An Army of Normal Folks - 2024’s Word of the Year

Episode Date: January 24, 2025

Merriam-Webster’s 2024 Word of the Year was "polarization." For Shop Talk, we explore what we can do to ensure that this never happens again.Support the show: https://www.normalfolks.us/premiumSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey everybody, welcome to Shop Talk number 38. Welcome in. That's kind of weird. Can you do it better than that? Yeah, welcome in. There we go. Welcome into the shop. Today we're going to talk about a note that Evan Feinberg wrote to us.

Oh, he wrote it to LinkedIn. For all of the world to see, not just us. I'm sorry. If you're not a read, it's right there. I thought he wrote it on LinkedIn to us. Reached out to us through LinkedIn. He would just do that. Yeah. Okay. So whatever. Evan Feinberg wrote on it. Now who's Evan Feinberg? Evan Feinberg is the chairman of the Stand Together Foundation. And I'm really not going to go into a of the Stand Together Foundation. And I'm really not going to go into a commercial for Stand Together, but Google Stand Together and you'll know who they are.

Incredible work and very connected to a number of our past and future guests. So Evan Feinberg, the chairman of the Stand Together Foundation wrote something that I'm going to read to you and then comment on for Shop Talk number 38, right after these brief messages from our generous sponsors. Hey everyone, it's Katie Couric. Well, the election is in the home stretch and I'm exhausted. But turns out the end is near, right in time for a new season of my podcast, Next Question. This podcast is for people like me who need a little perspective and insight.

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this season of Next Question is for you. Check out our new season of Next Question with me, Couric on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. How serious is youth vaping? Irreversible lung damage serious, one in ten kids vape serious, which warrants a serious conversation from a serious parental figure like yourself. Not the seriously know-it-all sports dad or the seriously smart podcaster. It requires a serious conversation that is best had by you.

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I'm Minnie Driver, and I set out to explore this idea in my podcast, Minnie Questions. Over the years, we've had some incredible guests. People like Courteney Cox, star of the infinitely beloved sitcom Friends, EGOT winner Viola Davis, and former Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair. And now, Mini Questions is returning for another season. We've asked an entirely new set of guests our seven questions, including Jane Lynch, Delaney Rowe, and Cord Jefferson. Each episode is a new person's story with new lessons,

new memories, and new connections to show us how we're both similar and unique. Listen to mini questions on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Seven questions, limitless answers. Hey, it's Alec Baldwin. This past season on my podcast, Here's the Thing, I spoke with more actors, musicians, policymakers, and so many other fascinating people like writer and actor, Dan Aykroyd. I love writing more than anything. You're left alone.

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on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey everybody, welcome back. Evan Feinberg wrote this, Merriam-Webster's 2024 Word of the year is drum roll drum roll. Thank you. My finger is polarization. Feels pretty on the nose. We're all feeling it, he says. It feels like we've got to figure out how we can get along with each other a whole lot better. But I don't think it's as easy as just being nicer to one another. We've got a diverse country that

often disagrees with one another vehemently. I do think there's a shortcut though. I'm reminded of a conversation I once had with Van Jones, who is a real leader in uniting people across lines of difference. He said something to the effect of, let's get people doing something together, like serving kids. We can fight like cats and dogs for 23 hours out of day, but could we reserve just one hour to go serve some kids together? His belief was that if you really profound things would happen if we did that. One, we'd help a lot of kids. Two, we'd realize we agree on at least something helping kids. Three, we'd get to know one another and realize that we agree on a bunch more issues. That's been our experience working

with Van on issues like criminal justice reform or combating anti-Semitism, even if we don't agree on every issue. Four, when we do disagree, we'd start to do so more agreeably, because we'd see each other as good people who disagree on some stuff. So here's my thought for a New Year's resolution, to make sure that polarization isn't the word of the year. Next year. Can we resolve to get out and serve together? If you need some ideas for how to do that, let me know. There are platforms out there like Points of Light, Vomo, and Just Serve. The important thing is that you start serving with people across lines of differences. So get out of your comfort zone. Pretty good letter from Evan,

