The Braver Angels Podcast: Recent Episodes
Braver Angels Media
Our lives have changed – our politics need to change too. Now is a time for us to remember that we need each other as Americans. Now is a time for us to reject those voices that say we don’t. The Braver Angels Podcast brings you face to face with leading voices from across the divide alongside remarkable Americans you did not know existed. Experience a movement to reignite the spirit of America and defeat the forces that divide us. With John Wood, Jr., Ciaran O’Connor and April Lawson.
How does intellectual humility matter in journalism, conversations about race, religion and politics? In this special episode of the Braver Angels Podcast sponsored by the Greater Good Science Center John Wood Jr. leads a conversation with founder of the Flipside Annafi Wahed, former CIA intelligence analyst Jessie Mannisto, and Braver Angels CMO Ciaran O’Connor. Read “The Incorrigible Questioner and the Search for Spiritual Belonging” by Jessie Mannisto: https://www.thirdfactor.org/questioner-and-spiritual-belonging/ Check out The Flipside: https://www.theflipside.io/
Braver Angels has a new podcast – “A Braver Way” hosted by Braver Angels Senior Fellow for Public Practice Mónica Guzmán. Monica explains how the podcast came to be, and why there is such a need for a podcast like this to help show everyday Americans HOW they can bridge divides in their own lives. Whether you’re Red, Blue, or something entirely different, “A Braver Way” will help you hear and be heard by people who confound you.
Subscribe to A Braver Way wherever you get your podcasts.
Learn More – braverangels.org/abraverway
Braver Angels national ambassador John Wood Jr. has launched a new podcast with the goal of uniting Americans. But episode one hit a splash of controversy after remarks from guest Sam Harris spread across the internet, provoking criticism from Elon Musk, Ben Shapiro and others. John explains the controversy and shares the mission of Uniting America with John Wood Jr. Subscribe on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.
YouTube link:
https://youtube.com/@unitingamericawithjohnwoodjr
Twitter, Facebook and Instagram: @JohnRWoodJr
Aziz Abu Sarah started Mejdi Tours to create a new kind of experience for travelers within conflict zones. Their trips, through places like Israel and the Palestinian territories, Northern Ireland, Colombia and the Baltics, present multiple perspectives on each site they visit, building ties with local communities and creating lasting friendships. Aziz joins Braver Angels leader Randy Lioz for a conversation about his work and his life story that brought him to the world of peace building, as they take on tough questions about power dynamics, victimhood, and what the U.S. can learn from conflicts in other places. For a look at the first chapter of Aziz’s book, Crossing Boundaries, click here!
Seriously: what's going on with Elon Musk? And what happens when "free speech absolutism" runs up against the realities of running the nation's defacto digital public square? How has Joe Biden performed in his first two years in office? And what can Americans expect from Braver Angels in 2023? In the final episode of the year, Ciaran O'Connor convenes fellow Braver Angels leaders John Wood, Jr., Monica Guzman, April Kornfield, and Gabbi Timmis for a freewheeling roundtable discussion. See you in 2023!
“The struggle between ‘for’ and ‘against’ is the mind’s worst disease.” In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, we brought some of the big, hairy questions that challenge political bridge building to one of the most outspoken voices in social psychology — NYU professor and best-selling author Jonathan Haidt. Can we ever really claw our way out of tribalism? What would it take to fix the structures that warp our thinking? And what does this leading scholar of morality make of the popular notion that you can’t engage some ideas across the political divide and still be good? Listen in as Haidt — author of The Righteous Mind, The Coddling of the American Mind, and the upcoming Life After Babel: Adapting To A World We Can No Longer Share — joins Braver Angels’ Mónica Guzmán for a conversation that explores everything from Haidt’s favorite bit of ancient wisdom to the problem with kids these days (especially girls on the Left) and what it might ultimately mean to be loyal to truth.
Paul Norris, who helps lead Braver Angels' Red Caucus, convenes an all-red panel to discuss what liberals, academia, and the mainstream media miss about conservatives. Featuring Mark Reinecke, Elizabeth Doll, and Barbara Farmer.
Monica Guzman is Braver Angels' Senior Fellow for Public Practice and the author of the best-selling book "I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times." Over the past few months, Monica's been traveling the country to lead curious conversations inspired by the themes of her book. Here she joins Braver Angels CMO Ciaran O'Connor to discuss what she's learned about the state of our nation's divisions, how different audiences engage bridge-building depending on their ideologies and identities, and how we can get more curious, together, as a nation in crisis.
Monica Guzman is Braver Angels' Senior Fellow for Public Practice and the author of the best-selling book "I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times." Over the past few months, Monica's been traveling the country to lead curious conversations inspired by the themes of her book. Here she joins Braver Angels CMO Ciaran O'Connor to discuss what she's learned about the state of our nation's divisions, how different audiences engage bridge-building depending on their ideologies and identities, and how we can get more curious, together, as a nation in crisis.
Braver Angels leaders John Wood, Jr. (red) and Ciaran O'Connor (blue) come together for a wide-ranging debate on the most critical issues animating the 2022 midterm elections, including the economy, abortion, and the future of American democracy. Throughout the discussion, John and Ciaran demonstrate how to embrace humility in the pursuit of deeper truth.
Braver Angels leaders John Wood, Jr. (red) and Ciaran O'Connor (blue) come together for a wide-ranging debate on the most critical issues animating the 2022 midterm elections, including the economy, abortion, and the future of American democracy. Throughout the discussion, John and Ciaran demonstrate how to embrace humility in the pursuit of deeper truth.
Barbara Walter is a political scientist and professor at the University of California San Diego who specializes in studying civil wars. Here she joins Braver Angels CMO Ciaran O'Connor for a wide-ranging conversation on the current state of political violence in the United States, what America can learn from civil conflicts in other countries, and how we, together as citizens, can take a stand for peace.
This week we put a Biden supporter in the hot seat. Wilk Wilkinson, a conservative Republican, interviews Jordan Carmon, a staunch Biden supporter, on everything from Hunter Biden to January 6th — showing us what's possible when we bring good faith to our richest, most passionate disagreements. Send us your feedback at media@braverangels.org.
From Braver Seders to the Catholic belief that we need not fear the truth, three Braver Angels leaders talk about how their respective religious traditions inspire their bridge-building work. They explore the spiritual side of Braver Angels, and how we can learn from the insights of each particular tradition.
Braver Angels CMO Ciaran O'Connor is a progressive Democrat who previously worked for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Wilk Wilkinson is a Trump supporter who helps lead Braver Angels' efforts to engage working class Americans. In this episode of the podcast, Ciaran and Wilk come together to discuss the investigations into former President Trump's conduct, why conservatives are so angry about the FBI's raid of his residence at Mar-a-Lago, and what the "rule of law" means in a country this polarized.
April Kornfield interviews Annette Ritter about what it means to be working class in America, how she sees regular people engaging politics, and how her own journey through trauma and addiction led her to become an addiction recovery counselor. Annette shares openly and with great insight about what it will take to bring people—all people—together to bridge the divide.
Annette is an addictions counselor trainee, a graduate of Maryland’s Allegheny College, and a We the People's Project leader at Braver Angels. She lives with her husband, three cats, and a red slider turtle in beautiful western Maryland.
Twitter: @braverangels, @AprilALawson
At a time of deepening polarization and social division, it's easy to become discouraged, disillusioned, and depressed. In this special roundtable episode, Braver Angels leaders Ciaran O'Connor, John Wood Jr., April Lawson Kornfield, and Monica Guzman come together to discuss how they keep the faith in our work and in each other. The group also discusses the recent abortion decision by the Supreme Court and what it means for Braver Angels' efforts to bridge the divide.
Help us build a house united by supporting our work: www.braverangels.org/support-us
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @AprilALawson, @JohnRWoodJr, @moniguzman
As the U.S. Congress and the Supreme Court weigh in on gun rights and gun safety, Americans remain bitterly divided on the right to bear arms. Is it possible to bridge this divide on the level of shared values? What can we learn from one another’s lived experiences that influence our thoughts and feelings about deadly weapons? What are the tradeoffs between gun rights and public health, and how do we navigate them as fellow Americans? Ciaran O'Connor convenes Mark Beckwith, a longtime gun safety activist, and Wilk Wilkinson, a strong gun rights proponent, for a passionate, emotional conversation. Mark and Wilk don’t see eye to eye, but they do see each others’ hearts. This discussion is a testament to what’s possible when we speak fully, freely, and without fear—with charity for all and malice toward none. Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor
Monica Guzmán and Daniel Acosta-Rivas share intimate stories about growing up in their respective Hispanic contexts and the diversity of the Hispanic world. They offer riveting insights on why the Hispanic community is underrepresented in organizations like Braver Angels and why Venezuela’s population may, shockingly, be less divided than America’s, illustrating the unique power of its approach to bridge-building.
Daniel, originally from Venezuela, currently lives in Washington, D.C. and works for Stand Together. He is a recent graduate of American University, where he founded the Students for Free Expression chapter. Mónica Guzmán is the director of digital & storytelling at Braver Angels and the author of the bestseller I Never Thought of It That Way.
Twitter: @braverangels, @moniguzman, @AprilALawson
Manu Meel and the students of the cross-partisan campus group BridgeUSA are the vanguard of the civic bridge-building movement nationwide.
What characterizes the 20-year-olds who are working across the divide to save American democracy, and what is the theory of change that defines the bridging/depolarization movement writ large? Does this work imply a centrism in defense of the status quo? Or is it an effort to establish a new type of political "center" that's not about political ideology at all? BridgeUSA co-founder and CEO Manu Meel tackles all of this and more with Braver Angels national ambassador John Wood Jr.
Learn more about BridgeUSA’s work at www.bridgeusa.org, and follow them on Instagram at @BridgeUSA_.
Twitter: @braverangels, @JohnRWoodJr, @manumeel1, @BridgeUSA_
In the year that followed the first Braver Angels workshop in December 2016, Braver Angels went from an experiment with a handful of citizens in small-town Ohio to a growing national movement.
In this second part of “How Braver Angels Began,” the co-founders of Braver Angels (David Blankenhorn, Bill Doherty, and David Lapp) narrate how Braver Angels found itself on a three-week bus tour, navigating flag controversies, and following the lead of citizens everywhere in building what is now the nation’s largest grassroots organization working for depolarization.
Watch part 1 of this conversation here: https://youtu.be/dzNDUowRedw
Learn more and support our mission: braverangels.org/support-us
Twitter: @braverangels, @blankenhorn3, @davidlappoh
April Lawson Kornfield hosts two thoughtful young people—Zoomers, as they're sometimes called—for a conversation about depolarization, campus culture, and what it would take to bring more youth into the bridge-building movement. Isaac Humrich is a rising sophomore at Arizona State University and the incoming president of the Arizona State College Republicans. Ope Tukuru, a recent graduate of the University at Albany, just finished his internship with the media team at Braver Angels.
The guests offer surprising insights about friendship, which stereotypes about their generation are unfair and which ones hit the mark, and how it feels to be coming into adulthood amidst a pandemic, intense social justice movements, and a political world that feels increasingly unstable.
