Making Common Ground: Recent Episodes
Catherine Neilan
Whether it's Brexit, Covid, Black Lives Matter or trans rights, polarisation has been destabilising our democracy for the last few years. But are the culture wars largely phoney - and can we find a solution to the serious issues society is facing? From state-sanctioned hostile action to social media algorithms, party politics and innate tribal instincts, Alfred Landecker Foundation fellow and journalist Cat Neilan explores what is holding us back from making common ground. In partnership with Humanity in Action.
In episode twenty-four of Making Common Ground, Alfred Landecker fellow Catherine Neilan speaks to Alison Goldsworthy, founder and CEO of The Depolarization Project, about tribalism and polarisation in Britain and the USA.
Who do you trust? Where do you get your information from? The pandemic has brought
these questions to the fore. With so much conflicting information out there and
fewer opportunities to sense check it with our friends, are we getting even more
entrenched in the culture wars - or has lockdown reinvigorated our neighborly
spirit ?
This week, we return to our second focus group for the final time and talk about the
challenges of navigating the media, our friends, and government messages in the
new world order
In episode twenty-two, Catherine Neilan returns to the Making Common Ground focus group to look back at the five years since the EU referendum, to discuss why they voted as they did, whether they've changed their mind since then and whether they knew anyone at the time who voted differently. We also discuss whether they believe Boris Johnson is a liar, whether it matters and if journalists and opposition politicians should do more to call it out.
In episode twenty-one of Making Common Ground , Catherine Neilan talks with Robert B Talisse, Professor of Philosophy and Chair of the Philosophy Department at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he is also a Professor of Political Science.
Some argue that the solution to our current crisis in democracy is more democracy. Not Rob. He believes that our politics have seeped into every corner of our lives, from the coffee shop we get our frappuccinos from to where we go on our holidays.
But it's not just about signalling that we are progressives because we put our quinoa in a canvas tote bag. The problem, Rob argues, is that we become so divorced from the other side we start to find them repellant - and that's where democractic dialogue collapses.
In episode twenty, Catherine Neilan returns to the second Making Common Ground focus group to discuss labels - what is a centrist, do Brexit labels still apply and are people becoming more pro-Remain as the reality of what they voted for kicks in; and who has it worse: Millennials or Generation-X
In episode nineteen of Making Common Ground, Cat Neilan talks to Robert Ford, Professor of Political Science at the University of Manchester and co-author of the book Brexitland, about Brexit and its aftermath, how people have become polarised and why some do see Boris Johnson's Tories as the party of change.
In episode eighteen, Catherine Neilan returns to the Making Common Ground focus group to discuss meritocracy and whether Labour is the party for aspirations, how to have open and honest conversations and a surprise meeting of minds on Brexit.
In episode seventeen of Making Common Ground, Cat Neilan talks to New Statesman's Dominic Ponsford and Broadcast magazine's Chris Curtis about journalism's role in post-Brexit polarisation, trust in the media and why GB News is not something for progressives to fear.
In episode sixteen, Catherine Neilan meets a new Making Common Ground focus group to discuss the recent elections, Keir Starmer's lack of charm and why it matters when he's up against Boris Johnson, whether the government has its priorities right and the possibility of a second Scottish Independence Referendum.
In episode fifteen of Making Common Ground, Alfred Landecker fellow Catherine Neilan speaks to Miriam Juan-Torres, global senior researcher at More In Common, about polarisation in Britain, shared values among disparate groups and why, even after Brexit, it might not be a divided society.
In episode fourteen, Catherine Neilan returns to the Making Common Ground focus group to discuss WallpaperGate, sleaze and whether people trust either Boris Johnson or Dominic Cummings - or neither!
In episode thirteen of Making Common Ground, Alfred Landecker fellow Catherine Neilan speaks to science journalist Tom Chivers about why it pays people to express views they don't necessarily hold, and how mainstream media interacts with social media.
In episode twelve, Catherine Neilan returns to the Making Common Ground focus group to discuss flags, pride over the UK's Covid vaccine programme, the fall-out from Meghan and Harry's Oprah interview and whether people consider themselves "British" or "English".
In episode 11 of Making Common Ground, Alfred Landecker fellow Catherine Neilan speaks to China Research Group's Julia Pamilih about Beijing's steps towards disinformation, how it compares to Russia, and why the UK's relationship with China is proving surprisingly resilient to tensions over Hong Kong and Uighur abuses.
In episode 10 of Making Common Ground, Alfred Landecker fellow Cat Neilan talks to Cardiff University's Thomas Prosser about how Brexit has shifted the UK's political tribes, and why self-interest might hold the solution to polarisation.
In episode nine of Making Common Ground, Alfred Landecker fellow Cat Neilan talks to journalist and author Phoenix Andrews about fandom, how it plays out on social media and how it is feeding populism, as well as its part in increasing polarisation.
In episode eight of Making Common Ground, political journalist Catherine Neilan talks with people from around the UK about politics, the 2019 election and why they may have voted differently, tribalism and whether Keir Starmer is making any difference.
In episode seven of Making Common Ground, Alfred Landecker fellow Cat Neilan talks to human rights lawyer Susie Alegre about the risks that social media pose to our freedom of thought - and how late night doom scrolling can be used to manipulate whether you vote
In episode six of Making Common Ground, journalist Catherine Neilan talks to Polly Mackenzie, chief executive of Demos and former director of policy to Nick Clegg. They discuss polarisation, the role and responsibilities of social media, as well as politicians, and the best ways to navigate difficult conversations to find common ground.
In episode five of Making Common Ground, Cat Neilan talks to Conservative MP and chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Tom Tugendhat about polarisation in British politics, why he thinks people should get involved in the democratic process well before elections and why social media platforms should be recognised as publishers.
In episode four of Making Common Ground, political journalist Catherine Neilan talks with people from around the UK about the big topics of the week, and how even with disparate backgrounds, they all agree on the impact of Dominic Cummins ill advised trip last year.
In episode three of Making Common Ground, political journalist Catherine Neilan talks to Full Fact chief executive Will Moy about the challenges we all face in spotting disinformation, how it's driving polarisation and practical tips for what to do if you're confronted with a conspiracy theorist.
In episode two of Making Common Ground, journalist Catherine Neilan talks to former Vote Leave chief executive, Matthew Elliott, about the polarisation caused by the Brexit referendum, how the culture wars have worsened since, and why it made him think twice about attending dinner parties.
In episode one of Making Common Ground, journalist Catherine Neilan talks to Stanford professor James Fishkin about how deliberative democracy has helped people with widely varying opinions reach agreements on policy issues and even find a way to compromise on their most entrenched views.
Making Common Ground seeks to kick-start better dialogue between different groups of individuals. Instead of dismissing people with lazy labels, people across the political spectrum will be brought together to discuss the big topics of the week, and encouraged to read news more broadly, as well as more in depth.
Democracy is fighting for survival on multiple fronts. Social bubbles and toxic discourse are eroding our ability to discuss problems and find solutions. Instead of working towards a compromise, all we hear are monologues masquerading as debate.
The way news is packaged is partly to blame - but increasingly we are not reading beyond the headlines. Making Common Ground seeks to kick-start better dialogue between different groups of individuals. Instead of dismissing people with lazy labels, people across the political spectrum will be brought together to discuss the big topics of the week, and encouraged to read news more broadly, as well as more in depth.
In this podcast, Catherine Neilan introduces the Making Common Ground project - how it was conceived, how it is supported, its objectives and how they will be achieved.