Making Peace Visible

It’s no secret that digital technology, in particular social media, stokes division in society and sometimes provokes violent conflict. Toxic polarization prevents us from solving problems, from making decisions together, from being constructive in our approach. In In this episode, we’ll explore the dangers of social media, but we’ll also talk about ways technology can be used to build bridges and promote social cohesion., we’ll explore the In this episode, we’ll explore the dangers of social media, but we’ll also talk about ways technology can be used to build bridges and promote social cohesion. Guest Shamil Idriss, is the CEO of Search for Common Ground. SFCG is the largest peacebuilding organization in the world, and has a long history of using media in reconciliation efforts. Almost fifteen years ago, Shamil established a virtual exchange program connecting young adults in Europe and North America to their peers in the Middle East, and he’s been working at the intersection of peacebuilding and tech ever since. In February, Shamil helped launch the Council on Technology and Social Cohesion to foster collaboration between peacebuilders and tech workers.  Shamil says it’s crucial for the peacebuilding field to understand technology’s dangers AND to harness its potential for good.Follow Shamil Idriss on Twitter @ShamilIdriss.HOW TO RATE AND REVIEW MAKING PEACE VISIBLEIn Apple Podcasts on iPhone Tap on the show name (Making Peace Visible) to navigate to the main podcast page.Scroll down to the "Ratings and Reviews" sectionTo leave a rating only, tap on the starsTo leave a review, tap "Write a Review" In Spotify(Note: Spotify ratings are currently only available on mobile.)Tap on the show name (Making Peace Visible) to navigate to the main podcast page.Tap on the star icon under the podcast description to rate the show. In Podcast Addict(Note: you may need to sign in before leaving a review.)From the episode page: On the top left above the show description, click "Post review."From the main podcast pageTap "Reviews" on the top left.On the Reviews page,  tap the icon of a pen and paper in the top right corner of the screen. ABOUT THE SHOWMaking Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Our mission is to bring journalists and peacebuilders together to re-imagine the way the news media covers peace and conflict, and to facilitate expanded coverage of global peace and reconciliation efforts. Join the conversation on Twitter: @warstoriespeace. Write to us at jsimon@warstoriespeacestories.org. Making Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon, and produced by Andrea Muraskin, with help from Faith McClure. Music in this episode is by Blue Dot Sessions, Meavy Boy, and Bill Vortex.  ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

Today, most agree that the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the war that followed was a major misstep. But in the leadup to the invasion and early months of the conflict, a majority of Americans, as well as our media and political leaders, stood in favor. What happened? Guest Babak Bahador is a scholar who studies the relationship between peace, conflict, and the media – kind of like the academic version of this podcast. He teaches at George Washington University, where he directs the Media and Peacebuilding Project, and he founded the Peace News Network in 2015. Babak has analyzed American news coverage of armed conflicts from World War II through the 2003 Iraq War, and he’s noticed a pattern in the way politics, public opinion, and the media inform each other over the course of each war. In this wide-ranging conversation, Babak and host Jamil Simon begin by discussing coverage of the Vietnam War and the 2003 Iraq War. They also highlight the positive role of the media in Northern Ireland’s Good Friday peace agreement; touch on Ukraine, and reflect on how journalists can attract more attention to reconciliation and rebuilding efforts. LEARN MORERead Babak Bahador’s research and analysisMapping the Enemy Image through Different Conflict Stages, University of Canterbury, 2011Did pictures in the news media just change U.S. policy in Syria? Washington Post, 2017Peacenews.comListenPeace Journalism: at least don't make matters worse, our 2022 episode on Peace Journalism and the importance of language with Steve YoungbloodSlow Burn: The Road to the Iraq War, a podcast from Slate that explores the people and ideas that propelled the country into the Iraq war, and the institutions that failed to stop itMaking Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Our mission is to bring journalists and peacebuilders together to re-imagine the way the news media covers peace and conflict, and to facilitate expanded coverage of global peace and reconciliation efforts. Join the conversation on Twitter: @warstoriespeaceMaking Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon, and produced by Andrea Muraskin, with hello from Faith McClure. Music in this episode is by Blue Dot Sessions, Xylo-Ziko, and SF Music. HOW TO RATE AND/OR REVIEW MAKING PEACE VISIBLEIn Apple Podcasts on iPhone Tap on the show name (Making Peace Visible) to navigate to the main podcast pageScroll down to the "Ratings and Reviews" sectionTo leave a rating only, tap on the starsTo leave a review, tap "Write a Review"In Spotify(Note: Spotify ratings are currently only available on mobile.)Tap on the show name (Making Peace Visible) to navigate to the main podcast pageTap on the star icon under the podcast description to rate the showIn Podcast Addict(Note: you may need to sign in before leaving a review.)From the episode page: On the top left above the show description, click "Post review."From the main podcast pageTap "Reviews" on the top left.On the Reviews page,  tap the icon of a pen and paper in the top right corner of the screen.Making Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Our mission is to bring journalists and peacebuilders together to re-imagine the way the news media covers peace and conflict, and to facilitate expanded coverage of global peace and reconciliation efforts. Join the conversation on Twitter: @warstoriespeace.Making Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon, and produced by Andrea Muraskin, with help from Faith McClure. Music in this episode is by Blue Dot Sessions, Xylo-Ziko, and SF Music.  ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

