Transcript [00:00] I think we need to have a national [00:01] conversation about something deeply [00:04] controversial. [00:06] Facts. [00:07] Remember those? Facts, those adorable [00:10] little things that we had before [00:12] feelings became evidence. [00:15] Human beings now have access to more [00:17] information than any point in history, [00:20] and somehow [00:21] people seem to know less. [00:25] That's impressive. I mean, we put the [00:27] entire accumulated knowledge of human [00:29] civilization into everyone's pocket on [00:32] their phones, and people use it to watch [00:35] a TikTok stranger explain geopolitics [00:38] while doing some sort of skin care [00:39] routine. [00:41] We used to disagree about what facts [00:44] meant. [00:45] Now we disagree about whether the fact [00:48] happened. You can literally show [00:50] somebody a video, and they'll say, [00:52] "Well, that's your interpretation." [00:55] No. [00:56] That's not my interpretation. [00:59] That's the security camera. We've [01:01] reached a point where reality seems to [01:03] need a publicist, and [01:05] I know something about public relations. [01:07] I work in media, politics, and advocacy. [01:09] I mean, increasingly my job is walking [01:12] into rooms saying, "Before everyone [01:14] starts screaming, can we establish what [01:17] actually happened?" [01:19] Apparently, that makes me a radical. [01:22] Because now everyone wants you to speak [01:25] your truth, your truth. I don't want [01:27] your truth. I just want the truth. [01:30] Somewhere the way, performative [01:31] activists change I have a perspective to [01:35] I have my own universe, and you're a [01:37] bigot if you don't live in it and [01:39] acknowledge it constantly. You know [01:41] what? For example, gravity does not care [01:42] about your lived experience. You can't [01:44] jump off of a building, and halfway down [01:47] announce, "Well, from my perspective, [01:49] gravity has already left the chat." [01:52] And nowhere is this complicated [01:54] relationship with reality more obvious [01:56] than [01:57] politics. [01:59] The left has its facts. The right has [02:02] its facts. And [02:04] Instagram has a 22-year-old named Braden [02:07] explaining international law from his [02:10] bedroom in his parents' house. And [02:12] Braden has 4.7 million followers. [02:16] I've spent years working with [02:18] journalists, policymakers, diplomats, [02:20] advocacy organizations. Apparently, I [02:21] could have skipped all of that and just [02:23] bought a ring light. But that's [02:26] the modern information economy. [02:29] Expertise [02:31] is elitist. Confidence is evidence. [02:35] And if you point aggressively enough at [02:38] captions floating above your head in a [02:39] video, well, apparently, you're like the [02:41] modern-day Walter Cronkite. Too many [02:44] people don't even read articles anymore. [02:46] They read headlines. [02:48] You know what? That's actually generous. [02:50] They read screenshots of headlines [02:53] posted by somebody who didn't read the [02:55] article, either. [02:57] And then [02:58] there are the people who become furious, [03:01] who are essentially playing a global [03:03] game of telephone, except they're [03:05] getting their information from people [03:06] who have or are developing nuclear [03:09] weapons. [03:11] And then there's the United Nations. [03:15] The United Nations. [03:18] The world's most expensive group chat. [03:21] Nearly 200 countries trying to solve [03:23] humanity's problems. Dictatorships, [03:25] theocracies, political prisoners, [03:27] executions, terrorism. And somehow, [03:30] somebody always finds time to say, "Oh, [03:33] well, okay, but what are the Jews [03:36] doing?" [03:37] At this point, Israel could have cured [03:40] cancer, and there would be a resolution. [03:42] The General Assembly condemns Israel [03:44] from for disproportionate aggression [03:47] against tumors. [03:50] That's the absurdity. [03:52] Some of the world's worst human rights [03:55] abusers have discovered the cheapest way [03:58] to buy moral credibility. [04:01] They just condemn Israel. [04:03] Authoritarian regimes, Islamist [04:04] theocracies, communist dictatorships [04:07] that imprison dissidents, persecute [04:08] minorities, oppress women, criminalize [04:11] homosexuality, suppress journalists, and [04:14] execute