Respect with Nicole Avant

Team Simon here! A Bit of Optimism is on a short break, and brand-new episodes return October 27. Until then, we're revisiting a few conversations we keep coming back to. This week it's Arthur Brooks, a longtime friend of Simon's and one of his favorite people to talk to. Have yo ...  Show more

Hello from Team Simon! We're taking a few weeks off and will be back with brand-new episodes of A Bit of Optimism on Tuesday, October 27. Until then, we're revisiting some of our favorite conversations, starting with one of the most fun we've ever had: Rob Lowe. Maybe you know th ...  Show more

Is it possible to connect with someone whose politics or social views are the virtual opposite of your own? Yes, it is possible—and it's important that we learn to do it, because the world is becoming more polarized than ever before. How will we solve the problems of the futur ...

In an era of polarization, we’ve lost the art of gathering, listening, and connecting across divides. How can we rediscover the power of discourse to build mutual understanding?

Priya Parker, Anand Giridharadas, and Jonah Berger reveal simple but transformative tool ...

On paper, law professor Samar Ali and public affairs strategist Clint Brewer seem to come from very different — and perhaps opposing — backgrounds. But their friendship shows why political polarization in the US isn't as intractable as we might think. In an enlightening conversat ...  Show more

In a world deeply divided, how do we have hard conversations with nuance, curiosity, respect? Veteran reporter Eve Pearlman introduces "dialogue journalism": a project where journalists go to the heart of social and political divides to support discussions between people who disa ...  Show more