Podcasts

Constitutional Conflicts are Inevitable: In Conversation with Orlando Scarcello

In this conversation with RevDem editor Kasia Krzyżanowska, Orlando Scarcello discusses his newest book Radical Constitutional Pluralism in Europe (Routledge 2022). He elaborates on the descriptive nature of the theory of constitutional pluralism, stresses the inevitability of constitutional conflicts in the EU, and ponders on the political side of these conflicts. Orlando Scarcello —a postdoctoral…

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Danielle Allen on Power-Sharing Liberalism

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Danielle Allen – author of the new book “Justice by Means of Democracy” – discusses her proposal of a power-sharing liberalism and explains why she calls herself a “eudaemonist democratic pragmatist”; shows why it is essential to foster a connected society and measure that society by the…

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The Curse of Russian Imperialism: Martin Schulze Wessel on Imperial Optics, False Dichotomies, and the Need to Reconsider East European History

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Martin Schulze Wessel – author of the new book Der Fluch des Imperiums. Die Ukraine, Polen und der Irrweg in der Russischen Geschichte (Imperial Curse. Ukraine, Poland, and the False Paths in Russian History) – traces the ideas that have shaped Russian imperialism and reflects on their…

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Can the Center Hold? Thomas Biebricher on the International Crisis of Conservatism

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Thomas Biebricher – author of the new book “Mitte/Rechts: Die international Krise des Konservatismus” (Center/Right: The International Crisis of Conservatism) – discusses conservatism’s various types and how each relates to the political center and to authoritarianism; illuminates the contemporary crisis of the center right in three major…

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The Colonial Origins of Modern Social Thought: George Steinmetz on French Sociology and the Overseas Empire

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, George Steinmetz – author of the major new monograph “The Colonial Origins of Modern Social Thought. French Sociology and the Overseas Empire” – sketches the manifold entanglements of French sociology with the French Empire and colonialism; discusses the key ideas and innovations that have emerged in this context; dissects…

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Navigating Hierarchies and Balkanist Discourses in Europeanization: A Conversation with Vjosa Musliu

In this conversation with assistant editor Lorena Drakula, Vjosa Musliu discusses her book “Europeanization and State Building as Everyday Practices. Performing Europe in the Western Balkans” (Routledge, 2021). The conversation critically examines mechanisms of Europeanization, discourses surrounding international interventions, and the processes of EU enlargement to the Western Balkans.

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Clara Mattei: Why is austerity so persistent in spite of its incapacity to achieve economic growth and balanced budgets?

In this interview with RevDem assistant editor Giancarlo Grignaschi, Clara Mattei – Assistant Professor in the Economics Department of The New School for Social Research – talks about her new book “The Capital Order: How Economists Invented Austerity and Paved the Way to Fascism” (University of Chicago Press, 2022). The manuscript explores the historical origins…

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A World Without Democracy: Quinn Slobodian on jurisdictional cracks and the crackpots who made capitalism as we know it

In this conversation with Ferenc Laczó and Vera Scepanovic, Quinn Slobodian – author of the new book “Crack-Up Capitalism: Market Radicals and the Dream of a World Without Democracy” – discusses the unusual legal spaces and peculiar jurisdictions that have multiplied in recent decades and the libertarian ideas that propelled their rise; dissects the relationship…

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Racialized Labor — Eastern Europeans on The Western Market

In this conversation with RevDem editor Kasia Krzyzanowska, Aleksandra Lewicki discusses her recently published article “East-west inequalities and the ambiguous racialization of ‘Eastern Europeans’”. Lewicki elaborates on the racialized imaginary of the Western European discourses on migration, talks about how the stereotype of hard-working Eastern Europeans negatively impacts their labor conditions, and ponders on the influence of…

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Aakar Patel on His New Toolkit to Protest and Peaceful Resistance

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Aakar Patel – author of “The Anarchist Cookbook. A Toolkit to Protest and Peaceful Resistance” – discusses why he considers dissent essential to improving society; what lessons we can draw from successful recent examples of protest; which options activists have to amplify and maximize their efforts; and…

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Dóra Piroska on Financial Nationalism

RevDem assistant editor Giancarlo Grignaschi in conversation with Dóra Piroska, assistant professor at CEU in Vienna at the department of International Relations, about her chapter on financial nationalism in the Elgar Handbook of Economic Nationalism, edited by Andreas Pickel.

