How Do We Fix It?

In the fall 2024, a young British filmmaker jumped in a small car and drove across America, asking more than 200 strangers the same two questions: "How did we lose connection with our neighbors, and how do we get it back?" Many of the answers and explanations are fascinating. "I am a firm believer that developing a curiosity or a curiosity in strangers is the cure for a polarized and isolated world," says Joseph Sim, the director and producer of the new documentary, "A Road Trip Across a Divided America." In this podcast we also hear from experts, everyday citizens and members of Braver Angels, who gave Joseph renewed hope that America can overcome the toxic divides that currently poison so many friendships and family relationships. Part of the message of Joseph's documentary is to encourage curiosity. "There is an adventure to be had. There is knowledge to be gained if you get curious about the people around you," he told us. "You honestly can't prepare yourself for what you'll find if you do that." Want to watch Joseph's wise and entertaining video? It's easy. The documentary is available at https://www.jojofilm.co.uk/ Watch Joseph's TedX talk as he makes the case for curiosity and speaking with strangers. Our podcast— "How Do We Fix It?"— makes shows about the people, ideas and projects of Braver Angels, the nation's largest volunteer-led citizens movement that's pushing back against rigid and destructive polarization. Braver Angels helped Joseph make his film. Everyday there are Braver Angels local, regional, or national workshops, debates, and events. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The holiday season is here, but many people across the country may dread sitting down with their nearest and dearest— all because of politics. In this episode we share down-to-earth advice from two wise experts who have thought deeply and creatively about how to minimize conflict and maximize cooperation with parents, family, and friends. Tania Israel is a Professor of Counseling Psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara and award-winning author of "Beyond Your Bubble: How to Navigate the Challenges of Living in a Divided Nation". Arthur C. Brooks is Professor of the Practice of Public and NonProfit Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. We discuss the findings of his book "Love Your Enemies: How Decent People Can Save America From the Culture of Contempt". We make podcasts about the work, ideas, and projects of Braver Angels, the volunteer-led, cross-partisan network of American citizens who are working together across divides to push back against toxic polarization. This episode is very much in the spirit of what Braver Angels are working to achieve. This show is released just weeks after the election of Donald Trump to serve a second term as President. Divisive rhetoric by both sides during the campaign added to recent bitterness and division. Polarization is "not only hurting our connections with other people, it's hurting our health and our democracy," says Tania Israel. She argues that Americans "need to strengthen our connections with other people and tolerate, even embrace differences". A longer version of the interview with Tania was first published by the podcast, "Let's Find Common Ground". In the second half of this podcast we hear about the radical ancient teachings of Jesus, Buddah and many religious leaders— love your enemies." This is a "subversive, sort of crazy-sounding idea", Arthur Brooks tells us. But it can have a profound impact on how we live. "It's pretty easy to love your friends, but to love your enemies is something entirely different," he says. "You see them in an entirely different way. You change your own heart." Our "How Do We Fix It?" interview with Arthur Brooks was first recorded in 2018. Richard Davies and his co-host Jim Meigs asked the questions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Some wore red hats, others wore blue. Outside scores of polling places in many states across the country, pairs of Democrats and Republicans sat together in a radically simple experiment called the Braver Angels Election Day Initiative. The contrast between dire media forecasts of violence, and calamity during the election and what actually happened was stark. The day passed by calmly with minimal reports of disruption. There was a sense of quiet majesty that day. In this episode we hear about the experience of three Red/Blue pairs of Braver Angels volunteers. For all of them the experience of presenting themselves in public as liberals and conservatives who could get along was uplifting. We also get reactions and reflections about the results and what they mean for our democracy. Our guests are: Liberal Don Goldberg and conservative Elizabeth Doll who were outside the King County Election Headquarters in Renton, Washington on Election Day. Dorsey Cartwright, who voted for Harris, and Roger Haynes who backed Trump, spent several hours together close to a polling station in Austin, Texas. The third red/blue pair Martin Hunke (Blue) and Tarleton Ferrin (Red) in Tucson, Arizona. Braver Angels volunteers had posters that said Vote Red, Vote Blue, We're All Americans Through and Through. "People