The author of “Bowling Alone” warned us about social isolation and its effect on democracy a quarter century ago. Things have only gotten worse.
Yesterday
As the Iran War Escalates, Is the U.S. Hiding Its Toll?
The war in Iran has recently escalated in dangerous new ways, drawing in Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, as the Trump administration reeled from the Iranian killing of U.S. service members in Jordan. Eric Schmitt, a national security correspondent for The New York Times, discus ... Show More
26m 1s
Jul 20
More Trump Tariffs Are Coming
At a moment when inflation and affordability are on virtually everyone’s mind in America, Jamieson Greer, the U.S. trade representative, said the Trump administration was planning a new slate of tariffs. Ana Swanson, who covers international trade for The New York Times and spoke ... Show More
40m 27s
Jan 2025
‘The Anti-Social Century’: America’s Epidemic of Solitude—and How to Fix It
My new feature for The Atlantic magazine is called "The Anti-Social Century." It's a long article that revolves around a simple point: Americans are now spending more time alone than ever. This surging solitude is changing our personalities, our politics, our culture, and our rel ... Show More
1h 10m
Jul 2024
Social Distancing – Why They want You Isolated and Alone
…totalitarian domination as a form of government is new in that it… bases itself on loneliness, on the experience of not belonging to the world at all, which is among the most radical and desperate experiences of man. Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism Many people hav ... Show More
15m 29s
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
Jul 2025
Robert Talisse on Civic Solitude
Democracy is about acting as a group, but, surprisingly, Robert Talisse argues that what it needs to function well is a degree of solitude for citizens. In-group and out-group dynamics mean that individuals become vulnerable to being pushed towards more extreme views than they wo ... Show More
17m 42s