We live in a time when political consensus is on the verge of collapse, and our public life is so damaged that the very foundations of democracy seem to be under threat. Whether you are on the right or the left, one thing is clear - we can't go on like this.
How to Talk About Politics teaches us a new way to communicate with each other that will effect social change, in effect, how to talk about politics with your family, friends and colleagues without falling into the same anger and divisiveness that characterises our age. Drawing on pioneering psychological research and grounded in her academic background as a political communicator and psychologist, Sarah Stein Lubrano unpacks the problems at the root of fake news, cancel culture, echo chambers and polarisation. She illustrates convincingly how the idea of politics as a war - and debate as the answer - is doomed to fail us as a society. She shows why and echo chambers are so tempting, and what we can do to break through them. Her chapter on her own latest research which shows how we feel physical pain when subjected to opposing ideas will resonate widely.
This is an uplifting, positive vision for progress based in practical and powerful ideas at the cutting edge of communication research. It's extremely intelligent, but practical and accessible. In short this book has exceptional potential in the bestselling categories of political and philosophical books.
