Douglas Murray faced heat after clashing with comedian Dave Smith on Joe Rogan’s podcast. Critics claimed Murray told Americans to ignore anyone without fancy degrees. Now he’s firing back, saying the real problem is “experts failing us” — not everyday patriots sharing their views.
Murray admits elites have blown it on COVID, foreign policy, and more. But he insists firsthand experience still matters. The British writer spent months in Israel researching Hamas attacks, arguing boots-on-the-ground knowledge beats Twitter threads from basement pundits.
Rogan blasted the idea that only college grads deserve a microphone. “Experts are wrong all the time,” he said, defending Smith’s right to speak freely. The podcast king called out Murray’s Oxford degree, joking, “Unless we’re talking Shakespeare, shut the —”
This feud exposes a civil war on the Right. Establishment types like Murray want “serious” voices guiding debates. Populist fighters like Smith say ordinary Americans are sick of being talked down to by snobs in tweed jackets.
The Gaza conflict lit this powder keg. Murray backs Israel hard, calling its survival key to Western civilization. Smith slams sending U.S. tax dollars overseas while communities crumble at home. Both claim to defend freedom — but mean very different things.
Rogan’s platform has become a battleground. Anti-woke comics and Ivy League intellectuals scramble to shape what conservatism means post-Trump. Millions tune in, hungry for alternatives to leftist media lies.
Free speech absolutists cheer Rogan for letting all sides duke it out. Traditionalists warn chaos rules when every basement blogger gets equal weight with scholars. Caught in the middle? Regular folks just wanting truth without pretentious lectures.
This fight isn’t going away. As global crises mount, the Right must decide: Trust the “experts” who’ve failed repeatedly, or bet on the common sense of hardworking Americans? Murray and Smith agree on one thing — the stakes have never been higher.
