<description>&lt;p&gt;Polarization isn’t just a political outcome—it’s an industry. This week, Elisa welcomes Aakaash Rao and Shakked Noy, economists from MIT and Harvard and co-authors of &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/27v4xxenpo8wotkw1238e/rao-jmp.pdf?rlkey=x8rg0slqo9mwfhdlbqgftaw4b&amp;amp;e=3&amp;amp;dl=0"&gt;&lt;em&gt;The Business of the Culture War&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;, to explore how shifts in the media business model—from the collapse of local newspapers to the rise of cable news—created powerful incentives to divide audiences. Together, they unpack how networks learned to mobilize viewers through cultural identity issues, what survey data reveals about a dramatic realignment in voter priorities, and why these trends pose urgent questions for policymakers and the future of American democracy.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/toohzkqs3mj7p26d117el/rao-cv.pdf?rlkey=jyqujefdgva4bppgzbshg4glt&amp;amp;e=1&amp;amp;dl=0"&gt;Aakaash Rao&lt;/a&gt; is a Ph.D. candidate in Economics at Harvard University&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://shakkednoy.com/cv.pdf"&gt;Shakked Noy&lt;/a&gt; is a Ph.D student in Economics at MIT&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;References:&lt;/em&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/27v4xxenpo8wotkw1238e/rao-jmp.pdf?rlkey=x8rg0slqo9mwfhdlbqgftaw4b&amp;amp;e=2&amp;amp;dl=0"&gt;Rao, Aakaash, and Shakked Noy. &lt;em&gt;The Business of the Culture War.&lt;/em&gt; Job Market Paper, Harvard University, 2025.&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/national-security-law-today/id1276946676?i=1000578056546"&gt;NSLT, Ep. 229, &lt;em&gt;Broken News and the Media Rage Machine with Chris Stirewalt&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/archives/topic-guide/fairness-doctrine"&gt;The Fairness Doctrine Overview&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;</description>

National Security Law Today

National Security Law Today

Profiting from Polarization: The Economics of America’s Culture War

NOV 26, 202539 MIN
National Security Law Today

Profiting from Polarization: The Economics of America’s Culture War

NOV 26, 202539 MIN

Description

<p>Polarization isn’t just a political outcome—it’s an industry. This week, Elisa welcomes Aakaash Rao and Shakked Noy, economists from MIT and Harvard and co-authors of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/27v4xxenpo8wotkw1238e/rao-jmp.pdf?rlkey=x8rg0slqo9mwfhdlbqgftaw4b&amp;e=3&amp;dl=0"><em>The Business of the Culture War</em></a>, to explore how shifts in the media business model—from the collapse of local newspapers to the rise of cable news—created powerful incentives to divide audiences. Together, they unpack how networks learned to mobilize viewers through cultural identity issues, what survey data reveals about a dramatic realignment in voter priorities, and why these trends pose urgent questions for policymakers and the future of American democracy.</p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/toohzkqs3mj7p26d117el/rao-cv.pdf?rlkey=jyqujefdgva4bppgzbshg4glt&amp;e=1&amp;dl=0">Aakaash Rao</a> is a Ph.D. candidate in Economics at Harvard University</p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://shakkednoy.com/cv.pdf">Shakked Noy</a> is a Ph.D student in Economics at MIT</p><p></p><p><em>References:</em> </p><ul><li><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/27v4xxenpo8wotkw1238e/rao-jmp.pdf?rlkey=x8rg0slqo9mwfhdlbqgftaw4b&amp;e=2&amp;dl=0">Rao, Aakaash, and Shakked Noy. <em>The Business of the Culture War.</em> Job Market Paper, Harvard University, 2025.</a> </li><li><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/national-security-law-today/id1276946676?i=1000578056546">NSLT, Ep. 229, <em>Broken News and the Media Rage Machine with Chris Stirewalt</em></a> </li><li><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/archives/topic-guide/fairness-doctrine">The Fairness Doctrine Overview</a></li></ul>