From Ideas to Innovation Podcast

Brilliant researchers are often the worst communicators. Not because of what they have to say, but because they lead with logic in a world that feels first and reasons second.Every day we face an important choice: be right, or make a difference. Most people working in policy and academia focus too much on one, to their detriment.If you have a great idea that’s struggling to catch momentum, this episode is for you.About This Episode’s GuestJosh Bandoch has spent his career in the places where ideas meet resistance — academia, government, policy advocacy, speechwriting, and fundraising. As a persuasion expert and policy advocate working across ideological lines in Illinois, he has tested these methods where the stakes are real, and to audiences who rarely agree with him.His new book, How to Get What You Want: Mastering the Art and Science of Persuasion, draws on over a decade of research and real-world practice to tackle a problem hiding in plain sight: brilliant people with important ideas who can’t get anyone to listen.In this conversation, Josh breaks down the science behind why logic alone fails and shares a practical, actionable framework for persuading anyone across the political spectrum.What You’ll Take Away* Why leading with data and logic is actually illogical, and what neuroscience says you should do instead* How to frame the same idea differently for a conservative, a progressive, and a libertarian audience without being inauthentic* Why the winning mindset destroys long-term relationships* The single most powerful question you can ask anyone to unlock what’s really stopping them This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit fromideastoinnovation.substack.com

Most of us hate how we consume media. We doom scroll, feel anxious, and know something is wrong — but keep going back anyway.John Jameson Gould grew The Atlantic‘s audience by 10x by relying on a the modern media business model — then grew increasingly uncomfortable with what he’d built, realizing the business model ran on dopamine and conflict.Welcome to the first episode of From Ideas to Innovation. In this conversation, Gould takes us inside the institutions that created this model, and explains why he decided to dismantle it.About This Episode’s GuestJohn Jameson Gould has shaped how America thinks for decades. As former digital editor of The Atlantic, editor of The New Republic, and editor at large of The Washington Monthly, he helped grow some of the most influential media brands in the country.Today, as CEO of Marlborough House and editorial director of The Signal, he’s doing something different: building a media company designed not to capture your attention, but to help you think.With a Ph.D. from Yale in the history of political thought, experience at McKinsey & Company, and now running his own media startup, John is exactly the kind of cross-sector thinker this podcast exists to bring to the table.What You’ll Take Away* Why the attention economy is really exchanging narratives. * Understanding “conflict entrepreneurialism” and how it quietly shapes the media you consume every day.* Why truly “neutral” media doesn’t exist, and what a more honest alternative actually looks like. * How The Signal is built around the primacy of the question rather than hot takes and partisan point-scoring.* Why there’s a demand for media that helps people think together, and what that means for the future of American democracy.Cross-Disciplinary ConnectionInformation is the lifeblood of good decision-making, but the current media ecosystem is poisoning it.I’ve written before about the horseshoe theory of politics, which is the idea that the far left and far right are actually quite closely aligned. In this episode, Gould calls the engine driving that convergence: “conflict entrepreneurialism.” The premise that half the country is your enemy is false — but you can hear it everywhere in the "them" and "they" language that dominates modern media.What I found most compelling was how The Signal is actively rejecting that model — not by claiming neutrality, but by enabling people to think for themselves rather than telling them what to think. As Gould puts it, that’s a radically democratic idea.And it’s one that matters enormously for the three sectors this podcast exists to connect: * Business leaders making high-stakes decisions need information that builds understanding, not conflict. * Policymakers crafting legislation are only as good as the inputs they receive — and a broken media ecosystem produces broken inputs. * Academics trying to communicate complex ideas to the public are fighting a model that punishes depth and rewards outrage.This conversation only works if the people in it can come to the table and actually hear each other. That’s why reimagining media isn’t just a journalism problem — it’s the foundation on which every cross-sector conversation must be builtThe Conversation Continues…A few questions from this episode worth sitting with, and asking friends and colleagues:* Do you think the media’s business model is fixable, or does it need to be rebuilt from scratch?* Have you ever caught yourself consuming media you knew wasn’t good for you? What kept you going back?* Is there a media outlet you trust to help you think rather than just react? What makes it different?Feel free to drop your thoughts in the comments. Your perspective belongs in this discussion, pull up a chair at the table.Next Time… I hope you’ll tune in for our conversation in two weeks. I’m sitting down with Joshua Bandoch to discuss his new book How to Get What You Want: Mastering the Art and Science of Persuasion. We will discuss persuasion across academia, policy, and business. In the meantime, please subscribe and share the episode with a colleague who will find the topic interesting. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit fromideastoinnovation.substack.com