Organizing knowledge is an ancient pursuit. Those who toiled in this field over the centuries—librarians and bookstore owners, scholars and archivists—were trained to go about their work lovingly, almost worshipfully. A professional code implored them to treat their cargo as if the world depended on its safe transit through the generations. The tech companies share none of that concern. They have presided over the collapse of the economic value of knowledge, which has severely weakened newspapers, magazines, and book publishers.
