It’s been an exciting first year for the Narratives Project! We’ve worked to deliver analyses on a wide variety of divisive events to help our readers better understand themselves and their contra-partisans.
Here’s a look back at 2021 and how we’ve been able to impact the discourse and help make the internet a better, more peaceful place.
REPORT
How five major news publications define and operationalize CRT
DEEP DIVES
REGULAR NEWS ANALYSIS
IN THE MEDIA
Moving Forward with Young Voices
Heard Tell with Andrew Donaldson
ANIMATED VIDEO SERIES
Impact
BY THE NUMBERS
OUTPUT
21 DEEP DIVES
31 NEWS ANALYSES
6 VIDEOS
900+ SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS
REACH
1,500+ TOTAL FOLLOWERS
210,000+ TOTAL IMPRESSIONS
12,700+ TOTAL ENGAGEMENTS
AUDIENCE TESTIMONIALS
"I always get excited whenever a NP analysis drops because it helps quickly explain the development of issues and the framings used for them."
Alex P.
“The Narratives Project has helped me find some common ground with folks who have difficulty understanding where ‘the other side’ is coming from.”
Seth M.
“The Narratives Project provides a credible ideological Turing test. By measuring trends in online discourse and identifying the roots of the various opinions involved, NP offers readers a standard of understanding and articulating their opponents’ ideas as well as they do. Achieving that is an important foundation to productive conversation.”
John K.
Looking forward
When asked why others disagree with a deeply held political opinion, people often respond with one of four rather uncharitable answers. Those who disagree must either be ignorant, brainwashed, stupid, or outright evil. At the Narratives Project, we’re committed to the better answer: People with different priors, experiences, and values can reasonably come to different, reasonable positions.
We’re extremely grateful to be able to share our accomplishments this year, and what we’re doing to positively influence the way we consume media and treat those we disagree with.
Today, the project consists of a small group of researchers committed to peace, pluralism, and political mindfulness. We’re continuing to develop short, accessible content and media analysis to rapidly respond to situations where political narratives begin to spiral into deep, mutual animosity.
In addition, we’re becoming a place where people can turn to for practical pluralism. A place where the disaffected, exhausted, or concerned can come for a useful and optimistic vision of peace, and concrete solutions to real-world divisions.
As a nonprofit organization, we are deeply grateful for the support of our generous donors that allow us to continue our work and pursue our mission of peaceful pluralism. People can (and should) disagree, of course, but we can disagree without hate, hostility, or malice. Because as we like to say: There’s more than one way to live the good life.
Sincerely,
Shaun, Anna, Sofia, and Dom
