Making a Biden/Harris Listening Tour Meaningful
By: Karyne Messina
Tags: Biden, Politics, 2020, Psychiatry, Listening

Making a Biden/Harris Listening Tour Meaningful

Photo by Manny Becerra on Unsplash

In the lead-ups to major elections, political listening tours have become as predictable as the sun rising in the east, wherein candidates scarf fried dough at state fairs and drop by diners for a chat over coffee with constituents. Once seen as mere political showmanship, these made-for-tv moments are now a leadership imperative. The brand of cultural reconnaissance these informal meet-and-greets produce confirms the beliefs of political scientists and journalists everywhere: the best way to find out what voters think is to…ask them what they think — and then listen to their response. An authentic listening tour seeks connection and is uniquely suited to clearing the air for a real exchange of ideas in the spirit of progress and unity.

Or at least, that’s the goal.

The reality of reaching out to those who don’t share our views is a bit messier, mostly through no fault of our own. That we are having trouble finding common ground at this moment in 2020 is an understatement. Post-election we are as deeply divided as ever, with huge swaths of the population in seeming disagreement on nearly everything — not just issues and ideas, but on basic facts. Radio silence is not the answer, but before respectful conversation can even begin, we the public need to work towards actively listening to each other in an atmosphere of respect. Finding common ground depends on us figuring out a way to recognize that there are basic facts in the world that we must agree upon, especially in the age of social media when facts and opinion are interchangeable.

The Social Dilemma, a documentary that aired on Netflix in 2020, illustrates that much of the divisiveness so prevalent today is due to content algorithms that “learn” about users and send them down idea-confirming rabbit holes — while also fueling a spiraling sense of negative self-esteem. This discrepancy in fact-based knowledge has been artificially created by social media companies that prioritize the monetization of user attention over objective communication, leading to out-of-control conspiracy theories and harmful misinformation.

False information spreads faster and farther than fact, according to a 2019 study published by researchers at MIT’s Media Lab, which found that falsehoods are 70% more likely to be retweeted on Twitter than the truth and reach their first 1,500 people six times faster than fact. A person who believes in a conspiracy theory will hang on to that knowledge until they see competing evidence that disproves it, but internet rabbit holes prevent this kind of natural correction. YouTube has been called out for the way its algorithms amplify extremist views, though the claim that the site’s recommendations facilitate far-right radicalization is disputed.

Just as radio interference blocks transmission, the static from the internet prevents us from communicating clearly with one another. On the internet, where many of us spend significant amounts of time, it is a challenge to find others willing to have an open discussion guided by curiosity and respect rather than indulge in indignance and bullying. How do we reach each other when there are such significant barriers to open communication? What does an exchange like this look like?

This social media-driven consolidation and strengthening of particular views — however “right” or “wrong” they may be — means that Biden and Harris have their work cut out for them. Fortunately, they are both great listeners — practiced in weighing the concerns and views of others, even when those views do not tidily align with their own. A listening tour would not only put their skills to the test, but, more critically, would allow them to model those behaviors for the rest of us.

By getting out there and meeting with all stripes of Americans face to face (or, in the near-term, over Zoom), the kind of genuine dialogue and mutual respect Biden and Harris personally take part in would be a positive step toward bridging the gaps among the rest of us. A Biden/Harris listening tour — if it has any chance of success or breaking through barriers — might want to take the environmental factors affecting how we got here into account.