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This is a book about how to have an inclusive, reflective and civil national conversation. It asks whether the mass media can contribute to meaningful public debate in the run-up to an election.
Talk radio in the United States is said to have contributed to a political atmosphere in which the loudest, crudest and simplest arguments prevail. Is there a different model of public talk that can contribute to a kinder, wiser, more empathetic democracy?
In the run-up to the 2024 UK general election, Stephen Coleman listened to callers to the BBC’s daily phone-in show in the hope of finding answers to these questions. In this year-long study, we see the public expressing its mood, telling its stories and testing its arguments.
Shaping Citizenship through Talk Radio argues that even in a time of democratic anxiety and rising division, people are still finding ways to talk, listen, and act together. It explains why democracies need reliable public spaces that help citizens connect and communicate across their differences. Reporting on what he found, Coleman also proposes a way forward for a more empathetic democratic discourse.
Stephen Coleman is Emeritus Professor of Political Communication at the University of Leeds, UK.
'This beautifully written book is a must read for students of democracy in these challenging times. Coleman contrasts public conversation that supports liberal democratic citizenship with illiberal and authoritarian talk formats that limit understanding and divide publics. The rich comparisons of different political conversation logics make this a unique and insightful analysis.'
— Professor W. Lance Bennett, University of Washington, USA
Stephen Coleman is Emeritus Professor of Political Communication at the University of Leeds, UK.
Acknowledgements
Introduction: Listening to an Electorate Think
1. Elusive Conversations
2. Democracy as Working Through
3. Now It’s Your Turn to Listen to Me
4. Talk Radio as Civic Gathering Place
5. Listening to the Mood Chorus
6. How Stories Keep Elections Real
7. The Other Election Debates
8. After the Election, the Eruption
9. Speaking as a Citizen
10. Out-Talking the Demagogues
References
Index