Twitter: @braverangels, @AprilALawson, @IsaacHumrich
Will Donald Trump run again in 2024? How will the recent leak of a Supreme Court opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade affect the 2022 midterm elections? How can Democrats and Republicans address the divides within their own parties? Former White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs and Lincoln Project Co-Founder Rick Wilson join Ciaran O'Connor for a wide-ranging discussion—previously recorded as part of the Crosscut Festival—on the state of the national political landscape.
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @TheRickWilson, @Robt_Gibbs
U.S. Senate candidate Steven Olikara has already had an impact on American democracy. He’s the founder of the Millennial Action Project, a nonprofit that works with young policymakers on both a national and state level to bridge the partisan divide and spur collaborative legislation.
But is that the type of attitude that can get you elected to Wisconsin’s U.S. Senate seat in today's divided America?
In this first-ever candidate interview on The Braver Angels Podcast, Steven Olikara gives us the backstory of his relationship to democracy through his love of jazz, his work in the field of depolarization, and his experiences on the campaign trail.
Learn more about Steven's campaign: www.stevenolikara.com
Twitter: @braverangels, @StevenOlikara, @JohnRWoodJr
Braver Politics is here to fix our broken politics. In this episode, Braver Angels CMO Ciaran O'Connor introduces our new initiative to engage politicians across the United States and transform the incentives that drive division.
Then, Ciaran chats with Mark Beckwith, a Braver Angels leader and the former bishop of Newark, New Jersey, about his new book—Seeing the Unseen—and what religion can teach us about bridging the political divide.
Learn more about Mark’s book: https://amzn.to/3Lw1GwZ
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor
Four Reds with different views of President Trump debate how conservatives should think about the former president, his legacy, his current behavior (including on January 6), and his possible run in 2024. The conversation expands into the future of conservatism, Ukraine, and what it means to be a Red in the 21st century, highlighting both the alignments and the divergences in contemporary Red thought.
Steve Saltwick, co-founder of Braver Angels of Central Texas, is a bio-psychologist who studies the guiding principles of the mammalian brain especially as it relates to artificial intelligence. Marc Ang is a conservative activist, entrepreneur, and freelance journalist based in Southern California whose work has been featured in Newsweek, The Washington Examiner, Redstate, and more. Finally, Paul N., a founding leader of Braver Angels’ Red Caucus, worked in technology prior to enjoying a post-retirement career as a psychotherapist in California.
Twitter: @braverangels, @AprilALawson, @MarquesAngus, @SteveSaltwick
Rep. Becky Carney is a Democrat representing Mecklenburg County in the highly polarized North Carolina General Assembly. Rep. John Torbett is a Republican representing Gaston County. Together, they lead the House Transportation Committee.
In this episode of the podcast, the legislators join Braver Angels CMO Ciaran O'Connor to discuss what's possible when two politicians who disagree on policy find ways to work together in a spirit of trust, citizenship, and goodwill.
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @repbeckycarney, @JohnTorbett
Coleman Hughes has made a name for himself as a public commentator. A contributor at City Journal, Quillette, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times among others, he’s been celebrated for his sober analysis of American race relations. He’s also… a rapper.
Today, he joins Braver Angels music ambassador Alma Cook to talk about his artistic past, present, and future. Learn where the inspiration for his new “Blasphemy” music video came from, how a youth drum corps eventually led him to Julliard, and whether it’s stressful to split his time between music and writing.
Find Coleman's music under the artist name COLDXMAN on Spotify, Apple Music, and more. Watch the new “Straight As” video here: https://youtu.be/OGuvJkV02GY
Twitter: @braverangels, @coldxman, @HearAlma
Since the advent of film, the racial dynamics of American life have been reflected, or perhaps distorted, by a movie and entertainment industry whose impact on racial issues has been more complex than many realize.
Joy Donnell, cofounder of the Center for Intersectional Media and Entertainment (CIME), joins BA National Ambassador John Wood Jr. to explore Hollywood’s legacy—a legacy she believes is fraught with troubling implications for racism and black America, both historically and in the present day.
Twitter: @braverangels, @JohnRWoodJr, @doitinpublic
We think we have the answers. But what happens when we start asking more questions? In her new book, I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times, Braver Angels' director of storytelling Mónica Guzmán explains how and why we should get more curious—and how it might just hold the key to bridging our political divide.
To learn more about Mónica’s work and buy her new book, visit www.moniguzman.com.
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @moniguzman
From the mid 1980's to the early 1990's, the United States of America was ravaged by the violence and destruction associated with the crack cocaine trade and epidemic. But more than anyone, inner-city African American communities felt the pain, setting the stage for mass incarceration and the social conflicts that rest in the background of our modern controversies over race and policing.
In this episode, once drug dealer and contemporary community advocate Lorenzo Murphy takes us into his former life as right hand man to Los Angeles' most notorious drug dealer, Freeway Rick Ross, to give us a lens through which to see this pivotal, if tragic, period of Black American history.
With Braver Angels national ambassador John Wood Jr.
Twitter: @braverangels @JohnRWoodJr
Instagram: murphy_law74
Websites: braverangels.org
Annette Ritter is a school-of-hard-knocks grandma and community college student from rural Little Orleans, Maryland. Len Breslow is a retired cognitive psychologist from suburban Chevy Chase, Maryland. Annette used to couch-hop on the poor side of Berkeley, California; Len got a graduate degree there.
In this We the People’s Forum, a Braver Angels event where everyday Americans get time at the podium, Annette and Len tackle the thorny issue of class. They address their experiences of social class and explore whether the class divide might be even more significant than the partisan divide.
Lear more about We the People's Project at Braver Angels: braverangels.org/wpp
Twitter: @braverangels, @davidlappoh
Professor John Sibley Butler (University of Texas in Austin), described as America's leading black business historian, is "straight outta the black bourgeoisie." Yes African-American history is riddled with tragedy and oppression. But this Black History Month, and every other month for that matter, Butler wishes to remind people of the long history of black self-sufficiency, community building, and prosperity in the face of oppression that he believes any accounting of black history is woefully incomplete without.
Professor Butler joins John Wood Jr. to give a history lesson in this first of three podcast series on Black history.
Twitter: @braverangels @JohnRWoodJr @JohnSibButler @1776Unites
Websites: woodsoncenter.org braverangels.org
Braver Angels has never been shy about engaging our nation's most sensitive political issues. Last year, we held a public debate on the 2020 election exploring themes of voter fraud, voter suppression, and disagreements about the outcome. Recently, we hosted a podcast with a guest who claimed that the January 6th riots were incited by liberal activists working in collusion with the FBI.
After initially taking down the podcast for violating its terms on misinformation, YouTube reinstated the episode after reviewing it in the context of our larger mission. On this episode of the podcast, Ciaran O'Connor hosts David Blankenhorn, president of Braver Angels, and Jonathan Rauch, author of The Constitution of Knowledge, for a wide-ranging discussion on depolarization in the age of misinformation, bridge-building across the epistemological divide, and the Braver Angels approach to controversial content.
Check out Jonathan’s book: https://amzn.to/33wqcNu
Twitter: @braverangels, @jon_rauch, @blankenhorn3, @ciaranjoconnor
Plagued by pandemics of fear and distrust, many of us have come to hold some scary ideas about different people and places across our country. But what’s the reality?
Daniel Seddiqui has seen more of America than almost anyone. After working 50 jobs in 50 states in 50 weeks in 2009—from coal miner in West Virginia to bartender in Louisiana—he has since completed three more treks across the country in an attempt to better understand our nation and its people, stitching our country together in his own experience at a time when so much seems to be pulling us apart.
Just this week, he completed a year-long trip to America’s 65 most populous cities to craft mementos that represent their cultures. Curiosity fueled him, but as he shares with Mónica, fear of the unfamiliar constantly challenged him. What has he seen that can help the rest of us see ourselves better? Tune is as he shares stories from his adventures and lessons that have changed his life.
Learn more about Daniel's cross-country adventures: www.livingthemap.com
Twitter: @braverangels, @moniguzman, @DanielSeddiqui
Esther Cash is a liberal college student at Biola, a conservative Christian university in California. As a program associate for Braver Angels, she helps coordinate our debates program in communities and colleges across the country.
Today, she joins the podcast to discuss her own political evolution, the nature of polarization on college campuses, and how young people can lead the generational effort to rehabilitate our political conversation at a time of rancor, uncertainty, and alienation.
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor
Peter Wood is an anthropologist and president of the National Association of Scholars. He believes—like many Americans on the right—that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump and the January 6th riots were incited by the left in collusion with the FBI. He's also the author of a new book called Wrath: America Enraged, which wrestles with our politics of anger and counsels conservatives on how to respond to perceived aggression.
Where does America go from here? In this episode, Peter joins Ciaran O'Connor for a frank conversation about the role of anger in our politics as well as the nature of truth, trust, and conspiracy theories.
Check out Peter’s book: https://amzn.to/3rs2Al8
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @NASorg
In the first Braver Angels Podcast episode of the new year, John Wood, Jr. and Ciaran O'Connor share a deep and heartfelt conversation about the state of American politics on the one-year anniversary of January 6th, 2021.
Happy 2022! Ready to become a Braver Angels member and build a house united together? Join us: https://braverangels.org/get-involved/#become-member
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @JohnRWoodJr
In the 1950's and 60's the reverend Martin Luther King Jr. inspired a nation with a message of hope, aimed against the forces of racism, inspired by the philosophy of nonviolence and what he believed to be the moral and spiritual teachings of the gospel. Is that philosophy relevant to today's fights against injustice and our struggle against polarization?
Reverend Adam Taylor of Sojourners (author of the book A More Perfect Union: A New Vision for Building the Beloved Community) has dedicated his career to pursuing social justice and democratic reform through principles of Kingian Nonviolence and what he considers the moral teachings of Jesus. Hear him and Braver Angels national ambassador John Wood Jr. talk about race, divides within the church, the legacy of King and the challenges of nonviolence in 2021.
Twitter: @revadamtaylor @braverangels @JohnRWoodJr
Websites: www.sojo.net www.braverangels.org
Get the book!
More Perfect Union: A New Vision for Building the Beloved Community
https://www.amazon.com/More-Perfect-Union-Building-Beloved-Community/dp/150646453X
On the weekend of December 9, 2016, a small group of citizens—half Donald Trump voters, half Hillary Clinton voters—gathered in South Lebanon, Ohio, for an experiment. Could we talk with each other rather than at each other?
Five years later, the co-founders of Braver Angels (David Blankenhorn, Bill Doherty, and David Lapp) reflect on that inaugural event and how it led to the birth of Braver Angels as we now know it.
Learn more and support our mission: braverangels.org/support-us
Twitter: @braverangels, @blankenhorn3, @davidlappoh
In a special all-women roundtable edition of our podcast, two Red and two Blue Braver Angels leaders get passionate, personal, and curious about what led them to hold opposing views on one of the toughest political dilemmas in America: abortion.
How do voices on the left and right strengthen or weaken our country’s grasp of what’s at stake? And how do these women respond to the heartfelt, challenging questions they ask each other across the divide about legality, morality, freedom, and even murder? Featuring April Kornfield (director of debates), Sage Snider (director emeritus of cultural engagement), Alma Cook (co-chair of the music team), and Mónica Guzmán (director of digital and storytelling).
Also in this episode: the women share tributes to mothers, a mother-in-law, and—in a surprising twist—their undying love for Thanksgiving mashed potatoes.
