On the Other Hand
“On the Other Hand” Podcast: Sponsored by Braver Angels Arkansas, featuring co-hosts Glen White & April Chatham-Carpenter

On the Other Hand
On the Other Hand is a podcast that explores politics and other issues of importance to Arkansans through conversations with community leaders in Arkansas. Co-hosts are Glen White and April Chatham-Carpenter, both of whom are active leaders in Braver Angels here in Arkansas. In this podcast, our goal is to serve as a venue for honest but civil conversations about a variety of topics with community leaders of diverse perspectives, especially those who work with others whose views or politics differ from their own beliefs. On the Other Hand is based on the premise that progress in our community and country happens when we listen respectfully to each other and are willing to work with each other when needed, so that problem-solving can occur and our citizens have hope of a more functional government. Ultimately, we want to help reduce political polarization in Arkansas. For questions, suggestions or feedback, contact us at: otherhandar@gmail.com. Thanks so much!

Bios for our On the Other Hand podcast staff
J. Glen White (PhD in Clinical Psychology) is a founding member of the Arkansas alliance of Braver Angels, a national organization devoted to ending extreme political polarization in America, with a mission of promoting mutual respect, civil dialog, and seeking of common ground among persons of differing political philosophies. Glen currently serves as state co-coordinator and provides workshops and presentations to support the mission of Braver Angels.
Prior to his retirement in 2021, Glen worked as a psychologist in the local Veterans Healthcare System, as clinical faculty in the University of Arkansas Medical Center, as clinical staff at a local mental health center, and as instructor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He continues to enjoy public speaking and serving his community.
As creator and co-host of the podcast On the Other Hand, Glen uses his past experiences and skills (including two years as a college DJ) to respectfully engage in conversations with podcast guests, especially community leaders in Arkansas and beyond who in various ways reach across political and other divisions to serve their community.

April Chatham-Carpenter (PhD, University of Oklahoma) is a Professor of Applied Communication at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, where she serves as Department Chair of the Department of Applied Communication. She is skilled in interpersonal communication, instructional design, group facilitation, strategic planning, relationship-based change management, and public speaking. She researches issues such as innovation and change, use of communication to manage difficult dialogues, and transformations in online teaching. She teaches both undergraduate and graduate classes in support of the Department of Applied Communication’s mission “to foster the co-creation of better social worlds through positive communication.”
Dr. Chatham-Carpenter is an active volunteer with the national Braver Angels organization, serving in leadership roles such as Director of Field Communications for the Office of Field Operations and Regional Co-Lead for the West South Central Region. She also has been active in local efforts in the Braver Angels Arkansas Alliance, serving in the past as state co-coordinator and alliance co-chair. She also regularly serves as a workshop moderator and zoom event manager for local and national Braver Angels workshops, and is a co-host of the On the Other Hand podcast.

John P. O’Brien serves as producer and editor for the podcast, On The Other Hand. John combines 33 years as a senior corporate human resources and training executive and thirteen years in public education and his decades of technical know-how with video and audio editing. John brings to the table experiences with community volunteering work as a member and an officer with Rotary International, Kiwanis International, Optimist International, Literacy Council, The United Way, Junior Achievement, and AmeriCorps.
Episodes

5 days ago
5 days ago
In part 2 of April and Glen’s conversation with Jonathan Seaborn, general manager of Little Rock Public Radio, Jonathan addresses criticisms from some listeners who complain of excessive coverage of some right-leaning figures such as Steve Bannon and President Trump. We also discuss the challenges of dealing with misinformation and disinformation in media, and how KUAR is working to meet that challenge. In discussing the past and current pushes to defund public media (e.g., NPR & PBS), Jonathan cites the relative contributions by public and private sources for KUAR’s operations and what recent threats to disable public funding of public media could mean in terms of what is likely to be lost within the community should that threat come to fruition. We also learn how the public radio stations in Arkansas are collaborating to serve the entire state of Arkansas, including more rural areas that may lack any alternative media options.

Monday Jun 09, 2025
Monday Jun 09, 2025
April and Glen talk with Jonathan Seaborn, general manager of Little Rock Public Radio & KUAR/KLRE radio stations. In this first part of our chat with Jonathan, we learn about his impressive credentials that brought him to Little Rock, as well as the extensive work he now does for Little Rock Public Radio to ensure that the many regulations and compliance requirements for public media are met. While this accountability is welcome, it reflects the station’s primary purpose of meeting needs of the community that may not always be met by more commercially viable media, where the emphasis tends to lean toward income from popular content or issues. Jonathan gives examples in both central Arkansas and in other states where local needs are met by public media that play critical roles in such areas as how citizens can secure resources and assistance in the aftermath of natural disasters. Jonathan mentions recent and existing concerns about aging infrastructure and technology, needing to relocate to a new space, and other challenges that are currently or have recently been addressed via community donations. Also discussed is the common perception that public radio tends to be a liberal voice, a perception that Jonathan asserts is, in large part, a misunderstanding of the products of National Public Radio vs other non-NPR products that may be part of programming for some NPR-affiliated stations.

Sunday Jun 01, 2025
Sunday Jun 01, 2025
In part 2 of April and Glen’s conversation with Dr. Julien Mirivel, Professor of Applied Communication at UA-Little Rock and developer of the positive communication model (www.julienmirivel.com), we explore how to use positive communication practically. One specific example is how to deal with “conflict entrepreneurs” who purposely create or stoke conflict across divisions as a way to gain personally in some way. Julien emphasizes that communication is a choice and a “moral act” -- and gives examples of how he uses this approach in his classroom during difficult discussions. We also hear about his work with Heifer International in studying human transformation that happens as a result of that organization’s work. Julien also describes the individual and community aspects of positive communication, as well as how he thinks loneliness, an increasing problem in our society, may be helped via his ideas. We conclude with his story about an influential and memorable moment he experienced in Nepal.

