The Braver Angels Podcast

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...

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 fa...

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 analyz...

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 electio...

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: http...

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 fro...

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 polarizi...

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...

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/ Follow Monica Guzman Twitter @moniguzman John W...

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/BillK...

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/BetterAngel...

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...

  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.