was in a moment of personal hopelessness about the probability of remaining authentic in a corporation with a heavily procedural environment and with the inability to capitalize on their peoples talents. After having tried for more than 7 years to fit in, I decided that the probability was too low to handle. At the heart of who I am is a rebel wanting to learn how to embrace its freedom.

How would you characterize the marketing industry in Romania at this moment?

Shallow, consumerist and empty of meaningful or inspirational ideas. A shape without an essence. Its meant to solely sell, hence it remains sadly superficial.

There are a few exceptions, but, as they say, the exceptions only conform we have the rule.

How did youchoose the name Utopic Brain?

It is a branding inspired by both my imagination and my limits. An imagination I want to challenge and a limitation based on my experiences, traditions, beliefs, desires which I also want to attack. We usually want what we cant have and once we have it, we forget to want it. I wondered if the missing piece in this behavioral flaw (and others) lies in the percentage of the brain we, humans, dont use yet. I am dreaming of an utopic brain able to give the answers for the questions we dont know yet.

Part of your philosophy is Challenge patterns & clichs through borderless creativity . Tell us more about it.

I dont like the big crowds or the packed roads, nor do I like absurd guidelines and how tos. Regardless of their obvious utility in everyday life, any additional procedural stiffness that comes on top of human rights, respect and common sense its useless to me. I learn every rule just to see the breach I can break in order to better the process. I think life is too short and the world too big to waste our minds and senses on repetitive activities, identical places and uncurious people.

You have at present three directions you are focusingon: marketing, photography and writing. What is your main target for 2020 on each one of them and why?

I stopped making any plans for 2020. I think the moment we live now is about breathing in the idea that we might not, after all, control everything J. Luckily, my mind wanders a lot, so I take every creative new idea I have and put it into practice alone or with my clients. One day at a time, one idea at a time. This is the only plan for now.

You also launched 4 books. Where do you find your inspiration and how are you positioning yourself as a writer?

My inspiration comes from observation (of myself and of the people I encounter), introspection (I question everything and spend a lot of time alone in my head) and experience. All three of them come together in what are now a collection of a research on high potential people, a Socratic dialogue, a satirical fiction and a dystopia. I am not sure I know or want to position myself as a writer and actually, I dont think its my place to do that. Plus, I dont like labels and once Id have one, Id probably want to escape it J. I want to believe that no writing piece is like the other. Oh, and one thing I can say about my writing is that its not light and, at times, quite abstract J. I have an extremely troubled and restless inner life which I express throughout my blog for more than 11 years now. Its my unofficial hello to the world.

Your latest book Glasvand is partly inspired by your professional experience. To whom is it addressed to and what do you wish from it?

Now, I see in Glasvand a mirror able to make you wonder if youre in the right (professional) place.

It is a book initially meant to be a post on my blog. I wrote it in an afternoon and then shared it with some close friends. To my surprise, I realized that was I wrote there was something people needed to read, so I considered publishing it. It is a satirical story supposed to be a nuanced and humoristic manifesto against any form of corporate abuse. The target are women in top corporate positions denying their personal and emotional discomfort for the purpose of maintaining their social status and financial security.

What I wish with it is to let people know that its ok to be hurt by abuse, that they are not alone in this and that wanting to be genuine happy is more than a nice to have. It should be a priority.

How has the covid-19 pandemic impacted you and your business?

What inspired this period was a question to myself: does what I do still stands tomorrow? I am not sure about the answer J but I know for a fact it makes all the sense for me. And it seems like it also makes sense for all the partners I work with.

How do you think it will change you this experience for the future?

I hope it would teach me to let go.

What do you believe the marcomm industry will learn from it?

Nothing.

What about the market itself?

For companies:

For the general public:

What are clients, in your point of view, looking for at the moment?

Acts, not ads. And optimism, touching the ones they have to avoid, empathy, generosity, utility of the products of value.

What pieces of advice would you offer the marketing industry representatives right now?

To stop insulting their audience with valueless products.

Go here to read the rest:
Raluca Mihaila (Utopic Brain): The moment we live now is about breathing in the idea that we might not control everything - Business Review

Donald Trump has posted highly incendiary tweets stoking protests against physical distancing and other coronavirus stay-at-home measures in three states led by Democratic governors.

