September 19 – 22, 2019
Dallas, Texas
Our Mission
The goal of America in One Room is simple: to enrich the nation’s political conversation.
With the 2020 Presidential election around the corner and political discourse rife with partisanship, polarization, and misinformation, A1R offers a solution: a nationwide Deliberative Poll. A1R will bring together five hundred citizen-delegates—real people with real opinions on real issues—for a weekend designed specifically to cultivate the kind of informed, substantive discussions that have been missing from the recent political climate.
A1R is designed to be unbiased. Participants will learn about the most pressing issues facing our country uninfluenced by political rhetoric. They will deliberate with one another in professionally moderated group discussions, promoting deep, thoughtful dialogue instead of rote stump speeches and trivial sound bites. Through these discussions, without the hindrances and distractions of partisanship and political agenda, these citizens will have the opportunity to learn from and teach, to hear and be heard, by America as a whole.
Together, the citizen-delegates are a representative microcosm of all the ideological and demographical nuances that comprise our national identity. They can speak for the people because they are the people. A1R is not only a well-tested and proven experiment in democracy, it is also a demonstration of what the American political conversation can look like—what conclusions can and should be drawn—when our democracy is rooted in civility, diversity, knowledge, and respect
Press
– These 526 Voters Represent All of America: And They Spent A Weekend Together The New York Times 10/2019
– Opinion: This Experiment Has Some Great News for Our Democracy The New York Times 10/2019
– Opinion: What if There’s a Better Way to Handle Our Democratic Debate? The New York Times 8/2019
– “Intense Democracy”: How Two Academics are Trying to Break the Outrage Cycle Vanity Fair/HIVE 9/2019
– How a weekend of discussing politics shifted the views of these Americans CNN 10/2019
– 526 people were asked to talk politics. The response tested American democracy CNN 9/2019
– Democracy in America is failing — here’s how we can still make it work Salon 9/2019
– John Dickerson discusses upcoming America in One Room Deliberative Poll Slate’s Political Gabfest 7/2019
– Politics Newsletter: America in One Room The Christian Science Monitor 10/2019
– North Texas hosts ‘America in One Room’ poll for 2020 presidential election The Dallas Morning News 9/2019
– Field Experiment: What I Learned from Listening to Americans Deliberate The American Interest 9/2019
– Middle American – My Experience with American in One Room Hannah Hodges Rivera 10/2019
– Sharon Fuller: America In One Room Caledonian Record 9/2019
– Sharon man heads to Texas for a national civic experiment on election Monadnock Ledger-Transcript 9/2019
What is Deliberative Polling®?
Deliberative Polling®
Deliberative Polling® uses public opinion research in a new and constructive way. A random, representative sample is first polled on the targeted issues.
How it Works
Shortly after the baseline poll, the members of the sample are brought together in a single location in order to discuss the issues on the poll. In order to inform the participants and foster discussion, carefully balanced briefing materials on the targeted issues are sent to them ahead of time. (Briefing materials are also made publicly available.)
The Importance of Dialogue
At the event, the participants break into small groups, each led by a trained moderator, in which they deliberate on the issues and formulate questions for attending policy experts and political leaders. They engage with the experts and leaders directly in a town hall setting.
