[Book Sip] The Voice of a Young Journalist: "Why Do We Hate Each Other?"

Some sentences encapsulate the entire content of the book itself, while others instantly reach the reader's heart and create a point of contact with the book. Here, we introduce such meaningful sentences excerpted from the book. - Editor's note

This is the first book by Ezra Klein, the founder of VOX and a young journalist who is a columnist for The New York Times. The author conveys the voices from the field he has listened to through direct interviews with frontline politicians including Barack Obama, as well as the voice of a young journalist who has witnessed the changes in media since the dawn of the internet.

We tend to think that we slowly and systematically develop a worldview, use that worldview to draw conclusions about ideal tax, healthcare, and foreign policies, and then make political choices by selecting the most suitable party. Political psychologists do not see it that way. They argue that our politics stem from our psychology just as much as our interests in travel, spicy food, and being with strangers. Chapter 2 The Dixiecrat Dilemma_76 pages

We deeply learn the instinct to treat insiders of the groups we belong to with goodwill and feel hostility toward outsiders, and this instinct operates independently of social competition. We do not need to hate or fear outsiders deliberately to turn our backs on them. Nor does turning our backs on them need to bring any benefit. It is enough that we classify them as ‘them.’ Once classified as ‘them,’ you will find yourself doubting or even trying to treat them antagonistically. It is an automatic reaction, like goosebumps in response to cold. Chapter 3 Your Brain on Groups_84 pages

This helps understand a phenomenon long pondered by the left-wing camp: why working-class voters support the Republican Party. Why do working-class people vote for parties that cut taxes for the wealthy and break unions that protect the poor, thus acting against their own interests? Johnston, Lavin, and Federico discovered that as people participate more and invest more in politics, the ‘personal interests’ they seek to satisfy change. If you think economic wealth is the only and rational driver of political behavior, that is a mistake. The more political people become, the more their interest in self-expression and group identity increases. Johnston, Lavin, and Federico wrote, “Citizens do not fail to recognize their interests; rather, material concerns are often not the goal when forming policy opinions.” Chapter 3 Your Brain on Groups_96 pages

Why Do We Hate Each Other | Written by Ezra Klein | Translated by Hwang Seong-yeon | Willbook | 344 pages | 18,800 KRW

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