Mia Freedman: "I called up Andrew Bolt and we had an interesting conversation."

I want to tell you something but I’m nervous about it.

I’m nervous that you’ll condemn me and shut me down and dismiss everything I have to say from this point.

But screw it. I didn’t decide to burst my bubble to make friends or make people like me. I did it to open my mind.

Listen to Mia Freedman talk to Andrew Bolt. 

Or, more accurately, pry it open with a screwdriver (or whatever tool is used for prying, how would I know?) because it’s become rather sealed shut without me realising it for some time now.

So look. I called up Andrew Bolt and he was nice on the phone. Personable. We didn’t shout at each other. I enjoyed our conversation even if he said many things I didn’t agree with. I knew that was going to happen.

But he said a few things that DID make me think. All my bubble-burst conversations have left me with nuggets that have settled in my consciousness, re-ordering some of the opinions and ideas that have been cemented there over years and even decades.

Mia Freedman bursts her bubble with Miranda Devine in another special episode of No Filter. Post continues after audio…

I’m nervous to tell you that Andrew Bolt is interesting to talk to because I’m worried you’ll think that means I agree with everything he says. This is patently absurd but so are the death threats received by the poor woman with her baby in a backpack who got a selfie with Hillary in the woods while hiking after the election.

Since when did being polite to someone and listening to them and having a civil exchange – or a selfie – become a total endorsement of that person’s political, social and spiritual ideology? These are truly silly times.

Can you think of anyone in your life with whom you agree on everything? Not my husband, my friends, my parents or my children.

And not Andrew Bolt. But was I able to have an interesting conversation with him and listen to what he had to say and ask him some questions to better understand where he was coming from? Sure. And so I did.

Like my other bubble burst interviews, I had to resist the impulse to get into debates or arguments because that's not what this was about. It was about being quiet and listening to see if I could better understand the motivations and beliefs of people I don't usually listen to.

And there you have the world's longest disclaimer for a podcast. Yes, I spoke to Andrew Bolt. And I'd like to speak with him again because he is hugely popular and influential and just because I don't agree with him doesn't mean what he says has no value.

Bubble. Burst.

Hear the full conversation between Mia Freedman and Andrew Bolt here...

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