Janet Coats Served as a Panel Member for Bridging Political Divides Discussion
Janet Coats, managing director of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications Consortium on Trust in Media and Technology, spoke on a panel about bridging political divides at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 7.
The Texas Tribune Festival draws thousands of attendees from Texas and around the country to sessions on politics and policy. Sponsored by The Texas Tribune news organization, the festival stresses civil conversation across political divides.
Coats spoke on the panel “We the Texans: Come Together,” which focused on polarization and ways to lower the temperature in political conversations. Coats talked about recent research by the Consortium on techniques that can be used in one-to-one conversations to make them more productive.
That research, led by Coats, Consortium Trust Scholar and doctoral student Brittany Shaughnessy and McGurn Fellow on Media Trust Mónica Guzmán, found that one simple technique can help people feel more heard when talking to someone who doesn’t share their political views.
“Our findings showed that two simple sentences can make all the difference: ‘I want to hear from you. What do you think?’” Coats told the audience. Not only do those two sentences result in people feeling more heard they also make them more open to hearing ideas that conflicted with their own.
The research highlights the importance of curiosity in lowering barriers to conversation. That has implications for journalists, too, Coats told the panel. “What if journalists demonstrated more curiosity in their interviews? What if, beyond the typical questions, journalists added: I want to hear from you. What do you think?”
Other panelists included David Leebron, former president of Rice University and CEO of Texas 2036; Manu Mee, CEO of BridgeUSA, the largest student-led movement bridging divides; and Karl Schmalz, Co-Chair and Co-Founder of Braver Angels Central Texas Alliance.
Category: College News, Trust News
Tagged: Britany Shaughnessy Consortium on Trust in Media and Technology Janet Coats
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