He meets young people who have left the extremist Westboro Baptist church, and interviews a psychologist who is so passionate about promoting progressive conversations that she created “an Uncle Bot, a simple AI to stand in for an argumentative relative”.
He talks to Charlie Veitch, a well-known 9/11 conspiracy theorist who was demonised by his online community after announcing that he had changed his views. McRaney, the bestselling author of You Are Not So Smart, is fascinated by the intersection of brains, minds and culture, and in this book he takes a tour through politics and fashion, social media, psychology and human evolution, to understand “the new science of belief, opinion and persuasion”. Because while you can’t talk someone into changing their mind, you just might be able to listen them into it, and David McRaney thinks he can show you how. But it’s an optimistic, illuminating and even inspiring read. It reveals the psychological and evolutionary reasons why all humans are certain we are right, and why “certainty” is nothing but an illusion. It is disappointing for lovers of debate. T his book is bad news for anyone who thinks we should use facts and evidence to change people’s minds.