Herds of goats, pomegranate trees in bloom, and ancient architecture are just some of the things you might witness while walking The Abraham Path, a collection of walking trails established in the past fifteen years through parts of Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, and Iraq. But the trail is also engineered for human experiences. Connecting cities and villages, it offers the opportunity to make one-on-one connections in a contested region. It's a kind of subtle peace-building project, but it's also an economic development project, an education project, and more. The path's development, spurred by American peacebuilders, has been met with some skepticism by journalists. But as locals have taken ownership of the trail, a good deal of stories have been published that convey a sense of hope, including a cover story in a travel-themed issue of The New York Times Magazine in April 2022. Our guests for this episode are Joshua Weiss, a peacebuilder and co-founder of The Abraham Path Initiative, and Anisa Mehdi, the Executive Director of the project and a veteran broadcast journalist. This episode originally published in June 2022. Donate to help Abraham Path homestay hosts and guides rebuild in Southeast Turkey and Syria.HOW TO RATE AND/OR REVIEW MAKING PEACE VISIBLEIn Apple Podcasts on iPhone Tap on the show name (Making Peace Visible) to navigate to the main podcast pageScroll down to the "Ratings and Reviews" sectionTo leave a rating only, tap on the starsTo leave a review, tap "Write a Review"In Spotify(Note: Spotify ratings are currently only available on mobile.)Tap on the show name (Making Peace Visible) to navigate to the main podcast pageTap on the star icon under the podcast description to rate the showIn Podcast Addict(Note: you may need to sign in before leaving a review.)From the episode page: On the top left above the show description, click "Post review."From the main podcast pageTap "Reviews" on the top left.On the Reviews page,  tap the icon of a pen and paper in the top right corner of the screen.Making Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Our mission is to bring journalists and peacebuilders together to re-imagine the way the news media covers peace and conflict, and to facilitate expanded coverage of global peace and reconciliation efforts. Join the conversation on Twitter: @warstoriespeaceMaking Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon, and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Music in this episode is by One Man Book, Doyeq, and Les Portes Du Futur.  ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

This episode gets to the heart of what our project, War Stories Peace Stories, is all about: How do you talk about peacebuilding in a way where people will pay attention and feel compelled to take action?Our guest Elizabeth Hume is Executive Director of the Alliance for Peacebuilding, the umbrella organization for NGOs working on conflict resolution, bridge-building, and reconciliation in the US and around the world. And she says, peacebuilders have been doing a poor job of communicating with the public—too academic, and not connecting with issues that concern everyday Americans. A few years ago, Liz called on our other guest, Andrew Volmert, for help with this messaging problem. Drew is Senior Vice President of Research for the FrameWorks Institute, a think tank that helps non-profit organizations reframe social issues to gain broader public understanding and acceptance.Drew and his team surveyed thousands of Americans to find out how they think about peace and peacebuilding, and how they’d respond to new ways of framing the issue. They came back with insights that peacebuilders, as well as journalists covering peace and conflict, can learn from.Download the FrameWorks Institute’s reports on reframing peacebuilding:Building the Bridge to Peace: A Messaging Guide for PeacebuildersCommunicating about Peace and Peacebuilding: Challenges, Opportunities, and Emerging RecommendationsFollow Liz Hume on Twitter: @Lizhume4peaceFollow the FrameWorks Institute on Twitter: @FrameWorksInstMaking Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. The associate producer is Faith McClure. The podcast is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Follow us on Twitter @warstoriespeace.Support our work with a tax-deductible donation. ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