but it sounds like he's been listening to the podcast. He's been thinking similar thoughts. I'm a little worried he's plagiarized an army of normal folks in this letter. He's a pretty smart guy too. He can come to the same conclusion. I don't think he's plagiarizing. That's a joke. I can't help but read that and wonder if we need to try to get Van Jones on the show. Yeah, that's a good idea. I think that's supporting greatness. Really interesting for supporting greatness, especially because there are a number of, I've listened to him, there's a few things he and I definitely agree on.

There's a number of things he and I definitely disagree on, but I think it would be an interesting contrast in belief sets who ultimately, clearly, have an ultimate focus on the same thing. And not to get into politics, but if you just to pay him credit, like he's an honest broker. I mean, it is an honest broker. I don't know if you're like after that Biden Trump debate where Biden just lost it. Yep.

I mean, Van came on right after that immediately. Like, we got a problem. This is falling apart and basically people have not been telling you the truth about him. And, and. But see, that's why that's a guy think that you can. We're not getting to other Republicans are just a broker I still think that's a guy you can if you're a public and disagree with and at least respect or if you're a Democrat. respect and listen to and not just follow the herd on. I mean, I think that's a unique guy. All right. Will you reach out to Van Jones or Evan Beinberg or somebody? We need to interview Van Jones after reading this. Well, let's get back to the subject at hand. Well, it really is part of the subject pan candidly is that, you know, I'd love to sit down with Van Jones. And I have friends in LA that are agnostic. I have friends in LA that are Jewish agnostic and actually foreign born Jews with very liberal

belief sets. And when I say these people are friends, I mean, these are friends. I would go to the wall for these folks. And it's usually say, you haven't said it yet, but I mean, you're a white, southern Christian business owner. The contrast between contrast between you know them and you that's right And and there's probably some things we see out on politically, but there's certainly others we don't And I would go to bat for these folks and here's why because I have here's why. Because I have broken bread with them. I've sat in their living rooms. They've sat in mine. We've had glasses of wine. We've had real talks about stuff that is germane to their beliefs at

and that is foundational to mine that we simply are opposites on. But here's the deal, we approach those conversations from foundation of respect and appreciation and friendship. And therefore, when we have those conversations, they are real, and they are unadultered, but they are civil and they always have this backdrop behind them of even though I don't agree with you or like what you have to say, I love you. And therefore, I don't take it personally. And I don't want to incite a riot over this disagreement because I know what the basic fundamental of all of this conversation, you're a good person who I love. And therefore, you can have those conversations in a civil, non-threatening way, agree to disagree, respect one another's opinions, but do all do so from a

foundation of respect and love. I think one interesting point about you met those people, I think, if I'm guessing the people through Undefeated and other media stuff and your book and speeches. But what I love about Evan's point is, you know, you met them through that. But say the average American out there, how are they going to meet those people? Right? So that's a perfect segue. Merriam-Webster's 2024, what are the years polarization?

And so first, before we talk about how we meet him, I think the real question is how do we get so polarized? And I really believe that we are separating more and more, polarizing more and more into where we live, and to how we vote, and to how we worship, and to how we love. And then we solidify those positions by what we% of us know that when we watch CNN or CNN or CNN, we're going to be able to see the news. And that's the reason why we're so much more aware of the news. And that's why we're so much more aware of the news. said that somewhere around 80% of us know that when we watch CNN or CN or CNBC or on the other side watch Fox or Newsmax, we know that the news we're getting is slanted toward a political

viewpoint. And then another even larger percentage, maybe 90% or so know that when they get news off social media, that it is often not factual, sometimes blatantly incorrect, but at least slanted and more of an opinion. And so you combine that with the fact that we, it doesn't matter if it's Republican or Democrat, we have less than a 42% approval rating in the White House of every president after two years in office. For the first time in history, we have below a 50% approval rating of the Supreme Court. We have an under 50% approval rating of Congress. In fact, sometimes it's in the 20s, low 30s.

