Are you a snob?

When it comes to reading, are you a snob? Do you judge a book by its cover? Will you only read books of "quality"? Do you have an unspoken standard of reading material below which you will not stoop? Or, do you have a more "open door" policy when it comes to reading?

Where I live, on the Gold Coast, there are several newspapers on offer daily at my local newsagent. There is the local paper, The Gold Coast Bulletin, the state paper, The Courier Mail, and the national options, The Australian and The Sydney Morning Herald. Some say that the quality of news reporting increases as the readership's geographical area grows. That is, the quality of the local newspaper is questionable, while the reporting in the papers which enjoy nationwide distribution is of much higher quality. I know of people who would be horrified at the thought of reading the local paper, where there are others who take their news only from such a source.

Similarly, magazines and journals can be categorised in various ways, including according to their supposed quality. I must admit to being a little bit of a snob when it comes to this type of reading material. I do look down my nose at some of the magazines on offer as I wait at the supermarket checkout and would not want to be seen purchasing one of them. However, I am just as likely to pick the same magazine up if I'm in the doctor's waiting room and, secretly, don't mind if she is running a little behind schedule with appointments, as it provides me with a stolen moment to catch up on the latest gossip!

There is the school of thought that says information can be found in the unlikeliest of places and this is certainly true when it comes to reading material of dubious quality. I guess the real question is, what are you seeking from what you read? You could have any number of reasons for reading - from expanding your intellect to gleaning gossip on your favourite actor to simply enjoying a moment in time to escape the realities of your daily routine. I say, read what you want, not what you think others think you should be reading. As long as you are reading, that's all that matters.

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