What does it mean to be Ukrainian? What is Ukraine’s significance to Europe? What is the war with Russia really about? Why should the world pay attention? These are the kind of big-picture questions journalists Anastasiia Lapatina and Jakub Parusinksi tackle on their podcast, Power Lines: From Ukraine to the World. Jakub and Anastasiia (aka Nastya) founded the Kyiv Independent in 2021 as part of a group of journalists who had been fired from the Kyiv Post by an owner who threatened that paper’s editorial independence. On Power Lines, they interview academics, policy experts, aid workers and others with deep insight into the Ukraine-Russia war and regional history, providing vital context to an English-speaking audience.  In this episode of Making Peace Visible, Nastya and Jakub speak with host Jamil Simon about topics including Ukrainian identity and values, the politics of language, and the possibility of peace. Also, what podcasting offers that other media do not. Power Lines: From Ukraine to the World is a project of the Kyiv Independent and Message Heard. Listen and subscribe here, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Learn more about the Kyiv Independent at kyivindependent.comFollow Jakub Parusinksi on Twitter @j_parus.Follow Anastasiia Lapatina on Twitter @lapatina_.Making Peace Visible is a production of War Stories Peace Stories. It’s hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin and Faith McClure. Support our work: warstoriespeacestories.org/take-action ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

Photographer Anastasia Taylor-Lind and writer Alisa Sopova create intimate, accessible portraits of Ukrainian civilians living close to the frontlines of the Russian invasion. Sometimes their subjects are picnicking in a park or tending a garden. Other times, they’re repairing a ceiling damaged by shelling or waiting for departure on an evacuation train. Anastasia and Alisa have been working together in Ukraine since the Maidan Revolution, also known as the “Revolution of Dignity” in 2014. And over the years, they’ve returned to visit the same families, witnessing how the war touches men, women, and children over time. An exhibition of their work in Ukraine is showing at the Imperial War Museum in London from February 3 through May 8, 2023. Independent Projects5K From the Frontline (ongoing)Welcome to DonetskInternational media work:NPR: The Ukraine war isn't new. These intimate photos show 3 families enduring it for yearsThe New Humanitarian: How seven years of war and COVID-19 split Ukraine in twoThe New York Times: Opinion: Where There Are Fish in the Tap Water and Women’s Uteruses Fall OutTime Magazine: The Strange Unreality of Life During Eastern Ukraine's Forgotten WarMaking Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. The associate producer is Faith McClure. The podcast is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Follow us on Twitter @warstoriespeace.Support our work with a tax-deductible donation.  ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

Whether you get your news from social media, read an email digest from a trusted website, turn on the TV, or open up a newspaper, the world through the lens of the news media can feel like a pretty depressing place. But according to our guest, Solutions Journalism Network co-founder David Bornstein, that’s a distorted view of reality.Solutions Journalism provides an alternative model, actively seeking out stories about solutions to societal and environmental problems, and trying to learn how those solutions could be applied broadly. In this episode, we learn the basics of solutions journalism, explore some of the research done on it, and discuss how it may be applied to covering conflict and peacebuilding. Learn more about Solutions Journalism, and the Solutions Journalism Network, at solutionsjournalism.org. Try their story tracker tool to explore news from around the world, or search by topic.  Follow David Bornstein on Twitter @dnbornstein. Check out our interview with Amanda Ripley, a solutions journalist focused on conflict and reconciliation. Making Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Additional production by Faith McClure. Music in this episode by Xylo-Ziko and Bill Vortex. Making Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Support our work.  ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

