Obama tells Glasgow audience hope is worth fighting for

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 15 Oct, 10:32 · Archive

Barack Obama told an audience of about 12,150 in Glasgow that hope remains worth pursuing despite the modern world's challenges.

Barack Obama addressed an audience of approximately 12,150 at the Ovo Hydro in Glasgow on Wednesday evening, speaking in conversation with British journalist and author Sathnam Sanghera. The former US president reflected on his time in the White House and examined the political and social challenges facing the United States and the wider world.

Obama said he initially saw the emerging internet as a beacon for hope during his presidential campaign in 2008, when social media and technology were gaining traction. However, he noted that the same positive forces and tools that could mobilise people around democracy and human rights could also be used by hate groups. 'It connected people for good, but also for ill,' he said.

Observing a shift in recent years on online platforms, Obama explained that anger, fear and resentment attract the brain more readily than other content. 'It turns out that the reptilian side of our brain really gets attracted to anger, fear, resentment and the sense that someone is out to get you,' he said. 'So a lot of social media and a lot of our information is informed around that.'

Despite identifying this drift towards extremism, Obama said it is 'not inevitable'. He referenced post-World War Two regulatory approaches in the United States and Europe, noting that governments recognised the dangers of propaganda and misinformation, citing how 'big lies and misinformation can distort and enrage and incite violence'.

How it is being reported

• Barack Obama tells Glasgow audience 'hope is worth fighting for' despite world challengesThe former US president reflected on his time in the White House.Glasgow Live · 15 Oct, 10:12
• World faces big challenges but ‘we can be better’, Obama tells Glasgow audienceBarack Obama has told an audience in Glasgow that hope is worth fighting for despite the big challenges facing the modern world.The Herald · 15 Oct, 07:54

In this story: Barack Obama · Sathnam Sanghera · Glasgow · United States · Europe

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