The TrustMakers

David Simas, the Managing Director of Research and Impact at Emerson Collective, joins Justin Blake, Executive Director of the Edelman Trust Institute, to discuss takeaways from the U.S. presidential elections and other elections around the world for all brand, business, and media leaders. They cover the forces at play in this year’s elections, determining the best messenger for the message you are communicating, and the increasing importance of deeply understanding your audience. “In a fragmenting media ecosystem where people can select and sort their consumption in any way they want, the nuance that you need to bring in terms of audience determination is much more refined,” David says.

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Dr. Marcus Collins, a clinical assistant professor of marketing at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and author of “For the Culture,” explains to Brooks Miller, Executive Vice President of Influencer Marketing at Edelman, why “vibes” helped former President Donald Trump win the 2024 U.S. presidential election. “We make decisions based off of what we feel, and we post-hoc rationalize them with the data available to us. Because we make most of our decisions in life as such, why would voting be any different?” Marcus says. 

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Lynn Walsh, Assistant Director of Trusting News, talks with Justin Blake, Executive Director of the Edelman Trust Institute, about the state of trust in the media during the 2024 U.S. election cycle. She lays out how journalists can build trust through transparency, engagement, and humility and how national media organizations should focus on providing people with content to help them make informed voting decisions. “[Newsrooms should] get on the record about their goals and mission with election coverage… If people see our coverage and they only see one story, how can we make sure they understand what our goals and mission are?” Lynn says.

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In the first episode of The TrustMakers’ 2024 U.S. election series, Joe Vogel, a member of Maryland’s House of Delegates, talks with Amanda Edelman, COO of Edelman’s Gen Z Lab, about young voters’ views of government. As a member of Gen Z himself, Delegate Vogel has perspective on what matters most to America’s youngest voting bloc this election season. “Young people do not want the toxic divisive policies. They want solutions to the challenges they’re facing,” Vogel says.

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Kristin Lord, CEO of IREX, and Alex Heath, Edelman’s U.S. Head of Social Impact and Sustainability, discuss how global NGOs can build trust in society from the ground up by partnering with local non-profit organizations, building personal relationships, and reminding people what they have in common with one another. “You need to bring all the right stakeholders in and not just help them get to know each other but make sure they can work together to figure out what they both have in common that they want. The process of figuring that out together will help build trust,” Kristin says. 

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Roy Bahat, Head of Bloomberg Beta, joins Justin Blake, Executive Director of the Edelman Trust Institute to talk about why he thinks employers are the most trusted institution, based on data from the 2024 Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Trust at Work, and how workplaces can responsibly integrate AI. “If we want an accelerated pace of technology adoption, there’s no solution but to incorporate the perspectives of those who are most affected,” he says. 

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Almar Latour, publisher of the Wall Street Journal and CEO of Dow Jones, joins Edelman CEO Richard Edelman to discuss the release of WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich who was wrongly imprisoned in Russia, the WSJ’s business model, and his hopeful vision for the media writ large. “It’s a great time for new ideas, to test new ways of reaching audiences. New news organizations are not going to look like the old newspaper, but they are going to address a need for a community to understand what is going on,” Almar says.

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ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos sat down with Edelman CEO Richard Edelman to give a behind-the-scenes look at presidents’ crises that are featured in his book, “The Situation Room.” They also discuss the evolution of media and journalists’ role defending the truth, especially in this U.S. presidential election year.

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The ACLU’s Deputy Legal Director and Director of The Trone Center for Justice and Equality, Yasmin Cader, speaks with Edelman’s Global Chief Diversity Equity & Inclusion Officer, Trisch Smith, about the latest Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Business and Racial Justice in America. Yasmin and Trisch talk about the ACLU’s history and work, how to navigate attacks on DE&I and where DE&I in the workplace is headed. “Have clarity, proceed with confidence and remain committed to fostering a sense of inclusion,” says Yasmin.

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After protests and resignations at prominent universities across the U.S. last semester, all eyes are on campuses at the start of this new school year. Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier sits down with Edelman CEO Richard Edelman to discuss the importance of defining a university’s values when balancing freedom of speech with safety on campus, as well as addressing “affective polarization” throughout society.

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