Baton Rouge Civic Event Fosters Civil Discourse on Media Literacy

In downtown Baton Rouge’s 6th & Main event space, 90 people gathered on January 22 for an evening focused on strengthening civil discourse and tackling media literacy challenges. The event, called Civic Sips, represents a growing effort to bridge political divides and promote thoughtful dialogue in an increasingly polarized society.

Organized jointly by the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana (PAR) and LSU’s Reilly Center for Media and Public Affairs, the evening created structured opportunities for citizens from diverse backgrounds to engage with each other on substantive issues facing the community.

“The goal is simple: bring people together from various backgrounds, whether it’s ideological backgrounds and perspectives, for meaningful, respectful conversation,” explained Michael DiResto, director of the Reilly Center for Media and Public Affairs, in his opening remarks.

Upon arrival, participants received color-coded name tags that directed them to tables with matching colored placards, ensuring diverse groupings rather than allowing people to self-select into familiar circles. After grabbing drinks and food, attendees broke the ice by sharing their guilty pleasures before diving into deeper discussions.

The event’s topic—media literacy and tools for discerning misinformation—addressed a recurring concern that organizers had encountered in their community outreach work.

“We were giving a presentation to someone else,” explained Steven Procopio, PAR’s president. “They said, ‘Hey, can we ask y’all, who can we trust? What are the trusted media sources?’ I don’t think that the best thing to do is to come up with a list. I think the best thing to do is to try and give people tools so they can make that evaluation themselves.”

To address these concerns, the organizers invited Len Apcar, professional-in-residence and holder of the Wendell Gray Switzer Jr. Endowed Chair in Media Literacy at LSU. Apcar shared practical tools for evaluating information, drawing from his extensive journalism experience.

Each participant received pamphlets from LSU’s Manship School of Mass Communication outlining tips to avoid fake news. Apcar emphasized six key questions for testing media reliability:

1. Who says? Check the attribution.
2. How do they know? Check for records and data.
3. Are they independent? Check for motive and bias.
4. What is the URL? Watch for similar URLs that might be fake news sites.
5. What about the quotes? Check to see if quotes appear elsewhere in other media.
6. What about the images? Check whether images have been doctored or manipulated, using tools like Google Image search.

After Apcar’s presentation, tables discussed times when news stories had challenged their viewpoints or changed their minds. One participant described gaining new understanding about the Israel-Palestine conflict by reading diverse perspectives, while another mentioned how multiple sources helped them better understand current events in Iran.

Julie O’Donahue, a journalist with the Louisiana Illuminator who attended the event, shared her professional method for evaluating credibility: “Look at who is participating in the story and willing to go on record,” she advised her table, noting the importance of real-time sources and the number of people contributing to a story.

The Civic Sips initiative is part of a broader effort called the Common Ground Project, launched in August as a partnership between LSU’s Reilly Center and PAR. The nonpartisan project aims to understand and reduce political polarization in Louisiana through research, public events like Civic Sips, and another outreach program called Pizza & Public Affairs.

The January 22 event was the second Civic Sips gathering, following an initial session held November 6 at Blend Wine Bar in Baton Rouge. The organizers plan to continue holding these events quarterly, with the next scheduled for April 16.

“It’s been really encouraging to see how much of an appetite there is in Baton Rouge for a space where people can come together, connect with one another and have meaningful conversations about our democracy and civic life,” said Maria DeRoche, the Reilly Center program coordinator.

As the official end time of 8 p.m. arrived, many participants lingered, continuing conversations with their new acquaintances—perhaps the clearest evidence of the evening’s success in fostering meaningful community connections.