Featuring some of the most important voices from contemporary academia, the podcast series “Democracy in Question?” discusses various democratic experiences and experiments, current crises as well as long-term challenges to democracy such as issues of legitimacy, disenfranchisement, or inequality.
“Democracy in Question?” hosted by Shalini Randeria is a joint production of the Graduate Institute’s Albert Hirschman Centre on Democracy, the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) Vienna, and the Research Group Soft Authoritarianisms, University of Bremen. It is produced in cooperation with Richard Miron and Anouk Milet (Earshot strategies).
“Sound of Democracy” is our new podcast project, planned for 2021. In collaboration with the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) Vienna and artist Mukul Patel , we’re asking how democracy sounds today in different parts of the world, how we talk about democracy and which metaphors we use doing so. Sound of Democracy is part research project part fusion of artistic soundscapes and scholarly reflection.
Democracy in Question?
Most of the world’s population lives in a formal democracy today. But in both established and new democracies, trust in parliaments and political parties is plummeting. Worldwide, they are being torn apart by inequalities, political polarization and a politics of hate. Citizens are using the streets and the courts to challenge authority and to seek the accountability that is often missing at the ballot boxes. The form, content, institutions, practices and, ultimately, the very principles of liberal democracy are being called into question from India to Hungary and from Brazil to the US.
Hosted by Shalini Randeria, Rector of the IWM, Director of the Centre at the Graduate Institute, and Excellence Chair, University of Bremen (Research Group: Soft Authoritarianism). It features some of the most important voices in contemporary academia. Together they reflect on democratic experiences and experiments the world over and explore whether this crisis of democracy represents a historically unique challenge or whether parallels to political crises in the past can be discerned.
While each episode addresses issues concerning the contemporary challenges to democracy in different contexts, the series is also committed to exploring themes in the longue durée of democracy that have occupied social scientists for decades.
Join Shalini Randeria and leading scholars for an exploration of the dilemmas facing democracies worldwide. Subscribe now, wherever you get your podcasts!
All Episodes: Democracy in Question
S09E09: Stephen Walt on the Return of Trump (Part 1)
This episode examines the factors which led to Donald Trump’s decisive victory in the recent U.S. election. Did the Harris campaign’s insistence on issues of identity, rights, and democracy overshadow people’s everyday struggles with economic issues? What role did patriarchal bias and demographics of a shifting landscape of political preferences…
S09E08: Johanna Lutz on Identity, Partisanship, and the Vulnerabilities of Democracy
This episode explores advances made by the far-right in Austria and in Germany and examines crucial factors raised by Lutz’s recent report on identity, partisanship and polarization. What are the unexpected convergences and similarities across European countries? And what are the implications of the findings on the contested notion of…
S09E07: Raimund Löw on the Dithering Austrian Democracy
This episode explores the recent national elections in Austria and the victory of a radical right-wing party. How is this development situated within the EU’s broader shift to the right? And what explains the decline of the traditional center-right and the Social Democrats? Listen to hear about the issues that…
S09E06: Julia Ebner on How Extremism Threatens Democracy (Part 2)
This episode focuses on the mainstreaming of radical politics and how extremist ideologies gain a foothold. How can democratic practice respond to a trend toward polarization and destabilization of liberal democracies? And what defenses can be mounted to protect liberal values and institutions? Listen to hear about Julia Ebner’s latest…
S09E05: Julia Ebner on How Extremism Threatens Democracy (Part 1)
This episode explores the social worlds of various extremist groups and the corrosive effects of radicalization on contemporary democracy. Why is it necessary to observe extremist organizations up close? And how are gender and religion instrumentally deployed? Listen to hear about the unexpected similarities between various extremist groups and how…
S09E04: Yogendra Yadav on Democracy in India
This episode analyzes the elections in India and the trajectory of Indian democracy from the mid-seventies to today. How do voter motivations due to worsening economic conditions influence elections in the country? And how do expectations for democracy to deliver economic growth and development play a role? Listen to hear…
S09E03: Mark Leonard on the U.K. Elections
This episode explores the implications of the U.K. elections which took place on July 4. What does a return to centrism mean for British politics? And how do socio-economic transformations and fragmented cultural horizons play a role? Listen to also hear what the results could mean for transatlantic relations. Guest…
S09E02: Adam Habib on South Africa’s Elections
This episode explores the immediate consequences of South Africa’s recent parliamentary elections and the historical trajectory of the African National Congress. How does a vibrant sphere of civil society activism play a role in the country? And what is to be learned from the “FeesMustFall” protests against the attempted restructuring…
S09E01: Ivan Krastev on the European Elections
This episode explores the recent European elections and the EU’s political drift to the right. What were the major issues, campaign themes and decisive factors which led to the results? And does the political center still hold if many right-wing positions have already been mainstreamed? Listen to hear about the…
S08E10: Catherine Fieschi on the Rise of Populism
This episode explores how populism has irreversibly transformed the political landscape. How does digital media play a role in this phenomenon and why has populism been successful in some advanced western democracies? Listen to hear about the pitfalls of technocratic governance and the challenges posed by alliances of populist political…
S08E09: Seema Syeda Addresses Islamophobia Across Europe
This episode explores Islamophobia across Europe as a form of structural racism. How does Islamophobia operate as a tool of diversion and division? And why do such perceptions play a crucial role in European politics today? Listen to hear about the prospects for emancipatory politics on various scales to combat…
S08E08: Zsolt Enyedi on the Crises of Liberalism
This episode explores the crises of liberalism. How do recent conditions of uncertainty and multiple crises play a role in amplifying the appeal of illiberal ideologies? And how does illiberalism differ from authoritarianism and populism? Tune in to hear how the defense of liberalism requires a connection to the everyday…
S08E07: Michael Woldemariam on Challenges Facing African Democracy (Part 2)
This episode explores how the legacies of European colonialism in Africa impact the success of democratization today. How do international organizations play a role in declining support for democratic politics in parts of Africa? And how can a reliance on donors hinder the emergence of viable democratic structures? Finally, tune…
S08E06: Michael Woldemariam on Challenges Facing African Democracy (Part 1)
This episode explores political and military conflicts in Ethiopia and more broadly, in the Horn of Africa. Why has Ethiopia’s process of democratization eroded in recent years? And what is the wider impact of such democratic backsliding on African regional politics? Listen to hear how shifting global geopolitical balances are…
S08E05: Vivek Maru on Legal Empowerment for Communities
This episode explores environmental justice and the democratization of law. What does it take to turn the law into something that ordinary people can use to protect themselves? And how can putting the power of the law into the hands of the people support progressive emancipatory politics? Listen to hear…
Sound of Democracy
Programme: Sound of democracy
Entering into Conversation about the Sound of Democracy
The following text describes a project complementing the Sound of Democracy podcast, that will be carried out by Prof. Dr. Ingo H. Warnke and two of his doctoral students, namely Christian Bär and Hagen Steinhauer. Interviews on How Democracy Sounds What does democracy sound like today? How is its sound…
Sound of Democracy. Blog, Podcast and Interview Project
This blog post is a contribution by a team of linguists at the University of Bremen, namely Prof. Dr. Ingo H. Warnke and two of his doctoral students, Christian Bär as well as Hagen Steinhauer, who is also a member of the Research Group on Soft Authoritarianism, which is directed…
Sound of Democracy. Sound as a Metaphor
The following text dialogues with the podcast from the perspective of linguistics as a discipline and was written by Prof. Dr. Ingo H. Warnke together with two of his doctoral students, namely Christian Bär and Hagen Steinhauer. The word sound can refer to a wide range of phenomena. Within the…