Join Braver Angels on December 2 for our national debate on abortion: www.eventbrite.com/e/national-debate-abortion-registration-207434170187
What tough topic should we tackle next month? Email media@braverangels.org to share your thoughts.
Twitter: @braverangels, @moniguzman, @AprilALawson, @HearAlma, @SageSnider
What are the historical roots of political polarization in America? Why do Americans hold such dissonant perspectives on the meaning of our core ideals? How might we understand our history to create a more perfect future union?
Ciaran O'Connor hosts Seth David Radwell, author of American Schism, for a wide-ranging conversation on the political, cultural, and epistemological dimensions of our political divide from the Enlightenment to the present moment.
Check out American Schism on Radwell’s website: sethdavidradwell.com/american-schism
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @SRadwell
Toxic levels of ungrace are tearing us apart. That's the diagnosis from Kirsten Powers, senior political analyst at CNN and former political analyst at Fox News. But is grace really possible across divides this huge and seemingly threatening? In a candid interview with host Mónica Guzmán, Kirsten draws on her Catholic faith, her years of cross-partisan debates in the spotlight, her experience with anger and contempt after the 2016 election to unpack a virtue she argues is deeply misunderstood and critically needed.
Check out Kirsten’s book, Saving Grace, out November 2: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/653308/saving-grace-by-kirsten-powers/
Twitter: @braverangels, @moniguzman, @KirstenPowers
Andrew Yang isn't done challenging the way Americans look at politics. The former presidential candidate and entrepreneur is launching the Forward Party: a third-party effort to depolarize our politics through election reform.
Can it work? And what does Yang have to say about the sensitive issues of race that divide Americans? Silas Kulkarni and John Wood, Jr. ask probing questions from a red and blue perspective in this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, diving into electoral reform tactics, polarization, and navigating race and identity in political discourse.
Learn more about the Forward Party at www.forwardparty.com, and connect with Yang or purchase his new book at www.andrewyang.com.
Become a member of Braver Angels: www.braverangels.org
Twitter: @braverangels, @AndrewYang, @SilasKulkarni, @JohnRWoodJr
Ciaran O'Connor convenes Hawk Newsome, co-founder of Black Lives Matter of Greater New York; David Iwinski, a Trump supporter who helps lead Braver Angels Debates; and Dr. Tess Russell, an anesthesiologist and intensive care specialist at Columbia New York Presbyterian Hospital for a raw and wide-ranging discussion on trust, science, and the COVID vaccine.
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @IamHawkNewsome, @davidiwinski, @CortessaRussell
Barbara Thomas is a lifelong liberal. Rick Hotchner is a committed conservative. As a couple, they are one of a dwindling number of politically mixed marriages between Democrats and Republicans in America. They made a life-changing decision last summer to leave a diplomatic post abroad to depolarize America—one divided relationship at a time.
How do they stand each other when they can’t stand each other’s politics? What tips and tricks have they learned to always disagree but rarely argue? And what did they do when, during the run-up to the 2020 election, they didn’t speak to each other for days? Tune in as host Mónica Guzmán leads a frank and open conversation with a fascinating couple whose enduring relationship is a model for our country.
Hear more of Rick and Barbara’s story on these additional podcasts:
- Derate the Hate, “Episode 48: Bridging the Divide”
- Traumatic States of America, “23. US Diplomat returns home to focus on America”
- Somali Link Radio, “Somali Link Radio 2021-04-13 interview”
- Liberty Roundtable “Radio Show Hour 2 – 08/03/2021”
- Knuckleheads of Liberty, “Knuckleheads Of Liberty 128: Interview with Braver Angels”
Twitter: @braverangels, @moniguzman
Social media has become a prism that distorts our identities, empowers status-seeking extremists, and renders moderates all but invisible. In his new book, Breaking the Social Media Prism, Duke professor Christopher Bail challenges common myths about echo chambers, foreign misinformation campaigns, and radicalizing algorithms, revealing that the solution to political tribalism lies deep inside ourselves.
In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, Bail joins Ciaran O'Connor for a wide-ranging discussion on how we might redesign social media platforms to change incentives—and how we can combat online polarization without deleting our accounts.
Learn more about Bail’s work and purchase his book here: www.chrisbail.net
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @chris_bail
Ready to take on the COVID-19 divide? In this special roundtable edition of our podcast, two red and two blue Braver Angels leaders tackle big questions about vaccines and vaccine mandates. How do the left and right help and hurt America’s struggle against the pandemic? Are President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandates tough love or bad medicine? Featuring John Wood, Jr. (national ambassador), Alma Cook (music ambassador), Ciaran O’Connor (CMO), and Mónica Guzmán (director of digital and storytelling).
Also in this episode: John Wood, Jr. lays out his vision for the upcoming launch of the John Wood, Jr. Show, Alma explains the “Lindy Effect,” Mónica dishes on why her cooking no longer sucks, and Ciaran shares a message for Nikki Minaj.
What tough topic should we tackle next month? Email media@braverangels.org to share your thoughts!
Ready for the launch of the John Wood Jr. Show? Subscribe on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCy2NKTrKM_MY_WbY8ISSq2g
Twitter: @braverangels, @moniguzman, @ciaranjoconnor, @JohnRWoodJr, @HearAlma
Joy Mayer just launched a bold effort to help conservatives trust journalists. What will it take for America's local journalists to tell stories responsibly—not just for liberals, whose views most journalists identify with, but also for conservatives, whose views are easier for most journalists to misunderstand, neglect, or dismiss?
Joy, director of the Trusting News Project, joins host and fellow journalist Mónica Guzmán to break open a fraught conversation that, for the most part, the journalism industry has not been having. Together, they count down six things right-leaning news consumers wish journalists would do better—and some things all news readers can do to support the American promise of journalism as a critical public service.
Learn more about the Trusting News Project's #RoadToPluralism project: www.trustingnews.org/pluralism
Twitter: @braverangels, @moniguzman, @mayerjoy
After enduring significant childhood trauma, Morgan Brown spent much of his adult life homeless. Now an advocate for housing and mental health, Morgan shares his perspectives on trust, dignity, and how "going the extra gracious mile and beyond" can make all the difference—both on the streets and in politics.
Morgan resides in Montpelier, Vermont, where he previously served on the Montpelier Homelessness Task Force.
We first met Morgan through The Working People's Project at Braver Angels. Learn more about WPP here: www.braverangels.org/wpp
Twitter: @braverangels, @davidlappoh
Is it worth striking up a conversation with the stranger in the checkout line? What’s on the other side of that silence, and how do we bridge it?
Journalist Joe Keohane is out with a new book, The Power of Strangers: The Benefits of Connecting in a Suspicious World, which explores the lost art of connecting with unfamiliar people. Ciaran O'Connor talks with Joe about why and how we should talk to strangers—starting with your local barista—and what these experiences can do to improve our daily lives and our politics.
Twitter: @braverangels, @JoeKeohane, @ciaranjoconnor
Ever wonder just how expansive the American national service system is and how those involved in it see their work? Luke Nathan Phillips interviews AmeriCorps' chief of external affairs, Sri Preston Kulkarni, about the work and mission of the organization. They discuss how AmeriCorps aims to promote service and national unity in troubling times, also exploring the history of national service programs in bringing the best out of Americans.
Learn more about AmeriCorps: www.americorps.gov
On August 19th, Braver Angels will be debating whether we have a moral obligation to serve America. Sign up here: https://bit.ly/3jIXU6A
Twitter: @braverangels, @SriPKulkarni, @AmeriCorps
Extra! Extra! In this special roundtable edition of our podcast, two red and two blue Braver Angels leaders square off about the media. Where do the left and right step up or fall short in their approach to the Fourth Estate? Is all the partisan messaging out of line, or do the ends justify the memes? Featuring John Wood, Jr. (national ambassador), April Lawson (director of debates), Ciaran O’Connor (CMO), and Mónica Guzmán (director of digital and storytelling).
Also in this episode: Ciaran gets real about the tension between his work to depolarize America and his frustration with politicians who are really not helping, and you'll learn which New York Times columnist has an office April can only describe as "an explosion of cool, interesting, and sexy," which Fox News star Mónica would love to spend a day with, and why you don't want to be caught in the ring with John.
What tough topic should we tackle next month? Email media@braverangels.org to share your thoughts!
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @AprilALawson, @JohnRWoodJr, @moniguzman
Sheba Williams is the founder of Nolef Turns and an advocate with deeply personal experience surviving life after incarceration. In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, Sheba chats with John Wood, Jr. and Silas Kulkarni about her recent appearance in the Braver Angels Coliseum Debate on Voting Rights and the efforts underway to bring together a cross-partisan, cross-cultural coalition to reintegrate the formerly incarcerated into society.
Learn more about Nolef Turns on the group’s website: www.nolefturns.org
Twitter: @braverangels, @JohnRWoodJr, @SilasKulkarni, @nolefturnsinc
Later this month, thousands of Americans—including several Braver Angels—will gather near Mount Rushmore for FreedomFest, a three-day conference dedicated to furthering libertarianism in America.
In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, Ciaran O'Connor sits down with Valerie Durham, the executive director of FreedomFest, for a wide-ranging conversation on the meaning of liberty, the influence of Donald Trump on the conservative movement, and how libertarians could help bring Americans together across the ideological spectrum.
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @valerieldurham
Boom! In this special roundtable edition of our podcast, two red and two blue Braver Angels leaders share their takes on critical race theory and the recent out-of-this-world UFO stories fascinating both right and left. Also in this episode: some real talk about the hard work of building a house united—plus some stories about how thrilling (or terrifying!) everyone found Fourth of July fireworks as kids.
Featuring John Wood, Jr. (national ambassador), April Lawson (director of debates), Ciaran O’Connor (CMO), Mónica Guzmán (director of digital and storytelling).
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor, @AprilALawson, @JohnRWoodJr, @moniguzman
In an era in which politics have become a religion, what role do religious people have to play? And how can people look to their faith as an inspiration for coming together rather than breaking apart?
Former Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam joins the Braver Angels Podcast to discuss the role of faith in the public square and how Christians can become a force for reconciliation in our politics.
Bill's new book on this topic, Faithful Presence, can be found on Amazon or wherever books are sold.
Twitter: @braverangels, @BillHaslam, @ciaranjoconnor, @JohnRWoodJr
Sho Baraka is a hip-hop artist known for bringing a deep lyrical and philosophical treatment to Christian rap. But he's also a cultural commentator who takes a nuanced perspective on issues of race and politics—and has a front row seat for seeing these controversies play out in the church.
Sho joins John Wood, Jr. to talk music, the culture of hip-hop, the challenge of race relations, Kanye West, and more in this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast.
Learn more about Sho’s music and book on his website: www.barakaology.com.
Twitter: @braverangels, @AmIshoBaraka, @JohnRWoodJr
Author Jonathan Rauch is a long respected voice in American journalism on matters ranging from marriage equality to freedom of speech. In his upcoming book, The Constitution of Knowledge: A Defense of Truth, Rauch explains the social infrastructure by which truth is protected, breaking down assaults on truth from the right and the left and exploring what we can do about it.
April Lawson and John Wood, Jr. join Rauch for this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, chatting about cancel culture, the Trump administration, the idea of a "constitution of knowledge," and the importance of speaking across the divide.
Pick up your copy of The Constitution of Knowledge wherever books are sold (https://amzn.to/2TTz5M0), and learn more about Jon Rauch on this website (www.jonathanrauch.com).