were really warm about it," said Elizabeth. "They seemed sometimes surprised, sometimes amused, but everyone was really receptive." Don said the experience in Renton "was really kind of delightful". Our Blue volunteers, as expected, were deeply saddened by the election result. "I felt some sadness," said Martin Hunke. "I realized that we live in very different worlds. We can't agree on what truth is." "In elections people win and lose, but we as Americans are left with moving forward together," conservative Roger Haynes told us. "We have to learn to win and lose with grace and understand how to be more empathetic with people whose side didn't win... Do we take this as another gotcha moment or do we try to step outside of our tribe and ask what's it like for them?" This episode was produced with the help and encouragement of David Albright, Jessica Jones, and Mónica Guzmán at "A Braver Way" podcast. Our deep thanks to them. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do you believe what you see in newspapers, websites and on TV? Most Americans don't trust the people who are supposed to truthfully report the news. A new Gallup poll says Americans have record-low trust in mass media. Only one-in-three adults has a "great deal" or a "fair amount" of confidence in the media to report the news "fully, accurately and fairly." More than 150,000 readers each day turn to Tangle, a website read by liberals, conservatives and independents. Every day Tangle tackles one current debate in American politics, and summarizes arguments from left, right, and center. All Sides Bias Checker gives Tangle a "middle" rating, which means the site neither leans left nor right. Our guest, politics reporter Isaac Saul, started Tangle in 2019 as an independent, ad-free, nonpartisan newsletter. He grew up in Bucks County Pa. — one of the most politically divided counties in America — where he was exposed to a huge range of political opinions and values. As a young journalist, Isaac learned the media ecosystem was broken when he found that he wasn’t being judged based on his writing, but where it was being published. On Tangle "you will encounter a wide range of views, including some you really disagree with," Isaac tells us. "We're trying to be a big tent news organization and we are succeeding at that... Our readership is split almost evenly between conservative and liberal readers." "I'm working from the premise that the reds and blues don't understand each other," he says. "I really do want to bring people under one roof with a shared set of arguments to analyze and talk about, and a shared set of facts to work from." About this show: Every couple of weeks we release a new episode hosted by Richard Davies about the work, the ideas, and the people of Braver Angels, a remarkable band of brothers and sisters who get together across political divides in person and online: Reds and Blues who do battle against toxic polarization. In this show we speak with a fellow traveler of this effort. Links to news sites that feature a range of opinions on a single issue: Tangle, All Sides, and Ground News. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are you fed up with politics and especially the presidential campaign? On How Do We Fix It? we're reporting on the people, projects and ideas of Braver Angels. This nationwide citizen-led movement is a growing coalition of liberals and conservatives working to restore hope and co-operation to our politics. In this episode we speak with a second pair of Red-Blue volunteers who will be working together and meeting voters outside a polling site on November 5th. It's all part of the nationwide Election Day Initiative. Our guests are Elizabeth Doll and Don Goldberg. On election day, they will be outside King County Election HQ in Renton, Washington. "The other is not necessarily the enemy", Don tells us. "They just happen to be another side." Elizabeth agrees and hopes that one result of the Initiative is that Americans "recognize people can be friends... talk about politics with each other, disagree about politics, and still be in relationship with each other." Elizabeth Doll is Director of Braver Politics at Braver Angels. She's been a volunteer, and a consultant for political campaigns in the Pacific NorthWest. Don Goldberg is a writer and political social satirist who now helps transcribe the podcast, "A Braver Way". This episode is a reminder that America's voting system differs across the country. Washington state votes by mail. All voters receive paper ballots. They put them in drop boxes, or hand in their ballots to the local county elections department on or before election day. You can find out more about the Election Day Initiative on the Braver angels dot org web site. Braver Angels also have local in-person and online events all across the country. Look for one at the "Find an Event" prompt here. This show was put together with help of the production team at "A Braver Way", a podcast about how Americans of all viewpoints can disagree about politics without losing heart. Thanks to their team David Albright, Jessica Jones and show host Moni Guzman. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

