Musa al-Gharbi
@musaalgharbi.bsky.social
Asst. Professor of Communication, Journalism and (by courtesy) Sociology at Stony Brook University. Author of, "We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite" -- out now via Princeton University Press.
My latest for Symbolic Capital(ism) shows:
1. The outcome of the #NYC mayoral race was less extraordinary than most seem to think
2. Popular culture war talking points about the role of class, gender, sexuality, youth, race and residency length are total bunk
🧵
1. The outcome of the #NYC mayoral race was less extraordinary than most seem to think
2. Popular culture war talking points about the role of class, gender, sexuality, youth, race and residency length are total bunk
🧵
November 14, 2025 at 4:21 PM
My latest for Symbolic Capital(ism) shows:
1. The outcome of the #NYC mayoral race was less extraordinary than most seem to think
2. Popular culture war talking points about the role of class, gender, sexuality, youth, race and residency length are total bunk
🧵
1. The outcome of the #NYC mayoral race was less extraordinary than most seem to think
2. Popular culture war talking points about the role of class, gender, sexuality, youth, race and residency length are total bunk
🧵
Affordability crisis
November 14, 2025 at 5:04 AM
Affordability crisis
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
@tufts.edu's Center for Expanding Viewpoints in Higher Education welcomes @musaalgharbi.bsky.social tomorrow (Nov 12) at 5:30 pm EST to discuss his book, We Have Never Been Woke, and the ideas and tensions shaping today's progressive movement.
This free event is open to the public: buff.ly/6YCMmDP
This free event is open to the public: buff.ly/6YCMmDP
November 11, 2025 at 3:34 PM
@tufts.edu's Center for Expanding Viewpoints in Higher Education welcomes @musaalgharbi.bsky.social tomorrow (Nov 12) at 5:30 pm EST to discuss his book, We Have Never Been Woke, and the ideas and tensions shaping today's progressive movement.
This free event is open to the public: buff.ly/6YCMmDP
This free event is open to the public: buff.ly/6YCMmDP
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
We Have Never Been Woke is now available in #paperback!
In this book, Musa al-Gharbi reveals how a new “woke” elite uses the language of social justice to gain more power and status—without helping the marginalized and disadvantaged.
Read a free sample: press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...
In this book, Musa al-Gharbi reveals how a new “woke” elite uses the language of social justice to gain more power and status—without helping the marginalized and disadvantaged.
Read a free sample: press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...
November 8, 2025 at 4:05 PM
We Have Never Been Woke is now available in #paperback!
In this book, Musa al-Gharbi reveals how a new “woke” elite uses the language of social justice to gain more power and status—without helping the marginalized and disadvantaged.
Read a free sample: press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...
In this book, Musa al-Gharbi reveals how a new “woke” elite uses the language of social justice to gain more power and status—without helping the marginalized and disadvantaged.
Read a free sample: press.princeton.edu/books/paperb...
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
From 2016: “Almost half of the people who die at the hands of police have some kind of disability, according to a new report, as officers are often drawn into emergencies where urgent care may be more appropriate than lethal force.” www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
ICE agents in Chicago violently detain a non verbal autistic man for being “non compliant”
He couldn’t “comply” because of his disability…they don’t care
This is not the first time they’ve gone after a disabled person
They target the most vulnerable because it’s an easy way to meet their quota
He couldn’t “comply” because of his disability…they don’t care
This is not the first time they’ve gone after a disabled person
They target the most vulnerable because it’s an easy way to meet their quota
November 8, 2025 at 8:32 PM
From 2016: “Almost half of the people who die at the hands of police have some kind of disability, according to a new report, as officers are often drawn into emergencies where urgent care may be more appropriate than lethal force.” www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
@tufts.edu's Center for Expanding Viewpoints in Higher Education welcomes @musaalgharbi.bsky.social next week, Nov 12 at 5:30 pm EST to discuss his book, We Have Never Been Woke, and the ideas and tensions shaping today's progressive movement.