LIBERATE MINNESOTA! the US president wrote in capital letters on Friday. LIBERATE MICHIGAN!

He followed up with a third tweet: LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege! a reference to Virginias governor, Ralph Northam, last week signing into law new measures on gun control.

Trump has repeatedly ignored his own entreaty to put partisan politics aside during the coronavirus pandemic. His latest provocative interventions followed demonstrations against stay-at-home orders in Michigan, Ohio, North Carolina, Virginia and other states that have drawn elements of the far right.

Some protesters have carried guns, waved Trump and Confederate flags and sought to frame the debate as a defence of constitutional freedoms. They have been egged on by conservative media hosts such as Fox Newss Jeanine Pirro, who said: What happened in Lansing [Michigan] today, God bless them: its going to happen all over the country.

Trump, known to watch Fox News closely, has offered mixed messages. On Monday he claimed total authority to order an end to the stay-at-home measures, but on Thursday he issued phased guidelines that passed the buck to governors to make decisions on the ground about when and how to reopen. His tweets on Friday appeared to undercut his own experts warnings and drew sharp criticism.

Jay Inslee, the Democratic governor of Washington, tweeted in response: The presidents statements this morning encourage illegal and dangerous acts. He is putting millions of people in danger of contracting Covid-19. His unhinged rantings and calls for people to liberate states could also lead to violence. Weve seen it before.

Beto ORourke, a former Texas congressman who like Inslee ran for the nomination to face Trump in November, said: Republicans will turn a blind eye [and] too many in the press will focus on tone. But history books will say: in April of 2020, when the pandemic had already claimed 35,000 lives, the president of the United States incited people to storm their statehouses with AR-15s and AK-47s.

Michigan has taken big hits in both coronavirus cases and job losses and will be a critical battleground state in the presidential election. Wednesdays Operation Gridlock, a demonstration against strict stay-at-home policies ordered by Michigans governor, Gretchen Whitmer, attracted the Proud Boys and other far-right groups who have been present at pro-Trump and gun rights rallies in Michigan.

Most protesters stayed in their vehicles and circled the state capitol building in Lansing, but a small group stood on the capitol steps to flout physical distancing guidelines. They brandished signs that included Trump/Pence, Recall Whitmer, Heil Whitmer and Stop the Tyranny, and briefly chanting Lock her up!, echoing Trump campaign rallies targeting of Hillary Clinton.

Whitmer, who dismissed the stunt as essentially a political rally, has emerged as a possible a running mate for the presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden. Ronna McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, said at an online Women for Trump event Whitmer had turned this crisis into a platform to run for vice-president.

The protests have earned comparisons with the Tea Party movement of a decade ago and more are expected in coming days, with the tension between public health and economic reopening viewed through an increasingly partisan lens.

The Washington Post reported: Uncertainty and fear over the economic impact of stay-at-home orders is fueling a sort of culture war between conservatives, whose political strength now comes from rural America, right now less affected by the virus, and liberals, whose urban strongholds have been most affected by it.

Last Saturday, for example, the Republican senator Ted Cruz, a Trump ally, tweeted that he was going to the beach with his children. Fortunately, I live in Texas where we protect public safety, but arent authoritarian zealots so they wont arrest me! he wrote.

According to Pew Research, 81% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say their greater concern is that governments will lift these restrictions too quickly. About half (51%) of Republicans and Republican leaners say their bigger concern is that state governments will act too quickly while slightly fewer (46%) worry more that restrictions on public movement will not be lifted quickly enough.

At Thursdays White House coronavirus taskforce briefing, Trump was asked if he would urge protesters to listen to local authorities. He replied: I think theyre listening. I think they listen to me. They seem to be protesters that like me and respect this opinion. And my opinion is the same as just about all of the governors. They all want to open. Nobody wants to stay shut, but they want to open safely. So do I.

On Friday, he let rip with more tweets attacking Andrew Cuomo, the Democratic governor of New York, and Obama and Biden, the former Democratic president and vice-president. The States have to step up their TESTING! he added, though the federal government has not devised a national testing strategy.

Cuomo shot back: If hes sitting at home watching TV, maybe he should get up and go to work.

Link:
Trump appears to stoke protests against stay-at-home orders - The Guardian

The bleak,stereotypical image of the lonely, socially isolated video game player is rapidly falling away.

