David McRaney

Journalist and writer David McRaney, with his wide range of expertise, has contributed to statewide and regional journalism and has expanded the fields of psychology and philosophy.

McRaney was born 22 March 1977 in Hattiesburg to Jerry McRaney and Evelyn McRaney. He attended school in Sumrall, and after high school he enrolled at Jones County Junior College, opened a pet store, and later enrolled at the University of Southern Mississippi.

During his time as an undergraduate at the University of Southern Mississippi, McRaney worked as the executive editor of the university newspaper the Student Printz from 2006 to 2007. He was also named one of the top-ten college journalists in the United States by the Scripps Howard Foundation and won William Randolph Hearst awards for his feature writing and opinion writing. He graduated with a degree in journalism in 2007, but also took several psychology classes.

McRaney began his professional career in 2007 as a beat reporter for the Hattiesburg American. During his time as a reporter, he covered higher education in Mississippi, specifically in Forrest County. In October 2009 McRaney moved on to co-create and produce The Green Couch Sessions, a television music program that promotes and showcases artists in the Pine Belt region. Many of the episodes take place in locations in downtown Hattiesburg, including in the Thirsty Hippo, in the Bottling Company, and in the Saenger Theater. The show aired for one season with a total of five episodes.

McRaney also worked as the director of digital media for WDAM-TV, a news channel based in Hattiesburg. While working as a reporter, writer, and editor for WDAM, he also worked designing, shooting, and editing film.

David McRaney’s background in journalism and interests in psychology merged in 2009 when he created You Are Not So Smart, a blog that explores the concept of self-delusion. In 2011 Penguin Random House developed You Are Not So Smart into a book, which is now printed in seventeen languages. In 2012 the book was developed into a podcast, on which he interviews experts in the psychology of reasoning, decision making, logic, and judgment. As of January 2023, the blog and the podcast You Are Not So Smart include more than 230 episodes on a variety of psychological topics. For example, in episode 212, “The Power of Us,” McRaney and psychologist Jay Van Bavel discuss social identities, how they are formed, and how they can be harnessed to improve social harmony.

Published in 2013, his second book You Are Now Less Dumb analyzes concepts of popular psychology, including enclothed cognition, deindividuation, and the sunk-cost fallacy. You Are Now Less Dumb has been praised by Psychology Today to be “like taking a Psych 101 class with a witty professor and zero homework.” Published in 2022, McRaney’s third book, How Minds Change: The Surprising Science of Belief, Opinion, and Persuasion, investigates the science and experience of transformation among cult members, conspiracy theorists, and political activists.

After completing How Minds Change, McRaney wrote, produced, and recorded the seven-episode audio documentary Exploring Genius, which he quotes as an “in-depth study of brilliant minds.” In the documentary, McRaney covers the history and concept of the word genius, how we measure and define genius, and what life is like as a genius. In the final episode, he interviews Ainan Celeste Cawley, the twenty-two-year-old boy with the highest IQ ever recorded.

McRaney currently resides in Hattiesburg and continues to create his blog and podcast You Are Not So Smart. In addition, he writes short reads for Medium, a website where experts on a variety of topics publish stories, advice, research, and opinion pieces. McRaney also travels around the world giving TED-style lectures on the topics covered in his books.