# What Political Civility Really is and Combatting Toxicity w/ Michael Lee | Politics with Paul #86

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/politics-with-paul-7031218/what-political-civility-really-is-and-combatting-toxicity-w-michael-lee-politics-with-paul-86
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/politics-with-paul-7031218/what-political-civility-really-is-and-combatting-toxicity-w-michael-lee-politics-with-paul-86.md
Podcast: [Politics with Paul](https://stenobird.com/podcast/politics-with-paul-7031218)
Published: 2026-03-31T12:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://podcast.paulrader.org/episodes/2JFyopjfOqq
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/media.podcastai.com/episodes/2JFyopjfOqq.mp3?u=1775014201
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Duration seconds: 2733

## Resource

Do we know what civility in conversation actually looks like? Healthy and grounded discussion is in short supply, especially in politics. Political discussions are often filled with toxic rhetoric and behavior, leading to many instances of verbal and physical violence. But while we know what toxicity looks like, there are some misunderstandings and mistaken beliefs about what civility looks like. So how do we become more civil? Today's guest, Dr. Michael Lee, dives into this question and more. Dr. Lee is the executive director of the Civility Initiative at the College of Charleston and the host of the "When We Disagree" Podcast. Check out his insights, spanning over multiple decades, on what we get wrong about civility, how to better engage in healthy discussion, and how to make civil dialogue more engaging and fun.

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## Transcript

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