These final days before the election are tense times. Today’s toxic politics are hurtful and heart breaking for many of us. Maybe we all need a hope vaccine. An injection of kindness, curiosity and understanding for those who see the world differently than we do. In our latest report on the work, ideas, and people of Braver Angels, the nationwide citizen-led campaign against political polarization, we learn more about its Election Day Initiative: A volunteer-led effort to push back against political climate change— the hurricane of hate resentment and disdain that many on the left and right feel for the other side. Our guests in this episode are liberal Dorsey Cartwright and conservative Roger Haynes. They are two of many red/blue pairs of citizens who will sit and stand together outside polling places across America. M. Dorsey Cartwright is a retired marriage and family therapist in Austin, Texas. She travelled internationally leading workshops for couples, individuals, adult children and parents, as well as for communities. Valuing the healing of relationships, Dorsey has turned her attention to America’s political environment. First as an active member of No Labels and its mission to depolarize the House and Senate, and then Braver Angels, with its mission to depolarize our citizenship. Her politics lean blue. Red-leaning Roger Haynes is a retired Chief Master Sergeant with 23 years of active military service and he recently left a civil service appointment with the government. He has served in his community in various roles including HOA, City Commission, and is also active helping local Friends of NRA committees raise grant funding in areas such as youth education, women-focused clinics, law enforcement training, hunter safety, range improvement, firearms and marksmanship training and safety. He’s passionate about the First and Second Amendments. Learn more here about Braver Angels “American Hope Campaign”. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Elections are vital to all democracies: The authority of the government comes solely from the consent of the governed. But millions of Americans don’t trust the electoral process and have highly negative views of politics.. Many have little or no confidence that all votes will be fairly and accurately counted. What should be done to improve our elections? We discuss reforms that both conservative reds and liberals blues can endorse. Some may surprise you, including ending gerrymandering and the unanimous recommendation on requiring ID to vote. The Braver Angels Trustworthy Elections Initiative held 26 workshops with nearly 200 evenly-balanced Red and Blue participants. Together, they found 727 unanimous points of agreement. Our guests are Larry Mayes and Walt McKee— the Blue and Red Co-Chairs of the Trustworthy Elections Leadership Team. They discuss their recommendations and what they learned together during the past four years. Larry Mayes has over two decades of experience working with elected municipal, state, and federal government officials and community leaders, focusing on driving human development and social capital. He is Senior Vice President for Government and Community Relations for Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of Boston. In 2014, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh appointed Mayes to the Community Ombudsman Oversight Panel. The Panel for several years reviewed Boston Police Department Internal Affairs cases that were on appeal from citizens as well as random investigated cases. Walt McKee lives in Maryland with his wife, Juliana. They have been married for 40 years and have three adult children. He worked as a business entrepreneur and, in addition to Braver Angels activity, Walt serves on two nonprofit boards: Steadfast, which serves homeless youth, and the Sandy Spring Slave Museum and African Art Gallery. In this episode, we also learn more about how Braver Angels will send red and blue voters to polling places across the country on election day, to show Americans that no matter who we’re voting for, we can— and must— get along. It’s easy to take part. Learn more and sign up here at the Election Day Initiative. This episode of “How Do We Fix It?” is our latest report on the work, ideas, and people of Braver Angels, America’s largest volunteer-led citizen group that’s working across the country to push back against polarization. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Braver Angels is addressing a huge threat that could disrupt the future of our democratic republic: The rigid, often bitter, divisions between reds and blues. While nearly four in ten voters identify as "independent", more than nine in ten Americans fall into one of two broad categories. They identify as either conservative or liberal leaning and tend to vote for either Republicans or Democrats. "If this country breaks apart, if violence increases to the point where we are killing each other, it will be because of those two groups and the extreme leaders of those two groups," says Braver Angels co-founder and President David Blankenhorn. "That's the division we are looking at. That's the bridge we want to build. That's what's threatening the country." This episode is part two of our "How Do We Fix It?" podcast