Ending Gridlock in Washington
At a time when political gridlock has paralyzed Washington and left many Americans wondering if there is any way to tackle complex national issues, Communication Prof. Chad Raphael points to civic forums as way to break deadlock and rejuvenate democracy.
Raphael examines the role forums can play in Deliberation, Democracy, and Civic Forums (Cambridge University Press), a book he co-authored with Christopher F. Karpowitz, co-director of the Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy and associate professor of political science at Brigham Young University.
“Our research identifies many successful examples of political deliberation in well-designed forums where citizens and officials engage in give-and-take discussion and arrive at solutions. These forums have developed ‘participatory budgets’ in many cities, energy policy in Texas and Nebraska, community policing in Chicago and much more,” Karpowitz and Raphael wrote in a recent CNN editorial. “Some of these forums are healing the rotting roots of democracy.”