Wesley Warshawer on Leaving His Silicon Valley Bubble and Listening Across Differences

• Asia Tabb
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  Asia Tabb is the Host and Producer for WITF’s The Spark.
  
  She began her start in radio when she joined legendary radio/ host producer, Doc Christian. She worked closely with Doc for her role on “The Gospel Express, on WHOV 88.1 FM and was a host for “Unrestricted Praise” at Praise FM.
  
  Previously she was an anchor in Shreveport, Louisiana at KTAL/KMSS. Asia also worked as a Multi-Media Journalist at WHP-TV here in Harrisburg, PA.
  
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President Donald Trump signs an executive order barring transgender female athletes from competing in women's or girls' sporting events, in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025, in Washington.

aired; September 25, 2026

What can happen when you step outside the community and worldview you know best? On The Spark, we’ll talk with Wesley Warshawer, a Fulbright Scholar and data analyst with more than a decade of experience in Silicon Valley’s semiconductor industry, about his decision to leave his own “bubble” and spend time getting to know people in rural and conservative communities across the United States. After working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic, Warshawer packed up his car and spent more than 18 months traveling through communities from Bismarck, North Dakota, to Biloxi, Mississippi, talking with people about their lives, values, beliefs, politics and hopes for the future. His background as a Fulbright Scholar in South Korea and his years of international travel shaped his interest in learning from people with experiences different from his own.

We’ll discuss what Warshawer says he learned from those conversations, including his observation that people can share underlying values even when they disagree on political questions. We’ll also talk about curiosity, listening, the assumptions we can make when surrounded by people who think like us, and whether meaningful conversations across differences can change how we understand one another. Warshawer’s work centers on the idea that leaving a familiar bubble can create opportunities for personal growth and a deeper understanding of the communities around us.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST TO HEAR THE FULL CONVERSATION.