Democracy Paradox
221 episodes - English - Latest episode: 6 days ago -Is it possible for a democracy to govern undemocratically? Can the people elect an undemocratic leader? Is it possible for democracy to bring about authoritarianism? And if so, what does this say about democracy? My name is Justin Kempf. Every week I talk to the brightest minds on subjects like international relations, political theory, and history to explore democracy from every conceivable angle. Topics like civil resistance, authoritarian successor parties, and the autocratic middle class challenge our ideas about democracy. Join me as we unravel new topics every week.
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Episodes
Juliet B. Schor
August 30, 2020 17:00 - 1 hour - 53 MBMy conversation with Juliet explores what is called the sharing economy. Uber, Lyft, and Airbnb have transformed the economy and reshaped what it means to work. We discuss her book After The Gig: How the Sharing Economy got Hijacked and How to Win it Back. It explores the impacts of these platforms on society. The discussion delves into topics like race, class, and the ways good intentions so often produce the wrong results. This is not necessarily an episode about politics. But my blog ha...
Agnes Cornell and Svend-Erik Skaaning
August 23, 2020 19:00 - 1 hour - 41.4 MBMany scholars use the interwar period as a cautionary tale of democratic breakdown and collapse, but it was also a period of remarkable democratic stability in an age of crisis. Agnes Cornell and Svend-Eric Skaaning join your host, Justin Kempf, to discuss the first era of widespread democratization, the interwar period. The conversation focuses on their research and discusses some specific examples from this period including Denmark, Uruguay, and Czechoslovakia. Political science typicall...
Agnes Cornell and Svend-Erik Skaaning on the Interwar Period
August 23, 2020 19:00 - 1 hour - 42.1 MBMany scholars use the interwar period as a cautionary tale of democratic breakdown and collapse, but it was also a period of remarkable democratic stability in an age of crisis. Agnes Cornell and Svend-Eric Skaaning join your host, Justin Kempf, to discuss the first era of widespread democratization, the interwar period. The conversation focuses on their research and discusses some specific examples from this period including Denmark, Uruguay, and Czechoslovakia. Political science typicall...
John Gastil and Katherine Knobloch on Citizen Initiative Review
August 16, 2020 18:00 - 1 hour - 52.4 MBThe ninth episode revisits the initiative referendum except it introduces an important twist. John Gastil and Katherine Knobloch are the authors of Hope for Democracy: How Citizens Can Bring Reason Back into Politics. They consider how the idea of deliberative democracy was able to influence initiative referendums through a new institution called the Citizens' Initiative Review (CIR). This was a reform brought to life in Oregon a few years ago. John and Katie help us understand this specif...
John Gastil and Katherine Knobloch
August 16, 2020 18:00 - 1 hour - 51.7 MBThe ninth episode revisits the initiative referendum except it introduces an important twist. John Gastil and Katherine Knobloch are the authors of Hope for Democracy: How Citizens Can Bring Reason Back into Politics. They consider how the idea of deliberative democracy was able to influence initiative referendums through a new institution called the Citizens' Initiative Review (CIR). This was a reform brought to life in Oregon a few years ago. John and Katie help us understand this specif...
Yael Tamir
August 09, 2020 16:00 - 58 minutes - 40.1 MBThe eighth episode of the Democracy Paradox features Israeli scholar Yael Tamir as we discuss her recent book Why Nationalism. Yael Tamir offers a refreshing look at nationalism as she looks to reclaim the concept from conservatives. We delve into some of the important concepts of her book but also apply these ideas to current events including the pandemic, Catalan separatism, and the Black Lives Matter movement. Tamir studied under the intellectual giant Isaiah Berlin at Oxford. She expla...
Yael Tamir on Nationalism
August 09, 2020 16:00 - 59 minutes - 40.9 MBThe eighth episode of the Democracy Paradox features Israeli scholar Yael Tamir as we discuss her recent book Why Nationalism. Yael Tamir offers a refreshing look at nationalism as she looks to reclaim the concept from conservatives. We delve into some of the important concepts of her book but also apply these ideas to current events including the pandemic, Catalan separatism, and the Black Lives Matter movement. Tamir studied under the intellectual giant Isaiah Berlin at Oxford. She expla...
Joshua J. Dyck and Edward L. Lascher, Jr.
August 02, 2020 22:00 - 1 hour - 62.7 MBThe seventh episode of the Democracy Paradox focuses on the secondary effects of direct democracy with Joshua (Josh) J. Dyck and Edward (Ted) L. Lascher, Jr. Their recent book Initiatives without Engagement: A Realistic Appraisal of Direct Democracy’s Secondary Effects. Typically, initiative referendums are discussed as a philosophical component of direct democracy. Josh and Ted focus on empirical data to show how initiatives have secondary effects with negative consequences. It is a distinc...
Joshua J. Dyck and Edward L. Lascher, Jr. on Initiative Referendums
August 02, 2020 22:00 - 1 hour - 63.5 MBThe seventh episode of the Democracy Paradox focuses on the secondary effects of direct democracy with Joshua (Josh) J. Dyck and Edward (Ted) L. Lascher, Jr. Their recent book Initiatives without Engagement: A Realistic Appraisal of Direct Democracy’s Secondary Effects. Typically, initiative referendums are discussed as a philosophical component of direct democracy. Josh and Ted focus on empirical data to show how initiatives have secondary effects with negative consequences. It is a distinc...
