Talking Sense

MPR News and the nonprofit organization Braver Angels have created Talking Sense to help Minnesotans have hard conversations, better.

Talking Sense is a reporting project that explores the roots of polarization in communities, families and homes, and looks at how Minnesotans are navigating these divisive times. It’s also a series of live events and online tools that help Minnesotans have challenging political conversations without letting the need to change minds stand in the way of preserving important relationships. 

Has political polarization affected your family or community? Send us your Talking Sense story at talk@mprnews.org

Can a 5,000-mile journey help a mother and son survive their differences?
Jedidiah Jenkins and his mom diverge wildly on their ideological views. She is a Trump-supporting conservative evangelical from Tennessee. He is a gay, progressive man who lives in California. But they love each other. Can they find common ground on a cross-country road trip? That’s the story of his new memoir, “Mother, Nature.”
10-year-old Minnesota singer Mira Babal tells it like it is in ‘Mad for No Reason’
You haven’t heard 10-year-old Mira Babal's latest track on the Billboard Hot 100 — at least not yet. But “Mad for No Reason” is catchy, upbeat — and a callout to the adults in Mira’s life. She wants them to stop arguing all the time. 
How to have hard political conversations, better 
The holidays are almost here — and so is another contentious election year. MPR News host Angela Davis and reporter Catharine Richert introduce MPR’s new project Talking Sense, designed to teach Minnesotans how to have conversations with friends and family on opposite ends of the political spectrum.