Bridging the Ideological Divide with Conversation

By Natalie Van Hoozer

Right now, many people across the nation feel divided. As the bilingual Spanish/English reporter for KUNR Public Radio, I do see division first hand, right here in northern Nevada, where I was born and raised. At the same time, I’ve had community members tell me they want to understand each other better. 

Research from the University of Pennsylvania and Beyond Conflict, a group that studies polarization, found that people aren’t as divided as they think. The study found that Americans incorrectly believe that people of different political parties dehumanize or disagree with each other about two times more than they actually do. 

That’s why I’m excited to work on a project that gives people an opportunity to find common ground. I’m leading northern Nevada’s One Small Step program. The goal is to bring community members of differing ideological and political views together for facilitated conversations in English or Spanish. This project is run nationally by StoryCorps, a nonprofit dedicated to recording and preserving personal audio stories. 

Conversations between people from different walks of life can be powerful. One particularly moving piece comes to mind. Dan Leger survived the 2018 Tree of Life Synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where 11 people were killed. He sat down for a heartfelt discussion with gun owner Amber Neider in 2020 to reflect on the experiences that shaped their views on gun rights. 

What struck me about this conversation was the humanity I heard in the participants’ voices. Amber Neider’s voice shakes as she empathizes with Dan Leger after listening to him share the pain he endured as a result of the shooting. Then Leger expresses gratitude to her for acknowledging his grief. We need more open, caring conversations like this one, where people respect one another. 

I admire the bravery and vulnerability these participants showed. It’s not easy to open up and share your personal viewpoints with someone you just met. What’s more, with One Small Step, the discussion doesn’t necessarily have to go to an emotional place. The main point of these conversations is for people to listen to one another. 

My goal is to get a variety of people in our community to honestly discuss topics that matter to them. I’ve been collecting sign-ups from people living in northern Nevada and eastern California, and I have done outreach at events like the recent local Pride festival and a Reno Aces game. But finding volunteers to participate hasn’t been easy so far. From my work in the community, I realize that there are a variety of factors that make it difficult for people to sign up. Some worry that their employer would not support them sharing their personal views. Others don’t entirely trust media organizations to portray them accurately. There are also those who are hesitant to express their opinions publicly because of their immigration status. 

While this type of project is not traditional news reporting, I think community outreach is critical to my work as a journalist, now more than ever. It is equally important for all community members to have an opportunity to be heard. As a Spanish-language reporter, I appreciate the diversity of viewpoints in our region’s Latino community every day. That’s why I’m passionate about offering One Small Step in both Spanish and English. 

One Small Step conversations are part of a collaborative program between KUNR, Nevada Humanities, and Noticiero Móvil.  If you are interested in volunteering your time for a 50-minute conversation, sign up in English or español. If you have questions, please email Natalie Van Hoozer at nvh@kunr.org or Stephanie Gibson at sgibson@nevadahumanities.org.

A woman in a baseball cap and sunglasses stands with another woman wearing glasses in front of a table with a tablecloth that reads “KUNR”.

Bilingual Spanish/English reporters Natalie Van Hoozer (left) and María Palma (right) invite community members to participate in the One Small Step program at the 2021 Northern Nevada Pride Festival. Photo/Natalie Van Hoozer.

Community members in colorful shirts listen to two journalists who are holding paper signs in a park.

Journalists María Palma (left) and Natalie Van Hoozer (right) explain the One Small Step program to attendees of the 2021 Northern Nevada Pride Festival at Wingfield Park. Photo/Claudia Cruz.

A smiling woman with long dark hair and glasses stands next to a woman with blonde hair against a brick wall.

One Small Step conversation facilitators María Palma (left) and Natalie Van Hoozer (right). Photo/Claudia Cruz.

A woman stands outdoors smiling.

Photo/Joey Lovato.

Natalie Van Hoozer is a Spanish/English bilingual journalist and translator in Reno, Nevada. She is a bilingual reporter and community engagement coordinator for KUNR Public Radio, northern Nevada’s NPR member station. She is also a Solutions Journalism Network LEDE Fellow and an Online News Association MJ Bear Fellow. 

KUNR Public Radio runs the One Small Step program in partnership with Noticiero Móvil, the bilingual Spanish/English digital news outlet run by faculty and students in the Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno. Nevada Humanities is a key community partner on this project.

 

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