Disengagement in politics is dangerous. Without knowledge of fundamental political framework, people are susceptible to misinformation and undue influence. This is unfortunately a common sight – with many social groups and communities holding singular viewpoints, particularly on divisive issues. This ‘echo chamber’ effect is detrimental to our critical thinking and free thought. We must be urged to be open about our viewpoints, and respectfully disagree with other’s perspectives. Without this, we are all ushered into a conforming opinion. Too often, people are simply not exposed to an opposing view – confirmation bias plays a key role. Social media is important in this too: companies are looking to push more polarised content to increase engagement – only causing misinformed opinions on an issue.
Our aims
1. Initiate the conversation
2. Identify the source
3. Develop political literacy
At the Politics Outlook, our aim is to break these barriers through initiating the conversation. By simply discussing an idea, through rational communication, we can ensure that people have the skill to critically analyse information. Once this skill is acquired, when encountering any further political issue, they will be able to understand the complex perspectives around it, and then come to a conclusion. Additionally, we aim to educate about the sources of information, placing an emphasis on echo chambers, so that people become more aware about where they receive their news, and how their opinions form. Once they are able to realise the forces impacting their perspectives, they can view issues from an impartial viewpoint – which is crucial, yet vanishing, in politics. Finally, we aim to develop political literacy, as future members of the democratic process need to understand why their vote matters, and the impact it has.
The vision
Over the past two months, we have conducted four workshops – working with over 80 students. Across this academic year (2023-24) we plan to deliver workshops with over 250 students. Before and after each workshop we send out a survey, partly to improve the workshops and measure impact, but mainly to get people engaged with political ideas over a longer period of time. Following the workshop, 86% said they are more likely to actively seek different perspectives, and ‘initiate the conversation’. Additionally, 67% identified whether they are in an echo chamber. We believe these results are encouraging, and we hope to improve the impact we are having over the next few months.
Looking forward, we are excited to be in the process of building the team, starting the articles and podcasts in February. This will mean The Politics Outlook will have three branches: workshops, podcasts, and publications, as in our mission statement. The level of interest to help, write, and record has been incredible – though there is certainly still space for more people to get on board and help initiate the conversation!