The Majority Report with Sam Seder

Episode 3585 — Trump Speech Crackdown; Hasbarist Bari Weiss to Lead CBS

Date: September 19, 2025
Guest: David Klion (The Nation, Jewish Currents)

Episode Overview

This episode delves into the rapidly accelerating consolidation of media power under Trump’s administration, with a particular focus on the controversial rise of Bari Weiss as a major influence over CBS News post the Paramount-Skydance merger. Sam Seder and Emma Vigeland examine the creeping nature of authoritarianism in the U.S., the complicity (and failures) of Democratic leadership, economic inequality, and how media landscapes are being reshaped in the service of status quo (and increasingly, right-wing) interests. In the main interview, David Klion provides a deeply reported account of Bari Weiss’s trajectory from self-styled victim of “wokeness” to an active agent in the new right-friendly media regime.

Main Discussion Points & Segment Timestamps

1. Authoritarian Consolidation in Real-Time (06:38 – 22:30)

• Authoritarian Drift Feels Permanent:
  Sam and Emma reflect on how many Americans underestimate the staying power of the current authoritarian moment, with people self-censoring and whole vulnerable communities feeling the threat (06:38).
  • Sam Seder [07:48]:
    “We are living in an authoritarian society now. That’s not hyperbole, it is just simply the case.”
  • Concerns over the targeting of people associated with pro-Palestinian activism, and the chilling effect on universities, corporations, law firms, and individuals.
• Failures of Democratic Leadership:
  Democrats, particularly Chuck Schumer, are critiqued for being reactive, not proactive, and for only making noise when high-profile figures like Jimmy Kimmel are targeted, instead of over broader, earlier abuses.
  • Emma Vigeland [14:23]:
    “His [Schumer’s] statement on Mahmoud Khalil’s detention was very mealy-mouthed but now that a wealthy white liberal entertainer is impacted...this is when he decides to basically take a stand.”
• Tool of ‘Anti-Semitism Hysteria’:
  Seder argues the “hysteria” about campus anti-Semitism is being weaponized to silence protest and lay the groundwork for broader, government-mandated censorship and intimidation (15:08).
• Organizing Against Authoritarianism:
  Importance of local organizing, social bonding, and defending vulnerable groups is emphasized as both a means of community protection and resistance (18:00).

2. Crisis of Democratic Responsiveness (20:26 – 31:21)

• Democratic Deficit:
  Democratic Party is out of touch, ignoring grassroots sentiment, especially on major issues like Gaza and cost of living. This failure undermines its own viability as an opposition party.
  • Emma Vigeland [22:02]:
    “They specifically told their canvassers: don’t send us information as to what voters are saying about Gaza and Israel.”
• Economic Fracture:
  The top 10% of U.S. earners account for nearly 50% of spending, leading to economic indicators that don’t reflect the pain of most people (28:45). This inequality is described as a force contributing to social instability and creeping fascism.
  • Sam Seder [28:45]:
    “Consumers in the top 10%... accounted for 49.2% of total spending in the second quarter. That is the highest since a blip in 1989.”
  • Tax cuts for rich further aggravate the problem, with upcoming policy changes expected to worsen inequality and health insurance costs (31:10).

Feature Interview: The Rise and Influence of Bari Weiss

With David Klion (The Nation, Jewish Currents)
(Timestamps: 37:02 – 79:00)

1. Who is Bari Weiss? (38:32 – 45:12)

• Klion describes Weiss’s early history—her campus activism targeting pro-Palestinian professors at Columbia, career at the Wall Street Journal and New York Times, and exit from the Times (where she stoked “cancel culture” panic).
• David Klion [39:30]:
  “She did resign, she did not get fired, but she had become a lightning rod for criticism... She went out to prove the liberal establishment wrong. And it’s hard to argue she hasn’t succeeded.”

2. Weiss’s Role in the Trump-Driven Media Ecosystem (45:12 – 54:50)

• The Free Press, Weiss’s Substack venture, is heavily VC-funded and aligns strongly with pro-Trump narratives, especially on campus speech and Israel/Palestine.
  • Emma Vigeland [41:08]:
    “Given what we’re seeing with the authoritarian president actually cracking down on free speech... it paints a new light on the branding these right-wing figures cynically used.”
• Weiss’s role as senior advisor at CBS post-merger symbolizes not just an individual career move but a transition of right-wing pressure into the heart of mainstream media outlets.

