Our Great Experiment is a student-driven channel led by Daniel Egemo, a Ph.D. student in political science at the University of Missouri. Egemo started Our Great Experiment the morning after Charlie Kirk was killed on Utah Valley University’s campus.
Egemo stated,”When someone can be shot dead in the United States for expressing unpopular opinions, we are arriving at a crisis. This project was created with the goal of restoring decency in our politics, one person at a time.”
Our Great Experiment is meant to be a non-partisan, free speech platform. Egemo emphasizes that, “We must start to humanize our political opponents. When you look at those who disagree with you as non-human or as lesser than you, it becomes awfully easy to cheer for their demise.”
Social media clips from our great experiment
In the clip above, Our Great Experiment set up at Speakers Circle and stopped other students to ask them a simple question: “Can you say something kind about the opposite political party?” They received mostly positive responses from students. For example, some left-leaning individuals said they respect the right’s patriotism, skepticism and positive view of the country. Some right-leaning individuals noted that they respect the left’s empathy and seemingly good intentions.
In the clip above, Our Great Experiment set up once again at Speakers Circle on Mizzou’s campus, but this time they asked students for their positive political hot take. Examples of these positive takes include the belief that, no matter which side someone is on, everyone mutually wants what’s best for the country; that things in the country will get better; and that over time, things will correct themselves.
Daniel described his experience with Mizzou students as amazing. He said ” They make me proud to be a grad student here… as a whole, they have been incredibly kind to project, myself, and those they have interacted with.”
What else does our great experiment do?
Our Great Experiment shares more than just social media clips- they also produce active YouTube videos that feature deepened political dialogue. On Our Great Experiment’s channel, the first eight videos are sit-down episodes featuring Egemo and a guest. Some titles of the videos include “Moving Beyond Us Vs. Them in Politics”, “What Can History Teach Us About Political Polarization?” and “Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Global Governance.”
Where is our great experiment headed?
Egemo states that he wants to “work hard toward building this platform.” This means continuing long-form dialogue series on YouTube and social media, continuing campus dialogue series and eventually getting more people involved.
Our Great Experiment is a young project, less than two months old. As the project continues to expand, they currently have no concrete plans to operate outside of Mizzou, but they hope to visit as many different places as possible- even beyond university campuses. So far, they have visited the University of Missouri and Indiana University-Bloomington, holding a total of three in-person events in less than 50 days.
Get Involved with our great Experiment
As Egemo is currently running a one-man show, he handles everything- from editing videos and designing thumbnails to reaching out to potential guests, managing social media and planning future events. If they anyone believes in the mission of Our Great Experiment, they would love the help! Contact danielegemo@gmail.com if you are interested.
I encourage all Mizzou students- and anyone, really – to follow Our Great Experiment and get involved. In this day and age, it’s all too easy to hate someone with opposing views. We’ve become so entitled to division that we often forget we’re all on the same team. Our Great Experiment is breaking the fourth wall, and I am excited to see how far they take this. If you see them at Speakers Circle on campus, make sure to swing by and be prepared to give your best positive takes. You can find their Instagram, TikTok and YouTube below.
Instagram-
https://www.instagram.com/ourgreatexp?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==
TikTok-
https://www.tiktok.com/@ourgreatexperiment?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
Youtube-
https://youtube.com/@ourgreatexperiment?si=8uGoJIlzxp3n6nfN
If you would like to read another post that pushes the norm, then read the Her Campus at Mizzou article titled “Public Media Matters Now More Than Ever- Why We Must Continue To Fight For Public Media” by Erin Hynes.