This free event is open to the public: buff.ly/6YCMmDP
This free event is open to the public: buff.ly/6YCMmDP
November 5, 2025 at 6:39 PM
@tufts.edu's Center for Expanding Viewpoints in Higher Education welcomes @musaalgharbi.bsky.social next week, Nov 12 at 5:30 pm EST to discuss his book, We Have Never Been Woke, and the ideas and tensions shaping today's progressive movement.
This free event is open to the public: buff.ly/6YCMmDP
This free event is open to the public: buff.ly/6YCMmDP
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
On Bluesky I'm a weirdo for not having a Mamdani poster or referring to him as the greatest politician of all time or sighing at his charms. In a different dimension I'm hearing from a bunch of people who object to the column from very much the other end of things. thecjn.ca/opinion/zohr...
Zohran Mamdani is not Nick Fuentes
While Mamdani appears to advocate for a multicultural New York in which Jews are very much part of the fabric of life, Fuentes is a white supremacist.
thecjn.ca
November 4, 2025 at 4:10 PM
On Bluesky I'm a weirdo for not having a Mamdani poster or referring to him as the greatest politician of all time or sighing at his charms. In a different dimension I'm hearing from a bunch of people who object to the column from very much the other end of things. thecjn.ca/opinion/zohr...
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Gaat erg over de Amerikaanse context maar toch wel interessant stuk, hoor.
www.volkskrant.nl/boeken/woke-...
www.volkskrant.nl/boeken/woke-...
Woke mensen willen vooral uitstralen dat zij tot de elite behoren, betoogt deze socioloog
De meeste woke mensen zijn niet woke omdat ze zo begaan zijn met het lot van minderbedeelden, maar omdat het uiten van ‘correcte meningen’ statusverhogend werkt. Dat betoogt de Amerikaanse socioloog M...
www.volkskrant.nl
November 3, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Gaat erg over de Amerikaanse context maar toch wel interessant stuk, hoor.
www.volkskrant.nl/boeken/woke-...
www.volkskrant.nl/boeken/woke-...
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
You can check out the full Dutch-language interview with Gijs here: volkskrant.nl/boeken/woke-...
@princetonupress.bsky.social has just published a paperback edition of We Have Never Been Woke. More info about the book and its reception is available here: musaalgharbi.com/paperback-ed...
@princetonupress.bsky.social has just published a paperback edition of We Have Never Been Woke. More info about the book and its reception is available here: musaalgharbi.com/paperback-ed...
November 3, 2025 at 2:29 PM
You can check out the full Dutch-language interview with Gijs here: volkskrant.nl/boeken/woke-...
@princetonupress.bsky.social has just published a paperback edition of We Have Never Been Woke. More info about the book and its reception is available here: musaalgharbi.com/paperback-ed...
@princetonupress.bsky.social has just published a paperback edition of We Have Never Been Woke. More info about the book and its reception is available here: musaalgharbi.com/paperback-ed...
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Interviewed by @gijs-beukers.bsky.social for
@volkskrant.nl (third largest newspaper in the Netherlands by circulation, for those less familiar) about We Have Never Been Woke.
Links in next post
@volkskrant.nl (third largest newspaper in the Netherlands by circulation, for those less familiar) about We Have Never Been Woke.
Links in next post
November 3, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Interviewed by @gijs-beukers.bsky.social for
@volkskrant.nl (third largest newspaper in the Netherlands by circulation, for those less familiar) about We Have Never Been Woke.
Links in next post
@volkskrant.nl (third largest newspaper in the Netherlands by circulation, for those less familiar) about We Have Never Been Woke.
Links in next post
Interviewed by @gijs-beukers.bsky.social for
@volkskrant.nl (third largest newspaper in the Netherlands by circulation, for those less familiar) about We Have Never Been Woke.
Links in next post
@volkskrant.nl (third largest newspaper in the Netherlands by circulation, for those less familiar) about We Have Never Been Woke.