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Fantasy and Trauma: Dan Stone on Writing the History of the Holocaust

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Dan Stone – author of the new book The Holocaust: An Unfinished History – discusses various ways the history of the Holocaust has been misunderstood; addresses the challenges of narrating the Holocaust and clarifies his own interpretative framework; sketches the European dimension of the genocide and how…

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Taming the Anthropocene: Zoltán Boldizsár Simon and Lars Deile on a New Era of Historical Understanding

In this conversation, our guest contributor Alexandra Medzibrodszky talks with Zoltán Boldizsár Simon and Lars Deile, the co-editors of the recently published volume “Historical Understanding: Past, Present, and Future” (Bloomsbury Academic, 2022). The conversation focuses on the theory of history, reflecting on our changing perceptions of historical time; the relationship between the past, present, and future; the…

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Illiberalism and Gender in Post-communist Europe

The podcast is based on the conference and the special issue of Politics and Governance, No. 3 in 2022 edited by Matthijs Bogaards (CEU Department of Political Science, CEU Democracy Institute) and Andrea Pető (CEU Department of Gender Studies, CEU Democracy Institute).

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Building Enduring Democracies: Filip Milačić on the Effects of Nation and State Building on Democratic Consolidation

In this conversation with RevDem assistant editor Lorena Drakula, Filip Milačić – author of the book “Stateness and Democratic Consolidation. Lessons from Former Yugoslavia” – discusses the effects unresolved issues of stateness can have on the trajectories of democratic consolidation; how political actors can instrumentalize polarization in society to justify authoritarian measures; and what can…

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Beverly Gage on J. Edgar Hoover and the American Century

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Beverly Gage – author of the new biography “G-Man. J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century” – discusses how Hoover built and shaped the FBI and what made him enjoy such an exceptional and long-lasting career; dissects his contradictions, reflecting on the sources of…

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New Year Special

In a special edition of the RevDem podcast, our editors Laszlo Bruszt, Oliver Garner, Kasia Krzyżanowska, Ferenc Laczo, Michał Matlak, and Renata Uitz discuss their favorite RevDem content, best books and articles they have read, most important political events of 2022 and more. At the end of the episode, they are joined by the authors…

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The Hungarian Government Became Hostage of Its Own Propaganda

In this conversation with RevDem Editor Robert Nemeth, Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Panyi talks about the Hungarian government’s response to the war in Ukraine, why it is not willing to counter Russian infiltration in Hungary, the reasons behind the anti-US sentiment of Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his inner circle, and anti-Western propaganda in Hungary. He…

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Cannibal Capitalism: Nancy Fraser on How the Global Economic Order Consumes the Foundations of Our Democracy and Society

In this conversation with RevDem Political Economy and Inequalities section co-head Vera Scepanovic, Nancy Fraser – whose newest book “Cannibal Capitalism” has just been released – explains why the ongoing crises of democracy, healthcare, climate, and racial injustice are really manifestations of a single broader crisis of capitalism; how the ability of capitalism to survive…

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How the Necessary Cold War Ended – and Why an Unnecessary One Followed It: Archie Brown on the Political and the Personal in the Relationship Between the West and the Soviet Union/Russia

In this conversation with RevDem assistant editor Iker Itoiz Ciáurriz, Archie Brown – author of the recently released book “The Human Factor. Gorbachev, Reagan, and Thatcher, and the End of the Cold War” – explains why he approaches the end of the Cold War through the study of political leaders; explores the different personal formations…

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Emancipating Jews from Narratives of Victimhood and Redemption: Susan Neiman Discusses Germany’s Current Memory Culture

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Susan Neiman dissects what has made the articulation of universalistic Jewish commitments increasingly difficult in the German public sphere; explores why debates concerning global colonialism and the Nazi-colonial connection tend to be so fraught in the country; explains what post-colonial criticisms misunderstand about the intellectual heritage of…

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The Stories We Tell Ourselves — In Conversation with Peter Brooks

In this conversation with RevDem editor Kasia Krzyżanowska, Peter Brooks — author of the new book Seduced by Story. The Use and Abuse of Narrative — discusses the “storyfication” of reality; explains why we need stories; ponders the impact fiction has on our lives; and depicts the dangers oversimplified narratives pose to our democratic societies.

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How 2000 people made an impact at a time when society was silent: András Bozóki on the rolling transition of Hungary

In this discussion, RevDem Managing Editor Michał Matlak discusses with András Bozóki about his last book, “Rolling Transition and the Role of Intellectuals: Case of Hungary”, published this year by Central European University Press, which tells a compelling story of the role of intellectuals in political and social change that took place in Hungary between…

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Liberalism Hasn’t Provided Adequate Answers to Today’s Major Crises: Luke Savage on Contemporary Liberalism and Its Democratic Socialist Critique

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Luke Savage – author of “The Dead Center. Reflections on Liberalism and Democracy After the End of History” – discusses key aspects of his critique of contemporary liberalism; reflects on the role of generational experiences in shaping the search for a political alternative; offers a detailed assessment…

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Why film matters: Oksana Sarkisova on the importance of documenting society

In this conversation with RevDem assistant editor Lucie Hunter, Oksana Sarkisova – Blinken OSA Research Fellow and the Director of Verzió International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival – discusses the role of filmmaking in today’s society; how festivals are reacting to contemporary global conflicts and challenges; the importance of safekeeping visual archives; and how micro-histories…

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Why Do Autocracies Last? Lucan Way on the Longevity of Revolutionary Regimes

