Non-Reader Nation

One of the more remarkable adaptations that the COVID pandemic has wrought concerns the media.  The fact that people can be interviewed from their homes via new technology has made many production schedules function as normal.
We see the local news delivered from home by our recognizable home teams.  We see the classic news shows like Face the Nation and Meet the Press go on as usual.  In many instances, we are now familiar with virtual pane discussions.  We do it at home via Zoom, and they do it in the newsroom daily on CNN.
I've been fascinated by the rooms from which people are now broadcasting.  Instead of the old, "thank you for inviting us into your homes," it's a two-way street and we are privy to go into the homes of our favorite news personalities.  One of my local weather guys often has his cat sitting on his desk with him.  Occasionally, social media goes viral with the interruption of a child or a domestic pet.  Most of the time, these make-shift TV studios function smoothly and give us a little insight into the personalities and homes of the owners.
By far, the most frequently seen items are books and bookshelves.  While most of the shelves in the background are filled with books, there are some with only one or two volumes and then a display of ceramics, arts/crafts, houseplants, or personal photographs. Occasionally we can read the book titles.  Usually, we can discern which books have been read and which are for show.

In thinking about this phenomenon, it occurred to me that one might get the impression that the vast majority of Americans are readers.  That's hardly the case.
One of the more shocking statistics I've ever read concerning the American people is that in the last year more than 50% of the population of this country did not read a book.  This information came to me right about the time the father of a former governor of New York, who knew Donald Trump well, uttered, "Donald Trump hasn't read a book in 50 years.  I believe that to be true.  One glance at his comprehension of the breadth and depth of American History or even the Presidency makes that obvious.
In all the fuss about how virtual education can or cannot replace in-person teaching and the experience of attending classes with other people, I sometimes wonder if many classes could simply be replaced with well-conceived reading lists.  Oh I know not every subject would work that way, but many would.  Anything we could do to remedy that 50% figure woud be time well spent in my view.