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2010s digital media closes up shop.
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Persuasion.
Essays and commentary on liberalism, politics, and public culture.
Recent essays
30 of 215A Precarious Balance
Governments are increasingly taking undemocratic steps in the name of preserving democracy—but this must be done with caution.
In Britain, A Tragic Murder Was Followed By Mass Confusion
Here’s what the case looks like without the hyperbole.
Russia’s Oil Is Getting Hammered
How Ukraine learned to hit Putin where it hurts.
Welcome to the Postmodern Presidency
Before there was Trump, there was French theory.
The Islamic Republic Is More Dug in Than Ever
The propaganda war has tilted the regime’s way.
Jeremiah Johnson on Why Gen Z Isn’t Actually Doomed
Yascha Mounk and Jeremiah Johnson examine the disconnect between economic data and public sentiment about young Americans’ prospects.
It’s Ideology, Stupid
Why Huntington's clash of civilizations thesis is even more wrong today than it was in 1993.
Episode 188: Liaquat Ahamed on 1873
Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST.
Kathryn Paige Harden on How Genetics Shapes Human Behavior
Yascha Mounk and Paige Harden discuss twin studies, heritability research, and why genetic influence varies across different traits and populations.
This Week at Persuasion
Starting shortly—Intellectual Bootcamp. Also, London pub meet TONIGHT!
What the Pope Is Telling Us
If human worth is based on mere intelligence, there’s nothing to stop AI having a greater claim to dignity.
Be Excellent, Not Efficient
What I told this year's graduating class.
What Tunisia Teaches the United States About Democracy
It’s (still) the economy, stupid.
Ukraine and Iran are Changing Warfare
Here's what to pay attention to.
The Democrats Sabotaged Their Own Autopsy
The report into the 2024 election was perfectly fine. So why will nobody say so?
H.W. Brands on the Making of George Washington
Yascha Mounk and H.W. Brands discuss the first U.S. president's life and legacy.
James Traub on Why American Classrooms Are Failing Democracy
Yascha Mounk and James Traub examine how progressive teaching methods are producing citizens who can’t think critically.
Why Trump’s Slush Fund Is So Egregious
The president plans to use tax dollars to reward his friends—and ensure the IRS never investigates him again.
This Week at Persuasion
INTELLECTUAL BOOTCAMP TODAY AT NOON EASTERN!
Defunding ICE Would Be the Easy Part
What happens when people who have been taught that violence is acceptable are suddenly without a job?
Intellectual Bootcamp Tomorrow!
Reading David Graeber's "On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs."
Ahmadinejad Leading Iran? Color Me Skeptical
Why the newly revealed American-Israeli plan never stood a chance.
Join Us At LibCon 2026!
Want to hang out with Yascha, Frank, and other leading liberal thinkers? Of course you do!
Britain’s Far Right Want Power
What I saw at Saturday's “Unite the Kingdom” rally.
What Xi Knows That Trump Doesn’t
Threnody for a once great democracy.
Marc Lipsitch on Playing Pandemic Roulette in the Lab
Yascha Mounk and Marc Lipsitch also discuss how worried we should be about Hantavirus and Ebola.
When Civilian Space Becomes a Security Weapon
The meaning of Iran’s war without boundaries.
Why AI Is a Train, Not a Bicycle
And why that’s a very bad thing.
Episode 187: Ian Shapiro on How Politicians Broke Our World
Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST.