How Do We Fix It?

At the recent funeral for Republican Senator John McCain, former Presidents and leaders of both parties paid tribute to his belief that America "is a nation of ideals, not blood and soil." In the farewell statement to the country he loved, Senator McCain described our democracy as “325 million opinionated, vociferous individuals.” 

The funeral was a rare, and perhaps passing moment of bipartisan unity and friendship at a time of bitter partisan division. 

In this episode, we look at some of the roots of political tribalism, why some young people are turning against free speech, and the need to "play our way to a better democracy." 

Our guest is social psychologist, Professor Jonathan Haidt, co-author of the highly-praised book, "The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation For Failure." We discuss the ideas and research in his book: Why so many college students are anxious and depressed and how recent problems on campus have their origins in three damaging, destructive ideas that have become increasingly woven into American childhood and education:

• What doesn't kill you makes you weaker.
• Always trust your feelings.
• Life is a battle between good and bad people.
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We also examine constructive ways to deal with microaggressions, helicopter parenting, "safetyism" and the growing intolerance for opposing points of view that threaten the future of our national political discourse.

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Tyson talks about the possibility of intelligent life on other planets, tackles science deniers on the right and left, and explains why we should invest more in pure science. Tyson also discusses his book, "Astrophysics for People in a Hurry.”

"What's curious to me is you have the liberal community claiming the (moral) high road ...against the science deniers of the right with regard to global warming and evolution in the classrooms... as though they are somehow untainted by non-scientific thinking,” Tyson tells us. "There is a whole portfolio of science denying that also happens in the liberal left."

Investments in pure science led to many remarkable breakthroughs in medicine, technology and physics - often decades after the research began. Following the discovery of quantum physics in the 1920's, "it would take forty to fifty years before we would see the rise of information technology," says Tyson. "There is no information technology without an understanding of quantum physics."

Tyson also discusses his sense of awe and wonder about the secrets of the cosmos.

““You can’t be a scientist and have discomfort with not knowing,” he tells us. “When there is a frontier that’s unexplored, where there are stupefying depths of ignorance, it excites you. It gets you out of bed in the morning and running to the lab.””

— Neil deGrasse Tyson

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Neil deGrasse Tyson, America’s most prominent spokesman for science and Director of New York City’s Hayden Planetarium, talks about the benefits of a cosmic perspective, the case for manned space flight and much more in this first part of our wide-ranging conversation. We also discussed Tyson's book, "Astrophysics for People in a Hurry."

Richard and Jim met Tyson at his offices at The American Museum of Natural History. While insisting he is not an advocate for manned space flight, Tyson says "history tells us" space exploration "is one of the most potent forces to operate on the scientific ambitions of a citizenry." At the height of the Apollo program in the 1960's, "you didn't need special programs to get people interested in science," Tyson explains. "There were weekly headlines about our journeys into space and you knew you needed the best of the best to breech the frontier of space."

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The national suicide rate rose 28% from 1999 to 2016, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2016, alone, 45,000 people took their own lives.

This year's suicides of celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain and fashion designer, Kate Spade, focused new attention on the crisis.

Why is the U.S. suicide rate as high as it was one hundred years ago? What are proven ways to save lives and reduce depression and chronic anxiety?

Our guest is Dr. Richard Friedman, a professor of clinical psychiatry and Director of the psychopharmacology Clinic at Weill Cornell Medical College, New York. 

"We should declare war on suicide," he tells us. "The federal government spends more money researching dietary supplements and headache remedies than it does suicide."

More here from Dr. Friedman's recent New York Times article.

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Was Donald Trump's election a one-off event, or did it represent a fundamental realignment of American politics?

Washington-based political experts wrongly called the 2016 election, and our guest, Salena Zito, author of "The Great Revolt", argues that they keep blowing it today. Democrats who ignore the concerns of those who went for Obama in 2012, but then backed Trump four years later, do so at their peril.

We examine the spread of populism that is reshaping American politics on the right and the left, and why it may have much more staying power than critics would like to admit.

Despite President Trump's weak approval ratings, the coalition that brought him to the White House is largely holding together. Salena drove many thousands of miles on back roads, speaking with hundreds of Trump voters in ten Great Lake swing counties while reporting for the New York Post, the Washington Examiner, and contributing to The Atlantic. 

She takes them seriously. From "red-blooded blue-collared" conservative populists to "rough rebounders" and "girl gun power" supporters, we learn why so many believe that Trump stands up for working people against powerful corporate interests.

"Modern populism today is a healthy skepticism of large things, big institutions, big government, big entertainment, big sports," says Salena. "This coalition isn't just impacting the ballot, its having an impact on how we shop and how we consume things."

In this episode we look at the roots of populism, but also take a skeptical view of its future.

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From ancient times to the present day, women and men have brought meaning to their lives through storytelling.

Before the invention of the printing press, ancient societies passed on the knowledge and wisdom of one generation to the next through oral history. 

Today, no other medium is as intimate and personal as podcasting. We are the town criers of our time.

In this "Quick Fix" episode, Richard and Jim discuss the future of podcasting-- an industry that faces both opportunities and challenges. 

More than 550,000 podcasts are on iTunes-- and the number is growing every week. So is the audience. But while two-thirds of Americans have heard of the term "podcast," fewer than one-in-five are regular listeners. 

Last week in Philadelphia at Podcast Movement-- the annual trade show, rally and conference-- Tom Webster of Edison Research said: "The key to moving from 48 million weekly podcast listeners to the 100 million mark is understanding why those people familiar with the term “podcasting” have never listened."

The launch of the new Google Podcasts app may go a long way towards reaching this goal. Until now, Apple has been the dominant player. Smart speakers present a great growth opportunity, bringing new ways to listen to podcasts. And each year podcasting reaches into an ever-widening circle of communities and interests. 

Find out here about how we make this show and other podcasts for our clients.

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Free speech on campus is under assault at many colleges and universities. From disinviting commencement speakers to shouting down professors and others they disagree with, some students demand "safe spaces" from controversial remarks and what they call micro-aggressions.

So far, 1800 professors from the right, left, center and other political leanings have joined the effort to bridge the ideological divide. Heterodox Academy is part of a growing number of attempts to encourage greater civility and respect for different points of view.

Deb Mashek is the first Executive Director of Heterodox Academy. For 13 years, she was a professor of psychology at Harvey Mudd College. 

"My learning is improved when I get to engage with you, because you see things differently, Deb tells us. It's not just about tolerating other viewpoints. "If we're serious about solving the world's biggest problems, we need to be open to the best ideas, regardless of where they come from."

"A willingness to evaluate new ideas is vital to understanding our world," says Harvard University Professor Steven Pinker. "Universities, which ought to be forums for open debate, are developing a reputation for dogmatism and intolerance." Heterodox Academy was formed in 2015 to counteract the narrowing of viewpoints on many college campuses.

In this episode we look at why viewpoint diversity matters just as much as other forms of diversity on campus and in society at large.

Useful links: 

Heterodox Academy podcast.

OpenMind Platform.

"The Closing of the American Mind", by Allan Bloom. 

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President Trump has withdrawn from international agreements, criticized NATO, The European Union, and attacked the policies of Canada, Mexico, Britain, France and Germany-- all traditional allies. He praised President Putin, and continues to sow chaos in the international trading system, reportedly threatening to pull the U.S. out of the World Trade Organization-- W.T.O.

This last step, above all, could have the most serious impact on the American economy, damaging businesses, destroying jobs, and weakening U.S. influence around the world.

In this episode, we look at solutions for climate change, sustainable growth, the need for smarter international co-operation, and the reason why the W.T.O. is so crucial to the future of the global trading system. 

Our guest is former Florida Congressman James Bacchus, Director of the Center for Global Economic and Environmental Opportunity at the University of Central Florida. He was twice the chief judge of the highest court of world trade at the W.T.O. in Geneva, Switzerland.

Jim's new book is "The Willing World. Shaping and Sharing a Sustainable Global Prosperity."

"I believe our President is a pessimist," he says. "He doesn't really believe in America or the American people, despite all he says about putting America first." 

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America's landscape of towns and cities is ever-changing. Countless Main Streets and small downtowns were eviscerated by big box stores, globalization, online commerce and poor planning.

But today, many resilient communities are fighting back. Called "one of America's very best singer-songwriters" by The New Yorker, our guest, Dar Williams, tells us how towns and cities can turn themselves around. 

"What I Found in a Thousand Towns: A Traveling Musician's Guide to Rebuilding America's Communities" is an impassioned account of the fall and rise of small American towns she cherishes. Dar chronicles practical success stories and challenges, delivering her message with hope and love.

"The opposite of division is not unity. It is collaboration," says Dar.

We discuss the power of positive proximity and how working on local projects together can bring different parts of a community together. Dar speaks of the strength of weak ties and why they help build networks of people who act as stewards for the places that they love. 

From improving police-community relations in Gainesville, Florida, to the revival of Beacon, New York, we learn of many examples of how communities can succeed and thrive. 

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We discuss the American Revolution and the meaning of freedom with acclaimed historian and journalist, Russell Shorto, author of the 2018 book, "Revolution Song: A Story of American Freedom."Russell Shorto is also the writer of a fine new podcast series, "American History Tellers."

As the nation struggles with a political crisis and national discord, this episode-- released during the week of the July 4th vacation-- has special resonance. We look at fundamental ideas of democracy and founding principles developed before and during the American War of Independence.

As he did with "The Island at the Center of the World," which looked at the Dutch impact on New York, Russell's latest book examines American values, drawing deeply on personal diaries, letters and autobiographies to flesh out six important lives. They include an African-American man who freed himself and his family from slavery, a Seneca tribal warrior who became a wise and respected political leader, and George Washington himself. 

When he began working on "Revolution Song" six years ago, "I thought I was doing history," Russell tells us. "I thought these things were long ago settled. I didn't think I would be living in a time when freedom of the press, freedom of religion and freedom of speech would be even debatable or under attack."

"The intertwined stories of "Revolution Song" give a sense of how far-reaching a phenomenon the War of Independence was," wrote a book reviewer in the New York Times. 

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