In Between Europe
24 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 4 years ago - ★★★★★ - 16 ratingsThe In Between Europe podcast discusses politics and current events in Central Europe, bringing you experts and a history minute for each episode. Hosted by Zselyke Csaky and Gergely Romsics.
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Episodes
#24 Judicial Independence in Hungary
December 17, 2019 09:12 - 47 minutes - 32.9 MBIn the last episode of 2019, we look at the state of play in the judiciary in Hungary and what the most recent amendments mean for rule of law and the independence of the court system. To make sense of it all, we are joined by Dávid Vig, the director of Amnesty International Hungary and Ágnes Kovács, a lecturer at ELTE’s Department of Human Rights and Politics. History minute: The history of courts in Hungary Resources: A Constitutional Crisis in the Hungarian Judiciary, Joint rep...
#23 Visegrad and Growth in Europe
November 19, 2019 08:48 - 53 minutes - 37 MBThis episode is a forward-looking one, which builds on our previous discussion about the economic legacy of the transition. We discuss a new report from Visegrad Insight titled “European Futures,” the current state of EU budget negotiations when it comes to Central Europe, and the impact of regional politics on the economy. Guests: Daniel Gros, director of CEPS; Wojciech Przybylski, editor-in-chief of Visegrad Insight; and Tomasz Kaszprowicz, economic editor of Res Publica Resources: ...
#22 Transition@30: The Economic Legacy
October 17, 2019 11:38 - 54 minutes - 38.1 MBIn this episode we talk to Dóra Győrffy, a professor at the Pázmány Péter Catholic University in Hungary, about the economic legacy of the transition. We take stock of the frontrunners and those who did things by the book implementing neoliberal reforms, but we also touch on the failures, and the apparent decoupling of political and economic success. Resources: Trust and Crisis Management in the European Union, Dóra Győrffy, Palgrave Macmillan, 2018 From Democratic Dissatisfaction ...
#21 EP Elections in the Visegrad Four
May 28, 2019 09:54 - 36 minutes - 25.8 MBThis episode is the first segment of a two-part series with Talk Eastern Europe (TEE) on the results of the European Parliament elections in Central Europe. We talk to Edit Zgut, a visiting lecturer at the Center for Europe in the University of Warsaw and discuss the V4 and what is next for the opposition in Hungary and Poland. Stay tuned for part two on Bulgaria, Romania, and more Poland with TEE! History minute: The Left That’s Not There — Social Democratic Parties in Central Europe ...
#20 Presidential Elections in Slovakia
April 03, 2019 07:42 - 32 minutes - 23 MBProgressive newcomer Zuzana Caputova secured a surprise victory in Slovakia’s presidential elections this past weekend. We talk about what led to her success and what it means for the future of the country with Oľga Gyárfášova, the director of the Institute of European Studies and International Relations at Comenius University in Bratislava. History minute: Presidents and their Powers Resources: The Winter of Our Discontent, Olga Gyarfasova, Visegrad Insight, 27 April 2018 Can Zu...
#19 What Future for the Media in Central Europe?
March 03, 2019 18:27 - 41 minutes - 29.2 MBWe’re back! Here with us today is Marius Dragomir, the director of the Center for Media, Data, and Society at Central European University (CEU) and we discuss the crisis-ridden media environment in the region. Despite the doom and gloom around the failure of the old business model and increasing political control, there are some good examples emerging that provide reason for optimism. History minute: Media Pluralism in an Authoritarian Regime Resources: Media Influence Matrix, Cen...
#18 Energy and Energy Security in Central Europe
December 18, 2018 19:20 - 58 minutes - 40.4 MBIn a long-awaited episode we tackle the important question of energy security in the Central European region. For this, we talk to András György Deák, senior fellow at the Institute of World Economy of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and a former consultant to several large energy companies in the region. History minute: The Function of the Economic Clout Resources: Energy, Russian Influence, and Democratic Backsliding in Central and Eastern Europe, Expert Forum / NED, May 2017 ...
#17 Central European Futures
November 20, 2018 22:44 - 48 minutes - 33.8 MBIn this episode we discuss a new report titled Central European Futures — Five Scenarios for 2025 that maps five possible futures for the region and offers insight as well as recommendations. A true discussion starter! The guests on the show are Joerg Forbrig, a director and senior transatlantic fellow at the German Marshall Fund and Wojciech Przybylski, the editor in chief of Visegrad Insight. History Minute: The Strange Case of Hybrid Alignments Resources: Central European Future...
