The World As It Is: Dispatches on the Myth of Human Progress — When Institutions Depend on Power

Crisis in Perception · Sep 17, 2026 · 44m

What happens when institutions expected to challenge power become increasingly dependent on access to that power?

Welcome to Crisis in Perception, where we examine the systems shaping our world.

Using The World As It Is: Dispatches on the Myth of Human Progress by Chris Hedges as our lens, this Deep Dive investigates Hedges’s argument that journalism, political institutions, universities, and other democratic safeguards can become constrained by concentrated economic and institutional power.

Drawing on his experience as a journalist and war correspondent, Hedges challenges conventional ideas…