As the COVID-19 pandemicforces peopleto findnewpursuits while stuck in their homes, theres been a surge in online gaming and a growing realizationthese gamescan contribute toa healthy sense of connectedness and community, experts say.

The shift in perception was inevitable, says Kristopher Alexander,professor of video gamesat Ryerson University in Toronto.

What this pandemic has done is highlight some of the more positive aspects of video games that are often lacking inthe media, says Alexander, whospecializes in video game design, e-sports and broadcasting.

Todays online games offercountlesschallenges and immersive experiences, but most also provide players with the option to chat live with teammates and exchange texts during play.

As well, people whotake part in multi-playergamesare oftenrequiredto co-operate to achieve a goal, which contributes to a sense ofpurpose and belonging.

The pandemic has brought on a new kind of awareness forthe video games medium, particularly in terms of how it can help us connect with our families, friends and traditionally offline communities, says Alexander, who as a teenager was ranked17th in the worldonthe Street Fighter 3 video game.

Video-game researcher Rachel Kowert says the perception of the anti-social gamer was never based on reality.

Theres no evidence to suggest that the people who play online games are less socially competent than the people who do not, she said in an interview.

Kowert, who is based in Ottawa, says well-designed games help players meet threebasic needs related to good mental health: competence, autonomy and relatedness.

Competence is aboutachieving goals.Autonomy isabout making choices. Relatedness is about feeling connected to others.

The recent restrictions imposed on our social lives, including physical distancing and self-isolation, have short-circuited our ability to meet those needs.

We cant go where we want to go, we dont have control over the pandemic, and were being socially distant, said Kowert, who works for Take This, aWashington-basednon-profit thatsupportsmental health in the gaming community.

Online gaming with family, friends and strangers can offer players a sense of accomplishment, virtually unlimited choices and a sense of connection through real-time communication that doesnt always focus on the game.

Its not a singular activity, Kowert added. They are chatting with their friends. Theyre reducing stress, reducing depression and releasing endorphins all of the things that we could really use right now during a very stressful, anxious time.

Even some of the industrysmost outspokencritics have recognized that gaming can play a key role in keeping people connected during the pandemic.

The World Health Organization, which has frequently raised red flags about excessive use andsomething it calls gaming disorder, recently announced its support for a gamingindustry initiative that encourages players to #PlayApartTogether.

Im not surprised that the WHO has altered its stance on gaming, saysAlexander. People are now having to take a look at the richness of this medium . The shift in their stance comes from education.

The gamingindustry now rivalsthe musicand film industriesin terms of revenue.

According to a January 2020 study from the Canada Media Fund,more than 2.5 billion gamers spent about US$152 billion on video games last year. And all that money isnt just for solitary gaming.

It may look like kids spend an awful lot of time in their rooms, on their screens, the study, titled Closer, Wider, Faster, says. But dont be fooled. Instead of meeting at the mall or the park, they convene on platforms like Fortnite and YouTube, where they socialize and meet other kids.

The Entertainment Software Association of Canada says thevideo-game industry in this country, which employs 27,000 people,generated $3.6 billion in revenue last year, up 15 per cent since 2017.

And theres plenty of evidence to suggest the industryhas received a bigboost since the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic on March 12. Nintendos popular Switch console, for example,has sold out around the world in the past few weeks.

There has been a boom, says Alexander, pointing to online platforms like Steam, which hit a new recordearlier this month withmore than 25 millionusers logging on in one day.

Scott Stewart,a senioranalyst withinternational market research firm Mintel, says video games have evolved from a niche hobby in the 1990s to a mainstream form of entertainment that cant be ignored.

A recent Mintel consumer survey suggests that 67 per cent of Canadian adultsplay video games, and among them 39 per cent play online with other people.

If we ask people why they play video games, 32 per cent of them say they do it to connect with others or to compete with others, said Stewart, whospecializes intechnology and is based in the Toronto area.

Among those who play online games,47 per cent say they do so to connect with friends and family.

At a time like this, theres a need for social connection while were all stuck at home, says Stewart. Thats a reason why people are gravitating towards (gaming).

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 16, 2020.

Michael MacDonald, The Canadian Press

Read more here:
There has been a boom. Surge in video games linked to need for connection - CityNews Winnipeg