Twitter: @braverangels, @jon_rauch, @JohnRWoodJr, @AprilALawson
Not only does political polarization breed fear, anger, and mistrust—it also breeds a sense of helplessness and hopelessness.
How can we take action? Not only to make our voices heard but to work together with our political opponents to improve our communities and perfect our union?
Braver Angels alliances are where the meat of our work takes place—where ordinary reds and blues across the country come together to actually do the work of democracy, find common values, transcend our egos, and drive change on the ground.
In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, host Ciaran O'Connor hosts a wide-ranging conversation with Steve Saltwick and Lynn Heady, the red and blue co-directors of Braver Angels' national field operations, explaining the nature and structure of alliances, how to get involved, and some inspiring examples of alliances in action.
Join an alliance: www.braverangels.org/what-we-do/alliances
Twitter: @braverangels, @ciaranjoconnor
Professor Steven Pinker is on a mission to spread the good news of human progress. He asserts that human life, for all its problems, has overwhelmingly improved in recent generations. But how is the progress of humanity threatened by our inability to appreciate it? And how is that progress threatened by our inability to communicate respectfully with one another?
Professor Pinker (Enlightenment Now, The Better Angels of Our Nature) joins John Wood, Jr. to discuss polarization, cancel culture in the academy, his friendships with Noam Chomsky and Thomas Sowell, and how we can reason together toward a better future.
Twitter: @braverangels, @sapinker, @JohnRWoodJr
America is more than half a year removed from the 2020 election. Most Trump voters still suspect voter fraud determined the outcome. The vast majority of Biden voters think such ideas are off the wall. Many Americans, meanwhile, believe that media bias and the practices of Big Tech are the real corruptors of American elections.
Can left, right and center reason together about the 2020 election? Can we come together to discover why we believe what we believe?
Braver Angels national ambassador John Wood, Jr. brings together political scientist Wilfred Reilly (Taboo and Hate Crime Hoax), digital entrepreneur Shouvik Banerjee (AverPoint), and podcaster Chris Paul (Be Reasonable) to find out in this special edition of the Braver Angels Podcast. With arguments for and against voter fraud from across the political spectrum, we prove that even the hardest conversations can be had in the Braver Angels way.
Want to join the conversation? Register here for Braver Angels’ May 25 public debate on HR1 and voter suppression.
Twitter: @braverangels, @JohnRWoodJr, @wil_da_beast630, @shouvik44
John McWhorter is a professor of linguistics at Columbia University, the author of many books, a witty and passionately independent voice on the subject of American race relations.
Hear him join John Wood, Jr. of Braver Angels to compare perspectives on the traditional narratives that shape our racial conversation, the post Civil Rights era Black experience, and the ways in which the varieties of experiences in the Black community impact the dialogue on race in the United States.
(The book on the history of the Crack cocaine epidemic referenced in this conversation is called "Crack: Rock Cocaine, Street Capitalism, and the Decade of Greed" by David Farber)
Twitter: @braverangels, @JohnRWoodJr
For 20 years, Nick Gillespie has been the "intellectual godfather" of Reason Magazine and one of the leading minds of the libertarian movement in America. Yet while libertarianism has a notable place in American culture and has proven influential in our political conversation, it hasn’t yet proven itself to be a strong force in electoral politics.
What are the challenges facing political libertarianism in America? Where does libertarianism come from in American history? Nick joins John Wood, Jr. to talk about all this and more in this special interview on the Braver Angels Podcast.
Twitter: @braverangels, @JohnRWoodJr, @nickgillespie
Tristan Harris, former Google design ethicist, has been heralded as "the conscience of Silicon Valley." He most recently starred in The Social Dilemma on Netflix, one of the most popular documentaries of 2020. Tristan has been steering the conversation about how social media interacts with democracy and the human mind in American and global society.
In the second of Tristan's conversations with John Wood, Jr. and Ciaran O'Connor (who were recently guests on Tristan’s Your Undivided Attention podcast), the focus turns to social media's influence on our relationship to time, Tristan's philosophical journey in understanding the nature of truth, and what Tristan would do if he were to become the next president of Facebook.
Learn more about Tristan’s work on his website (www.tristanharris.com), and check out John and Ciaran’s last appearance on Tristan’s show (link).
Twitter: @braverangels, @tristanharris, @ciaranjoconnor, @JohnRWoodJr
Jason is a black stay-at-home father from South Lebanon, Ohio. Believing that Biden is too conservative, he voted for Bernie Sanders in the Democratic primaries. A few towns over, Lance is a white father and utility locator who enthusiastically voted for Trump. Though miles apart in their politics, they both believe working-class Americans like them are getting cheated and that most politicians are in the pockets of corporations. Is a multiracial working-class revolution in the future—and if so, would it serve to depolarize America or to exacerbate existing tensions? Join us for this raw and surprising conversation.
Twitter: @braverangels, @davidlappoh
Cooperation feels good. Human society is built on it. So why do we clash so destructively—in our marriages, at work, and especially when talking about politics?
Julia Minson is a social psychologist who studies the psychology of disagreement, aiming to tease out ways we can make fraught conversations more enjoyable and productive. Her current research is inspired by Braver Angels' workshops, and her studies may have revealed the "secret sauce" that makes them so effective. The answer...probably won't be what you expect!
Along the way, Julia touches on simple behaviors that can improve our day-to-day in-person and online interactions, what makes social media both better and worse than you think, and how her work is received by students and faculty in academia.
Learn more about Julia’s research on her website: www.juliaminson.com
Twitter: @braverangels, @juliaminson, @gregsteinbreche
In her latest book, High Conflict, Amanda Ripley explores how good people get captured by devastating conflict and how they can break free. Amanda combines storytelling with data—drawing lessons from examples like the FARC militants of Colombia and the violent gangs of Chicago—to develop a theory of successful conflict resolution.
In this edition of the Braver Angels Podcast, Amanda joins hosts Ciaran O'Connor and April Lawson to dive deep into her book and illuminate lessons we can apply to tribal politics in the U.S.
Learn more about Amanda’s book: www.amandaripley.com
Twitter: @braverangels, @amandaripley, @ciaranjoconnor, @AprilALawson
Collaboraction Theatre Company is a Chicago nonprofit exploring theatre's role in social change. Through its year-round programming, the group invites its crew and audience members alike to listen and learn from one another, bringing their disagreements and questions in tow.
In this episode, Collaboraction's artistic director Anthony Moseley and executive director Dr. Marcus Robinson share their experiences in the organization. With hosts Ciaran O'Connor and Alma Cook, they discuss how theatre can open people up to more constructive political conversations, how the troubles of 2020 affected their work, how conservatives can be made to feel more welcome in artistic spaces, and more.
Twitter: @braverangels, @Collaboraction, @AnthonyMoseley, @4MarcusRobinson, @ciaranjoconnor, @HearAlma
Michael Patrick F. Smith is a musician, playwright, former oilfield hand, and author of a new memoir documenting his experience in the North Dakota oil patch. He and Braver Angels host Alma Cook—a fellow musician with experience in the same oil patch Michael writes about in his book—traded stories about life in North Dakota and chatted about the global petroleum dependency, the dignity of blue collar trades, and music's role in the political space.
Read Michael's front-page New York Times feature, "The First Step is Admitting You Have a Problem,” here.
Learn more about Michael's music, writing, and more: www.thegoodhand.org
Twitter: @braverangels, @MPFSmith, @HearAlma
Are calls to unity too weak, too generic, or too "blue" to move Americans? What are the hard truths that stand in the way of unity?
Educator, activist, and author Tim Shriver joins the Braver Angels Podcast to talk about his new book, The Call to Unite, and the budding nationwide movement to unite America. Joined by April Lawson and John Wood, Jr., Tim reflects on the history of nonviolent movements, shares his own methods for building connection and empathy, and responds to criticisms of the idea of unity in modern America.
Learn more about Tim’s new book: www.unite.us/book
Twitter: @braverangels, @TimShriver, @thecalltounite, @JohnRWoodJr, @AprilALawson
Sarah Anderson is the author of forthcoming book The Space Between Us: How Jesus Teaches Us to Live Together When Politics and Religion Pull Us Apart. Host April Lawson and Sarah discuss her background being raised in a very political family, her journey of learning that people of faith can differ politically, and how she engages—and teaches others to engage—faith and politics in our key relationships.
Sarah has a degree in Christian thought from Grove City College. Currently, she works as a writer and editor for the Rethink Group student curriculum. She also maintains a popular blog covering topics like faith, culture, parenting, and marriage: www.sarahbanderson.com
Twitter: @braverangels, @SarahB_Anderson, @AprilALawson
Photographers Roben Bellomo and Jim Hamel created Behn Gallery to explore the different ways people might experience their work. Randy Lioz chats with them about how—through their own very distinct views of the world, often experienced side-by-side—they've come to a much more complete understanding of perspective and meaning.
Roben and Jim are co-owners of Behn Gallery (www.behngallery.com and @behngallery on Instagram). On their blog, you can learn more info about their philosophy and perspectives. You can also go behind the scenes of their gallery on their YouTube channel (link).
Jim’s website: www.jimhamelphotography.com
Roben’s website: www.bellomostudios.com
Twitter: @braverangels, @randylioz
"America's politics diet is broken," says Isaac Saul, founder of Tangle News. "And Tangle is here to fix it."
Isaac Saul, a former reporter, has quickly grown his newsletter, Tangle, into one of the most original, informative political newsletters in the country, combining a left/right breakdown of the news of the day with Isaac's raw personal perspective. Whatever the issue, Isaac’s goal is to represent the best arguments from both sides of the aisle.
In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, Isaac joins host Ciaran O'Connor for a deep dive on the future of political news, the power of storytelling, and what happened when he decided to open up about past transgressions—and what he learned from the experience.
Read and subscribe to Tangle News here: www.readtangle.com
Twitter: @braverangels, @Ike_Saul, @tanglenews, @ciaranjoconnor
Author and journalist Bari Weiss stops by the Braver Angels Podcast to talk about her upbringing in Pittsburgh, how the Tree of Life massacre and her Jewish roots informed her journalistic mission, the ideological capturing of mainstream media, and the reasons she resigned from The New York Times.
Hosts Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr. chat with Bari about the need for diversity in the editorial room, The 1619 Project, the role of conservative media in polarization, and more in this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast.
Visit Bari’s website (www.bariweiss.com) to find a hub of her past articles and learn more about her book, How to Fight Anti-Semitism. Or subscribe to her Substack to receive newsletter updates in your inbox (bariweiss.substack.com).
Twitter: @braverangels, @bariweiss, @JohnRWoodJr, @ciaranjoconnor
James Lindsay is a leading critic of antiracism in the digital space. But he is a lightning rod for criticism and condemnation, with a style that many believe makes him a damaging influence on the public discourse. For others, he is a champion of truth telling and an independent intellectual voice that needs to be heard.
John Wood, Jr., national ambassador for Braver Angels and a public voice on matters of race and society, plumbs the depths of antiracism in its substance, cultural origins, and arguments in this far-reaching conversation on one of the most important intellectual movements of our time.
Lindsay is founder of the media website New Discourses (www.newdiscourses.com), and co-author of Cynical Theories (www.cynicaltheories.com), a book on critical race and gender studies written in collaboration with Helen Pluckrose.