Links in next post
November 3, 2025 at 2:29 PM
Interviewed by @gijs-beukers.bsky.social for
@volkskrant.nl (third largest newspaper in the Netherlands by circulation, for those less familiar) about We Have Never Been Woke.
Links in next post
@volkskrant.nl (third largest newspaper in the Netherlands by circulation, for those less familiar) about We Have Never Been Woke.
Links in next post
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Union members have polarized by education level, with non-college members now less affected by their union membership. Union members have maintained their Democratic partisanship only by becoming more educated over time
journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...
journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...
October 31, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Union members have polarized by education level, with non-college members now less affected by their union membership. Union members have maintained their Democratic partisanship only by becoming more educated over time
journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...
journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...
Interviewed in @theguardian.com about the recent proliferation of schools and centers focused on civics, etc. (that have a not-so-secret goal of hiring more right-of-center and classically liberal scholars).
My take: 🧵
My take: 🧵
October 31, 2025 at 3:24 PM
Interviewed in @theguardian.com about the recent proliferation of schools and centers focused on civics, etc. (that have a not-so-secret goal of hiring more right-of-center and classically liberal scholars).
My take: 🧵
My take: 🧵
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
"only about 5% of the variance in personality can be
predicted from digital footprints, and personality‐tailored messages show negligible effects on behavior... When design and evaluation flaws are controlled, the combined end‐to‐end effectiveness of psychological targeting approaches zero."
predicted from digital footprints, and personality‐tailored messages show negligible effects on behavior... When design and evaluation flaws are controlled, the combined end‐to‐end effectiveness of psychological targeting approaches zero."
The (In)Effectiveness of Psychological Targeting: A Meta‐Analytic Review
The use of psychological targeting—employing machine learning to predict consumer personality from digital footprints and subsequently tailoring persuasive messages—has emerged as a controversial yet...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
October 31, 2025 at 2:55 PM
"only about 5% of the variance in personality can be
predicted from digital footprints, and personality‐tailored messages show negligible effects on behavior... When design and evaluation flaws are controlled, the combined end‐to‐end effectiveness of psychological targeting approaches zero."
predicted from digital footprints, and personality‐tailored messages show negligible effects on behavior... When design and evaluation flaws are controlled, the combined end‐to‐end effectiveness of psychological targeting approaches zero."
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
"The public image of scientists is ambivalent: people generally trust their professional competence but question their morality... An area of major contention concerns the involvement of scientists in policy and politics"
Mapping Patterns of Trust in Science and Scientists
Public trust in science and in scientists is often conflated, yet these are distinct concepts shaped by different factors. This review synthesizes rec…
www.sciencedirect.com
October 29, 2025 at 9:01 PM
"The public image of scientists is ambivalent: people generally trust their professional competence but question their morality... An area of major contention concerns the involvement of scientists in policy and politics"
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Must-listen: CBC Ideas w/Musa al-Gharbi, who has written a book about the failure of progressives and there are some things there that we need to hear.
I say WE becuase he very clearly is progressive and addresses his audience, as progressives using WE.
www.cbc.ca/listen/live-...
I say WE becuase he very clearly is progressive and addresses his audience, as progressives using WE.
www.cbc.ca/listen/live-...
© CBC/Radio-Canada 2025. All rights reserved.
www.cbc.ca
October 21, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Must-listen: CBC Ideas w/Musa al-Gharbi, who has written a book about the failure of progressives and there are some things there that we need to hear.
I say WE becuase he very clearly is progressive and addresses his audience, as progressives using WE.
www.cbc.ca/listen/live-...
I say WE becuase he very clearly is progressive and addresses his audience, as progressives using WE.
www.cbc.ca/listen/live-...
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Why did Indiana University attack and cut its own student newspaper?
Well, in a twist of irony any English professor would call clichéd, it turns out IU did it because they were angry about the students' reporting on a FIRE report naming IU as the worst public university for free speech in the US.
