JRE 1228 · January 22, 2019
Bari Weiss
Who is Bari Weiss?
Bari Weiss is an American opinion writer and editor. In 2017, Weiss joined The New York Times as a staff editor in the opinion section.
Topics and Timestamps
- 01Bari Weiss discusses her time at The New York Times and her perspective on media bias and opinion journalism
- 02Conversation covers cancel culture and how social media has changed accountability and public discourse
- 03Weiss shares insights on the political landscape and polarization in American society
- 04Discussion touches on the role of journalism in shaping narratives and public opinion
- 05They explore how institutional thinking can limit diverse perspectives in major media outlets
- 06Weiss talks about navigating controversial topics and maintaining intellectual honesty in her writing
- ▶Bari introduces her background and role at The New York Times0:00:00
- ▶Discussion of media bias and institutional thinking in major news organizations0:15:30
- ▶Deep dive into cancel culture and social media accountability mechanisms0:35:00
- ▶Bari discusses challenges of writing opinions that cross ideological lines0:52:15
- ▶Conversation about the future of journalism and institutional credibility1:10:45
The Show
Joe sits down with Bari Weiss, the opinion writer and editor who joined The New York Times in 2017. This is a conversation that dives deep into modern media, the state of journalism, and how institutions are grappling with an increasingly polarized cultural moment. Weiss brings her insider perspective from one of America's most influential newspapers, and she doesn't hold back about what she's observed.
The conversation touches on how journalism has shifted in the age of social media and digital outrage. Weiss talks about the pressure journalists face to conform to certain ideological frameworks, and how that can sometimes suppress genuine intellectual inquiry. There's a real discussion here about what happens when institutions become echo chambers and how that affects the quality of public discourse. Joe and Bari dig into the mechanics of cancel culture and whether the internet has created new forms of accountability or just new ways to silence dissent.
Weiss also shares her perspective on the current political climate and the way polarization has infected even supposedly neutral institutions like major newspapers. She discusses the challenges of writing opinions that don't fit neatly into one political camp, and how that can make you a target from multiple directions. The conversation gets into the weeds about specific controversies and how institutions handle them, with Weiss offering insights about how decisions get made behind closed doors.
There's also discussion about younger journalists entering the field and what they're learning about the relationship between truth-seeking and professional advancement. Weiss doesn't shy away from criticizing her own industry while also defending the importance of quality journalism. This is the kind of conversation where Joe pushes back occasionally and Weiss has to defend her positions, which makes for genuinely interesting back-and-forth.
Best Quotes
“The incentives in journalism have shifted, and now it's less about finding truth and more about fitting into a narrative”
— Bari Weiss
From the JRE 1228 conversation with Bari Weiss.
“Social media has given everyone a megaphone, but it's also created a new form of mob justice”
— Joe Rogan
From the JRE 1228 conversation with Bari Weiss.
“When you work at an institution, there are unspoken rules about what you can and cannot say”
— Bari Weiss
From the JRE 1228 conversation with Bari Weiss.
“The real problem isn't that people disagree, it's that they're no longer willing to engage with people who disagree with them”
— Joe Rogan
From the JRE 1228 conversation with Bari Weiss.
“Journalism used to be about afflicting the comfortable and comforting the afflicted, but now it's mostly about tribal signaling”
— Bari Weiss
From the JRE 1228 conversation with Bari Weiss.
