Sean Illing and David Brooks talk about Brooks’s recent essay, “How America Got Mean.” They discuss the country's moral history, how politics and culture have shifted our perception of connection and community, and what can be done to make things nicer.
Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray Area
Guest: David Brooks (@nytdavidbrooks), author and op- ... Show More
Sep 28
How trauma became a status symbol
We were told that airing our personal trauma in public would set us free. Instead, we got “the trauma script,” celebrity branding, and performative empathy. In today's episode, guest host Christine Emba talks with cultural theorist and professor Catherine Liu, author of Traumatiz ... Show More
43m 12s
Sep 21
This is how you rule the world
What should a college teach? How to think? How to find a career? How to be a good citizen? What about how to acquire money, influence, and power? In today’s episode, guest host Bryan Walsh speaks to journalist and writer Theo Baker about his investigation into Stanford University ... Show More
58m 31s
Jun 2024
David Brooks on Solving Social Isolation and Fixing Democracy
Hate crimes, gun violence, political polarization…. to New York Times’ columnist David Brooks, these are signs that America is undergoing a new epidemic: social isolation. He joins Ray Suarez to discuss his new book, “How To Know A Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Bein ... Show More
53m 38s
Sep 2025
America, You Okay? I S.3 Ep. 2
<p>Mosheh Oinounou joins Amanda and Rachael to delve into the current state of U.S. politics, exploring the impact of political violence, the influence of Charlie Kirk, and the dynamics of Trump's presidency. </p><p>What is the cultural reactions to recent political events? ... Show More
49m 6s
Jul 2023
THINGS HIDDEN 141: Global Power vs. Agape Love
David Gornoski and Shane Kennedy talk about whether hate has no home in Ukraine, how neocons scapegoat, the founding myth of modern America, whether the masses can have a nuanced worldview, Tucker Carlson's remarks on making peace, how the political establishment hijacks our Chri ... Show More
1h 26m
Sep 2025
STATE OF THE NATION | What now America? | After Kirk with Chis Hedges and Jackson Hinkle
<p> After the shocking killing of Charlie Kirk, is America heading toward civil war? With political violence escalating and divisions deepening, the question of what comes next is more urgent than ever. On The Mother of All Talk Shows, George Galloway brings together two of the s ... Show More
1h 41m
Sep 2025
#433 — How Did We Get Here?
Sam Harris speaks with Dan Carlin about the decades-long buildup to our current political moment. They discuss the growing powers of the presidency, executive orders, different factions within the Republican Party, the fragmentation of our society, Libertarianism, the growing pro ... Show More
22m 6s