Yesterday, I published an essay in Merion West magazine, in which I argued that if we want liberal democracy to persist in the United States, we ought to get into the habit of reading the news and political analysis rather than watching the news and opinion shows.
You can check out the full essay here.
The gist of it is that as humans, we’re not hardwired for liberal democracy—especially the liberal part (think constitutionalism, protections of individual rights, toleration for opposing political views). The founders reasoned their way to liberal democracy, and it requires reasoning and rationality on our part if it is to persist.
Building off the work of media theorist Neil Postman in his 1985 book, Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business, I argue that the written word lends itself to “best practices” of reasoning and reflection, if you will. As a general rule, we watch things to be entertained, and we read things to be informed. Politics is a serious business. To treat it as such, we should watch less and read more.
As I write in the piece, “Reason birthed liberal democracy, and reason must sustain it. The written word helps inculcate rational habits; televisual communication does not.”
I hope you get a chance to give the full essay a read. Feel free to drop me a line or leave a comment with your thoughts!
And if you haven’t already, please share Tom’s Takes with friends, family, and anyone else who you think might like (or hate) what I have to say. Happy Friday!
Thomas Koenig is a student at Harvard Law School and the author of the “Tom’s Takes” newsletter. Follow him on Twitter @thomaskoenig98.
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