The Reading Room
Just who are the centrists?
How about a new political party?
The Wall Street Journal, November 2022
The Rise of the Jihadists. Americans think both parties are too extreme.
The Hill, November 2022
Moderate voters still matter.
Niskanen Center think tank, January 2023
44% would support a new centrist party.
- Forbes Magazine, October 2022
55% of voters describe Democrats as too extreme, 54% of Republicans.
- Democratic think tank Third Way, November 2022
66% of voters think the political extremes are a threat to America. 44% find their own party is too extreme.
- Washington Post, February 2023
Episode 1
“More than 40% would vote for a new Centrist Party.” Forbes, December 2022
“Part of the Exhausted Majority? You are not alone. ” Washington Post, February 2023
“Americans want bipartisanship, but most don’t think it will happen. ” CNN, April 2021
“Ohio Republicans Staged Their Own House Speaker Drama.” Wall Street Journal, January 2023
Credits: MCNBC Morning Joe, NBC 4 Columbus, WEWS Cleveland, WKYC Cleveland, The Rooster (Substack), AM 1420 Radio Cleveland
Episode 2
“Nearly 80 percent of Americans concerned lack of civility in politics will lead to violence, poll says.” PBS NewsHour, November 2018
Full Profile of Tami Pyfer and her Dignity Index. POLITICO, January 2023
The earlier version of a civility pledge crashed too. POLITICO, November 2010
Take passion out of politics? Not easy to do. The Conversation, February 2020
The attempt to make Minnesota nice, nice again. July 2018
A lesson for the colonies. The British got this one right
Credits: Indy 100, NPR, C-SPAN, Fox News, The Independent, The Guardian, Facebook, YouTube.
Episode 4
The curious case of zip codes and the worldview of journalists
The Media Bubble Is Worse Than You Think
Fewer Americans Than Ever Before Trust The Mainstream Media
Charting media bias
Tough economics warp news coverage
The Press Now Depends on Readers for Revenue and That’s a Big Problem for Journalism
So much for balance
Objectivity: What Journalists Hate but the Public Still Craves
U.S. journalists differ from the public in their views of ‘bothsidesism’ in journalism
New NPR Ethics Policy: It's OK For Journalists To Demonstrate (Sometimes)
As local news declines, partisanship spikes
Study: Decline in local journalism increases political polarization
The Palm Springs Desert Sun experiment
Notes from the Newsroom: Academic study shows Desert Sun opinion page experiment curbed polarization
Episode 5
A spike in ticket splitting. A trend or an anomaly? Snapshots from around the country
Governing: How Big a Comeback Did Ticket Splitting Make This Year?
Vox: Could an old-school approach to voting decide the midterms?
New York Times: Unwilling to Hold Their Nose and Vote, Ticket-Splitters Make Their Mark
WBUR: Split-ticket voters and their impact on the latest election
Washington Post: What ticket-splitting in the midterms looked like
Politico: Voters who backed GOP governors helped keep the Senate blue
For a deep dive on ticket splitting
Professor Barry Burden: Why Americans Split Their Tickets: Campaigns, Competition, and Divided Government
Professor Kyle Kondik: The Long Red Thread: How Democratic Dominance Gave Way to Republican Advantage in US House Elections