Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

Do your politics make you more empathetic?

A comic on who you extend empathy to — and how that affects your worldview.

The Highlight by Vox logo

Humor, political cartoons, and graphic journalism from The Highlight, Vox’s home for features and longform journalism.


This essay is an excerpt from Are You at Risk for Empathy Myopia?, available in print from Radiator Comics.

  1. Why liberal hearts bleed and conservatives don’t, Psychology Today
  2. A deep dive into party affiliation, Pew Research Center
  3. Winning the lottery makes you more conservative, study finds, The Guardian
  4. Republicans, Democrats split on why people are rich or poor, Pew Research Center
  5. America’s geographic giving divide, The Chronicle of Philanthropy
  6. Giving differently: Liberals and conservatives have radically different views of charity. Forbes
  7. Why white people don’t feel black people’s pain, Slate
  8. Self-control is just empathy with your future self, The Atlantic
  9. White people become less racist just by moving to more diverse areas, study finds, The Independent
  10. How wealth reduces compassion, Scientific American

Ezra Claytan Daniels is the creator of the award-winning immersive graphic novel app, Upgrade Soul, and co-creator of Fantagraphics Books’ BTTM FDRS with artist Ben Passmore.

More in Culture

Advice
What trainers actually think about the 12-3-30 workoutWhat trainers actually think about the 12-3-30 workout
Advice

Have we finally unlocked exercise’s biggest secret? Or is this yet another lie perpetrated Big Treadmill?

By Alex Abad-Santos
Technology
The case for AI realismThe case for AI realism
Technology

AI isn’t going to be the end of the world — no matter what this documentary sometimes argues.

By Shayna Korol
Podcasts
How fan fiction went mainstreamHow fan fiction went mainstream
Podcast
Podcasts

The community that underpins Heated Rivalry, explained.

By Danielle Hewitt and Noel King
Culture
Why Easter never became a big secular holiday like ChristmasWhy Easter never became a big secular holiday like Christmas
Culture

Hint: The Puritans were involved.

By Tara Isabella Burton
Culture
The sticky, sugary history of PeepsThe sticky, sugary history of Peeps
Culture

A few things you might not know about Easter’s favorite candy.

By Tanya Pai
The Highlight
The return of resistance craftingThe return of resistance crafting
The Highlight

Want to fight fascism? Join a knitting circle.

By Anna North