“How dare you!” – on political outrage

Guests: Angela Nagel, Jillian Jordan, Conor Friedersdorf

Political discourse has turned into an outrage machine. Part of this cycle of indignation can be attributed to provocations from public figures like Kathy Griffin, Milo Yiannopoulos, or Bill Maher. It can also be argued that President Trump’s confrontational demeanor is also ‘triggering’ many to be offended and angered. Outrage is being voiced by pundits, politicians, and the public. It can be seen on TV, online, at work, or at the dinner table. Today, we’re going to talk about the effects, after-effects, and effectiveness of outrage in political discourse, and how it is employed by all points on the partisan spectrum. Our guests today are JILLIAN JORDAN, a psychologist at Yale who studies morality, ANGELA NAGLE, who has spent years studying the ‘online culture wars,’ and CONOR FRIEDERSDORF, staff writer for The Atlantic.