V Spehar is another name I was not familiar with before listening to the McCourtney Institute’s Democracy Works podcast. However, I found her background to be insightful and her journey into political discussion and civic leadership to be impactful. Even though she had not intentionally pursued a career in politics, I thought her segue from the culinary world to lobbying for better food policy was a fascinating turn of events. And, then, with her story to how she transitioned to TikTok and where she is now, indirectly as a result of January 6, was also interesting to see how her career changed once again.

As the conversation moves along, I found it interesting when Spehar describes their audience on their TikToks and who is watching them speak. I think it is easy to deduce that mainly young people use TikTok, but, from my own experience, I can say that older adults watch TikTok a little too much (e.g. my dad). They admit that 30% of their audience are Gen X, Boomers, and older and that the number one employer of their audience is the United States Army. As Spehar put it best, they have a nice mix of people viewing their content, which is telling of the type of appeal their videos have to a greater audience.

With that in mind, I really enjoyed how Spehar went on to dicuss the community they created on their platform and how it is a community and an individual has to earn their right to stay in that community. While they don’t shun people for their comments, Spehar gives them a chance to hear them out on their opinions in the comments before deciding if the person isn’t acting in good faith. I think this is extremely important as it is very easy to disregard someone because their viewpoints do not align with our. Hearing someone out, though, can lead to a healthier forum and discussion rather than responding with such defense.

Toward the end of the discussion, Spinelle and Spehar talk about traditiional news outlets turning toward shorts and TikTok-like formats. Spinelle points out that this transition seems somewhat inauthentic, feeling unnatural from a big news conglomerate. I enjoyed Spehar’s take on the topic and why this feeling arises when a media outlet wants to transition to “appeal” to younger audiences. They point out that these news outlets believe this form of content is a fad and something that isn’t sustainable.

However, Spehar points out that the format works for creators like themself because it is entertainment that is not coming from a the usual sources of information. What Spehar does well is storytelling and combining their sources for the general audience to consume easily. I also have found this to be a trend and something that media outlets seem to fail at. Overall, I found this discussion to be very insightful and something worthwhile as a young individual figuring out the sources of media and news I find reliable.

After listening to the Cassidy Hutchinson McCourtney Institute event, I found her story to be incredibly vulnerable and something to learn from. To preface, I had known very little about Cassidy Hutchinson’s story prior to listening to the recording on the Democracy Works podcast. I had known she had some sort of affiliation with the Trump administration and January 6th insurrection, but I had not understood her significance surrounding the situation. Regardless, listening to her speak made me realize how much humility she has and her confidence to stand for her country rather than that of the few powerful players who are ultimately disrupting democracy.

As I am coming into my own political beliefs, hearing her journey through discovering her own was very inspiring and something that seemed natural and authentic. Despite not coming from a politically engaged family, her spark into politics came about through her education with her own curiosity leading her to understand where her political values align. I also found her journey into civic service to be interesting as she submitted her résumé to all 100 senate offices for an internship. While she noted she applied to every Republican house office before doing this, I think it speaks of her character to be open-minded in a politically-charged America to set her political beliefs aside in order to get her foot in the door.

An important aspect to this conversation was the discussion of political tribalism and how divided the United States has become in recent years. A specific point in time that Hutchinson points out is the comparison between the Republican party of Mitt Romney to what the Republican party has transformed into under Donald Trump’s leadership and influence. She points out that this form of tribalism speaks to our innate human nature and something that is a natural instinct. I found that what she is urging the audience to understand is that tribalism is not the only way to a better America. She even pointed out that if everyone thought like her, that would not lead to a better America. What I got out of this is that the joy of democracy is the interchanging of ideas and understanding others’ perspectives.

Another theme I found throughout the whole conversation was that of a person’s character and how one portrays such within politics. Hutchinson admits that Washington D.C. is a very ego-driven place, filled with the leading minds of the country thinking they can create real world change. But, she understands that at the end of the day these leaders are people, and it is important to humanize them away from their egos. I believe this is a very powerful statement and something that gets lost in translation, often, as many people regard such leaders with a distinct superiority. At the end of the day, I believe that the assessment of one’s character and seeing their true humanity is imperative for maintaining our democratic nation and the values it strives to uphold.