Real ep 1

In this podcast episode, Cooper and Iman discuss the effects of politics on communication. They mention how politics have changed over the past few decades and how it has led to political polarization. They talk about how political parties cater to different demographics and use different tactics to appeal to their voters. They also discuss the impact of echo chambers and the internet on communication, mentioning how people are hesitant to broaden their perspectives. They talk about the rise of cults of personality in politics and the performative nature of politicians. They touch on the age divide in politics and how it affects representation. They also mention the politicization of various aspects of life and the dominance of mainstream media. Overall, they highlight the changes and challenges in communication due to politics. All right, this is our first podcast episode called the effects of politics on communication I am Cooper and I'm joined here with Iman and today we're going to talk about how the effect of politics on today's modern culture how It's really affected how every single person communicates how it's changed from 20 30 years ago I mean things are very very different and And We're also going to look into like political polarization How I called the personality come up and a bunch of other different things So yeah, let's go ahead and get started with like the current state of political culture. I think is and it's very polarized and that's a very easy thing to say, but when you have a very Binary view whether like a Democrat or Republican, it's a two-party system or People on Twitter and other online spaces have cultivated a lot of different, you know Micro Subcultures and other things like that and micro communities that all represent these different sort of Political Beliefs and Yeah So, what do you what are your thoughts on today's political climate you on where what do you think about today and how Politics are and how they shape us You Yeah, I mean each each Political party has their their certain sort of like preferred voter and the preferred base like Republicans have they have very more of a masculine Audience I think they're their their highest voter base is non college-educated white men and it And there's their demographics to feel like that they they They appeal to the demographics in a very different way compared to like not very different very unique way compared to the Democrats like the all there's Normal conservative talking points feature like, you know cutting down cutting on spending government spending lower taxes You know like gun rights everything that you could sort of like their their main popular culture it really does appeal to like a Certain demographic and they they try to change their own Their tactics depending on who they're trying to appeal to a both parties do this But yeah, it really the the messaging has really been almost catering to each individual like Ethnicity gender and it really creates a sense of polarization between almost every single aspect of life Yeah Oh Definitely like even people who don't really want to be engaged like the the intense political culture or somehow sucked in just because they're like their identity or like Just because their willingness to say a political gets politicized it's like Everything it's a it's a sign of like a culture war really like I can quote a few off the top of my head The Eminem's rebranding of their their female characters The gas stoves, I remember that being like a big like issue that's like not an actual Agenda policy or anything real there's not actually a lot of issues that are being like pushed by mainstream news and like the Politicians in general are not real. They're just like performative and that is exacerbated by I think the rise of the Internet and Echo chambers, especially especially like what are your thoughts are like effort echo chambers? Yeah Yeah Yeah, yeah Yeah, I think um a lot of people today They are very hesitant to expand broaden and expand their their viewpoints and their perspectives people like a lot of the older generation all only watches like In SNBC CNN or Fox News exclusively what just one or two of them and doesn't You know broaden their viewpoint and it gets even worse like Younger people and even all the people in online culture like things like Facebook Where there's a these communities that are fostering like a lot of these like fringe ideals like extremists really abuse sometimes or you know 4chan other like even Twitter these communities are like very Isolated. Yeah, Twitter does play a big part in its Twitter has a lot of political extremism and just general Like isolated communities and then that rarely branch out and only accept two viewpoints by people similar to them and It really does harm People's communication not only their ability to like form real meaningful Communities, but also their communication in general. They're very Hesitant to accept other people's viewpoints there they Hide themselves behind like, you know Layers of either like irony or like Internet and an anonymity and stuff like that. It's just it's it's detrimental to to people's that development and social skills by just staying Isolated and trapped within one very narrow viewpoint And I think that that in turn leads to the the rise in like radicalization, I think we can see in in modern culture and even very mainstream culture with like the rise of cults of personality like the MAGA like make it like Donald Trump is however Controversial the figure he is he has a very passionate very fanatical fan base that has a very ideal version of him in their heads They he's like this big masculine strong leader who Doesn't give a damn about the establishment He's an outsider and all of these are like very clever ways that he would he marketed himself to appeal to them some of the most broad voter bases out there people who want change but Can't really But and I trust him on it what he says Oh, yeah for sure Oh Yeah, no he uses outside and status is like A celebrity and having money and just like a being a businessman said a poet scummy politician he he really spun that to his favor as a narrative and Use that to gain a lot of support by people who wouldn't normally agree with his politics, but want You know want something different one thing unique and he really? Elevated that bite with his like his very energetic of crude Outlandish public appearances and statements oh Yeah, no it feels otherworldly doesn't feel like it's real Yeah Yeah, it has sort of devolved into that and Really when it comes to like Even like between the parties there's a lot of different like aspects Within each like the Republican