The Persuaders

CHOSEN AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE GUARDIAN, NEW STATESMAN AND THE IRISH TIMES

''Illuminating and entertaining . . . while the world seems to counsel despair, The Persuaders is animated by a sense of possibility'' The New York Times

A riveting insider account of how activists, politicians, educators and citizens are working to change minds, bridge divisions and save democracy

The lifeblood of any free society is persuasion: changing other people''s minds to enable real change. But America is suffering a crisis of faith in persuasion that is putting its democracy and the planet itself at risk. People increasingly write each other off instead of seeking to win each other over. Debates are framed in moralistic terms, with enemies battling the righteous. Movements for justice build barriers to entry, instead of on-ramps. Political parties focus on mobilizing the faithful rather than wooing the sceptical. And leader