Uploaded June 2021 | Updated September 2026, 7 hours ago
Nathan Bomey is an award-winning business reporter for USA Today.
He’s the author of a new book, Bridge Builders; Bringing People together in a polarized age, and he was on this show in 2018 to discuss his book, After the Fact; The Erosion of Truth and the Inevitable Rise of Donald Trump
Tell us about the basic message of the book and what you hope to accomplish with it.
stories of leaders who combat polarization by pursuing reconciliation, rejecting misinformation, and rethinking the principle of compromise.
Stories of people building bridges
In your previous book, After the fact, you talk about:
Monetizing misinformation
You say that within social media are the building blocks of mistrust, even hate.
Epidemic of envy and jealousy
A plague of distrust
A Crisis of disconnectedness.
The Better angels of our nature—family therapy
Braver Angels
Solutions:
Finding common ground
Storytelling, shared language, relationships, fact checking
Healthy connectivity
Forging a path towards reconciliation
From blindness to sight
From Human to Human
From Hating to healing
Reconnecting with Truth
From Fiction to fact
From caricature to nuance
From misunderstanding to understanding
Redrafting the blueprint of compromise
From denying to believing
From Rigidity to Flexibility
From discord to collaboration
We can’t debate policy until we get social trust
Bridgebuilding Solutions
P 198
1 Acknowledge the past, educate others about it and refuse to idealize it
2 Don’t label people
3 Embrace conflict
4 Listen when most people would talk..make sure people feel heard
5 Recognize that dialogue isn’t always enough to change hearts.
How to pursue togetherness from a national perspective, to integrate a culture of relationship building.
1- encourage a national service movement. – easier to talk when we are working together helping others. Create places that promote cooperation. Public service is the civilian equivalent of military experience.
2- Teach students techniques for effective engagement, promote collaboration and improve class history lessons. – let’s agree that there’s hope, at least, for our kids. Teach our kids how to engage with people of difference
3- Nudge college students to build connections with other students who aren’t like them
4- Foster relationships on Capitol Hill by overhauling congressional rules and procedures
Christmas Tree story.
Need to cultivate authentic relationships and conversations between people of difference
Eboo Patel “Americans, over the course of time, have enlarged the circle of inclusion and bridged divides within it—and that’s what we need now.
Nathan Bomey is an award-winning business reporter for USA Today.
He’s the author of a new book, Bridge Builders; Bringing People together in a polarized age, and he was on this show in 2018 to discuss his book, After the Fact; The Erosion of Truth and the Inevitable Rise of Donald Trump
Tell us about the basic message of the book and what you hope to accomplish with it.
stories of leaders who combat polarization by pursuing reconciliation, rejecting misinformation, and rethinking the principle of compromise.
Stories of people building bridges
In your previous book, After the fact, you talk about:
Monetizing misinformation
You say that within social media are the building blocks of mistrust, even hate.
Epidemic of envy and jealousy
A plague of distrust
A Crisis of disconnectedness.
The Better angels of our nature—family therapy
Braver Angels
Solutions:
Finding common ground
Storytelling, shared language, relationships, fact checking
Healthy connectivity
Forging a path towards reconciliation
From blindness to sight
From Human to Human
From Hating to healing
Reconnecting with Truth
From Fiction to fact
From caricature to nuance
From misunderstanding to understanding
Redrafting the blueprint of compromise
From denying to believing
From Rigidity to Flexibility
From discord to collaboration
We can’t debate policy until we get social trust
Bridgebuilding Solutions
P 198
1 Acknowledge the past, educate others about it and refuse to idealize it
2 Don’t label people
3 Embrace conflict
4 Listen when most people would talk..make sure people feel heard
5 Recognize that dialogue isn’t always enough to change hearts.
How to pursue togetherness from a national perspective, to integrate a culture of relationship building.
1- encourage a national service movement. – easier to talk when we are working together helping others. Create places that promote cooperation. Public service is the civilian equivalent of military experience.
2- Teach students techniques for effective engagement, promote collaboration and improve class history lessons. – let’s agree that there’s hope, at least, for our kids. Teach our kids how to engage with people of difference
3- Nudge college students to build connections with other students who aren’t like them
4- Foster relationships on Capitol Hill by overhauling congressional rules and procedures
Christmas Tree story.
Need to cultivate authentic relationships and conversations between people of difference
Eboo Patel “Americans, over the course of time, have enlarged the circle of inclusion and bridged divides within it—and that’s what we need now.