and Democrats that Sort of these have the different goals the different preferred demographics. They all have their different like styles and policies, and there's a lot of intersection, but it really has They feel the same Beliefs as like you know Ronald Reagan era conservatism But it the way, it's portrayed and communicated to the public has definitely Donald Trump really did change the game and even for the Democrats like they're falling behind, but like with Biden making a tick-tock and then immediately trying to bandit six weeks later Donald Trump You talked about like the shoes that he did like trying to appeal to like you know like black voters are very like obvious like way even the Fox Analyst said so But the the Democrats have very their voter base is more young That's what they tend to lean to and how they won in 2020 They have a more online presence especially with like politicians nowadays. They always use they have their own personal Like Facebook's and Twitter's and all that and they use that to get to talk to people as well Oh, yeah for sure I think oh, yeah, just recently the Supreme Court passed a ruling that a Politician with a like you know a public government official account can't actually block you which is Some of the only like ruling for online like social media use of public government officials until recently They can't they're not allowed to block you on their official Accounts anymore. Yeah They used to be able to That was like a week ago. That's you know, it's crazy. Yeah, the the way that the internet and just politics have evolved communication between a lot of people is crazy you have the The debates I think are a big change like you you talk about the debates and how they used to be more of a big part of the the the race and now They're sort of a clown show. They're not taking very seriously Yeah, really it really tested them yeah It yeah, it's it's a it's a heavy emphasis on the fact that You know, I think that the internet is a big part of the debate and You know, it's a big part of the debate and It's a big part of the debate, but it's also a big part of the debate It's a big part of the debate. It's a big part of the debate. It's a big part of the debate Yeah, it's it's a it's a heavy emphasis on the performative aspects rather than like the the real Substance that in like like policies and leadership skills that are usually on display during debates But yeah, even like the the old young divides have been a very controversial and popular topic recently, I mean both of our Presidential candidates are above the age Above the age of 70 I think I think trump is 79 And uh, biden is 85. I think that's Um, but yeah, both both the candidates are old and it definitely shows especially for buying in some moments um, but the entirety the entirety of the like the Congressional not the entirety but a fair majority of our government staff is being taken up by people who don't represent the The like the the age range of america of most americans anymore and don't represent like the the viewpoints at all It's entire generational gap that's being sort of ignored by people in power and The the marketing definitely shows towards that. Yeah They they do a lot of things um to try to sway the vote for young people while also Not giving them exactly what they want Um, it's it's it's just broken promises. It's very common in washington But yeah, um I also think that a lot of the the tone of politics in the recent years has shifted Um, we talked about how everything um, like people who want to say apolitical Um almost every aspect of their life now has been politicized whether they like it or not and I think that really goes to show with like, um the mainstream media effect in terms of like um, we talked about culture war, but also how mainstream media really dominates the the Um Standard viewpoint of america and how that's sort of shifted over the few recent years. Um Public opinion of mainstream media is at an all-time low. A lot of people are using um, either social media or alternative um like news sources in order to like Keep update updated um, but yeah, just the messaging and their and tone as a whole has completely shifted because of So many different things um Oh Yeah, no anyone can talk and everyone wants you to hear and it you don't have to it's good and bad because you don't have to rely on you know, Legacy media or having money in order to like have your voice be heard But also it's a lot more information misinformation a lot more straight up lies and a lot more Unreliable and Shaky viewpoints and and narratives that are More accessible like and especially more like radicalized and um conspiratorial views um that like people like queuing on I think we thought we talked about that and it's just crazy how these people believe that like Oh, yeah democrats are eating babies or like Something like that Yeah Oh, yeah, just Insane stuff. They have like a whole cult following behind the anonymous poster And they they really have like they believe in all like it's a different world what they believe in and what they what they say and do in It just goes to show like how nuts Everything's gotten recently Yeah I Don't know I I hope not We'll see how this this year's Vote goes out. I know a lot of people aren't very excited about the prospects Yeah, no, I but voting is important. It's it brings A voice to everyone and while there yes, there are people that try to take it away from you vote in local elections um organized for what you believe in it really is so so important because Even if you don't care about politics Your beliefs and your Opinions do matter and no matter what side you're on it really does make a difference To just go out there and put in a vote and and fight Yeah, some people just don't don't vote out of No, just not knowing how it's There's so many helpful resources out there. The aclu has a really good guide on um voting guides for your area um, just other stuff like that, it's The the political climate sucks more now more than ever but More people are getting informed. Um, they're trying to ban tiktok just to keep information out of our hands And it really does It threatens them when people when people speak out their voice and when they're when they are heard um If people are unhappy there will be change hopefully and it puts pressure. I think that's the most important part Yeah, anyways, I think that about wraps up this podcast episode, um, i'm cooper Yeah Yeah, and we hope you join us for our next episode on the psychology of persuasion which we'll dump into more of the psychological aspects of conversation And how to get what you want from a conversation Yeah, that's it. We will see you