We just talked live with journalists David Sirota and Terry Moran about what Jeffrey Epstein’s emails have revealed. They’ve provided rare insight into the actual mentality of the power elite — not just how they see themselves and each other, but how they see the rest of us. And that’s an opportunity to understand what that means for our politics, how they’ve done so much damage to us, and how to think about the possibility of change. We talked about:
Why the Epstein story is bigger than the survivors — first, because it isn’t just about him, but about an entire class of people and their crimes; and second, because it’s about where society draws the line between what we look away from, and what we decide to face
How the powerful, so accustomed to avoiding accountability for their biggest failures (like starting wars and driving the country into a financial crisis), never even considered they might face accountability for their relationships with Epstein or their complicity in his crimes
The way elite culture has corrupted even curiosity, creating a culture where interest in other human beings is just part of a carnivorous grasp for power
How the media failed by giving the elite the benefit of the doubt, and presuming that Epstein’s involvement in rape culture was somehow separate from his network of power
And how our reaction to and revulsion at the world revealed in the emails is a moment of opportunity and possibility — and a chance to imagine radical change and new political alignments, of which Zohran Mamdani’s election may be an early example
You won’t want to miss any of this conversation. Just click on the video player above to watch now.
And for more background, read Anand’s essay about the Epstein emails in this past weekend’s New York Times (or start with the excerpt at the link below).
We are opening this video to all. But we’re also asking candidly that you support the work that goes into bringing you The Ink by becoming a paying subscriber.
Your support is how we keep the lights on, pay our writers and editors a fair wage, and build the new media we all deserve. When you subscribe, you help us reach more people.
Join us today, or if you are already a member, give a gift or group subscription.
And if you haven’t already, please subscribe to Terry Moran’s newsletter, Real Patriotism, and to David Sirota’s newsletter, The Lever.
Join us for more Live conversations this week!
Tomorrow, Wednesday, November 26, at 12:30 p.m. Eastern, we’ll meet with The Ink Book Club (and we’ll be announcing our December pick).
To join and watch, download the Substack app (click on the button below) and turn on notifications — you’ll get an alert once we’re live, and you can watch, chat, and even participate in the conversation during our Book Club meetings from your iOS or Android mobile device. If you’re using a computer, you can also watch (and ask questions in the text chat) on our homepage.