interview with David. We discuss Braver Angels bridge building by young people. Our conversation also explores America's political divisions and the Braver Angels approach to reforming and rebuilding American political discourse one conversation, one debate, one workshop at a time. In part one— our previous episode— we began by discussing the movement's origin story. Before co-founding Braver Angels, David Blankenhorn led the Institute for American Values, a think tank on civil society. He founded the Mississippi Community Service Corps, the Virginia Community Service Corps, and the Committee for Economic Change at Harvard University. David co-founded the National Fatherhood Initiative, and is the author of five books including his most recent, "In Search of Braver Angels: Getting Along Together in Troubled Times.” This podcast mentions the work Braver Angels is doing on college campuses. One example is how campus free speech debates encourage open minds at Denison University in Ohio. Recommendation: We give shout outs to "A Braver Way" and "Derate The Hate". Móni Guzman of Braver Angels is the host of "A Braver Way", A podcast about how you - yes YOU - can disagree about politics without losing heart. Another fine bridge building show to listen to is "Derate the Hate" ,hosted by Wilk Wilkinson. This episode is the fifth in a series of podcasts about work, ideas and people of Braver Angels. We’re grateful for their inspiration and support. All our podcasts are available for free here Note: Please Subscribe to “How Do We Fix It?" Rate us and review us wherever you get podcasts. This helps spread the word about these shows and the work of Braver Angels. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“I don’t do this work in optimism. I do it in hope”, Braver Angels President David Blankenhorn tells us. “If we’re going to have any chance to fix this and save our country, this is what needs to be done.” Soon after the tumultuous 2016 election Braver Angels sprung to life— co-founded by David, Bill Doherty and David Lapp. Two years after its founding this nationwide volunteer-led citizen movement had its first convention attended by 72 conservative and 72 liberal delegates. This year, more than 750 reds and blues were at the Braver Angels national convention in Kenosha, Wisconsin. In the past few years Braver Angels workshops, debates, and other events have been held in all 50 states. In this episode, we hear from David about the Braver Angels origin story and much more. We also feature a brief update from Jessie Mannisto, Braver Angels Director of Debates, about her experience as a Braver Angels volunteer outside the DNC Convention in Chicago. Before co-founding Braver Angels, David Blankenhorn led the Institute for American Values, a think tank on civil society. He founded the Mississippi Community Service Corps, the Virginia Community Service Corps, and the Committee for Economic Change at Harvard University. David co-founded the National Fatherhood Initiative, and is the author of five books including “In Search of Braver Angels: Getting Along Together in Troubled Times.” In our thoughtful and provocative interview we learn more about the urgent need to push against rigid partisan divides. “We do not any longer effectively communicate with one another as citizens. That’s a big statement," says David. “But the more we think about it and the more you look at how we’re working today, I really think it’s true.” This episode is the fourth in a series of podcasts about work, ideas and people of Braver Angels. We’re grateful to them for their inspiration and support. All our podcasts are available for free here. Note: Please Subscribe to “How Do We Fix It?" Rate us and review us wherever you get podcasts. This helps spread the word about these shows and the work of Braver Angels. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When renowned physician-scientist Francis Collins was about to have his first conversation with Christian conservative Wilk Wilkinson in early 2022, he admits that he had concerns. "I thought oh boy, this is going to be a tough one". Dr. Collins had recently stepped down as Director of NIH— The National Institutes of Health. He served under Presidents Obama, Trump, and Biden, and played a leading role in the federal response to the COVID pandemic. Podcaster Wilk Wilkinson, who lives in rural Minnesota, was intensely critical of how the government handled COVID. Today both Francis and Wilk are friends. They lead the Braver Angels' Truth and Trust Project. The goal is to build trust between ordinary Americans and the public health community in the wake of the pandemic. In each Truth and Trust gathering equal numbers of people from each side of the debate about what happened with public health listen carefully and express their views. In this episode of "How Do We Fix It?", Wilk and Francis discuss their unlikely partnership, what they've learned from those they disagree with, and how they're working together across divides. "We're going to have another pandemic," says Francis. "If we do not learn the lessons of what went right and what went wrong with this one then we're going to be in a terrible spot." Both men still have different opinions on the