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Lucan Way – co-author, with Steven Levitsky, of the new book “Revolution and Dictatorship: The Violent Origins of Durable Authoritarianism” – introduces what revolutionary autocracies are; explains why they tend to prove much more durable than other kinds of authoritarian regimes; discusses how the revolutionary sequences so crucial for…

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The Trouble with Fortune: Zsuzsanna Szelényi on Hungary’s Tainted Democracy

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Zsuzsanna Szelényi – author of the new book “Tainted Democracy. Viktor Orbán and the Subversion of Hungary” – analyzes the main characteristics of the Orbán regime and the techniques Hungary’s current rulers have employed to establish their dominance over the country’s economy; reflects on the dilemmas and strategies…

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Democracy as a Way of Facing Obstacles: Lilia Moritz Schwarcz on Brazilian Authoritarianism and the Unfinished Project of Full Citizenship

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Lilia Moritz Schwarcz – author of the book “Brazilian Authoritarianism” – contrasts mythological and critical-realistic versions of Brazilian history; discusses the main facets of authoritarianism in the country; compares the Bolsonaro phenomenon with the Trump one; and elaborates on her vision of democracy and full citizenship.

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The (Re)making of Constitutional Democracy? In conversation with Paolo Sandro

In this latest RevDem Rule of Law section podcast, Oliver Garner speaks to Paolo Sandro, Lecturer in Law at the University of Leeds.  Sandro’s recently published monograph The Making of Constitutional Democracy: From Creation to Application of Law (Hart Publishing, 2022) confronts the topic from a legal theoretical perspective. Their conversation considers the practical application of his work and…

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A Path to Democracy Without Destabilization: Joseph Wong Explains the Types of Development and the Patterns of Uneven Democratization in Modern Asia

In this conversation with RevDem editor Ferenc Laczó, Joseph Wong – co-author with Dan Slater of the new monograph “From Development to Democracy. The Transformations of Modern Asia” – discusses when and why regimes have chosen to democratize in modern Asia; how come types rather than levels of development have shaped countries’ democratic prospects; why Singapore and China remain…

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In Conversation with John Shattuck: “Rights, if you can keep them” 

Teodora Miljojkovic interviews Professor John Shattuck, international legal scholar, diplomat, human rights leader and previous CEU rector. Teodora and Professor Shattuck discussed the book “Holding Together – the Hijacking of Rights in America and How to Reclaim Them for Everyone” by Professor Shattuck, Sushma Rahman and Matthias Riss from the Carr Centre for Human Rights…

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A Global History of Hungary: In Conversation with Ferenc Laczó, Bálint Varga, and Dóra Vargha

In this conversation with Bence Bari and Orsolya Sudár, editors Ferenc Laczó and Bálint Varga and contributor Dóra Vargha discuss the new volume “Magyarország globális története, 1869-2022 (A Global History of Hungary, 1869-2022)”. The conversation focuses on some of the innovative questions posed by trying to reconceptualize the history of a Central and Eastern European…

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The ‘New Europe’ Campaign: The Failure of Liberal Internationalism and the Resilience of Imperialism

Historians of the Habsburg Empire and the First World War analyze the fascinating story of Robert William Seton-Watson’s propaganda for the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the creation of a ‘New Europe.’ They historicize ideas concerning the ‘balance of power’, European integration, anti-imperialist liberal internationalism, and the making of the post-Habsburg nation-states in Central…

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Local oil, global finance, and democracies without citizen-creditors: in conversation with Helen Thompson

In conversation with Vera Šćepanović, Helen Thompson explains how concentrating on energy can reshape our understanding of contemporary history, political economy, and transnational finance; discusses how international relations are simultaneously shaped by zero-sum attitudes and tacit cooperation; asks what it means when representative democracies no longer rely on ‘citizen-creditors’; and reflects on how the profound…

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For a Democracy, It Is Vital to Be Able to Tell Facts Apart

Our editor Robert Nemeth talks to Marius Dragomir and Astrid Söderström, authors of a recent study on the state of state media globally, which covers 546 state media outlets in 151 countries in the world, and it found that government control has reached extremely high levels: nearly 80% of these state-administered media companies lack editorial…

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Historians and Populism: Regional Perspectives and Entanglements

In light of the recent solidifying of what could be named as ‘populist international’, we are opening a conversation on one of the first areas and people that were targeted: history and historians. Populist regimes and their supporters feed themselves on historical myths, distortions and subversion of the public debate on historical themes.

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Maarten Prak: Democracy in medieval and early-modern towns was stronger than democracy post 1789

In this interview with Maarten Prak, hosted by Karen Culver, they discuss Maarten’s book Citizens without Nations: Urban Citizenship in Europe and the World c. 1000-1789. Maarten comments on how citizenship functioned in medieval and early modern Europe; why the term “urban governance” is preferable to “urban democracy”; how accessible guilds were at this time, and more.

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