Skip to main content

Uncivil society – polarisation and breakdown in our conversations

Broadcast 
Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume.
Have we lost the ability to agreeably disagree?(Getty images.)

You’ve probably heard the expression “I don't agree with what you say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it”. But in the age of social media, cancel culture, keyboard warriors, fake news, algorithms, corporate influence, far right extremism and all the rest, does that lofty ambition still have currency? What has happened to civil debate and the reasonable exchange of competing ideas in public, to conversations that might lead to productive compromise, or simply agreeing to disagree?  Has civil society always been so... uncivil? 

This event was held at the Addi Road Community Organisation on October 25, 2023. 

Speakers 

Lucinda Holdforth  
Speechwriter and author  

Dr Chris Fleming  
Writer and academic 

Sheila Ngoc Pham 
Writer, editor, producer and curator 

Michael West 
Journalist and founder of Michael West Media 

Mark Mordue (host) 
Journalist, editor, writer and poet 

Credits

Broadcast 
Globalisation - Society, Government and Politics, Political Debates
QR code image for downloading the ABC listen app

Discover more podcasts

Download the ABC listen app to hear more of your favourite podcasts