...with Democracy, Conversation and the Walrus (Ep. 71)

What on Earth is Going on?

What does it mean to have a good conversation about politics, democracy, our place in the world, Donald Trump and sports? How do we bring disparate and distinct voices into that dialogue, and keep it fresh? The Walrus, a weekly Canadian magazine, has been trying to figure it out.

Ben is in Toronto to chat with Jessica Johnson, executive editor and creative director of The Walrus, about democracy, conversation, and the magazine's unique and ever-evolving response to "what on earth is going on?"

About the Guest

Jessica is the executive editor and creative director for The Walrus. She is an award-winning journalist who has worked with a range of North American publications, including The Globe and Mail, National Post, Saturday Night, Lucky, Elle, and The New Republic. Her work has also appeared in the BBC and Medium. Jessica was named executive editor of The Walrus in 2017. She is also a visiting professor at the University of St. Michael's College in the University of Toronto.

Learn more about Jessica or follow her on Twitter (@ejessicajohnson).

Mentioned in this Episode

• Thank You For Being Late, a book by Thomas Friedman (also check out Episode 60, about the book)
• Jason McBride, a writer at The Walrus
• "The Charmed Life of Esther the Wonder Pig", an article in The Walrus by Jason McBride
• Black Mirror, a program on Netflix
• Cover of The Walrus magazine from December 2018
• Video of "A More Perfect Union", a 2008 presidential campaign speech by Barack Obama
• Jordan Peterson, University of Toronto professor of psychology
• Sidewalk Labs, a company owned by Google that is developing Toronto's Quayside neighbourhood

The Quote of the Week

"Conversation is a meeting of minds with different memories and habits. When minds meet, they don't just exchange facts: they transform them, reshape them, draw different implications from them, engage in new trains of thought. Conversation doesn't just reshuffle the cards: it creates new cards." - Theodore Zeldin