Twitter: @braverangels, @ConceptualJames, @JohnRWoodJr
Should the outcome of the 2020 election be up for debate?
Braver Angels exists to connect Americans in dialogue over their differences. That’s why Braver Angels decided to hold a debate about the 2020 election—though some BA leaders think the decision was a bridge too far.
Braver Angels leaders Ciaran O'Connor, John Wood, Jr., David Blankenhorn (BA president) April Lawson, and Silas Kulkarni talk it through in real time in this special episode of the Braver Angels podcast.
Register for our upcoming debate: https://braverangels.org/event/debate-national-coliseum-debate-on-voter-fraud/
Further reading:
- Deep Divisions in Views of the Election Process – and Whether It Will Be Clear Who Won (Pew Research)
- Voters’ reflections on the 2020 election (Pew Research)
- Republicans who relied on Trump for news more concerned than other Republicans about election fraud (Pew Research)
- 1965 The James Baldwin And William F. Buckley Debate (Aeon)
- A fight over Halloween costumes at Yale has devolved into an effort to censor dissenting views. (Atlantic)
Twitter: @braverangel, @ciaranjoconnor, @JohnRWoodJr, @AprilALawson, @SilasKulkarni, @blankenhorn3
Rakim Brooks of the American Civil Liberties Union joins John Wood, Jr. to clear the air on the ACLU's commitment to free speech and to highlight the organization’s work in the area of social justice. But before all of that, Rakim takes us back to his upbringing in the public housing projects of East Harlem and his unlikely journey to success as a public interest attorney.
Learn more about the ACLU's campaign for systemic equality: https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/aclu-launches-new-systemic-equality-racial-justice-agenda
Twitter: @braverangels, @BrooksRakim
The U.S. Senate must decide whether to convict Donald Trump of high crimes and misdemeanors in the aftermath of the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Two intellectual heavyweights on opposite sides of the aisle join host Ciaran O'Connor for a penetrating exchange. The conversation begins with the merits and constitutionality of Trump's second impeachment and ends with a deeper discussion of the role of cultural and racial grievance in political polarization—and how we might move forward together.
Lawrence Mead is a conservative political scientist, an author, and a professor of politics and public policy at New York University. William Galston is a former professor at the University of Maryland, a former policy advisor to President Bill Clinton, and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institute who writes a column for The Wall Street Journal.
Twitter: @BillGalston, @braverangels
Matt Taibbi is a contributing editor at Rolling Stone Magazine and the author of numerous books including Hate Inc. and Insane Clown President. Matt joins John Wood, Jr. and Ciaran O'Connor to talk about the history of media and how it became so polarized, the dangers of big technology companies regulating the public square, lessons learned as a journalist in Russia, Donald Trump being booted off Twitter, and more.
More by Matt Taibbi: TK News (Substack newsletter); Useful Idiots (podcast), Hate Inc. (book), The Divide (book), Insane Clown President (book)
Twitter: @mtaibbi, @ciaranjoconnor, @JohnRWoodJr, @braverangels
Greg Smith, a blue-collar Ohioan and Trump voter, and Sage Snider, a Nashville musician and Biden voter, became friends through Braver Angels. Greg is deeply worried for America after President Biden’s inauguration; Sage is hopeful. In this candid and heartfelt conversation, they join Braver Angels cofounder David Lapp to discuss their thoughts on unity and what it will take for reds and blues to save the Union. (Be sure to listen all the way to the end to find out how they really feel about each other!)
About the guests: Greg is a former police chief and the founding co-chair of the first-ever Braver Angels Alliance. Sage is a fiddler (check out her music here) and the founding director of cultural engagement for Braver Angels.
Twitter: @sagesnider, @braverangels
The Reunited States is a groundbreaking documentary film by filmmaker Ben Rekhi, executive produced by Van Jones and Meghan McCain. The documentary follows the journeys of 5 Americans from across the political spectrum as they challenge themselves and the people around them to rediscover the shared humanity and imagine a path towards a healed nation.Ben Rekhi alongside Erin Leaverton, one of the subjects of the documentary, join John and Ciaran to talk about the mission of the film, the stories behind it, and the challenges facing the bridgebuilding movement in a polarized world.Watch the virtual premier of The Reunited States.
Sign up below: https://watch.eventive.org/reunitedstates/play/60085cf2d2162a0029830b45
Follow on Social Media:Twitter: @the_reunited @ErinLeaverton @BraverAngels @JohnRWoodJr @ciaranjoconnor
Facebook: @BraverAngels
Braver Angels members Chrissy Koach and Tom Cook are Trump voters who were at the January 6 protests on Capitol Hill. They join Braver Angels co-founder David Lapp to share their first-hand accounts of that day, and their thoughts on how we can move forward together.
Loretta Ross is an author, academic, and radical Black feminist who currently teaches courses on human rights and white supremacy at Smith College. She believes deeply in the value of empathetic conversation -- "calling in" -- versus shaming, humiliating, or publicly "calling out" those with whom we disagree (or indeed those whose views we may find appalling). But she also believes there's a limit. Professor Ross joins Ciaran O'Connor for a wide-ranging discussion on racial politics, right wing media, and when to draw a line in the sand.
2020 was a year of pain, isolation, and deep uncertainty. But it was also a year of hope, perseverance, and a reminder that -- for better or worse -- we're all in this together. In the final episode of 2020, Ciaran O'Connor joins April Lawson, Randy Lioz, and Alma Cook to reflect on a year that broke our hearts, tested our mettle, and ultimately reaffirmed our commitment to the work of Braver Angels.
What is most challenging about getting people of color to participate in Braver Angels? What impact does member diversity have on our activities and mission?
In this episode of the Braver Angels podcast, Carlos Hernandez interviews four Angels of Color about these questions and more. The guests share thoughts and stories about crime, social justice, reparations, trauma, and the dimensions of who “owns” one's problems.
Featured are Dr. Prof. Marilyn Hosea (member), Lisa Forbes (CO state coordinator), Peter Bell (member and retired regent of the University of MN), and Thomas Reeves Jr. (retired IT professional and blue chair of Angels of Color). Moderator Carlos Hernandez is the Angels of Color red chair.
Learn more about the Angels of Color Advisory Council and task forces: BraverAngels.org
Twitter: @braverangels
Lee Drutman, senior fellow in governance studies at New America, is a careful analyst of American political institutions. In his latest book, Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop: The Case for Multiparty Democracy in America, he arrives at the startling conclusion that America's two-party system is problematic not because it constrains voters' choices but because it creates incentives that drive Americans apart, polarizing them beyond reason.
On this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, Ciaran O'Connor and Luke Nathan Phillips interview Drutman about his book and the current state of the American political parties in the aftermath of Election Day 2020. They discuss how party factions in American history once provided leavening for our two-party system—and why they don't work quite as well as they used to. They also discuss the vast array of incentives elected officials and party leaders have to attack each other instead of working together, whether future presidencies and congresses will be subject to the same forces the last few have been, and the unique capacity of the American system to reform itself through trial and error.
Learn more about Drutman’s work: Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop (book), LeeDrutman.org
Twitter: @leedrutman, @ciaranjoconnor, @braverangels
In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, Alma Cook invites activist Susan Bro and singer-songwriter Becca Stevens to reflect on the 2017 Charlottesville rally. The women are connected through the death of Heather Heyer, Susan's daughter, who was killed while counter-protesting the Unite the Right demonstration. The event sparked something new in both women: in Susan, a new charitable foundation, and in Becca, a song from her last record called "Heather's Letters to Her Mother."
Learn about Susan's work: www.heatherheyerfoundation.com
Learn about Becca's work: www.beccastevens.com
Twitter: @beccastevensbsb, @hearalma, @braverangels
Bill Ottman is the founder of Minds.com, a new community-owned, "open source" social media network that prizes privacy, transparency, and open exchange. Unlike Facebook, which mines your data to target you with ads, Minds does not monetize its users' data and offers people financial credits based on the content they share. In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, Ciaran and Bill discuss how the structure of major social networks like Facebook has fueled political polarization, toxified our public discourse, and stripped away our privacy -- and how Minds.com seeks to become a more vibrant, democratic alternative that opens the door to a less radicalized user base and a healthier form of debate.
Shelby Steele has been one of America's most important Black conservative voices for more than a generation. His recent documentary film "What Killed Michael Brown?" critiques the mainstream narrative surrounding the death of Brown, a tragedy which spark protests for social justice across America. But does Steele see any legitimacy in the new antiracist movement? And what does it mean to be Black in America? John Wood, Jr. puts forward the questions in this deep diving conversation on politics, culture and race in America.
www.braverangels.org
Twitter: @JohnRWoodJr @braverangels
Facebook: @braverangels Instagram: @braverangels
Cheyenne Donaghy, a junior at Detroit International Academy for Women, Autumn Brown, an Oklahoma State University aspiring Ph.D. candidate, and Keyshawn King, a Stanford University Class of 2022 member) tackle questions-of-curiosity. Which ones? Their vision, influencers, and cancel culture. They even probe the adult Angels' musings about celebrities' influence. Interviewing them are Braver Angels' Donna Lee, David Joseph, and Carlos Hernandez.
"It's been an emotional rollercoaster." Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr., the original hosts of the Braver Angels Podcast, come together to discuss the 2020 election, its aftermath, and how we can begin to heal the nation, confront multiple crises at once, and build a House United in 2021 and beyond.
Artist and entrepreneur Alma Cooker, actor and Braver Angels social media manager Greg Steinbrecher, and Stacia Wilson of the Unity 2020 Movement join John Wood, Jr. to talk about the shifts in American political life on the eve of the election, and to survey the growing movement towards unity and political depolarization in American political life. Get ready for a forward looking conversation on the most important and most undercovered social phenomena in America. www.braverangels.org Twitter: @braverangels @JohnRWoodJr @HearAlma @OriginalStacia @gregsteinbreche
Braver Angels' holds as its ethos the ability to be opposite colors, emphasizing one's values, vocalizing beliefs and opinions, and be more than civil. Meet and hear Ms. Julie Boler, Braver Angels' Partnership Specialist, and a Blue. Hear Mr. Jim Allen, Red, also a specialist of a different sort - a retired US Special Forces warrior, Christian Pastor, and Guard1 Leadership Coach. #Hold AmericaTogether
Stand-up comedian and entrepreneur Mike Casentini and Chris Paul, (host of Be Reasonable: with Your Moderator, Chris Paul), join John Wood, Jr. to have a real conversation about the 2020 election. Is President Trump corrupt? Can we trust the outcome of the vote? And can we get along regardless of the outcome? Mike and Chris trade fascinating personal stories in taking their stands for and against Trump and Biden in this episode of The Braver Angels Podcast.