So we don't approve of Congress. In fact, sometimes it's in the 20s, low 30s. So we don't approve of leadership. We know the content we're getting is either on a scale from at least slanted to all the way incorrect. We know that the information we're given to us is likely tainted toward one political viewpoint or another and we don't like what's going on our country yet the same research says that for about 2.3 hours a day the average American is either reading this stuff listening to it or engaging in it on social media so on the one hand we don't believe it and we don't approve of any of it. But on the other hand, we're non-dating ourselves with the very content and the very narratives

that we don't agree with or like. Another stat I was looking at above my phone. 76% say they have low confidence in the wisdom of the American people when it comes to making political decisions. So it's like 76% of the American people when it comes to making political decisions So it's like 76% of the public doesn't trust themselves Well, you chop the other people everybody else, but I mean if it's 76% They're actually saying I don't trust these other people and these other people don't trust 76% don't even trust one another on their own political decisions and it's because they're

fed so much content villainizing someone who doesn't think, worship, love, vote, act or live like them. So Mary Webster's 2024 word of the year is polarization. Well hell I guess so. Our entire society is built on it at this point. And that's destructive. I think that is a greater threat to our Republic than China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran combined.

Because they can attack us all they want. They can't take us down, but we could take ourselves down if we don't get our arms around it. So back to Alex's really good question and point, which is, okay, now that we understand polarization where it comes from, sure, I've been over to come along to that because I'm some really extraordinary things that my life, but how's the common person do it? Well, I think Vann's got it. I don't care what you look like, how you vote, how you worship, or what you do in your life, because if you're serving a community of people or an organization who is in need and not as blessed as you. If you

are putting your time, your effort, your resource, your money into helping elevate some people who aren't as blessed as you, I can celebrate that. And I don't care who you are. I don't care what you look like, how you vote. I can do that. And if I'm doing the same thing, you can celebrate that and I don't care who you are. I don't care what you look like I can do that and if I'm doing the same thing you can celebrate me and the other half of the point is if we're doing it Together like imagine with sleep in heavenly peace you're building a bed with somebody else who's different like you're actually spending four hours together Doing this getting to know the other person you suddenly don't hate them. You don't hate them because you have this common ground and you recognize they're they care about some things just like I do. Now, you may vote differently, you may worship differently, you may have disagreements, but you're not going to see that person anymore as an enemy. You're not going to see that person. You're not going to be able to hate a person who you work with and care about. It reminds me when I was coaching at Manassas, I found out my first year that I had players in four different gangs.

Red, blue, black and green were the colors. Bandanas or t-shirts or whatever. Yours was white, Big Daddy Snowflake. White, Big Daddy Snowflake. Actually, mine was blue and gold. Manassas colors were blue and gold. And so I just couldn't get my arms around how you can fight and work 11 guys on a field and bleed and getting pain together for one common goal of winning a football game. That practices from 336 on Friday nights, but then on Saturdays and Sundays, go to your neighborhoods and actually possibly have fights

and then turn around and come back. It just didn't work. And so I came up with a rule, which was you can't, if you're going to be part of the football team, you can only one one set of colors and that's blue and gold. Meaning you couldn't wear Navy blue, red, green and black. Meaning to be part of the football team, you've got to drop your gang affiliation because this team, this is your gang. This is going to be a positive experience.