Paul Solman, a business, economics, and occasional arts reporter for the PBS NewsHour since 1985, is passionate about bridging the political and cultural divides that Americans face – between right and left, rich and poor, rural and urban, and others. He channels some of that passion into helping run a nonprofit called the American Exchange Project – a domestic exchange program where high school students from across the United States travel to spend a week getting to know and living alongside teens from way outside their own bubbles. Last year, Solman reported a segment about the American Exchange Project and other efforts to counter polarization, as part of a series reflecting on what led up to the January 6th insurrection at the US Capitol. But, he argues the TV news format presents major barriers to telling more stories about peace and reconciliation. In this episode, Paul Solman and host Jamil Simon discuss why it's so difficult to tell peace stories on TV news. Also: how economic inequality factors into polarization, and the power of youth programs to promote the mindset that “we’re all in this together.” Watch Paul Solman's Reports: Political Polarization Prompts Efforts to Bridge the GapWhy Louisianans blame government, not corporations, for pollution problemsLearn about the American Exchange Project at americanexchangeproject.org. Follow Paul Solman on Twitter @paulsolman.Making Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. The associate producer is Faith McClure. The podcast is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Follow us on Twitter @warstoriespeace.Support our work with a tax-deductible donation.  ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

If you’re listening to this podcast, you’re probably concerned by the level of polarization we’re seeing in societies around the world.  We can point fingers at social media, the news media, political parties, fear mongering leaders, poor education, broken political systems… the list is long. The divides can seem so vast, the problems so huge. It’s easy to retreat into a huddle with people who see the world the same way you do. But our guest for this episode, Columbia University psychology and education professor and author Peter T. Coleman, says there are things each of us can do to help heal these societal wounds. And he says the press and media can play an important role in decreasing polarization. That's the subject of his latest book, The Way Out: How to Overcome Toxic Polarization. Coleman outlines evidence-based practices that you can do on your own- or with a group- to help recalibrate assumptions, and re-create bonds with people you disagree with. Coleman also partnered with the organization Starts With Us to turn the lessons from the book into an online challenge, called Finding the Way Out. It's like an exercise routine, for strengthening your compassion muscles. The book is focused on the United States, but the exercises can be done anywhere. Follow Peter T. Coleman on Twitter: @PeterTColeman1Making Peace Visible is  hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. We had help on this episode from Faith McClure. The podcast is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Follow us on Twitter @warstoriespeace.Support our work with a tax-deductible donation. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions and Bill Vortex ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show! 

Our guest this episode has some advice for international journalists working abroad: "If you work with local journalists, give them a byline - they're not your free fixers. The security of locals is more important than any story. And  YOU, international journalist, you are not the story." And she would know. Award-winning journalist and communications consultant Zaina Erhaim comes from Idlib in northern Syria. And she got started in journalism covering the Syrian revolution and the civil war that followed. Her reporting made her a target, and she left Syria in 2016. She now lives in the UK, where she continues to mentor Syrian journalists and report on the Middle East. In this interview she shares razor sharp insights into reporting on conflict, while upholding the dignity of sources and collaborators. This episode was originally published in August, 2022. Find more advice from Zaina including her ten tips for international journalists here.Follow Zaina on Twitter @zainaerhaim. Read her reporting at zaina-erhaim.com. Making Peace Visible is a project of War Stories Peace Stories. Our mission is to bring journalists and peacebuilders together to re-imagine the way the news media covers peace and conflict, and to facilitate expanded coverage of global peace and reconciliation efforts. Join the conversation on Twitter: @warstoriespeace.Making Peace Visible is hosted by Jamil Simon, and produced by Andrea Muraskin. ABOUT THE SHOW The Making Peace Visible podcast is hosted by Jamil Simon and produced by Andrea Muraskin. Our associate producer is Faith McClure. Learn more at makingpeacevisible.orgSupport our work Connect on social:Instagram @makingpeacevisibleLinkedIn @makingpeacevisibleBluesky @makingpeacevisible.bsky.social We want to learn more about our listeners. Take this 3-minute survey to help us improve the show!