role of government mandates in health emergencies. "When I look at anything that involves the government it's through the lens of liberty," says Wilk. "If the one entity out there that has a monopoly on force is going to restrict the liberty of the individual they better be 100% sure that what they're doing is really the only option." "I learned a lot by listening, and Wilk was a very good person to listen to, about how the pandemic was different for somebody who was in a very different place than I was", says Francis. "I also learned from Wilk and others in the Truth and Trust sessions about how sometimes the pronouncements from people like me in public health communication came across as very elitist... as opposed to really explaining the circumstance about how imperfect the data was and how uncertain we often were that we were recommending was going to turn out to be right." Francis's forthcoming book, to be published in mid-September, is "The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith and Trust". Wilk's podcast is "Derate The Hate." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Toxic polarization is "the problem that eats all other problems... It's the sludge at the base of everything else," says our guest Mónica Guzmán. Think how much progress could be made on the great problems of today if politics were much more about discovering nuance than shouting slogans. This show is our second episode on the work, people, and ideas of the volunteer-led cross-partisan campaign, Braver Angels. In the coming months, we'll report on their initiatives and projects. Americans who are pissed off with politics are sometimes called "the exhausted majority." Many are tuning out toxic, divisive rhetoric that aims to settle scores instead of solving what's broken. Our guest, Braver Angels senior fellow Mónica Guzmán, has suggestions about how to be truly curious and have better conversations with those who see things differently. This loving liberal daughter of conservative immigrant parents who came to the US from Mexico, is a bridge builder, journalist and author. Her podcast is "A Braver Way". Modi’s recent book is “I Never Thought of It That Way." Our "How Do We Fix It?" interview was recorded a couple years ago. This show includes highlights and also an extract from Móni's podcast. "When you want to ask why people believe what they believe, instead ask how they came to believe what they believe," she tells us. When you ask how instead of why, you're asking for their story and then what people do is take you on a tour instead of being put on trial." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is our first in a series of new reports on the work, people and projects of Braver Angels— the largest volunteer-led group in the bridging community. The show was recorded a few days after the assassination attempt against Donald Trump. Our guests are Jessie Mannisto and Luke Nathan Phillips, who spent this week in Milwaukee, right outside the Fiserv Forum Arena, site of the Republican National Convention. Since its founding after the 2016 election, Braver Angels has brought together many hundreds of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents to debate, discuss, and work together to bridge partisan divides. Jessie is Director of Debates at Braver Angels, and Luke is the Publius Fellow For Public Discourse. In this episode we hear about the Braver Angels petition calling on party leaders to detoxify our politics, the mood of Republican delegates and protesters on the streets outside, the differences between media coverage of the event and what its like to be there, as well as responses to Braver Angels and its push back against polarization. "We're at both party conventions because America is at the party conventions," Luke tells us. “It’s just really interesting observing how people are feeling on the ground." "We set up Braver Angels in the wake of the 2016 election trying to keep people from hating their friends and relatives over politics," says Jessie. "Now the stakes are higher. We really are confronted with the possibility of political violence and have seen that is what we're up against.” Braver Angels are working to fix the national crisis of partisan polarization at the heart of America's political paralysis. Last month they hosted America's largest Presidential debate watch party, with hundreds of Republicans, Democrats, and independents in the same room. In this episode we also hear about "A Braver Way", the podcast hosted by Mónica Guzmán." Her show is, we think, a companion to ours — a personal guide across the divide that gives listeners creative, practical and sometimes playful suggestions about how to disagree over politics without getting angry, depressed or disagreeable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the last episode Jim Meigs and Richard Davies celebrated more than nine years as co-hosts. They also announced that their podcasting partnership was ending. But "How Do We Fix It?" is not going away. Instead we plan to focus on something we've covered a great deal recently, and is of urgent importance right now: The broken nature of American politics. In the weeks to come, Richard will be the solo host of the show. We'll feature a series of creative, constructive conversations with bridge builder— people who are working to reduce polarization and push back against partisan divides. We'll shine a spotlight on the largest group in the field: Braver Angels. There are many stories we're excited to share with you here on How Do We Fix It? Watch this space. