The Communication Book Quotes

“•​Good reasoning aims to convince, but it also lets itself be convinced. Simply put, it is the search for truth. •​Bad reasoning has no interest in the truth; it is simply about wanting to be right.”
― Mikael Krogerus, The Communication Book: 44 Ideas for Better Conversations Every Day

“One of the most frequently cited communication theories is George Gerbner’s Cultivation Theory from 1976, which claims that people who watch a lot of television are more likely to “cultivate” the belief that reality corresponds with what they are seeing on TV. He argued that watching a lot of television changes our perception of reality and causes anxiety.”
― Mikael Krogerus, The Communication Book: 44 Ideas for Better Conversations Every Day

“Stuart Hall (1932–2014), was of the same opinion. In fact, he took the idea further. He believed not only that we are capable of misunderstanding, but that we play an active role in understanding, per se. We interpret, or “decode,” the same message differently, depending on our social class, our level of knowledge, and our cultural background. But, above all, the way we understand a message also depends on how we want to understand it.”
― Mikael Krogerus, The Communication Book: 44 Ideas for Better Conversations Every Day

“Euphemisms are the mother tongue of manipulation. As a rule of thumb, if someone doesn’t use straight language, don’t act right away – pause before acting.”
― Mikael Krogerus, The Communication Book: 44 Ideas for Better Conversations Every Day

“What is thought is not always said; what is said is not always heard; what is heard is not always understood; what is understood is not always agreed; what is agreed is not always done; what is done is not always done again.” Konrad Lorenz”
― Mikael Krogerus, The Communication Book: 44 Ideas for Better Conversations Every Day

“But, above all, the way we understand a message also depends on how we want to understand it. An example is the cult 1960s TV series Star Trek. Many fans interpreted the series as a classic science fiction adventure in space. But the gay community saw the close-knit relationships between the men and the rainbow crew (black African, Asian, Russian, Vulcan) as an allusion to the fact that some of the characters were gay. It is irrelevant that Star Trek's creator, Gene Roddenberry, denied this, because, according to Stuart hall, the message can be changed once it has been received.”
― Mikael Krogerus, The Communication Book