Who's Your Guru? (and is Slavoj Žižek any good?)Sam, Joe and Ali discuss gurus, including the online type:our times are thick with public intellectuals, influencers, and self-proclaimed experts Sam's frequent references to Slavoj Žižek, and Joe's conclusion that he doesn't make much sense, and isn't much chop intellectually. Sam on literal guru worship in the Hare Krishnas - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Society_for_Krishna_Consciousnessshould we just speak for ourselves, rather than filter our thoughts or present them in relation to influential figures?figures like Jordan Peterson, Douglas Murray the resort to online gurus during times of uncertainty, about how to know and think (the so-called epistemological crisis)A few of Joe's past figures get a mention: Stephen Pinker, Michael Shellenberger,how problematic it can be when these gurus leave their area of expertisemany people will detect that guru lane drift, but many others still trust their Guru's every word, which is perhaps the whole point of gurusthe power of dialogue with other humans in understanding our own internally competing perspectives, and helping us evaluate information and perceptionstriving for clarity amidst an overload of information.Useful sources:The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy (peer reviewed) - Zizek entry https://iep.utm.edu/zizek/Zizek WikipediaZizek wikiquoteSome key Zizek ideas from The ConversationCreators & Guests Ali Catramados - Host Joe Loh - Host Sam Ellis - Host (00:00) - Introduction and Hosts (00:28) - Topic inro: Online Gurus (00:41) - Slavoj Žižek (02:52) - Growing up with guru worship in the Hare Krishnas (04:22) - The Dangers of Guru Worship (05:57) - The Influence of Public Intellectuals (11:31) - The Impact of Social Media on Gurus (15:33) - The Crisis of Trust in Modern Media (28:13) - Capitalism and Media Coverage (28:34) - The Search for a Reliable Source (29:01) - Disappointment in Trusted Institutions (29:53) - The Role of Institutions and Individual Sources (32:08) - The Struggle with Information Overload (32:48) - The Burden of Individual Choice (34:42) - The Quest for Understanding and Trust (36:09) - The Fear of Uncertainty and the Search for a Guru (38:15) - The Dangers of Single-Source Reliance (40:16) - The Role of Dialogue in Understanding (44:19) - The Challenge of Finding Clarity in Chaos 00:00 Introduction and Hosts00:28 Topic inro: Online Gurus00:41 Slavoj Žižek02:52 Growing up with guru worship in the Hare Krishnas04:22 The Dangers of Guru Worship05:57 The Influence of Public Intellectuals11:31 The Impact of Social Media on Gurus15:33 The Crisis of Trust in Modern Media28:13 Capitalism and Media Covera