people suddenly arrive at an [04:17] international forum sounding like an [04:19] organization like Amnesty International [04:22] or something like that. [04:24] Apparently, all you need for a human [04:26] rights rebrand is a podium and an [04:29] Israeli flag to aggressively point at. [04:32] I mean [04:34] I'm just supposed to pretend that this [04:36] is just normal criticism of Israel? [04:40] No. [04:41] Criticism is normal. [04:43] You can criticize a democracy. You know [04:45] what? Israelis criticize Israel [04:46] constantly. Have you ever met Israelis? [04:49] Criticizing Israel is like our national [04:51] cardio. Two Israelis can turn ordering [04:54] hummus into a parliamentary inquiry [04:56] about which other toppings to put on, [04:58] and what happens internationally is [05:01] something very different. [05:03] Because Israel is disproportionately [05:06] singled out, condemned, demonized, while [05:10] regimes committing some of the world's [05:12] worst and most grotesque abuses present [05:15] themselves as the moral judges. [05:19] And then comes this sort of sleight of [05:22] hand. [05:23] Israel isn't merely criticized for what [05:25] it does, its enemies condemn it for what [05:29] it is, [05:31] a Jewish state. [05:33] Its existence becomes the offense, its [05:36] self-defense becomes aggression, [05:38] terrorism against Israelis gets context, [05:43] Israeli responses get condemnations, [05:46] Jewish self-determination gets treated [05:48] as uniquely suspicious while practically [05:51] everybody else's self-determination is [05:54] just called liberation. [05:56] That's not a consistent human rights [05:59] standard. [06:01] That's a double standard wearing a [06:03] humanitarian costume and you know what, [06:05] the costume isn't even convincing. If [06:07] your human rights philosophy somehow [06:09] requires Iran to lecture Israel about [06:12] morality, well then perhaps we misplaced [06:15] the plot. That's like getting a TED Talk [06:18] on anger management from The Incredible [06:20] Hulk and pattern recognition used to be [06:24] considered intelligence, but now pattern [06:26] recognition is problematic. [06:29] In fact, everything is problematic. [06:31] Comedy is problematic. Dating is [06:34] problematic. Pronouns are very [06:36] problematic. Silence is problematic. [06:39] Speaking is problematic. Not speaking is [06:43] violence. Oh, speaking is also violence. [06:46] Apparently, everything is violence [06:48] except occasionally actual violence. [06:52] Occasionally, actual violence just gets [06:55] called resistance. [06:57] Especially political violence, right? [07:01] And that's where things get especially [07:03] surreal for me. [07:05] I'm [07:06] Jewish. I'm gay. I'm American. I'm also [07:10] Israeli. I've survived near-death and [07:12] traumatic experiences and according to [07:14] identity politics, [07:16] I should be like a platinum member. [07:19] Lounge access, free upgrade, priority [07:22] victimhood. But apparently, my [07:24] membership expired when I started asking [07:27] inconvenient questions. [07:30] Like, [07:32] why are some of the same people who [07:34] claim to champion LGBT rights marching [07:36] alongside Islamist political movements [07:38] rooted in ideologies that actually [07:41] reject us? Why are some people who would [07:43] never tolerate religious fundamentalism [07:46] in America suddenly romanticizing it [07:49] when it's aimed at Israel? And why does [07:52] the moral standard keep changing [07:55] depending on whether the victim is [07:58] Jewish? [08:00] Those aren't inconvenient questions [08:02] because they're complicated. [08:05] They're inconvenient because the answers [08:08] are often sitting right there in front [08:10] of us. [08:12] Why are LGBT activists romanticizing [08:15] political movements that aren't exactly [08:18] famous for pride month? [08:22] In fact, they do the exact opposite. [08:24] I mean, come on people. Maybe read the [08:26] brochure. Queers for Palestine, gays for [08:30] Gaza makes as much sense as [08:33] Africans for the KKK. [08:36] And somehow saying that [08:38] is really controversial. [08:43] You can care about Palestinian [08:45] civilians. [08:46] But if your activism consists entirely [08:49] of screaming at Jews in another country, [08:53] I'm not sure you've actually helped an [08:56] actual