3. Media Consolidation & Oligarchic Influence (54:50 – 57:21)

• The Ellison family (Larry and David Ellison of Skydance/Paramount) have material ideological interests (pro-Zionist, Trump-aligned) and are gaining control over vast swathes of mainstream and social media.
• David Klion [54:50]:
  “Basically, it sounds like he’s threatening to take over half of media, and he’s rich enough that maybe he could actually do that.”
• Draws direct comparisons to Russian and Hungarian state-corporate media “capture” by government-friendly oligarchs.

4. Weiss as Right-Wing Gatekeeper (48:56 – 51:08)

• The myth of the “Intellectual Dark Web” as censored dissidents is debunked; in reality, this clique, led by Weiss, consists of right-leaning influencers laundering status quo and reactionary viewpoints into mainstream respectability.
  • Sam Seder [49:20]:
    “The one consistent element with all those people— they are all Islamophobic.”
• Weiss is compared to Matt Drudge as a mechanism for laundering fringe narratives into mainstream conversation, but with direct institutional power.

5. Ongoing Threats & Democratic Paralysis (61:07 – 74:43)

• Democratic leaders and mainstream media are depicted as either paralyzed or complicit, not wielding even available tools for accountability.
  • Sam Seder [61:01]:
    “Frankly, they won’t even threaten now that they will [seek accountability]. It’s very asymmetric.”
• Discussion of the Putin/Orban playbook for media capture—use regulatory powers, carrots and sticks, to force opposition and even centrist media off the air.
• David Klion [66:59]:
  “I don’t think this ends with Trump at all ... and I think the right that will succeed him is illiberal to its core.”
• J.D. Vance now a standard-bearer for this new right, directly attacking outlet “The Nation” with falsehoods.

6. What Can Be Done? (69:34 – 79:00)

• Klion underscores the importance of documenting, reporting, and public education—even if it feels futile.
  • David Klion [69:34]:
    “We tell the truth because someone has to. Because there has to be a record ... that will inspire somebody or that someone can draw on someday.”
• Reflection on the fading power of journalism to create material consequences for wrongdoing, compared to the Watergate era.
• Hopeful (if limited) recommendation: maintain organizing, demand accountability, support independent media—and refuse to treat dangerous actors as mere “characters” or punchlines.

Notable Quotes

• Sam Seder [07:48]:
  “We are living in an authoritarian society now. That’s not hyperbole, it is just simply the case.”
• Emma Vigeland [14:23]:
  “Now that a wealthy white liberal entertainer is impacted...this is when [Schumer] decides to basically take a stand [on speech crackdowns].”
• David Klion [39:30]:
  “She went out to prove the liberal establishment wrong. And it’s hard to argue she hasn’t succeeded.”
• Sam Seder [51:08]:
  “She is like analogous to what Drudge did...but now...what she’s doing is ends up being...almost like a hammer within taking over of these institutions.”
• Emma Vigeland [66:59]:
  “My concern is that they are putting these mechanisms in place to create a structure for democratic opposition not to even matter if Trump is out of the picture.”
• David Klion [69:34]:
  “We tell the truth because someone has to. Because there has to be a record of people saying these things and saying this was wrong…”

Key Takeaways

• Authoritarian power is increasing in both structural ways (legal, institutional) and cultural ones (fear, chilling effects), with no clear “end” in sight.
• Media capture by Trump-aligned oligarchs and the installation of figures like Bari Weiss in guiding roles at major news outlets marks a profound rightward, anti-democratic shift.
• Democratic leaders are failing to meet the urgency, and refuse to fight with the same tools or tactics as the right—which further contributes to the left’s political and cultural impotence.
• Economic indicators mask a deeply divided society, with prosperity and “recovery” numbers reflecting only the upper class. This contributes to a sense of alienation and political instability.
• Individual and local resistance—social ties, organizing, support for independent press—remains crucial but faces daunting headwinds.

Episode Mood and Tone

The conversation is urgent, at times grimly humorous, with strong skepticism toward business-as-usual politics and mainstream media. There’s a sense of disbelief at the speed and thoroughness of ongoing changes—“It is bad right now. And the thing is, saying right now almost mitigates how bad it is because… this isn’t necessarily finite at all.” (Sam Seder, 74:43)

Further Reading

• David Klion’s Guardian piece on Bari Weiss
• The Nation — David Klion’s columns
• Jewish Currents

This summary covers the show’s substance and flow up to the ‘Fun Half’. For the full in-depth interview and analysis, listen to the corresponding segments.