Tunnel Vision

In their recent Guardian conversation, Yuval Noah Harari, Rory Stewart, and Maria Ressa explored how to live a good life amid today’s social, technological, and political upheavals. This is a question many of us have these days. They began by reflecting on the liberal ideal that people with vastly different beliefs can coexist through shared basic rules, though the challenge remains that many ideologies want to impose their version of the good life on everyone. This tendency, whether stemming from organized religion, populism, or new technological platforms, continues to threaten pluralism and fuels division in an already fragmented world.

The panel delved into the dangers of unchecked technological advancement, particularly artificial intelligence and social media, which now possess the power to manipulate individuals on an unprecedented scale. Harari and Ressa warned that these tools can erode personal agency and communal trust, noting the struggle for integrity and truth in the current “information ecosystem.” Stewart added that financial, social, and geopolitical inequalities are worsening, as wealthy countries prioritize defense spending at the expense of social welfare, and conflicts become more damaging with minimal direct risk to their initiators. The information eco-system in the time of AI has become even more fragmented than it was before. With each person with access to ChatGPT, spilling their guts to it at different levels, chances are the world we each see is quite unique and tuned to us. The Google search bubble was never able to take it that far. You were in a bubble with others sharing that space with you.

Ressa voiced deep concern about the future of journalism and democracy, highlighting the rapid escalation in climate disasters, predatory digital environments, and the fading of meaningful public discourse. She argued that without strong anchors, such as journalistic integrity, community-driven reporting, and shared facts, society risks devolving into selfishness, manipulation, and loss of values. The group described a world where leaders are increasingly shameless and institutions suffer from eroding ethical standards, making it hard to shock or mobilize public action. This one I thought was interesting because who much shorter our attention spans have grown, how we each have a way to tunnel into whatever version of the world we desire and collective anything matters a lot less.

Despite the anxiety and mistrust prevalent today, Harari emphasized the urgent need to rebuild trust at every level of society. from media and government to individual relationships. He called on everyone to do their part to champion truth, avoid despair, and find hope in collective effort, suggesting that only by reconnecting with honest work, compassion, and vigilance against manipulation can people hope to live not just a good life for themselves, but foster a better society for all.