Join Braver Angels at www.braverangels.org Follow: Twitter: @braverangels @JohnRWoodJr Instagram: @imyourmoderator @braverangels @johnrwoodjr
Think swing voters don't exist? These two lifelong conservatives have decided to vote Biden this year. Join us to find out why. Braver Angels member Peggy Wardlaw is a former TX Republican congressional candidate, a mother, and an entrepreneur from a ranching family. Across the country member Andrew Stegmaier is a millennial, libertarian software developer living in Seattle, WA. Their stories are very different, but both they've both landed in the unexpected place of changing their vote in this historic election. Silas Kulkarni, Braver Angels Senior Fellow for Public Discourse hosts a discussion of conservatism, civic virtue, national unity, and political homelessness in this special election month episode. Learn more about Braver Angels at www.BraverAngels.org Follow Twitter: @peggy_wardlaw @AndrewStegmaier @SilasKulkarni Facebook: @BraverAngels IG: @BraverAngels
Author Thomas Chatterton Williams is a unique and insightful voice out in the American cultural landscape. Contributor at New York Magazine and author of Losing My Cool Williams racial commentary emphasizes the need to transcend racial categories to help depolarize American racial life. In this conversation he and John Wood, Jr. discuss their biracial upbringings, talk about the meaning of "Blackness," chat about antiracism as an ideology, the writings of Ibram Kendi and more. Learn about Braver Angels at www.braverangels.org Follow Twitter: @thomaschattwill @JohnRWoodJr @BraverAngels Facebook: @BraverAngels
IG: @BraverAngels
Rick Gates is a former aide to the Trump campaign who is best known for being charged with money laundering as part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into ties between the campaign and Russia. In 2018, Gates pled guilty to lying to investigators and became a cooperator by helping the investigation that led to the convictions of Paul Manafort, President Trump's former campaign manager, and Roger Stone, his longtime advisor. In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, Ciaran presses Rick on his role in Manafort's criminal financial schemes, his turn as star witness, and how he feels about President Trump now. They also discuss Rick's lessons learned -- and how the country might come together in the wake of the upcoming election.
David French, Senior Editor of The Dispatch, has a new book called “Divided We Fall” about why America is so polarized, how it could tilt into civil war, and ways we can stop that from happening. On this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, he talks to Ciaran O’Connor and Greg Steinbrecher about his book, how and why polarization has gotten so bad, and what our government and we the people can do to make things better. He also explains why everyone is too quick to blame the media for our problems, and touches on some current events like the Amy Coney Barrett nomination. David French has direct experience with both the culture war and actual war. He defended free speech and religious freedom on college campuses as president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) before serving the United States in Iraq as a judge advocate general officer in the army. Before his current position at The Dispatch, he was a staff writer for National Review.
Lydia Cornell is an actress, producer and writer known for her work on shows ranging from Love Boat and Full House to Curb Your Enthusiasm. She is the author of the book How to Talk to Ann Coulter, If You Must. You may know Roxanne Beckford-Hoge from shows like A Different World and films including Father of the Bride II and Something's Gotta Give. More recently, Roxanne was the Republican nominee for State Assembly in the 46th district of California. These two wonderfully talented women are full of passion and perspective in their politics. Sit back and buckle up as they pull back the curtain on Hollywood culture, challenge each other on their politics and share a lot of laughs and stories in this special episode of the Braver Angels Podcast. With John Wood, Jr.
Learn more about Braver Angels at www.braverangels.org
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Daniel McCarthy, editor of the venerable journal of conservative cultural commentary Modern Age, has been observing and commenting on Republican politics and intellectual trends in conservatism for decades now. How does someone who once deeply supported Ron Paul go on to deeply supporting Donald Trump? In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, co-hosts Luke Nathan Phillips and Silas Kulkarni press McCarthy on the shifting currents inside conservatism in the Age of Trump-- among libertarians, neoconservatives, traditionalists, paleoconservatives, nationalists, and so many other tribes-- to understand the ongoing and sometimes compelling dynamics of thought on the American cultural right. Help us build a house united, and bring our work to more Americans of all persuasions. Join us at wwww.braverangels.org. social media- Twitter: Braver Angels- @braverangels Daniel McCarthy- @toryanarchist
"Why do you support Trump, and what reservations do you have about him?" Five conservative-leaning Braver Angels members join co-hosts Ciaran O'Connor and Carlos Hernandez for a lively discussion on President Trump, Joe Biden, and the Supreme Court vacancy. Featuring guests Iris Diaz, Larry Gutman, Joe D'Aura, Mark A Reinecke, and Ruth Littmann-Ashkenazi.
Host of Full Court Press with Greta Van Susteren, and former host of Fox New's On The Record, Greta Van Susteren has been one of the most visible anchors in American political media for many years. But how did Greta's media career begin? And what did it have to do with a Toga party in 1976? Hear Greta recap her whipsaw career in broadcast journalism, her time at Fox News, the one time Roger Ailes told her what not to report, and weigh in with her thoughts on media bias and what it's like to interview politicians in this special interview on The Braver Angels Podcast. Help us build a house united. Join the work of Braver Angels at www.braverangels.org Social Media
Twitter: @braverangels @greta @JohnRWoodJr @ciaranjoconnor Facebook and Instagram: @braverangels
Many Americans are deeply concerned about the culture of shaming and silencing that some see as becoming dominant on college campuses and increasingly in major American institutions and cities. No one has more reason to be concerned about this than Heather Heying - former professor of evolutionary biology at Evergreen State College and noted member of the "Intellectual Dark Web."
But in this conversation with April Lawson, a conservative feminist and Braver Angels Director of Debates and Public Discourse, Heather confronts the tension between the need for civil norms in society and the pressure people feel to pursue social justice in ways that lead to quick progress. Heather and April explore issues of free speech, feminism, campus culture and social justice in this dynamic conversation between free thinkers. You'll be wiser by the end of it. Join Braver Angels:
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Bill Fry is retired Military, a Tea Party activist, and an avid Trump supporter. He's also a longtime Braver Angels leader who is co-organizing "No Ballot No Buck," a bipartisan campaign finance reform initiative in Ohio with his liberal counterpart Rob Weidenfeld. Bill talks to host Ciaran O'Connor about Braver Angels, Donald Trump, and working together to find surprising areas of convergence amidst a wider climate of acrimony.
Carol Swain may not reflect the image some people have in mind when they think of an elite university professor. She is an African-American Christian Conservative who grew up in severe rural poverty to achieve success at the top of the academic ladder. Her story of personal accomplishment shines light on the power of perseverance in face of adversity. The values Carol pulls from her experience also lend a foundation to understanding her politics, her Christian faith and even her support of President Donald Trump.
Hear Professor Swain tell her personal story and talk antiracism, Christianity and Trump in this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast. With John Wood, Jr. www.braverangels.org Follow on Social Media:
@BraverAngels @CarolMSwain @JohnRWoodJr
Carlos Hernandez is a Latino Braver Angels leader from San Francisco who supports President Trump. In this episode, Carlos talks to host Ciaran O'Connor about what it's like to be a conservative in San Francisco, why he supports the President, and how he believes Braver Angels' work can build trust and understanding between those who plan to vote differently in November. This conversation is a part of Braver Angels 2020, a national campaign to help Americans "Fight Right" by debating painfully divisive issues in a constructive way that prizes vigor and virtue over rancor and vitriol.
Dominique DiPrima is a former co-host of the Steve Harvey Morning Show and is the host of The Front Page with Dominique DiPrima. A “leading-edge” progressive activist, she has challenged the political status quo from the airwaves of KJLH in Los Angeles as LA’s most popular Black morning show host. Kira Davis is the editor at large of Red State, a non-conforming voice who challenges Democratic orthodoxy while championing the values of faith, family and independence.
Dominique and Kira are politically opposite. But they are both willing to challenge Republicans and Democrats while listening to and learning from each other.
Listen to this fascinating back and forth between two passionate Black women dedicated to justice, equality and progress in America. John Wood, Jr. moderates.
Join us at www.braverangels.org
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The philosophy of Nonviolence guided the moral leaders of the Civil Rights Movement in a struggle for freedom and justice that inspired the world. Dr. King's philosophy birth a vision for American society that still challenges the conscience of the nation. And yet the true substance and practice of Nonviolence is largely forgotten today.
How can we understand Nonviolence? How do we apply it in our current struggle? Veteran of the Civil Rights Movement Professor Harry Boyte of Augsburg University and Damien Conners, former executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, join April Lawson and John Wood, Jr. to talk about the philosophy, history and practice of Nonviolence to shine a light on how it's moral power can be recaptured in the midst of our current challenges in America.
Help us build a house united. Learn more about the work of Braver Angels at www.braverangels.org
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There is a movement underway to depolarize American politics. It is a movement committed to transforming the way we interact with and think about each other as Americans. And guess what? It is bigger than just Braver Angels.
John and Ciaran welcome National Conversations Project and Listen First founder Pearce Godwin, Bridge Alliance founder Debilyn Molineaux and founder of The Village Square Liz Joyner to a conversation on the work of building bridges over the raging floods of American division. Each of these social innovators brings a deep perspective and experience to this vital work. You'll want to know their names and their stories.
Join us at www.braverangels.org
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The Braver Angels Songwriting Contest is over! And we've emerged with three incredible winning songs. In this episode of The Braver Angels Podcast John Wood, Jr. and Sage Snider speak to Jon Baker and Donna Elaine Miller (writers of the "A United States of Humanity," performed by Donna), Thomas Prasada-Rao ("Even You") and Scott Cook ("Say Can You See") to discuss the inspiration behind and to listen to excerpts from their winning songs. Each of these artists shines a wonderful light upon the spirit of patriotic-empathy that is growing through the work of Braver Angels. And each one was a unique American story to tell. Take a moment to listen and be moved.
www.braverangels.org
Fashion stylist and cultural commentator Ayishat Akanbi is a uniquely refreshing voice in the social discourse of the United Kingdom. Increasingly however Ayishat's following is growing in the United States where people of widely differing background are drawing value from her empathetic and deeply perceptive approach to communicating across ethnic and political differences.
Ayishat joins John Wood, Jr. to talk about the parallels of their owns experiences as people of African descent and strong multicultural experience in majority white countries. Listen as Ayishat and John compare notes on the projects of empathy building across the divides in both Britain and America and the shared idealism that animates the work community builders on each side of the pond.
We are building a house united. Join us at www.braverangels.org.
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Twitter: @Ayishat_Akanbi @JohnRWoodJr @braverangels
Why has America struggled so mightily to control the coronavirus compared to other countries? Is there something about American identity or culture that renders us uniquely ill suited to managing this crisis? What do we mean by "cancel culture?" And how can we promote the values of free speech while making sure marginalized voices are heard? Ciaran O'Connor hosts a deep and candid roundtable with April Lawson, Monica Guzman, and Greg Steinbrecher.
What are the forces driving the breakdown in our media system? How do media polarization, hyperpartisanship, and disinformation threaten our values and democracy? And what can we do about it??
Ciaran O'Connor talks to the leaders of two organizations working to free people from filter bubbles so they can better understand the world, surmount the business model challenges that have driven the news media towards hyperpartisanship, and help Americans forge a shared reality in which to understand and analyze our nation's most important issues.
John Gable is the Cofounder and CEO of AllSides, which provides daily news and issues from all perspectives -- left, center, right, and everything in between, to provide a fuller picture of what is really going on.
Nathaniel Barling is the Cofounder and CEO of Knowhere, a news organization dedicated to establishing the facts as they are, on the global, national, and local stories that matter, and integrating machine learning deeply into the newsroom.