Palestinian. [08:58] And if Israel is the only democracy [09:00] whose policies inspire your moral [09:03] outrage, [09:05] maybe the issue isn't just the policy. [09:09] Compassion [09:10] does not require intellectual suicide [09:13] and empathy isn't [09:15] moral if it's suicidal. Human rights are [09:19] not human rights if they mysteriously [09:21] disappear [09:23] whenever the human is Jewish. [09:26] That's the problem with modern politics. [09:28] Everybody has principles right up until [09:31] they become inconvenient. Free speech, [09:35] but only for certain people. Believe [09:37] women. [09:38] But only the women certain people [09:41] believe. Protect minorities, but only [09:43] the ones who are fashionable on social [09:46] media. Defend democracy, but only [09:48] assuming that their candidate wins. [09:52] And then there's cancel culture. For [09:54] years, part of the progressive left [09:57] perfected cancel culture. Say the wrong [10:00] thing, canceled. Wrong joke, canceled. [10:05] Wrong opinion from 2009, canceled. They [10:08] built a guillotine. [10:10] They sharpened the blade. [10:13] They wrote the instruction manual. [10:15] And now they're shocked somebody else [10:17] knows how to pull the rope. Suddenly [10:18] it's, "Wait, what about free speech?" [10:22] Oh, honey, now we're doing free speech? [10:25] Welcome. We've been expecting you. [10:27] Apparently count cancel culture was [10:30] absolutely terrific when cancellation [10:33] only traveled in one direction. [10:35] But now the tables have turned. And [10:38] suddenly the people who spent years [10:40] demanding consequences have discovered a [10:43] passionate interest in due process. And [10:45] you know what? [10:47] I'm glad we're finally talking about [10:49] consequences. [10:51] I just prefer consequence culture. Say [10:54] what you want, but everyone else gets to [10:56] respond. Audiences can stop buying [10:59] tickets. Consumers can stop buying [11:01] products. Networks can stop booking you. [11:05] Venues can stop inviting you to perform [11:07] in their stadiums. Employers can decide [11:10] you don't represent them. And the [11:12] public, [11:13] well, the public is allowed to judge [11:16] what you publicly say and do. Free [11:18] speech means the government generally [11:20] doesn't get to silence you. The First [11:23] Amendment protects you from government [11:25] censorship. It does not guarantee you an [11:28] audience, a paycheck, or applause. [11:31] Yes, [11:32] you have the right to speak. [11:35] You don't have the right to a standing [11:36] ovation. And if you spent years [11:38] demanding accountability for everyone [11:41] else, [11:41] don't suddenly call accountability [11:43] censorship [11:45] when your number gets called. [11:49] That's not oppression. [11:51] That's like the return policy. [11:55] And politics has become almost entirely [12:00] branding. [12:01] We've replaced principles [12:04] with teams. [12:07] Politics is now sports for people who [12:09] don't exercise. My side is good, your [12:12] side is evil. Our scandal is [12:15] complicated, your scandal proves [12:17] civilization is collapsing. Our [12:19] misinformation was an unfortunate error, [12:22] your misinformation is fascism. [12:26] Everyone calm down. [12:27] Sometimes your team screws up. [12:30] That's like [12:31] adulthood. [12:33] I [12:35] I actually know something about changing [12:36] your mind. [12:38] My political affiliations changed. [12:41] Some of my organization affiliations [12:43] changed. [12:46] Facts [12:48] changed me. [12:51] Experience [12:52] changed me. Reality changed me. I used [12:55] to say [12:57] everyone has a seat at the table. [12:59] I still believe that. [13:01] But with one small amendment, [13:04] if your political [13:05] philosophy is to silence, erase, [13:08] exclude, or kill [13:10] someone else at the table, [13:13] you don't get a chair. [13:15] That's when I watched parts of the [13:17] progressive movement become remarkably [13:21] regressive. [13:22] Inclusion became exclusion. Tolerance [13:24] became [13:26] agree with me or you're evil and [13:28] diversity apparently meant every kind of [13:31] diversity except [13:34] diversity of thought. [13:36] Eventually [13:38] you have two choices. [13:40] Change your worldview or start [13:43] editing reality to protect it. [13:46] Yeah, that's what