Episode 181: The Problem with Panels

Political panels. We don’t talk about them enough on Polilogue—and when we do, it’s usually in the negative. Why is that? And what is wrong with the political panels on the Sunday morning political shows? In this special episode of Polilogue, we give panels the discussion they deserve. And as it turns out, this is the IDEAL time to consider panels—because at two of the Sunday morning shows have completely eliminated panels during the pandemic. So, we challenge ourselves to answer the question: if Face the Nation’s executive producer asked us if they should restart their panels, what would be our recommendation? If the panels drive you crazy—or if Polilogue drives you crazy for not talking enough about panels—this is the episode for you.

This special episode continues our series of specials while we spend time with our newborn baby girl. Each week, you can expect a new episode until September—when we will return to our traditional coverage of the Sunday morning shows. We hope you enjoy these specials as much as we’ve enjoyed the opportunity to stop and think more broadly about the Sunday shows.

Chapters

• Introduction

• The Question of Panels

• Pros and Cons

• Changes to the Panels

• Alternatives to Panels

• The Face the Nation Question

• Polilogue and Panels

• Dialogue Challenge

Contact us

Email us at podcast@polilogue.com or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Support the show: We produce Polilogue out of our own pocket. If you’d like to support the show with a one-time or recurring donation, please visit our donate page here. Thank you!

Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com  

Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org