Sunday May 25, 2025
Sunday May 25, 2025
April and Glen’s guest for this episode is Dr. Julien Mirivel, Professor of Applied Communication at UA-Little Rock, an author, teacher, scholar, researcher and academic leader. Julien is a native of France but has lived most of his adult life in the US. He is now a citizen and lives in Little Rock with his wife and 3 children. In this first part of our conversation with Julien, he explains his model of positive communication and breaks down the several key elements of his model, which he teaches and promotes nationally and internationally via the Positive Communication Network (http://www.positivecommunication.net/) he led in developing. We discuss ways his approach to communication can help overcome the strong attraction of negative or fear-based types of communication, and how it can also help with the problem of political polarization.

Sunday May 18, 2025
Sunday May 18, 2025
In part 2 of our conversation with Andrew Collins, Democratic state representative and minority leader in the Arkansas House, April and Glen learn about changes Andrew has seen over the course of his 4 terms as a legislator. He also describes his hopes that some “overreaching” by members of the majority party will eventually be understood by Arkansans and they will be corrected by voters. Responding to a quote from his social media, Andrew explains his belief in the importance of speaking up when things are moving in the wrong direction in the state and nation. He also speaks with pride about a bipartisan action taken in a previous session to stand up for legal and moral standards by legislators. Andrew further tells of how he seeks out members with views different from his own in order to form relationships and improve his ability to work effectively in his role, with an eye toward what is best for Arkansans overall.

Friday May 09, 2025
Friday May 09, 2025
Andrew Collins, Democratic state representative and minority leader in the Arkansas House, sat down with Glen and April to discuss his work in the legislature, including the recently concluded 2025 regular session. In part 1 of our conversation, Andrew describes his early life and values that led to his career and his decision to run for elected office. His voting decisions include many votes for bills by Republicans, sometimes even members who in other instances hold positions antithetical to his own, but he explains how his votes are based on important considerations other than who sponsors the bill. Among the many bills he is asked to consider, he outlines some of concern to him as well as positive ones. Andrew also expresses concerns about the increasing incursion of national issues into their lawmaking, and of the spread of erroneous information that can sometimes be influential in voting behavior.

Sunday May 04, 2025
Sunday May 04, 2025
For the 3rd and final part of our interview with journalist, author and musician Philip Martin, Glen and April hear from Philip about some of the challenges he encounters as a public figure who offers opinions that are not always welcome by some people. He offers his thoughts on differences between advocacy journalism and that he sees being currently practiced at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Expressing his disappointment in how many people are easily manipulated in our current media environment, he offers some ideas on how to address that problem. Philip then concludes with a personal story about instructions from an editor early in his career and how that changed him.

Friday Apr 25, 2025
Friday Apr 25, 2025
In the second of our three episodes with Philip Martin - journalist, author and musician - April and Glen explore Phil's views of journalism past, present and future. He offers advice to young persons who may be considering journalism and the qualities that he'd prefer to see in who chooses to pursue that career. Phil also provides his perspective on the increasing problem of mis/disinformation and suggests some guidelines for where and how to gain information within the broader media environment. We also discuss with Phil his view of Hillary Clinton's presidential run, and he discloses some interesting inside information provided to him at that time.

Saturday Apr 19, 2025
#102, OTOH, Philip Martin, journalist, author and musician, Part 1, Feb 21 2025
Saturday Apr 19, 2025
Saturday Apr 19, 2025
April & Glen welcome Philip Martin, a journalist, author and musician, into conversation about his life and work. In part 1 of our interview with Philip, we briefly review his extensive pursuits over the years, which include a brief stint as a pro baseball player, author of several books, appearances over the years in local and national media, and his love of music (including being a musician and songwriter). We also explore his career in journalism, which most recently includes many years with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, for which he writes regular columns on music, movies, politics and other topics. Phil shares with us his wish for politics to once again be dull and not entertaining. His approach to ongoing demands for writing in his job is also described. Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 of our conversation with Philip.

Sunday Apr 13, 2025
Sunday Apr 13, 2025
In part 2 of this conversation with Shana Chaplin, Program Director for the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute in Arkansas, Glen and April hear how local government can get its citizens engaged and active. The new Civic Guide, recently published by the Civic Arkansas imitative (https://rockefellerinstitute.org/programs/civic-arkansas/), is posed as one important tool to help citizens get involved. The initiative also has partnered with Miss Teen Arkansas and with others to facilitate more involvement and education among young Arkansans. The fatigue by Arkansans over persistent divisiveness is one source of mistrust in news sources, worsened by current strong misinformation currents in the media environment. Ways the Civic Arkansas initiative addresses this challenge are discussed. Shana also describes an effort to encourage civility in public discussions to hopefully improve a sense of trust among those who seek to engage in their communities. Hopeful signs are highlighted, including the willingness of most Arkansans to help neighbors during times of community crisis without regard to their beliefs or political views, along with the difficulties accompanying that community response.

Braver Angels Arkansas
On the Other Hand is sponsored by Braver Angels in Arkansas, part of a national organization that aims to reduce political polarization, to help people discover common ground, and to promote a more respectful and productive exchange of perspectives among participants in our democracy. Music heard during the On the Other Hand podcast was composed by Randall Standridge of Jonesboro, AR and was performed by the University of Northern Colorado Symphonic Band, Dr. Richard Mayne, conductor.
Listeners of On the Other Hand – we want to hear from you!
We’d love to hear from our listeners about feedback on what you like about our podcast, suggestions for improvement, ideas for speakers or topics, or whatever you want to share with us. Email us at: otherhandar@gmail.com
Learn more about us on our web site or visit our Facebook page.