Common Ground with Jane Whitney

Common Ground with Jane Whitney serves as a bridge in a polarized era. Focusing on vital issues like democracy, Supreme Court politicization, social media vitriol, racism, and climate change, the series showcases past moments where panelists engage, share insights, and unite to address the nation's pressing problems, fostering a path forward.

American elections face unprecedented threats post-January 6 insurrection. The electoral system's foundation wavers as candidates contest results, biased officials emerge and millions question certified outcomes. A panel delves into the electoral system's fate, the two-party system's future, national disenfranchisement, and the rise of performative politics risking constitutional guarantees.

A diverse panel from across the political spectrum discusses how the country, which once elevated science into the unofficial national religion, came to accept the parasitic oxymoron of “alternate facts” and how so many of us have come to live in an impenetrable bubble that elevates ill-considered opinion into intractable certitude.

Generations are just beginning their journey through adulthood and grew up with an unprecedented series of apocryphal crises. Rather than despair, a few have started movements that are ‘warming’ the world. Young people talk about their visions of the future and how they crashed through the limitations imposed by conventional wisdom to build movements that are powering change all around us.

Optimism, inspiration and hope are rare these days due to a historic number of overlapping crises –from the pandemic to recession, partisan toxicity to climate change – has helped spawn a mental health epidemic marked by surging incidences of depression, suicide, and addiction. This episode profiles those who have overcome adversity and trauma through grit, resilience and determination.

Although race and identity have always shaped U.S. politics, they reemerged seven years ago, a political pivot and the unapologetic driver of Donald Trump's unexpected victory. In this show, a panel of nationally known voices from across the political and racial spectrums examines the role of race in American politics and how identity issues continue to shape our daily lives.

In the face of unprecedented crises, the once proud "Shining City On A Hill" is marred by overlapping challenges, breeding collective anxiety. Amidst diminishing political stature, a few voices emerge, invoking the spirit of 'better angels.' This episode presents one-on-one conversations with influential thinkers, offering reassurance that America, having weathered past storms, will prevail again.

During the pandemic, the wealthy became richer while the poor got poorer. Already at historic heights before the pandemic, wealth inequality is worse than during the Gilded Age, dividing the country into haves and have-nots. This episode examines the consequences of the stark cleavage, the values that drive economic policy and the connections between our political and economic crises.

The poisonous cocktail of social polarization is ripping apart the shared American identity that made the country a ‘melting pot’. A diverse panel discusses how usurping racial, religious, sexual, and cultural identities for partisan gain pours salt into our national wounds, provokes violence, and threatens our democracy.

A century after the ratification of the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote, women’s rights remain the nexus of contentious debate with many convinced that women are under renewed assault. An all-star panel discusses the current status of women and what feminism means to a new generation of rights crusaders - with a special focus on the Dobbs Decision, which overturned Roe v. Wade.

As climate change moves from an imminent peril to a deadly reality for vast swaths of the country, a panel of nationally recognized groundbreakers discusses the gaping dichotomy between what scientists say needs to be done to moderate an impending disaster and the political reality of what is possible. The panel examines the issues' role in elections and the role of private citizens and companies.

When the Soviet Union dissolved, the triumph of liberal democracy seemed so complete that some historians declared the moment “the end of history.” Three decades later, history is continuing apace and the fight to sustain democracy is this century’s foremost political challenge. A panel discusses the life-and-death battle between autocracy and democracy and the future of constitutional government.