Is this the New Normal? LSE-IGA Arena democracy doubleheader
"Recreating the public sphere"
6th June 2018, 6:30pm | Vera Anstey, Old Building, LSE
Yascha Mounk (Center for European Studies, Harvard University) and Sophie Gaston (Demos) in conversation with LSE IGA's Anne Applebaum and Peter Pomerantsev on: polarisation, democratic decline, the disintegration of the public sphere - and what we should do about it.
The evening will kick off with an overview of Yascha Mounk's new book, The People vs. Democracy: Why Our Freedom is in Danger and How to Save It, in which he addresses the dwindling trust in politics. Citizens are falling out of love with their political system. Democracy is wilting away. Drawing on vivid stories and original research, Mounk identifies three key drivers of voters’ discontent: stagnating living standards, fears of multiethnic democracy, and the rise of social media. People vs. Democracy is the first book to go beyond a mere description of the rise of populism. In plain language, it describes both how we got here and where we need to go. For those unwilling to give up on either individual rights or the popular will, Mounk shows, there is little time to waste: this may be our last chance to save democracy.
Podcast