# Why Are America's Smartest People Suddenly Losing Their Minds? | William Jacobson

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-western-spirit-with-ariel-whitman-5561415/why-are-america-s-smartest-people-suddenly-losing-their-minds-william-jacobson
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-western-spirit-with-ariel-whitman-5561415/why-are-america-s-smartest-people-suddenly-losing-their-minds-william-jacobson.md
Podcast: [The Western Spirit - With Ariel Whitman](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-western-spirit-with-ariel-whitman-5561415)
Published: 2026-05-15T09:06:36+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/arielwhitman/episodes/Why-Are-Americas-Smartest-People-Suddenly-Losing-Their-Minds---William-Jacobson-e3jderp
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/a2e2df54/podcast/play/120027449/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-4-15%2F424203713-44100-2-20796da86ce0f.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-western-spirit-with-ariel-whitman-5561415/episodes/why-are-america-s-smartest-people-suddenly-losing-their-minds-william-jacobson
Duration seconds: 3983

## Resource

In this episode of The Western Spirit, Ariel Whitman sits down with Professor William Jacobson — founder of Legal Insurrection and the Equal Protection Project — for a shocking conversation about intersectionality, anti-American ideology on campus, and the radical transformation of elite universities.Professor Jacobson explains how concepts like intersectionality and critical race theory evolved from academic theories into powerful ideological movements shaping universities, politics, and anti-Israel activism across the West.Drawing from his firsthand experience teaching at Cornell University, Jacobson describes mandatory “land acknowledgements,” campus radicalization, anti-Israel activism, and the growing hostility toward Western civilization in academia.The conversation covers:*The origins of intersectionality and critical race theory*Kimberlé Crenshaw and the ideology behind modern campus activism*How elite universities radicalize students*Anti-Israel protests and why Jews are labeled “oppressors”*The rise of identity politics in AmericaThe “Red-Green Alliance” between the far left and radical Islam*The Southern Poverty Law Center and accusations of manufacturing racism narratives*The rise of the “woke right” and Tucker Carlson’s influence on younger conservatives*Why Professor Jacobson believes America’s campuses have fundamentally changedProfessor William Jacobson is a clinical professor of law at Cornell University, founder of Legal Insurrection, and founder of the Equal Protection Project, which challenges unlawful discrimination carried out in the name of DEI.FOLLOW PROFESSOR WILLIAM JACOBSON & SUPPORT HIS WORK:Legal Insurrection:https://legalinsurrection.com/Legal Insurrection Foundation:https://legalinsurrectionfoundation.org/Equal Protection Project:http…

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-western-spirit-with-ariel-whitman-5561415/episodes/why-are-america-s-smartest-people-suddenly-losing-their-minds-william-jacobson/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-western-spirit-with-ariel-whitman-5561415/why-are-america-s-smartest-people-suddenly-losing-their-minds-william-jacobson.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.