Baratunde Thurston On Social Media Perils, Institutional Distrust & Why Empathy Is The Solution To Our Political Divide

The Rich Roll Podcast

Rich Roll

Health & Fitness, Education, Self-improvement, Society & Culture

4.8 • 12.9K Ratings

🗓️ 7 August 2023

⏱️ 119 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Today's podcast guest is Baratunde Thurston—an Emmy-nominated writer, comedian, and cultural critic focused on the intersection of tech, democracy, climate change, and race in America. A generational voice in the media landscape, Baratunde is a former executive at The Onion, a writer for Puck News, the New York Times bestselling author of How To Be Black, and the host of both America Outdoors on PBS, and the podcast How To Citizen. Today we cover everything from the impact of technology and social media on society to the current perils of our democratic system. We also discuss the need for diversity and representation in media, the importance of community and belonging, nuanced conversation, and responsible media practices. We also address the rapid evolution of our media landscape and our declining trust in institutions across the country, what it means to be black in America, and how we can all become more active and informed citizens. I’ve been a fan of Baratunde and his work for many years. He is a witty and masterful storyteller and someone I respect for fearlessly confronting difficult problems with actionable solutions, enthusiasm, and consensus building. This one is powerful. Show notes + MORE Watch on YouTube Newsletter Sign-Up Today’s Sponsors: AG1: DrinkAG1.com/RICHROLL Birch: BirchLiving.com/RICHROLL BetterHelp: BetterHelp.com/RICHROLL Squarespace: Squarespace.com/RICHROLL Plant Power Meal Planner: https://meals.richroll.com Peace + Plants, Rich

Transcript

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0:00.0	We've been through a lot in this country. We have accomplished magic, literal magic from
0:18.8	the perspective of most humans who have ever lived, rockets and all the technological
0:23.5	advances. So we're capable of so much more than hiding from the truth.
0:28.8	Please welcome Baratunde Thurston, New York Times bestseller. Behind Inspiring,
0:33.3	Oddcast How to Citizen with Baratunde. It's asking people to do something more than
0:38.8	shop and vote. To go so far as to just keep people feeling good, not
0:44.7	pushing to any discomfort is not serving the truth and we can't be free if
0:49.0	we're not honest. How much progress are you actually ever gonna make? How much
0:53.0	time we got, bro? I don't know about you, but right now this moment feels
1:00.3	like a pretty confusing time. It's a time of dizzying tech innovation, political
1:06.0	vitriol, cultural division, not to mention massive shifts in the media
1:10.6	landscape. It's a time in which it feels harder to make sense of what's
1:16.2	actually happening and also how to best focus our collective responsibility to
1:22.0	forge a better future for ourselves and generations to come. To help me make
1:26.7	sense of this moment and for the better future of our imagination is the
1:31.6	wonderful Baratunde Thurston, an Emmy-nominated writer, comedian and cultural
1:37.1	critic focused on the intersection of tech, democracy, climate change and race
1:42.4	in America. Baratunde, I think it's fair to say, is a generational voice in the
1:47.3	media landscape. He's a former executive at the onion. He's the New York Times
1:52.2	bestselling author of How to Be Black and he's the host of both America
1:56.6	Outdoors on PBS and the How to Citizen podcast. His writing can be found at
2:02.7	Puck News and in this conversation we discuss many things. The impact of big
	...

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