Interview: Jonathan Haidt on What Underlies Polarization in America

Interview: Jonathan Haidt on What Underlies Polarization in America

“In a sense, the Founding Fathers feared democracy because of the tendency of people to be carried away by their passion and easily led astray by demagogues, and I think that our modern polarization, augmented by social media, could well bring their worst fears to reality.”

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Publisher's Note:

This work is preserved in Merion West’s archive of articles and poems published from 2016 through early 2025. Explore the archive