When very large media platforms regularly elevate non‑experts on complex policy topics, they shift public norms about who counts as authoritative and make policy debates less tethered to specialist evidence. That normalization changes how journalists source, how voters form opinions, and how policymakers justify decisions under popular pressure rather than technical consensus.
— If mass platform gatekeeping favors non‑expert visibility, democratic deliberation, institutional competence, and crisis policymaking will be reshaped toward rhetorical performance and away from calibrated expert judgment.
Jesse Singal
2026.01.05
78% relevant
Singal describes how 'heterodox' public intellectuals revealed themselves as conspiracy‑friendly or unserious, and he reflects on how much of our correct beliefs are the result of institutional deference; this connects to the idea that platforms elevating non‑experts accelerates public distrust of expertise.
2026.01.04
100% relevant
Joe Rogan’s podcast episode hosting Douglas Murray and Dave Smith — and the article’s defence of non‑expert participation — exemplifies how a single platform can legitimize non‑expert voices on geopolitics.
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