Adrian Wooldridge, the political editor of The Economist, has written on topics as diverse as Alan Greenspan, the history of radicalism in British psychology, and the evolution of the modern Republican Party. In his latest book, The Aristocracy of Talent: How Meritocracy Made the Modern World, he seeks to counter recent attacks on the ideal of meritocracy.

In this week’s conversation, Adrian Woolridge and Yascha Mounk discuss the hidden radicalism of the meritocratic ideal, China's embrace of meritocracy, and the West's misguided rejection of it.

This transcript has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

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Podcast production by John T. Williams, and Brendan Ruberry
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Saving Meritocracy

"The Good Fight," the podcast that searches for the ideas, policies and strategies that can beat authoritarian populism.Please do listen and spread the word about The Good Fight.If you have not yet signed up for our podcast, please do so now by following this link on your phone.﻿Email: goodfightpod@gmail.comTwitter: @Yascha_MounkWebsite: http://www.persuasion.community

News

Yascha Mounk and William Galston discuss why neither the Democrats or Republicans have been able to build a durable governing majority.

William Galston is an author and academic who holds the Ezra K. Zilker Chair in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. Galston was also deputy assistant for domestic policy to President Bill Clinton. His latest book is Anti-Pluralism: The Populist Threat to Liberal Democracy.

In this week’s conversation, Yascha Mounk and William Galston discuss why cultural questions have become as important as economic issues in deciding elections; why the period following the 2024 election will afford political opportunities to ideological upstarts in both parties; and the outsized influence of “dark passions" like humiliation and resentment in voting behavior.

﻿This transcript has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

Please do listen and spread the word about The Good Fight.
If you have not yet signed up for our podcast, please do so now by following this link on your phone.
Email: podcast@persuasion.community 
Website: http://www.persuasion.community
Podcast production by Jack Shields, and Brendan Ruberry

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William Galston on 2024 and Trump's Conviction

Yascha Mounk and Daryl Davis discuss his lifetime of convincing Ku Klux Klan members to renounce racism.

Daryl Davis is an American R&B and blues musician, author and social activist. Davis estimates he has been the direct or indirect cause for over 200 conversions from the Klan. He is also co-founder of the Prohuman Foundation.

In this week’s conversation, Yascha Mounk and Daryl Davis discuss how a childhood experience with racism inspired him to interview and befriend members of the Ku Klux Klan; the importance of remaining “pro-human” even in the face of hatred and bigotry; and whether his faith in humanity feels out of tune with the current political moment.

﻿This transcript has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

Please do listen and spread the word about The Good Fight.
If you have not yet signed up for our podcast, please do so now by following this link on your phone.
Email: podcast@persuasion.community 
Website: http://www.persuasion.community
Podcast production by Jack Shields, and Brendan Ruberry

Connect with us!
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Daryl Davis on Befriending the Klan

Yascha Mounk and Nellie Bowles discuss her career at The New York Times and reporting on the ground from urban “autonomous zones” in 2020.

Nellie Bowles is a writer and reporter and the head of strategy at The Free Press, where she writes the TGIF column. Her book is Morning After the Revolution: Dispatches from the Wrong Side of History.

In this week’s conversation, Yascha Mounk and Nellie Bowles discuss how she came to chafe against the institutional culture of The New York Times and why she left; how new power hierarchies arose within media and institutions where small groups came to wield outsized power; and how the transformative ideas about power and society that became dominant in 2020 continue to hold great influence.

This transcript has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

Please do listen and spread the word about The Good Fight.
If you have not yet signed up for our podcast, please do so now by following this link on your phone.
Email: podcast@persuasion.community 
Website: http://www.persuasion.community
Podcast production by Jack Shields, and Brendan Ruberry

Connect with us!
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Twitter: @Yascha_Mounk & @joinpersuasion
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Nellie Bowles on How the Revolution Went Mainstream

Yascha Mounk and Helen Joyce discuss the evidence base for the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones in young people.

Helen Joyce is an Irish journalist and the Director of Advocacy at Sex Matters. She is the author of Trans: When Ideology Meets Reality.

In this week’s conversation, Yascha Mounk and Helen Joyce discuss the findings of an independent review by Hilary Cass of gender identity services for children and young people in the United Kingdom; how government and public health institutions in the UK have come to take a more skeptical view of gender-affirming care for young people than in the US; and the need for a more thoughtful and nuanced approach to trans issues which considers the rights and safety of all individuals involved.

﻿This transcript has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

Please do listen and spread the word about The Good Fight.
If you have not yet signed up for our podcast, please do so now by following this link on your phone.
Email: podcast@persuasion.community 
Website: http://www.persuasion.community
Podcast production by Jack Shields, and Brendan Ruberry

Connect with us!
Spotify | Apple | Google
Twitter: @Yascha_Mounk & @joinpersuasion
Youtube: Yascha Mounk
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Helen Joyce on Youth Gender Medicine

Yascha Mounk and Eboo Patel discuss how interfaith work can serve as a model for engaging productively across differences.

Eboo Patel is the founder of Interfaith America and the author of We Need to Build: Field Notes for Diverse Democracy. Patel also served as an advisor on faith to President Barack Obama.

In this week’s conversation, Yascha Mounk and Eboo Patel discuss how the dominant diversity paradigm in many institutions divides individuals into oppressors and oppressed; how universities can draw from the intellectual tradition of pluralism to encourage mutual respect and cooperation; and how university leaders can alleviate the deeply polarized atmosphere that prevails at many institutions around the country.

This conversation is part of a new Persuasion series on the Future of Universities. Universities are in crisis—losing public support, shaken by internal divisions, facing angry donors and alumni, and increasingly straying from their core mission of intellectual curiosity and open inquiry. Persuasion's new series about the future of universities, made possible by the generous support of the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, will consist of a collection of longform essays and podcast interviews aimed at helping higher education tackle this crisis. 

 This transcript has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

Please do listen and spread the word about The Good Fight.
If you have not yet signed up for our podcast, please do so now by following this link on your phone.
Email: podcast@persuasion.community 
Website: http://www.persuasion.community
Podcast production by Jack Shields, and Brendan Ruberry

Connect with us!
Spotify | Apple | Google
Twitter: @Yascha_Mounk & @joinpersuasion
Youtube: Yascha Mounk
LinkedIn: Persuasion Community
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Saving Meritocracy

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