Public readers commanded patient audiences in preindustrial plazas

Evidence

In one plaza, you note a public reader who is droning on and on about absolutely nothing and you marvel at the patience of his listeners. — Lyn H. Lofland, World of Strangers_ Order and Action in…, 163

Categorization

• SHARE: The image of a medieval public reader droning about ‘absolutely nothing’ to a patient crowd is a delightful nugget for someone into media history.
• XREF: connects to: Pre-broadcast courtroom oratory doubled as public entertainment — Lawrence M. Friedman and Grant M. Hayden, American Law: An Introduction, 1222