Ben Peterson – Governing the Social Commons

Ben Peterson – Governing the Social Commons

From The Glenn Show by Glenn Loury

April 13, 2026 · 1h 9m

About this episode

Glenn Loury and Ben Peterson discuss the role of informal institutions in maintaining social order and the implications for criminal justice reform and racial inequality.

Support The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.com Glenn and Ben Peterson discuss his forthcoming book on how informal institutions — families, churches, neighborhoods — maintain social order where law and markets cannot. Peterson argues that reputation enforces norms more effectively than regulation: your neighbor's judgment carries more weight than a police citation. They explore criminal justice reform, where Peterson observes that "the left misses morality, the right misses grace"; racial inequality as a supply-side problem — the failure to develop human potential through socialization and family structure; and the spiritual dimension of human agency, which Glenn defends even as he acknowledges many of his colleagues would dismiss it. The conversation echoes themes from Glenn's recent discussion with Steven Pinker on common knowledge and shared norms. The Glenn Show is almost entirely audience-supported , so to those of us who are already full subscribers, let me extend a heartfelt thank you. And if you’re not yet a full subscriber, please consider becoming one . The Glenn Show can only do what it does through the generosity of viewers and listeners. For a mere…

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Host: Glenn Loury

Guest: Ben Peterson

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Books & works: his forthcoming book

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