changed me. [13:49] Some of the people who [13:51] are claiming to defend the principles I [13:53] believed in were violating those very [13:56] principles. [13:57] And once you see that [14:00] you have a choice. [14:03] Protect the label [14:05] or protect the values. [14:08] I chose the values. [14:10] Because changing your mind when you [14:12] learn new facts that challenge your old [14:14] beliefs is not weakness. [14:19] It's thinking. [14:21] Refusing to change your mind because the [14:23] truth threatens your identity, that's [14:26] not conviction. [14:29] It's like a hostage situation. [14:34] Imagine if politicians started admitting [14:36] this. [14:37] I was wrong. The [14:40] building would be evacuated. Cable news [14:43] would go into special coverage. We [14:45] interrupt our regularly scheduled [14:47] outrage with breaking news. A United [14:49] States Senator has experienced [14:51] self-awareness. [14:53] Political consultants would be outside [14:56] with a tranquilizer gun. Don't answer [14:58] anything else. We can still save him. [15:00] Imagine [15:02] cable news if people regularly said [15:05] you know [15:06] I don't know. [15:07] Or my side screwed this up. Or the [15:10] person I hate is actually right about [15:13] this. [15:14] Or the person I love is wrong about [15:17] this. [15:18] I mean, they'd have to shut down half of [15:19] the networks. Tonight at 9:00, two [15:21] Americans examined the evidence and [15:24] reached a nuanced conclusion. [15:27] Ratings, zero. [15:29] Because [15:30] outrage is profitable. [15:32] Nuance has really terrible Nielsen [15:35] numbers. Social media figured this out [15:37] years ago. The algorithm doesn't ask, [15:40] "Is this true?" [15:42] It asks, [15:43] "Will this piss off, I don't know, Susan [15:46] enough to send it to her sister?" See, [15:49] that's the business model. [15:51] Rage. [15:52] Click. [15:53] Share. Repeat. [15:57] We've industrialized confirmation bias. [16:00] And now everyone thinks that they're an [16:01] expert. I did my own research. No, no [16:04] you didn't. You consumed content [16:06] selected specifically to keep you [16:08] consuming content. [16:10] That's the algorithm of social media. [16:14] There's a difference. [16:16] No one watches three videos about [16:18] dentistry and then walks up to somebody [16:21] and says, "Okay, open wide." Nobody [16:23] reads a Reddit thread about aviation and [16:26] walks into the cockpit of an airplane [16:28] saying, "Captain, scoot over. I've [16:29] looked into this." But foreign policy, [16:32] oh my gosh. [16:33] 20 minutes on TikTok and suddenly you're [16:36] the Secretary of State with purple hair [16:38] and a nose ring. Yesterday, [16:40] you couldn't find Gaza on a map. [16:44] Today, you've solved the Middle East. [16:47] Congratulations. [16:51] Somebody call the Nobel Prize Committee. [16:55] >> [snorts] [16:56] >> But underneath all of this comedy [17:00] is something very serious. [17:02] Democracy requires people capable of [17:05] saying, [17:06] "I might be wrong." [17:08] It requires facts that exist [17:11] independently of political affiliation. [17:14] It requires journalists willing to [17:16] investigate before deciding the [17:19] conclusion. [17:21] Activists willing to acknowledge [17:23] inconvenient evidence. Politicians [17:27] willing to tell their own supporters [17:29] something they don't want to hear. [17:32] And citizens capable of disagreeing [17:34] without [17:35] deciding that the other person is evil. [17:40] We're [17:41] We're losing that. [17:42] Disagreement isn't the problem. It's [17:45] not. [17:47] I'm Jewish. We disagree professionally. [17:50] We do. Questions or questioning is [17:53] practically a religious obligation. Put [17:56] three Jews in a room, you'll get five [17:58] opinions and also somebody's mother [18:00] saying none of us are eating enough. [18:02] Argument is healthy. Debate, healthy. [18:05] Democracy isn't supposed to protect us [18:08] from disagreement. [18:10] If there is no disagreement in [18:12] democracy, it's no longer [18:14] democracy. [18:17] Democracy is supposed to give us a way [18:19] to disagree without destroying each [18:22] other. That's what's so great about the [18:24] United States, this democratic republic. [18:27] I fear that people take that for [18:28] granted. If you're such a narcissist [18:31] that