#16 Slovenia's Politics = Normal?
September 16, 2018 19:25 - 48 minutes - 33.6 MBWe talk to Aljaž Pengov Bitenc, a Slovenian journalist and fellow podcast host in this episode and navigate the not-so-choppy waters of Slovenian politics together. We talk about the outcome of the recent elections, the failure of Orbanization, the lack of illusions but also extremes, and many more. History minute: The Ambiguity of National History Resources: Sleeping with Pengovsky: A blog on Slovenian politics To Understand What Just Happened in Slovenia, You Have to Go Back t...
#15 Slovakia and the Coming post-Fico Era
August 22, 2018 16:09 - 44 minutes - 30.5 MBWe’re back! In this episode we are talking to Milan Nič, a senior fellow at the German Council on Foreign Relations. We discuss what has happened in Slovakia since the horrific murder of investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancé this spring, how much influence does Russia have in the country, and where Slovak politics is going once former prime minister Robert Fico decides to fully retire. History Minute: Traditions of Russophobia and Russophilia in the Region Resources: Se...
#14 Elections in Hungary: What Next?
April 14, 2018 16:56 - 35 minutes - 24.6 MBWe talk to Zsuzsanna Szelényi, an independent MP in the outgoing Hungarian parliament to make sense of Fidesz’s third supermajority and explore the future trajectory of Hungary’s politics. History Minute: Gramsci and the Rural Vote in Hungarian History Resources: Can Viktor Orban be Defeated on April 8?, Zsuzsanna Szelényi, Visegrad Insight, 2 April 2018 Viktor Orban is Just Getting Started, Zselyke Csaky, Foreign Policy, 12 April 2018 Orban Reloaded, Milan Nic & Peter Krekó...
#13 Special Episode: Memory Politics
March 15, 2018 21:03 - 39 minutes - 27.4 MBIn this special episode we bring you an extended history minute. Gábor Egry, a historian at the Institute for Political History in Budapest is our guide as we try to construct a more nuanced interpretation of the current Polish memory row and touch on nation building and history building in Romania and Hungary. Resources: Seven Circles of European Memory, Claus Leggewie, 20 December 2010, Eurozine Holocaust Memory and the Logic of Comparison, Heidemarie Uhl, 20 April 2017, Europea...
#12 What Will 2018 Bring for Central Europe?
January 24, 2018 15:56 - 45 minutes - 31.7 MBWelcome to 2018! In this episode we look back at the tumultuous events of last year and discuss what 2018 has in store for the region. Our guest is Tsveta Petrova, faculty at the European Institute at Columbia University, where she teaches and advises the MA students in European History, Politics, and Society. History minute: The EU — an organization for democracies, not for democracy promotion Resources: Freedom in the World 2018: Democracy in Crisis, Freedom House, 2018 How Dem...
#11 Hungary — Illiberal or non-liberal?
December 11, 2017 14:12 - 47 minutes - 34.9 MBThis is a special episode that features a discussion and review of two books about contemporary Hungarian politics. In the first half, we tackle veteran journalist Paul Lendvai’s new book about Viktor Orbán, while in the second half, we discuss the system that Orbán has built up since 2010 with András Lászlo Pap, a constitutional scholar and research chair at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. History minute: The agent-structure problem in democratic backsliding Resources: Orbán: Eu...
#10 When EU Funds Go Awry
November 06, 2017 17:00 - 40 minutes - 30.1 MBIn this episode, we talk with Balázs Váradi, an economist and cofounder at the Budapest Institute for Policy Analysis and we discuss the (obscure) funding mechanisms of the European Union and their use and abuse. While corruption has always been an issue with cohesion funds, Brexit and the looming reform of the union could fundamentally change these mechanisms in the long term. History minute: Backwardness and its historical context Resources: The impact of cohesion policy on corru...
#9 Elections in Czechia — A Quick Take
October 23, 2017 21:15 - 36 minutes - 27.8 MBThe Czech elections have brought a number of smaller and bigger surprises over the weekend, including the comfortable victory of a billionaire businessman and the rise of antiestablishment parties. In this episode, we talk to Michael Colborne, a journalist based in Prague, and Sean Hanley, a senior lecturer at University College London (UCL). We ask them about the mood in Prague and implications for the trajectory of Czech democracy. History minute: The East Central European Pendulum ...