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When we first started our podcast in the spring of 2015, Jim and Richard came from different political tribes. They still do. But during more than 400 shows they've deepened their friendship and learned a tremendous amount from each other, and our remarkable guests. While "How Do We Fix It?" podcast will continue its journey, Jim and Richard's nine years as co-hosts ends with this show. We discuss why the partnership is ending (spoiler alert: it's amicable!) and what they discovered about podcasting, politics, and how to navigate divisions at a time of rigid, painful divides. "I feel like when we started, we were a couple of voices in the wilderness, searching for more open-minded conversations, looking for people willing to grapple with facts and ideas that don't fit their comfortable world views," says Jim. "One of our last-minute decisions in those early days was to add a question mark to our title," says Richard. "I'm so glad we decided to do that, because fixing the current political mess starts with better listening and more challenging questions." In the years since we started our voices have grown into a movement. Some call it the bridging space with organizations such as Braver Angels, Heterodox Academy, Living Room Conversations, Listen First, Solutions Journalism Network, Common Ground Committee and many more. Media have also changed with the huge growth of podcasting, Substack, and new news sites such as The Free Press. We've enjoyed hearing from a remarkable range of guests. Among the most successful and persuasive experts are humble about their own opinions and accomplishments. They've been open-minded and curious about the views of those who sharply, and sometimes dismissively, disagreed with them. Standout examples include scientist Alina Chan, journalist and author Jonathan Rausch, writer and podcast host Yascha Mounk, and Moni Guzman of Braver Angels. In this episode Richard and Jim get personal and a bit emotional about where they've changed their minds and personally learned from each other. Please listen! Follow How Do We Fix It? on Facebook and Twitter X. Jim is a senior fellow at The Manhattan Institute. Follow him here on Twitter. He writes for City Journal and Commentary. Richard co-hosts "Let's Find Common Ground" podcast with Ashley Milne-Tyte. He's on Facebook and his Twitter handle is daviesnow. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Supporters of Ranked Choice Voting argue that we need to a big change how we vote. Our “choose-one” elections, they say, deprive voters of meaningful choices, create increasingly toxic campaign cycles, advance candidates who lack broad support and leave voters feeling like our voices are not heard. We examine the case for this form of proportional representation. Ranked Choice Voting could boost electoral turnout, reduce polarization, and cut the public cost of running elections. This relatively new reform is now being used in dozens of states, cities and counties. In 2022, Alaska implemented ranked-choice voting for the first time after a referendum revamped its elections. Our guest, Rob Richie is cofounder and senior analyst at FairVote, makes the case for how it works and why RCV is a viable way to improve electoral politics. Right now, he says, we are in this "incredibly intense winner-take-all environment" in most states. Ranked-choice voting could change the equation. Instead of picking just one candidate, voters rank as many candidates as they want in order of choice: first, second, third and so on. If your first-choice candidate is in last place, your vote counts for your highest-ranked candidate who can win by getting more than 50%. RCV removes voters' concerns that their favored candidate could split the vote. Most Americans agree Congress is not working. Retiring Senators Mitt Romney (Republican - Utah) and Joe Manchin (Democrat - West Virginia) are outspoken supporters of Ranked Choice Voting. “Every incentive in Washington is designed to make politics extreme,” says Manchin. “The growing divide between Democrats and Republicans is paralyzing Congress and worsening our nation’s problems.