you force facts to fit your [18:34] opinions as opposed to shaping your [18:36] opinions based on facts, [18:39] well, maybe you're doing something [18:41] wrong. [18:43] Here's a revolutionary idea. Take notes. [18:46] Your opinions are supposed to conform to [18:50] reality. [18:52] Reality is not required to conform to [18:55] your opinions. [18:57] And that's not oppression. [18:59] That's how rational thinking works. So, [19:02] you know what? Disagree with me, [19:03] challenge me, argue with me, [19:06] please. [19:07] But bring facts. [19:09] And if the facts prove me wrong, [19:12] I'll change my mind. [19:14] You should, too. [19:16] Because you are entitled to your [19:18] opinion. You are entitled to your [19:20] politics. You are entitled to your [19:22] feelings. You're even entitled to post [19:25] all of them on Instagram and X [19:27] underneath a picture of yourself staring [19:29] thoughtfully at the ocean. [19:33] But you're not entitled to your own [19:34] reality. [19:37] Reality's already taken. [19:40] You've joined me on Common Ground, [19:43] the podcast where we aim to explore [19:47] challenging topics [19:49] from a place of common ground, [19:52] being able to have the conversation, [19:54] being able to argue, to debate, to [19:58] consider, to reconsider, [20:00] to learn, [20:02] to grow, [20:04] and to truly share in the process of not [20:08] only aiming to understand the world, [20:13] but to better the world. [20:16] I'm Yuval David, [20:17] and you're listening to Common Ground.
What happens to a democracy when people stop agreeing on what's real?
That's the question at the center of this episode. Yuval David takes on the modern crisis of facts: a moment when we have more information than any generation in history, yet public discourse has never been more detached from reality. We no longer just disagree about what the facts mean. We disagree about whether they happened at all.
Yuval traces how we got here. Influencers with ring lights now outrank journalists, diplomats, and policymakers. People share screenshots of headlines from people who didn't read the article either. Confidence has replaced evidence, expertise is dismissed as elitism, and the algorithm has industrialized confirmation bias. Nobody watches three videos about dentistry and starts doing root canals. But foreign policy? Twenty minutes on TikTok and suddenly everyone's Secretary of State.
From there, he turns to the United Nations and its relentless, disproportionate focus on Israel. Criticism of Israel is normal and healthy, he argues. What isn't normal is authoritarian regimes, regimes that jail dissidents, silence journalists, and criminalize homosexuality, using Israel as a moral shield to rebrand themselves as human rights champions. It's a double standard in a humanitarian costume.
Yuval also turns the lens on himself.
As a Jewish, gay, American Israeli, he examines the contradictions of identity politics, cancel culture's inevitable boomerang, and the difference between being silenced by the government and simply facing the consequences of what you say. He shares his own journey from progressive Democrat to politically homeless centrist, and makes the case that updating your beliefs when the facts change isn't betrayal. It's thinking.
He closes with what democracy actually requires: not agreement, but the ability to disagree without deciding the other person is evil. Bring facts. Argue honestly. Let reality shape your opinions, not the other way around. As Yuval puts it, your opinions are supposed to conform to reality. Reality is not required to conform to your opinions.
This is not a comfortable episode. But on Common Ground with Yuval David, as always, it is an honest one.
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Timestamps
0:00 — The crisis of facts: when lived experience replaces evidence
2:01 — Social media, Brayden, and the death of expertise
3:12 — The United Nations and the double standard on Israel
7:01 — Identity politics and the contradictions of the progressive left
9:52 — Cancel culture, free speech, and "consequence culture"
11:56 — Politics as branding: when teams replace principles
12:59 — Changing your mind: Yuval's personal political evolution
15:57 — Social media algorithms and industrialized confirmation bias
17:41 — Democracy, disagreement, and why nuance matters
19:41 — Welcome to Common Ground
