I'm glad #MunkDebates exists but a better format is actually what #JRE does on occasion. Two experts who disagree but also know how to talk to regular people, discussing an issue for a few hours, with a smart fair and funny moderator. Maybe fact checkers too. Entertaining and educational. Targeted towards audio-only consumption so folks have time to listen while doing other things like driving, chores or exercising. That's what's needed to get the most people better informed. #LiberalValues
People are biased. We always think we know shit that we don't. Given the chance, we will bias you too. For what we perceive as your own good. But the better good is always found by putting all of our eyes and brains on it. Systems that do that are never our first choice because they might lead to conclusions we disagree with, but luckily, most of us will choose them as our next best option. That's democracy. That's science. That's a mixed economy. That's the #SocialWeb. #LiberalValues
Conspiracy media is journalism run backwards. The narratives come first, and the news is chosen to reinforce it. It's always spun in one direction. Instead of reporting on a wide variety of issues and giving you multiple guesses from different angles re why it might matter. In the latter, you have to do the work of reporting. And understand a subject or the world well enough to make sense of new events. With the former, you find people who agree with you and entertain them. #LiberalValues
If you don't have public conversations with quality critics of your worldview, you're not better than partisan/ideological corporate media. Especially when you routinely mock the people you disagree with. You're facilitating an echo chamber. You're serving an audience junk food, scared they might abandon you if you step out of line. It makes democracy harder to sustain. You're only an alternative to the mainstream in the most superficial sense possible. It's still a grift. #LiberalValues
Concentrated wealth in a capitalist democracy is like the bowling ball in a demonstration of how gravity works. It reshapes the environment. It's not their fault, they do what everybody else does but the entire political environment gets molded towards their interests. It's unavoidable. It must be fought to keep the system equally responsive to everyone. #LiberalValues
People say government is about power. Get all that you can and forget the losers who can't break the necessary threshold to pass what they want. But that's how we got here. It doesn't sustain a democracy. That approach leads to people not believing each other or news they dislike. Not willing to compromise, not willing to accept losing an election. That's why civility is necessary. Why empathy is required. Our mean political, cable news and social media cultures must be improved. #LiberalValues
I feel like the decentralization of media is happening but it's so fucking slow and confused. The public interest perspective is like the last reason anybody considers. Routing around government, corporate and billionaire control over what we think and pay attention to is why this all really matters. #LiberalValues#AttentionDemocracy
while I agree that the second image isn't great, "don't go out of your way to hurt me" is where you're wrong imo. we can't live in a society with all the stuff we take for granted with the level of absolute freedom that libertarians demand. the #LiberalValues question is how to do this best.
the best animal to represent a libertarian imo is the house cat. acting like they are tough and independent and better than others, while only able to live so well because of so many others.
Rights are such a confusing term. They are never absolute. That should be obvious because they can come into conflict with each other. And if they aren't absolute, they can't come from a god. But they are quite useful in building institutions that make for a good society, if you embrace them properly from a civics perspective.
How do we get people to do that more often? #LiberalValues
"Despite what [those bad people] say about it, you should think this." Maybe the worst way to talk about politics. Propaganda to make you completely dismiss opposing ideas and make you scared to disagree, lest you then be considered one of them. #LiberalValues
People mistake the establishment media for liberal, cause there's lots of overlap. On most stuff, they'll give you the same info because the establishment media provides most of the basic reporting and gets it right enough. But when some "fact" needs to be spun by the Dem party or corporate interests, or messaging pushed hard, they will strongly diverge. That's when you need actual liberals. That's when the establishment will call liberals racist or paid by foreign govts. #LiberalValues
She's doing vital work trying to get a large portion of Democrats to always put facts ahead of partisanship and outrage. Cable news (and the social media culture that feeds on it) is bad for our democracy. Thank you @Teri_Kanefield. #LiberalValues
Is there anybody who does this on the Republican side?
Of course we think the bad guys only win elections by cheating, when we aren't aware of the bad stuff the people we're told are the good guys, do. And obviously this story is even easier to sell regarding countries we know less about than our own. The level of American belief in good guys and bad guys is both adorable and so dangerous. #LiberalValues
When too many doubt they exist, everything unravels. Why accept any inconvenient truths or negative outcome for yourself in a court or an election, if you don't think others will do so if they lose etc? We revert to "might makes right", everything requiring force (or fear of it) to convince others to do anything they don't want to. #LiberalValues
The biggest problem in a predominantly capitalist democracy is that money becomes power, so that as wealth concentrates, a few interests overwhelm those of the general public. Lessening the opportunities for money to decide what we pay attention to and how we understand the world via media ownership and advertising, would help a lot. That's why I prioritize both the decentralization of and direct and automatic funding for media. #SocialWeb#AttentionDemocracy#LiberalValues
Liberalism is the only sustainable alternative to fascism. Everything else just devolves into authoritarianism as it pursues ideological purity. #LiberalValues
#JonathanHaidt thinks there's too much #safetyism coming from the left regarding not wanting to hear right-wing opinions or letting their kids run free, but he wants more of it regarding porn, social media use and anger at Israel. Unless you put yourself in spaces that allow others to call you on it, most people will think they are being entirely consistent. #LiberalValues#JRE
Listening to #JonathanHaidt on #JRE talking about social media. I used to love Haidt but he has become a fearmonger. A former liberal who no longer trusts that people can adapt. He doesn't seem to know alternatives to corporate algo platforms exist. I think the #TikTok zombie issue is naturally going to fade as people realize it's not good for us. I just hope too many of us don't throw out the civic value of social media along with it. #LiberalValues#AttentionDemocracy https://pca.st/rah37y5y