Hello? James Gleick's new book compares the history of the telephone to the modern era

NPR | By Sarah Robbins,

Rob Schmitz, Henry Larson

Published November 14, 2026 at 5:48 PM EST

Have you ever wondered where phone etiquette or the idea for the first social network came from? Author James Gleick talks about his new book, The Telephone.

Sarah Robbins

Rob Schmitz

Rob Schmitz is NPR's international correspondent based in Berlin.

See stories by Rob Schmitz

Henry Larson

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