Ideas change everything

How to disagree with respect — not hate

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Spencer J. Cox |

TED2024

• April 2024

Spencer J. Cox, Republican governor of the state of Utah in the United States, says that even in these deeply polarized times, it's still possible to disagree without hate or contempt. He shows how this idea sparked a viral campaign ad he co-created with his Democratic political opponent back in 2020 — and shares four practical things every one of us can do to heal the divides in our nations and neighborhoods. (TED is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and does not participate or intervene in any political campaign and neither supports nor opposes any candidate for public office.)

Want to use TED Talks in your organization?

Want to use TED Talks in your organization?

Spencer J. Cox, Republican governor of the state of Utah in the United States, says that even in these deeply polarized times, it's still possible to disagree without hate or contempt. He shows how this idea sparked a viral campaign ad he co-created with his Democratic political opponent back in 2020 — and shares four practical things every one of us can do to heal the divides in our nations and neighborhoods. (TED is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and does not participate or intervene in any political campaign and neither supports nor opposes any candidate for public office.)

Want to use TED Talks in your organization?

This talk was presented at an official TED conference.

Read our curation guidelines.

Consider sharing the Disagree Better governors ads on social media, or even recording your own Disagree Better ad on social media. You could record either alone, explaining why healthy conflict is important, or with a friend or family member, explaining together that you disagree about politics, but that's OK, and your relationship is more important anyway. In the absence of a video, consider a post explaining the same ideas. Use the hashtag #DisagreeBetter

Consider getting involved with any of the many organizations working to reduce polarization in different ways, many of which are listed on the NGA Website. Some offer trainings, some pair people up online for a conversation with someone with different political views, some have college chapters, some work with churches.

About the speaker

Governor of Utah

See speaker profile

This talk was presented at an official TED conference.

Read our curation guidelines.

Consider sharing the Disagree Better governors ads on social media, or even recording your own Disagree Better ad on social media. You could record either alone, explaining why healthy conflict is important, or with a friend or family member, explaining together that you disagree about politics, but that's OK, and your relationship is more important anyway. In the absence of a video, consider a post explaining the same ideas. Use the hashtag #DisagreeBetter

Consider getting involved with any of the many organizations working to reduce polarization in different ways, many of which are listed on the NGA Website. Some offer trainings, some pair people up online for a conversation with someone with different political views, some have college chapters, some work with churches.