William S. Smith on Irving Babbitt
July 26, 2020 17:00 - 1 hour - 46.5 MBThis episode features William S. Smith, author of Democracy and Imperialism: Irving Babbitt and Warlike Democracies. Irving Babbitt is an underappreciated political theorist. He wrote the classic Democracy and Leadership in 1924 before the Behavioralist Revolution of the 1950s so his work is often overlooked by contemporary political scientists. Babbitt has an enormous influence on conservative political theory and philosophy. His ideas about democracy, leadership and imperialism are as rele...
William S. Smith
July 26, 2020 17:00 - 1 hour - 45.7 MBThis episode features William S. Smith, author of Democracy and Imperialism: Irving Babbitt and Warlike Democracies. Irving Babbitt is an underappreciated political theorist. He wrote the classic Democracy and Leadership in 1924 before the Behavioralist Revolution of the 1950s so his work is often overlooked by contemporary political scientists. Babbitt has an enormous influence on conservative political theory and philosophy. His ideas about democracy, leadership and imperialism are as rele...
Takis Pappas
July 19, 2020 16:00 - 1 hour - 48.7 MBTakis Pappas is the author of Populism and Liberal Democracy: A Comparative and Theoretical Analysis. We have an hour long conversation about populism, liberalism and democracy. The interview lays out some of these key concepts but also includes some discussion of specific examples including Orban, Trump and Greece. We talk quite a bit about the concept of charismatic leadership. Takis gives a broad overview of populism that is ideal for undergraduates, but also interesting for those with a ...
Takis Pappas on Populism and Liberal Democracy
July 19, 2020 16:00 - 1 hour - 49.5 MBTakis Pappas is the author of Populism and Liberal Democracy: A Comparative and Theoretical Analysis. We have an hour long conversation about populism, liberalism and democracy. The interview lays out some of these key concepts but also includes some discussion of specific examples including Orban, Trump and Greece. We talk quite a bit about the concept of charismatic leadership. Takis gives a broad overview of populism that is ideal for undergraduates, but also interesting for those with a ...
Alexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon
July 14, 2020 00:00 - 1 hour - 57.4 MBAlexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon are the authors of Exit from Hegemony: The Unraveling of the American Global Order. We had a 90 minute conversation on some important topics for the study of international relations. The first part discusses some key concepts in their book like "hegemony" and the "liberal world order." Dan and Alex both give a great overview that is ideal for beginners but also informative for those who have a strong background in the topic. The rest of the podcast explore...
Alexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon on the End of American Hegemony
July 14, 2020 00:00 - 1 hour - 58.2 MBAlexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon are the authors of Exit from Hegemony: The Unraveling of the American Global Order. We had a 90 minute conversation on some important topics for the study of international relations. The first part discusses some key concepts in their book like "hegemony" and the "liberal world order." Dan and Alex both give a great overview that is ideal for beginners but also informative for those who have a strong background in the topic. The rest of the podcast explore...
Luis Cabrera
July 08, 2020 00:00 - 55 minutes - 38 MBLuis Cabrera is the author of The Humble Cosmopolitan: Rights, Diversity, and Trans-state Democracy. He is Associate Professor in the Griffith Asia Institute and the School of Government and International Relations at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia. His research focuses on global citizenship, human rights, and justice. The interview explores the political thought of Ambedkar, Dalit rights in India, and the implications of global citizenship. Luis Cabrera gives his thoughts on the...
Luis Cabrera on International Human Rights
July 08, 2020 00:00 - 56 minutes - 38.8 MBLuis Cabrera is the author of The Humble Cosmopolitan: Rights, Diversity, and Trans-state Democracy. He is Associate Professor in the Griffith Asia Institute and the School of Government and International Relations at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia. His research focuses on global citizenship, human rights, and justice. The interview explores the political thought of Ambedkar, Dalit rights in India, and the implications of global citizenship. Luis Cabrera gives his thoughts on the...
Marlene Mauk
June 28, 2020 22:00 - 51 minutes - 35.5 MBMarlene Mauk is the author of Citizen Support for Democratic and Autocratic Regimes. Support for autocratic regimes is a neglected topic up until the last few years. We discuss why citizens support autocracies, democracies and what this means for advocates of democracy. We have an interesting discussion about the potential for democracy in Africa. Mauk finds Sub-Saharan Africa has significant support for democracy and enormous potential for further democratization and consolidation. We d...
Marlene Mauk on Citizen Support for Democracies... and Autocracies
June 28, 2020 22:00 - 52 minutes - 36.3 MBMarlene Mauk is the author of Citizen Support for Democratic and Autocratic Regimes. Support for autocratic regimes is a neglected topic up until the last few years. We discuss why citizens support autocracies, democracies and what this means for advocates of democracy. We have an interesting discussion about the potential for democracy in Africa. Mauk finds Sub-Saharan Africa has significant support for democracy and enormous potential for further democratization and consolidation. We d...
Monologue on Hannah Arendt's The Origins of Totalitarianism
June 21, 2020 19:00 - 37 minutes - 25.7 MBEpisode 1: The inaugural episode explores Hannah Arendt's book The Origins of Totalitarianism. This is the only monologue in the series. Every other episode features a guest interview. It focuses on the distinction between the law and the state. Arendt loosely defines totalitarianism as the presence of the state in absence of law. Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/ Support the show
Hannah Arendt - The Origins of Totalitarianism
June 21, 2020 19:00 - 36 minutes - 24.9 MBEpisode 1: The inaugural episode explores Hannah Arendt's book The Origins of Totalitarianism. The discussion focuses on the distinction between the law and the state. Arendt loosely defines totalitarianism as the presence of the state in absence of law.