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Liberalism is out of fashion. You might say that it's under siege. From the populist right to the progressive left, liberal touchtones of limited government, personal freedom, the rule of law, and a mixed economy have come in for harsh criticism. Liberalism is assailed by many critics, but it has not failed, argues Yale Political Science Professor Bryan Garsten. "A liberal society is unique in that it offers refuge from the very people it empowers" through "institutions and different political parties. This allows the rest of us to live undisturbed," he says. Supporters argue that this form of liberty most clearly elevates the liberal project. In addition to his research and teaching, Garsten has written recent op-eds for The New York Times. His books include “Saving Persuasion: A Defense of Rhetoric and Judgement” and a collection of essays he edited about Rousseau and the Age of Enlightenment. This episode is published with assistance from The Journal of Democracy. We are grateful. The most recent print issue includes essays by five authors, who grapple with questions of liberalism's lasting relevance and its challenges for the future. Our interview features a lively discussion about the difference between liberal thought and other "isms" such as neoliberalism, libertarianism and progressivism. We learn more about the importance of community, the limits of individual freedom, and why liberal societies do not produce refugees— arguably another unique source of strength. Professor Garsten is also skeptical of some aspects of modern liberalism. "I think there's a certain language that liberals use, of science, rights and progress which sometimes has been hijacked to justify elite overreach in imposing a vision of the world onto many people of different views," he tells us. "I offer the language of refuge as an alternative way to get at what's morally admirable in liberal societies." Recommendation: Richard has just read the new book by journalist and TV commentator, Fareed Zakaria: "Age of Revolutions. Progress and Backlash From 1600 to the Present." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In much of the country local news has collapsed, threatening civic pride and a sense of community for countless towns and cities. This dramatic change has also deepened America's divides. As our guest, journalist and public policy researcher Anna Brugmann explains in this episode, "the internet disrupted the local journalism model". Newspaper advertising revenue fell 80% since 2000. Thousands of local and regional publications closed. Most surviving newsrooms faced drastic cutbacks. Coverage of all kinds of local events— from city hall, school board meetings and football games to local businesses and zoning decisions — disappeared. First, Craigslist displaced print-based classified ads. Then Google, Facebook and other online firms became the main source of consumer advertising. We discuss the impact on local journalism. In recent decades, the news we read and listen to has largely shifted from local reporting to often highly polarizing national opinion journalism. In the first of two episodes on the changing face of the news media, we look at the retreat of local journalism and discuss solutions. These include non-profit media and changes in for-profit business models. Today, many newspapers get more revenue from subscriptions and fundraising drives than from advertising. We ask: how sustainable are these initiatives? Anna Brugmann is policy director for the advocacy organization, Rebuild Local News. According to her group, since 2004, as the U.S. population has grown, the number of newsroom employees has dropped by 57%. "By almost every metric by which you measure a healthy community and a healthy democracy, the trends are in the wrong direction when local news leaves," says Anna. "In the past twenty years more than two thousands newspapers have closed in The United States." Recommendation: Jim is listening to a lot of podcasts since he unplugged his TV and stopped watching broadcast and cable news. Among his current favorite podcasts is "The Reeducation With Eli Lake". The show "challenges the common narratives the mainstream media and others push". Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Diversity equity and inclusion: Sounds like a good thing in an incredibly diverse country such as ours, especially when teaching young people at American colleges and universities. But the DEI industry - or DEI Inc. — has arguably gone off the rails. There’s a big difference between the intentions behind a lot of diversity training and the results. We learn about the crucial difference between training and education, and hear the case against the Stop WOKE Act in Florida. History professors Amna Khalid and Jeff Snyder share their deep concerns about a growing industry. There is no reliable evidence that diversity, equity and inclusion training sessions at colleges, non-profits, and large corporations actually work. In many places, DEI could be making things worse, imposing an ideological litmus test and encouraging cynicism and dishonesty at places of learning. Amna specializes in modern South Asian history, the history of medicine and the global history of free expression. Growing up under a series of military dictatorships in Pakistan, she has a strong interest in issues relating to free speech. Jeff is also a Professor at Carleton: A historian of education, who studies questions of race, national identity and the purpose of public education in a diverse, democratic society. He’s the author of Making Black History: The Color Line, Culture and Race in the Age of Jim Crow. Jeff and Amna released this YouTube video about DEI. They speak regularly together about academic freedom, free speech and campus politics at colleges and universities. They also write frequently on these issues for newspapers and magazines, including The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New Republic and The Washington Post. Amna hosts a podcast and blog called “Banished,” which explores censorship controversies in the past and present. Recommendation: Richard has been watching "Nada" on Hulu, a gentle and funny TV series from Argentina about a food critic in Buenos Aires and his observations on life and eating. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

