Dead Air

Historical Context and Significance

Ian Banks's «Dead Air» is a work born at the turning point of an era, in the very heart of the anxious early 21st century. Written in the shadow of September 11, the novel absorbs the atmosphere of confusion, anxiety, and the search for new bearings that swept through Western society. Banks masterfully captures the pulse of the times, allowing the reader to feel the thrum of the media space, where every word and action instantly becomes public property. The book became a kind of mirror of an age when the boundaries between private and public, sincerity and provocation, were stretched to the limit. «Dead Air» influenced cultural discourse, raising questions about the responsibility of words, the role of the media, and the moral dilemmas of modern life, and is still seen as a witty and piercing commentary on the events of its time.