"You rarely hear opposing factions talking to each other in a gentle, curious, kind, non-adversarialAn adversary is a person or group that is against another. manner." For writer Jon Ronson, this summarises the "culture warsA cultural conflict between groups in a society.". 

He is not the first to point out that we live in deeply polarised times. But where most people blame social media for dividing us, Ronson thinks the root is much older. In his podcast series, Things Fell Apart, he hunts for the origins of the culture wars in 1970s America.

The 1960s and 1970s were fraught times. Many of the deepest values of conservative ChristianA political movement that fuses ideas from Christian morality with a conservative approach to politics. society came under attack. Homosexuality and abortion were decriminalised across much of the western world. Divorcing became easier. Women won more rights.

For right-wing evangelical Christians, this was the end of society as they knew it. They fought back against the wave of liberalism, but it was a losing battle. That was until they found a new platform for their ideas: satellite TVA service that delivers TV programming to viewers from a satellite orbiting the Earth..

For Ronson, this was a pivotal moment. It was the first time technology was used to amplify moral fury.

This has only increased over time. Social media has democratised publishing. Now, anyone with access to the internet can share an opinion. But Ronson believes we have turned a corner - that we are showing more "curiosity, patience and empathy" towards each other. And he thinks this is a good change. 

But some disagree. For them, having a strong opinion is important when it comes to matters of justice. 

And they point out that the gulf between different sections of society is very real. Conservative Christians really do feel left behind by the direction the modern world has taken. They worry that values they do not agree with are being taught to their children. They feel patronised by liberals who see them as backward and bigoted.

On the other side, many American women are seeing their access to abortion restrictedSome US states have passed laws to make it more difficult to access abortions, and last year saw a challenge to Roe v Wade, the Supreme Court decision that decriminalised abortion in 1973., while right-wing parties implement measures that might keep racial minorities from voting. 

If divisions exist, some say, why should we expect people be gentle to those on the other side? Instead, we should find out where the divisions come from and work to bring people together. 

Others think Ronson is worrying about a non-problem. Social media can be cruel. But in real life, people can disagree with each other respectfully. For the vast majority of people who do not regularly use Twitter or Facebook, the culture wars simply do not exist.

Yes: All this conflict is not only exhausting. It is also counter-productive. It only deepens people's views. We need to restore real dialogue so we can peaceably persuade people to agree with us.

No: If we are arguing a lot, it is because there are very important issues at stake. We can only overcome divisions by ending injustice, and that often means stepping on a few toes.

Or... We should not exaggerate the impacts of the culture wars. Most people are not arguing too much. In fact, they are barely taking an interest in these issues at all.