It was painful. There were some kids that couldn't get out and had to quit football. There were other kids that had to take some pretty tough medicine to get out. You mean beatings to get out of the game? Couple. There's a, I mean, like there's some of the stories I've told the people, like a lot of them ended up joining just to like protect their siblings. Like their sibling will get beat up by one gang and they're like, well,

if you want this to stop, you got to join our gang. And I mean, that that's why like a lot of them are joining. So it's hard to make them to ask them to leave a gang it is very hard um but there's no future in that and so some decisions you make are you know tough but hopefully long term have positive benefits at any rate the point is how in the world could we develop a cohesive unit pulling in the same direction? You know, working on teamwork and everything else, if you were so polar opposed to one another that you would fight, you couldn't fight one day

and join it. So you had to wear those colors. And that was the rule. But the point is, to some degree, that's the same thing we're saying about our society. We cannot stand on opposite sides of the street and hate one another when we don't even when we truly don't even know one another and hate one another without tearing our team, our country apart. We can't. You know, the whole united we stand thing is, is, is at risk. So how do we break down the polarization? How do we reunite? It's not about being nice to each other. It's not about saying the right things. It's about breaking bread. It's about having conversations. It's

about face to face interaction. It's about all of those things. And where better to gain that introduction and that experience and that exposure to one another than around a common goal of serving folks who aren't as blessed as you, because you will ultimately always have an enormous emotion when you employ your efforts into such calls. And if you share that emotion with another person, you're going to see them differently. And then the political and religious and socio-economic differences you have at those people will not be nearly as stark. And all of a sudden, the polarization becomes just quaint differences among people who can

share a common bond. That to me feels like it can fix a lot of what else was. Amen, brother. Preach. Preach. So Shop Talk number 38, Evan Feinberg, the chairman of the Stand Together Foundation, says his goal is in 2025 that Merriam-Webster's Word of the Year will be something other than polarization and an army of normal folks and the folks in shop talk

are working hard to make his goal come true. Guys, if you like this show, please rate or review it. Join the army at normal folks dot us. If you have just well nevermind I shouldn't say that what I just bought normal folks.com but I don't think I've redirected it yet. Well, it's normal folks. I know but I also think I've redirected it yet. Well, it's normal folks dot us I know but I also got the dot-com the other day. Well, that's fine But I like normal folks dot us because it's us. Yeah, and dot us double meaning. Yeah, that's it Oh, okay Anyway, do all that stuff if you have if you have ideas for shop talks

Email me anytime at bill at normal folks dot us. I will respond. Hopefully I have something to add and we'll make a shop talk out of it. Thanks to our producer, Iron Light Labs. We'll see you next week. We're leaving the shop. Bye bye. Hey everyone, it's Katie Couric.

Well, the election is in the homestretch, right in time for a new season of my podcast, Next Question. I'm bringing in some FOKs, friends of Katie's to help me out like Ezra Klein, Jen Psaki, Astead Herndon. But we're also going to have some fun thanks to some of my friends like Samantha Bee and Charlemagne the God. We're going to take some viewer questions as well.

I mean, isn't that what democracy is all about? Check out our new season of Next Question with me, Katie Couric, on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What if you asked two different people the same set of questions? Even if the questions are the same, our experiences can lead us to drastically different answers. I'm Minnie Driver, and I set out to explore this idea

in my podcast, and now, Minnie Questions is returning for another season. We've asked an entirely new set of guests our seven questions, including Jane Lynch, Delaney Rowe, and Cord Jefferson. Listen to many questions on the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Seven questions, limitless answers. How serious is youth vaping? Irreversible lung damage serious, one in 10 kids vape serious,

which warrants a serious conversation from a serious parental figure like yourself. Not the seriously know-it-all sports dad or the seriously smart podcaster. It requires a serious conversation that is best had by you. No, seriously. The best person to talk to your child about vaping is you. To start the conversation, visit TalkAboutVaping.org, brought to you by the American Lung Association and the Ad Council.

Hey, it's Alec Baldwin. This past season on my podcast, Here's the Thing. Brought to you by the American do three hours in the morning, you write three hours in the afternoon, go pick up a kid from school, and right at night, and after nine hours you come out with seven pages, and then you're moving on. Listen to the new season of Here's the Thing starting January 28th on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.