#8 What's Going on in Visegrad?
September 28, 2017 10:04 - 40 minutes - 30.5 MBWe tackle the Visegrad Four cooperation in this episode, talking about its past, present, and future with Wojciech Przybylski, the editor in chief of Visegrad Insight and chairman of Res Publica Nowa. The V4 group made up of Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia has received much attention since the European migration crisis broke out in 2015. This attention, however, might have overshadowed the fact that Visegrad has often found it hard to stake out common positions and that ...
#7 Corruption in Romania
September 01, 2017 15:10 - 39 minutes - 27.8 MBIn this episode we talk about corruption trends and the trajectory of the anticorruption fight in Romania with Laura Stefan, an anticorruption expert with the Romanian think tank Expert Forum. Laura tells us about the incentives in Romania’s political system that sustain corruption and the potential problems stemming from the use of criminal law to tackle an ultimately political issue. History minute: Historical determinism meets norm entrepreneurship Resources: Romania’s Protests...
#6 The Numbers Game in the Age of Information Warfare
August 10, 2017 13:21 - 53 minutes - 40.5 MBWe tackle propaganda, fake news, and numbers in general in this episode. For this enormous task, we talk to freelance Canadian journalist Michael Colborne, who is currently based in Prague and has written for Coda Story, Al-Jazeera, CBC, and others. History minute: Traditions of mistrust and distrust in East Central Europe Resources: Surveying Some Surveys: Czech & Refugees, Immigrants and Islam, Michael Colborne, 27 April 2017 A Lesson on How Not to Fight Disinformation, Mi...
#5 Law and Justice in Poland (Part II)
July 13, 2017 17:13 - 40 minutes - 28.1 MBThis is the second part of In Between Europe’s explainer on what is happening to the independent judiciary in Poland with Christian Davies of the Guardian. In part I, we looked at the big picture, while in this episode we go down the nitty-gritty of laws and the main ideas around democracy and separation of powers. History minute: The Failure of Democratic Processes in Interwar Poland in PartI Resources: The conspiracy theorists who have taken over Poland, Christian Davies, T...
#4 Law and Justice in Poland (Part I)
July 09, 2017 21:24 - 40 minutes - 27.7 MBIn this episode we address recent developments in Poland and the threat to judicial independence since Law and Justice came to power with Christian Davies of the Guardian. This is only part I of a mega Poland explainer — part II will go more into detail on what has happened to the Constitutional Tribunal and other judicial organs. History minute: The Failure of Democratic Processes in Interwar Poland Resources: The conspiracy theorists who have taken over Poland, Christian Davies,...
#3 Austria — the Country that Gave Us Muddling Through as an Expression
June 14, 2017 12:07 - 40 minutes - 27.6 MBWe focus on Austrian politics in this third episode, talking to Anton Pelinka, a professor of political science at the Budapest-based Central European University. Austria has received much attention recently due to problematic presidential elections and a strong comeback by the far-rightist Freedom Party. We talk about how things got here and about potential changes to the Austrian political field ahead of parliamentary elections later this year. History minute: Conflicting Traditions of ...
#2 Are the Czechs Having a Populist Moment?
May 18, 2017 20:32 - 37 minutes - 25.7 MBIn this episode we talked with Martin Ehl, the chief international editor of the economic daily Hospodarske noviny. We covered all things Czech Republic, including the ongoing government crisis, instability in Czech politics, and the chances of Orbanization in the near future. History minute: Švejk and anti-elitism Resources: The Poisoned Quill, Martin Ehl, Visegrad Insight, 5 May 2017 The Czech Donald Trump, Benjamin Cunningham, Politico Europe, 29 October 2015 Czech Republic: F...
#1 Extremism in Hungary
May 14, 2017 11:06 - 48 minutes - 33.2 MBIn this first episode of the In Between Europe podcast, we discussed extremism and xenophobia in Hungary and the interesting trajectory of the infamous Jobbik party with Bulcsú Hunyadi, a senior analyst at Political Capital. History Minute: Resentment and exclusion in 20th century Hungary Resources: DEREX Index, Political Capital The Secret of Jobbik. Reasons Behind the Rise of the Hungarian Radical Right, Dániel Róna and Gergely Karácsony, Journal of East European and Asian St...