As is wont to happen when foolish corporate players get around to deciding something is hip, again, the publishing industry has begun doling out redonkulous sums to bloggers in exchange for their piecing together sentences that do not include “ZOMG!” or “NSFW.” Stuff White People Like’s creator scored $300k, but by one estimate, publisher Random House will have to move 75,000 copies of the book in order to break even. (Simon & Schuster learned that math the hard way with Gawker.com’s The Gawker Guide to Conquering All Media, which moved an embarrassing 2,000 copies.) So why do publishing houses insist on scooping up authors that almost certainly will lose them money? Because it was in the cards!

In a 2004 New Yorker profile about blogger book deals, the magazine predicted that in two years, “Books by bloggers will be a trend, a cultural phenomenon.” Or a giant stain on one industry’s track record.