News coverage of Super Tuesday and other party primaries focused mainly on base voters— Democrats and Republicans. But most Americans are actually on the political sidelines or somewhere in the middle. Many have a mix of conservative and liberal views. This episode is about them. Our guest is Shannon Watson, the Founder and Executive Director of Majority in the Middle. Her Minnesota-based non-profit group works to give voters and elected officials a place to gather outside the extremes. "We try to elevate the people who are demonstrating the behavior we want to see", Shannon tells us. "When it's only the rabble-rousers who get the coverage then there is an incentive to be one of them." Majority in the Middle also promotes structural changes in governing that will remove barriers to cooperation across the political aisle. While the two parties have a stranglehold on many aspects of elections and governance, record numbers of Americans no longer register as Republican or Democrat. They prefer the label "independent". At the same time, the right and left have changed. Among pro-Trump conservatives, we see a decline in support for free trade and military spending to help traditional allies. The former president has also resisted calls to limit spending on Medicare and social security. Younger Democrats are much less likely to support Israel. The rise of identity politics has also pushed the party to the left. While we've always had partisan division the level of vitriol can obscure the fact that Americans are much more closely aligned on issues such as gun rights, abortion, and immigration than we are led to believe. "Not all Democrats agree with all Democrats, and not all Republicans agree with all Republicans," says Shannon Watson. Our podcast conversation mentions the Political Typology Quiz, conducted by Pew Research Center. Polling of more than 10,000 U.S. adults showed that while partisan polarization remains a dominant fact of political life, "the gulf that separates Republicans and Democrats sometimes obscures the divisions and diversity of views that exist within both partisan coalitions – and the fact that many Americans do not fit easily into either one." You can take the Typology Quiz here and see your personal views fit in with nine broad categories of left and right. Recommendation: Jim enjoyed reading "The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder", by David Grann. Our co-host has had a long fascination with survival and exploration stories. He calls this non-fiction book "a ripping read and a fascinating story." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Only four-in-ten Americans say they have a lot of trust in the news media. That's a big problem for our democracy, especially in this volatile presidential election year. While journalists are supposed to tell the truth and get the story right, just 35% of right-of-center voters have some trust in what they see on the news. Democrats and independents are much more likely to trust journalists, but Americans of almost all shades of opinion are skeptical of the journalists, not only questioning the quality of their work but the intentions behind it. Our guest is Joy Mayer, Director of the non-profit group, Trusting News, which has partnered with many local newsrooms around the country to help journalists earn consumers' trust. While many reporters, writers and editors are reluctant to discuss their politics, most journalists have liberal or progressive views. "I think it's something we need to talk about more openly," Joy tells us. In this episode, we look at bias, transparency, and constructive steps that the newsrooms can take to improve their reputation with a broad cross-section of Americans. We first recorded our interview with Joy in the late summer of 2021. Since then polling shows that the gulf between many journalists and their readers, listeners, and viewers is as wide as ever. Americans of all political views are switching off the news. Audiences are shrinking for local TV stations, most newspapers and public radio, even as they release podcasts, email newsletters and other newer forms of content. Polling by Pew Research found that more than half of journalists surveyed say every side does not always deserve equal coverage in the news. But three-quarters of the public say journalists should always strive to give all sides equal coverage. Recommendation: Richard has just finished watching the first two seasons of "Dark Winds", a TV thriller and crime drama set on a Navajo Indian reservation in the southwest. Almost all of the actors and crew are native americans. Richard says: "This series is beautiful, exciting and compelling. The acting is first rate The scenery alone is reason enough to watch it." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.