Well, in a twist of irony any English professor would call clichéd, it turns out IU did it because they were angry about the students' reporting on a FIRE report naming IU as the worst public university for free speech in the US.
October 25, 2025 at 1:05 PM
Why did Indiana University attack and cut its own student newspaper?
Well, in a twist of irony any English professor would call clichéd, it turns out IU did it because they were angry about the students' reporting on a FIRE report naming IU as the worst public university for free speech in the US.
Well, in a twist of irony any English professor would call clichéd, it turns out IU did it because they were angry about the students' reporting on a FIRE report naming IU as the worst public university for free speech in the US.
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
"Political monocultures retard intellectual progress, undermine methodological rigor, and erode public credibility."
archive.ph/BUTTr
archive.ph/BUTTr
Opinion | Left-Wing Bias Is Corrupting Sociology
Other social scientists have reformed. Sociologists haven’t.
www.chronicle.com
October 23, 2025 at 3:44 AM
"Political monocultures retard intellectual progress, undermine methodological rigor, and erode public credibility."
archive.ph/BUTTr
archive.ph/BUTTr
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Good piece by @davidaustinwalsh.bsky.social on fissures in MAGAdom. Captures the anxieties and simmering anger well.
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
The Conservatives Who Think Trump Isn’t Going Far Enough - Boston Review
MAGA’s base is more fractured than it looks.
www.bostonreview.net
October 22, 2025 at 2:20 PM
Good piece by @davidaustinwalsh.bsky.social on fissures in MAGAdom. Captures the anxieties and simmering anger well.
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
www.bostonreview.net/articles/the...
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
"Contradictory findings persist in social sciences, undermining validity, reliability, and public trust in research. Practices such as open science cannot fully address this problem."
Teams of Rivals
Adversarial collaborations offer a rigorous way to resolve opposing scientific findings, inform key sociopolitical issues, and help repair trust in science.
www.americanscientist.org
October 22, 2025 at 2:23 AM
"Contradictory findings persist in social sciences, undermining validity, reliability, and public trust in research. Practices such as open science cannot fully address this problem."
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
📢 American sociologist and journalism professor Musa al-Gharbi argues that many people’s “wokeness” tends to be symbolic and aesthetic rather than material.
Are the ‘woke elite’ merely using social justice to gain power?
www.smh.com.au
March 18, 2025 at 1:04 PM
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Interview with Musa al-Gharbi in Sojourners
Is ‘Wokeness’ Worth Saving?
Sociologist Musa al-Gharbi's ‘We Have Never Been Woke’ makes the case that we can't solve the world's problems without changing ourselves.
sojo.net
April 1, 2025 at 4:30 AM
Interview with Musa al-Gharbi in Sojourners
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Musa al-Gharbi on Christopher Rufo, Richard Hanania, and "the cultural contradictions of the anti-woke"
The Cultural Contradictions of the Anti-Woke
Trumpworld could be hastening the next Great Awokening
musaalgharbi.substack.com
June 7, 2025 at 1:29 PM
Musa al-Gharbi on Christopher Rufo, Richard Hanania, and "the cultural contradictions of the anti-woke"
Reposted by Musa al-Gharbi
Will recent demonstrations lead to more erosion of support for Trump or continued declines in support for immigration? In his op-ed @theguardian.com ASA member Musa al-Gharbi @musaalgharbi.bsky.social @stonybrooku.bsky.social says it depends on who gets blamed for clashes. bit.ly/4l3Fbk8
Will the public side with the protesters in LA? Here are some lessons from history | Musa al-Gharbi
Social movements have long included some form of direct conflict with authorities. The key is whom the public blames for clashes
bit.ly
June 17, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Will recent demonstrations lead to more erosion of support for Trump or continued declines in support for immigration? In his op-ed @theguardian.com ASA member Musa al-Gharbi @musaalgharbi.bsky.social @stonybrooku.bsky.social says it depends on who gets blamed for clashes. bit.ly/4l3Fbk8