Can gay rights activists and proponents of religious liberty build the trust and understanding needed to find common ground? Or is this divide destined to be a zero-sum fight? Jonathan Rauch is a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute and a contributing writer at The Atlantic. He's also a gay man who helped lead the movement to legalize same-sex marriage. Glenn Stanton is the Director of Global Family Formation Studies at Focus on the Family, a senior contributor to The Federalist, and an opponent of same-sex marriage. Jon and Glenn are longtime ideological adversaries -- and good friends. In this episode, Braver Angels co-founder Bill Doherty leads a passionate and candid discussion between the two men on the topic of LGBTQ rights and religious liberty in the context of recent Supreme Court decisions relevant to the divide.
In different ways, Joy Donnell and Maleena Lawrence are on the front lines of the cultural and political struggle against "White Supremacy." The idea of white supremacy holding sway over the dominant institutions and culture of American life strikes many Americans as outrageous whereas for many other Americans this truth is almost self-evident. But what do people actually mean by white supremacy?
Joy Donnell, founder of the Center for Intersectional Media and Entertainment, and Maleena Lawrence, founder of Deeprooted Entertainment, take us deep into their own perspectives and experiences with white supremacy in this special Braver Angels sit-down. With Monica Guzman and John Wood, Jr.
www.braverangels.org
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@braverangels @doitinpublic [Joy Donnell] @MaleenaLawrence @moniguzman @JohnRWoodJr
This is a conversation like few others.
Bob Woodson and Hawk Newsome are among the most important voices in black America today, but their politics couldn't be any more different on the surface. Hawk Newsome is the chairman and former president of Black Lives Matter of Greater New York. Bob Woodson advised the Reagan administration, the Bush administration and is a veteran of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's. Woodson is an independent black conservative and frequent Fox News contributor while Newsome is considered one of the most radical voices in today's social justice movement. Yet both men have fought their way up from modest beginnings to become leading voices in the conversation over racism and the future of black America.
Newsome and Woodson collide in spectacular fashion in a conversation that is at times explosive and at times converges in profound agreement. John Wood, Jr. moderates as Newsome and Woodson represent the wide range of social, political and generational perspectives of the Civil Rights Movement, addressing black history, racism, the future of black America and their own striking life experiences. This back and forth that is guaranteed to give you an understanding of the range and depth of black perspectives in America that you did not have before.
This conversation is brought to you as a part of Braver Angels 2020. Learn more and get involved at www.braverangels.org
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Twitter: @IamHawkNewsome @BobWoodson @JohnRWoodJr @braverangels
How can America move from a politics of hate to a politics of love? Ciaran O'Connor interviews Harvard Law Professor Lawrence Lessig.
A columnist at Quillette Magazine, a contributor to Citi Journal and a person who has testified before the House of Representatives on the subject of reparations, Coleman Hughes is a writer and public commentator who has been celebrated for his sober analysis of issues relating to race in America. He joins John Wood, Jr. to talk about the statistics illustrating the nuanced reality of police violence towards African-Americans and the ways in which experience may help shape our viewpoint of social realities. You'll hear some viewpoints here you won't hear many other places.
www.braverangels.org
Twitter: @coldxman @JohnRWoodJr @braverangels
Tara Isabella Burton, one of the most interesting rising commentators on religion (broadly-defined!) in the American public square, joins April Lawson and Luke Nathan Phillips on the Braver Angels Podcast to discuss her new book, Strange Rites: New Religions for a Godless World. Why do Americans in a secularizing age seem to find spiritual fulfillment in corners as dark and strange as Bronze Age Pervert and SoulCycle? To what degree are America's polarized and identitarian squabbles about politics something akin to theological conflicts and religious revivals? Is there anything we can learn from America's history of religious experimentation to help us cope? Listen in for an engaging conversation on some extremely eccentric, incredibly human, and quintessentially American ways of understanding the social and spiritual world.
Braver Angels leaders John Wood, Jr. and April Lawson are joined by author, social psychologist and Braver Angels board member Jonathan Haidt to discuss the historical and psychological paths by which the United States has found itself looking over the cliff of chaotic social divisions – and wrestle with how we forge a positive path into the future.
Political commentator and author Sally Kohn returns to the Braver Angels Podcast to talk about her personal path to social justice advocacy, her empathy for conservative America and the battle to be aware of our own prejudices.
What does "defund the police" really mean? How can media outlets balance concerns about social justice and free speech? And how can America come together amidst upheaval? Ciaran O'Connor, John Wood, Jr., April Lawson, and Monica Guzman discuss on the latest edition of the Braver Angels Podcast.
Bridget Phetasy is a writer, actress and comedian whose Twitter feed has emerged as an unlikely refuge for political misfits across the spectrum. Formerly a columnist for Playboy, a contributor to publications including The Federalist and a guest on podcasts including The Joe Rogan Experience and The Rubin Report, Bridget has never gone into depth on the rough and tumble, zig-zagging life journey that brought her to her unusual brand of political celebrity…until now.
Monica Guzman and John Wood, Jr. ask the questions in this provocative introspective.
Warning: some explicit sexual language.
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Twitter: @BridgetPhetasy @JohnRWoodJr @moniguzman @braverangels
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John Wood, Jr. is joined by Braver Angels leaders Sage Snider, Luke Phillips and special guest Phillippa Hughes, founder of the Looking for America project, to talk about the Braver Angels songwriting contest, the cross-cultural artistic and convening work of Looking for America, and the power of music, art, food and culture to transcend the normal divisions of politics.
Interested in writing a song for Braver Angels?
Learn more at: https://braverangels.org/the-braver-angels-songwriting-contest/
Learn about Look for America at: https://www.lookingforamerica.us/
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Like the rest of America, Braver Angels has been touched by the COVID-19 epidemic and the national response. Some of us have been touched in very personal ways. So listen as the Braver Angels crew, including Ciaran, April, Monica and John, share their own experiences related to COVID-19, while exploring the warring attitudes of the American people.
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How do we overcome the bitterness of American politics and change the way things are done?
This is John Wood, Jr. "Left of Bernie," yet a consistent defender of President Trump; author, commentator and creator of the comic strip "Dilbert" Scott Adams is a fascinating or infuriating voice in the political conversation, depending on who you ask. But Scott is schooled in the art of persuasion. I enjoyed talking to Scott about the practical ways we can repair our politics. Better yet, I got to challenge Scott to sharpen our own understanding of how to bring Americans together. Mr. Adams doesn't disappoint.
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Sam Daley-Harris is a true pioneer in the area of bipartisan political organizing, and he has the track record to prove it. From his beginnings in anti-poverty work in the 70's to climate change today, Sam has built organizations that have set the cutting edge in grassroots coalition building. In this episode of The Braver Angels Podcast, Sam travels through his history as an organizer, recounting lessons and victories, and offers his perspective on how we can come together across the divide during and beyond COVID-19. John Wood, Jr. hosts.
Learn about Braver Angels: www.braverangels.org
Learn more about Sam and Civic Courage: https://civiccourage.org/
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Things have changed in the USA. But while ordinary Americans fight extraordinary battles to beat back COVID-19 and keep our economy running, Braver Angels and hopeful Americans across the country look for ways to make our politics worthy of our heroes and the future we want to see. In this episode of the Braver Angels Podcast, guests Chloe Valdary and Ken Bone talk Braver Angels, courage in the face of social judgment, and about the opportunities we have to uplift our society and our politics during lock down and the 2020 election.
Co-hosts John Wood, Jr. and Ciaran O'Connor.
Twitter:
@cvaldary @kenbone18 @braverangels @johnrwoodjr @ciaranjoconnor
Learn more about the work of Chloe Valdary at https://theoryofenchantment.com/
Join the mission at Braver Angels: https://braverangels.org/
Everybody seems to hate the media. But is it the problem or the solution? And is it possible that during the COVID-19 pandemic Americans are coming together after all?
Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr. are joined by media figures Annafi Wahed (founder of The Flipside), Denise Quinn (talk radio show host on KYKN in Salem, OR) and Monica Guzman (co-founder of The Evergrey in Portland, OR) to analyze how media habits and coverage are changing, not changing, and what it all means in the midst of our current crisis. You'll be surprised at what there is to learn.
It's a new day in America, and many things have changed. This new day requires courage. Better, has become Braver.
In this episode Braver Angels national ambassadors John Randolph Wood, Jr. and Ciaran Justice O'Connor talk about Better Angels transformation, the politics of Republicans and Democrats during the Coronavirus crisis, and the challenge of bringing Americans together in the 2020 election.
Save the Republic. Learn more at www.braverangels.org
Social Media:
Twitter: @johnrwoodjr @ciaranjoconnor @braverangels
Recorded 3/12/2020: Peter Boghossian, Co-author of the book How to Have Impossible Conversations, drops by The Better Angels Podcast to talk with John Wood, Jr. and Ciaran O'Connor about how the techniques in this book prepare us for some of the difficult dialogues the spreading pandemic is confronting us with.
Pick up your copy of How to Have Impossible Conversations: A Very Practical Guide:
https://www.amazon.com/How-Have-Impossible-Conversations-Practical/dp/0738285323
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Peter Boghossian
Twitter @peterboghossian @JohnRWoodJr @ciaranjoconnor @betterangelsusa
As American society becomes increasingly polarized and sorted by geography, ideology, and capital, our children are growing up in bubbles — isolated from kids who come from different backgrounds.
But what if there were a way for kids to study abroad ... right here in America?
Ciaran O'Connor talks to David McCullough III about his vision for the American Exchange Project, and what we can learn from students bridging the divide.
What's your reaction when you hear the name James Comey? If you're a Democrat, maybe you blame him for the election of Donald Trump. If you're a Republican, maybe you see him as the embodiment of a sinister deep state. Or maybe you see him as a faithful public servant who's been unfairly maligned by both sides.
Either way, the former FBI Director has been at the center of some of the most polarizing moments in recent American history. James Comey joins Better Angels' Ciaran O'Connor and April Lawson to discuss his most controversial decisions — from investigating Hillary Clinton's emails to being fired by President Trump — and to reflect on some deeper questions around moral philosophy, ethical leadership, humility, overconfidence, and personal tragedy.
What happens when a liberal and a conservative decide to jump into an old Volvo and drive across the country? Jordan Blashek and Christopher Haugh share the story of their friendship, their travels, and how their journey changed their understanding of America and each other. Their new book is entitled Union: A Democrat, A Republican, and a Search for Common Ground.
Ciaran and John tackle the impeachment question, in addition to discussing polarization at the municipal level, John's forthcoming solo podcast, and how a President should smell.
Rusty Reno is the editor of First Things Magazine, an influential conservative journal on politics, religion, and public life. Rusty joins the Better Angels podcast to talk about how and why the religious community has responded to — and in many cases rallied around — President Trump amidst the populism surging through modern conservatism.
Julie Kohler, author of the Washington Post article "How Calls to 'Love Your Enemies' Enforce the Status-Quo," joins Ciaran and John for a back and forth about her own past critiques of Better Angels, the proper place of empathy in political life, and the importance of depolarization to preserving the possibility for political progress in the long run.
Julie is a senior advisor for the Democracy Alliance, a progressive donor network. She has a Ph.D. in family social science and writes frequently on women and politics. You can find her on Twitter @juliekkohler1.
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Twitter: @johnrwoodjr
Facebook: @transcendingpolitics
Ciaran O'Connor
Twitter: @ciaranjustice
Music by Josh Lim:
www.joshjameslim.com/
John Wood, Jr. and guest co-host Greg Steinbrecher talk to, Monica Guzman journalist and founder of Seattle based publication The Evergrey, about the influence of identity on our culture of conversation in the United States, and how to have difficult conversations across racial and political divides.
Check out the Evergrey at https://theevergrey.com/
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John Wood, Jr.
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Greg Steinbrecher
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Editor, political analyst and veteran of previous Republican presidential administrations, Bill Kristol brings a critical take on President Trump and a long range overview of political polarization to this episode of The Better Angels Podcast. Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr co-host.
Join us at www.better-angels.org and help us depolarize America!
Bill Kristol:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillKristol
John Wood, Jr.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JohnRWoodJr
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TranscendingPolitics/
Ciaran O'Connor
https://twitter.com/ciaranjoconnor
Music by Josh Lim:
www.joshjameslim.com/
In this special episode of the Better Angels Podcast, writer and philosopher Lexi Hudson interviews David Blankenhorn, founder and president of Better Angels, about the state of polarization in the United States, what makes a strong civil society and his own personal journey through the heat of American division.
Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr. fill us in on the uplifting triumph that was the Better Angels National Convention in St. Louis, June 19th to 22nd.
Ciaran O’Connor and John Wood, Jr. are joined by stand up comedian and BA Podcast producer Mike Casentini to trade voice impersonations and to talk political tribalism, political hypocrisy, and why its so hard to have reasonable conversations in today’s political climate.
Better Angels
www.better-angels.org
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BetterAngelsUSA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BetterAngelsUSA/
John Wood, Jr.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JohnRWoodJr
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TranscendingPolitics/
Ciaran O'Connor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ciaranjoconnor
Music: Josh Lim
www.joshjameslim.com/
Listen to Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr. break down the political and racial divides alongside special guest, Chloe Valdary. Chloe Valdary is a writer and the founder of the Theory of Enchantment, a curriculum which confronts polarization through the use of pop-culture. Chloe's written work has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Quillette.
Learn more about Chole:
https://theoryofenchantment.com/
Twitter: @cvaldary
Pundits and activists on the left and the right are saying we cannot seek understanding with our political opponents without sacrificing our political goals. We disagree.
Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr. recaps their recent journeys across the country discussing depolarization and reconciliation, Ciaran's interview with Ezra Klein, the values that bind Americans and John's feelings on Memorial Day.
John Wood, Jr. highlights a surprising potential political partnership in congress, and reveals a new Better Angels process...
Ciaran talks to Ezra Klein about the state of our public conversation, viewpoint diversity on college campuses, the rise of the intellectual dark web, and whether Better Angels can truly find values that meaningfully connect Americans across ideological differences.
Better Angels leader and media director John Wood, Jr. calls upon us to "Unite America," addressing the challenges and arguments against depolarization in this special episode of The Better Angels Podcast.
John and Ciaran sit down with conservative community organizer and Evangelical Christian Evan Chase to discuss Evangelical politics, support for Trump, race and the power of love to transform community.
Ciaran and John talk about their roads to Better Angels, the Depolarization Movement, Martin Luther King, Jr., the need for community and how to apply love in politics.
Prominent Democratic strategist and Director of the Center for the Political Future at USC Bob Shrum talks with Ciaran and John about his friendship with Co-Director (and prominent GOP strategist) Mike Murphy, their work at the center, and how American politics became so divided.
Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr. talk to Arthur Brooks, the President of the American Enterprise Institute and the author of the recently-published "Love Your Enemies," about his new book, antidotes to polarization, and the transformational power of love amidst today's social-media-fueled rancor.
*Correction: This episode states that Cook County State Attorney Kim Fox was formerly a chief of staff for first lady Michelle Obama. This is incorrect. What has been reported is that former aide to Michelle Obama, Tina Tchen, contacted Ms. Fox on behalf of the Smollett family prior to charges against Smollett being dropped. John Wood, Jr., along with Better Angels leaders Randy Lioz, Greg Steinbrecher and Better Angels editor Luke Phillips take on the politics of the Mueller Report, Also, the Jussie Smollett controversy continues and Better Angels gears up for the 2nd Annual Better Angels National Convention at Washington University. Interested in attending the Better Angels Convention? Apply at https://www.better-angels.org/convention/
Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr. welcome Terence Szuplat to the podcast. Terry was Barack Obama's senior foreign policy speech writer and a member of the administration's speechwriting team for all eight years of the Obama presidency. Here Terry talks his work with the Obama administration, his experience coming to a Better Angels workshop, and the challenge of unearthing common values across the partisan divide.
Green New Deal, Ilhan Omar, AOC, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Better Angels, Ciaran O'Connor, John Wood Jr., Greg Steinbrecher, Randy Lioz, polarization.
Average Joe turned political celebrity Ken Bone joins John and Ciaran to talk about his wild ride to fame following his celebrated appearance at the second 2016 Trump vs. Clinton presidential debate, and to share his insights into the problem of political polarization and how we can overcome it. Follow Ken Bone: Twitter: @KenBone18 John Wood, Jr. Twitter: @JohnRWoodJr Facebook: @Transcending Politics Ciaran O'Connor Twitter: @ciaranjocconor Better Angels Twitter: @BetterAngelsUSA Facebook: @reconnectamerica www.better-angels.org Music by Josh Lim: www.joshjameslim.com/
[We had some audio issues on this one. Sorry everyone! But the conversation was great. We'll avoid these problems in the future.] Ione Butler, founder of Uplifting Content, and artist and activist Billy Singhas join Ciaran and John to talk about the suite of racial controversies to hit America in the last couple weeks, including the Ralph Northam blackface scandal, Liam Neeson's shocking admission and congresswoman Ilhan Omar's perceived anti-Semitic tweets. Join the Depolarization Movement at www.better-angels.org. ********* Ione Butler: Uplifting Content: https://www.upliftingcontent.com/ Twitter: @ionebutler @upliftingcont Billy Singhas: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkUEx6dQzSIeJ-aoZ1Sy0Ww/featured John Wood, Jr. Twitter: twitter.com/JohnRWoodJr Facebook: www.facebook.com/TranscendingPoli…cs/?ref=settings Ciaran O'Connor Twitter: twitter.com/ciaranjoconnor Music by Josh Lim: www.joshjameslim.com/
[Recorded on January 16th, 2018] John and Ciaran are joined by sharp and lively Kim Iversen, former syndicated talk radio show host and co-founder of The Left media network, to talk about immigration, the causes of polarization, special interest influence on politics, Kim's issues with the Democratic Party as well Donald Trump, and more. See more at www.better-angels.org Kim Iversen Website: https://www.kimiversen.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/kimontheleft?lang=en John Wood, Jr. Twitter: twitter.com/JohnRWoodJr Facebook: www.facebook.com/TranscendingPoli…cs/?ref=settings Ciaran O'Connor Twitter: twitter.com/ciaranjoconnor
Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr., with fellow Better Angels leaders Greg Steinbrecher and Randy Lioz, discuss bias and pile on culture in the wake of the protests involving Covington Catholic High School students and participants in an Indigenous People's Rally, and the Gillette commercial targeting "toxic masculinity." Learn more about Better Angels at www.better-angels.org John Wood, Jr. Twitter: https://twitter.com/JohnRWoodJr Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TranscendingPolitics/?ref=settings Ciaran O'Connor Twitter: https://twitter.com/ciaranjoconnor Greg Steinbrecher: Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregsteinbreche Randy Lioz Twitter: https://twitter.com/randylioz
John and Ciaran dive back into the government shutdown and immigration debate, imagining a new way forward. J and C also announce the Better Angels State of the Union event, two days after President Trump's SOTU and the Democratic response, in Washington D.C. Get involved in the event, or hold your own B.A. State of the Union gathering: https://www.better-angels.org/SOTU/ Music: Josh Lim www.joshjameslim.com/
Former Clinton and Obama campaign staffer Ciaran O'Connor and former Republican congressional nominee John Wood, Jr. kick off the relaunched Better Angels Podcast with discussion about the Trump Administration's pullout from Syria, the government shutdown, the work of Better Angels and the importance of the Depolarization Movement. Music: Josh Lim www.joshjameslim.com/
Better Angels CMO Ciaran O'Connor is a former political staffer for President Obama and Hillary Clinton. Lexi Hudson is a former official in the Trump administration's Department of Education. In this edition of the Better Angels podcast, Lexi and Ciaran reflect on the state of politics, polarization, and how we can find our better angels to move forward as a nation. Production: W. Harry Fortuna http://machinedhumanity.com/ Music: Josh Lim https://www.joshjameslim.com/
Ciaran and John host a lively Better Angels discussion between Hawk Newsome, the head of Black Lives Matter of Greater New York, and Greg Smith, a Trump supporter and former police officer. Produced by Harry Fortuna. http://machinedhumanity.com/ Music Credits: "Backed Vibes" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Steve Sphar and Marisa Bogdanoff, the red and blue co-chairs of Better Angels' Sacramento alliance, discuss their journey to build an alliance, including the challenges of equally representing the two sides.
Sally Kohn is a longtime organizer, political commentator (on both CNN and Fox News), and the author of the just-published "The Opposite of Hate: A Field Guide to Repairing Our Humanity." In this episode of the Better Angels Podcast, Ciaran, John and Sally discuss how to work with those you disagree with, how to confront hatred within oneself, and what it's like to be a progressive on Fox News. Produced by Harry Fortuna. http://machinedhumanity.com/
Better Angels President David Blankenhorn talks to Jordan Peterson, a psychologist, professor, and influential conservative intellectual, about politics, polarization, and how to bring conservatives into the fold.
Ciaran talks to Jonathan Rauch, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute, about politics, polarization, and Jon's history of bridging divides within the same-sex marriage debate.
Ciaran O'Connor joins Ryan Adell, Executive Director of Next Generation Politics, to interview Avalon Fenster and Ryan Arranz, a liberal and a conservative high school student, about polarization, politics, and the next generation of political dialogue.
Better Angels' Director of Public Engagement Ciaran O'Connor talks with John Wood, Jr. about their respective political backgrounds — Ciaran as a former Obama & Clinton staffer and John as a former GOP nominee for Congress — and how they came to work together.
After participating in a Better Angels workshop, conservative Christian Greg Smith and liberal Muslim Kouhyar Mostashfi visited each others' places of worship and became friends. Now they are leaders in the Better Angels movement and advocates for bridging the political divide. In this episode, Better Angels Director of Public Engagement Ciaran O'Connor brings them together for a wide ranging discussion about their background, politics, and how their relationship could be a model for coming together across difference.
In the inaugural edition of the revamped Better Angels Podcast, Ciaran O'Connor and John Wood, Jr. talk to April Lawson, editorial assistant to David Brooks and Ross Douthat at the New York Times, and Annafi Wahed, a former Clinton staffer and founder of The Flip Side, about their political perspectives — clarifying disagreements and illuminating commonalities.
Better Angels President David Blankenhorn talks to Hunter Baker, a conservative scholar, Better Angels board member, and Professor of Political Science at Union University, about politics, polarization, and bridging the divide in our current political climate.
David talks with William F. Winter about Mississippi in the 1960s, the role of compromise in politics, and whether “not a politician” is a good credential for someone who wants to hold political office.
David welcomes Lew Finfer, the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Community Action Network, to the Better Angels podcast, to talk about what community organizing really is, and what insights working a lifetime in blue collar communities brings to understanding the movement that brought President Trump to the White House.