RevDem Podcast

RevDem Podcast

By Review of DemocracyNewsPolitics
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RevDem Podcast episodes

  • Reimagining European Prosperity - A Conversation with Marija Bartl on the Role of Legal Imaginaries in Shaping European Political Economy

    In this conversation at the Review of Democracy, Marija

    Bartl – author of Reimagining Prosperity: Toward a New Imaginary of Law and Political Economy in the EU – warns that the post-2008 crisis of neoliberalism created an ideological vacuum that would either be filled by a
    new vision of shared prosperity or by tribal imaginaries. She explains why the EU, despite its neoliberal origins, might be uniquely placed to articulate such a new vision of prosperity, and argues that European law is already being transformed to support it. 

    Marija Bartl is a Professor of Private Law at Amsterdam Law School.

    Reimagining Prosperity: Toward a New Imaginary of Law and Political Economy in the EU has been published by Cambridge University Press and is available

    in open access.

    42 min
  • Who Is Going to Represent European Interests in the Future? - Zsuzsanna Szelényi on the Transformation of the EU and Our New Era of Uncertainty

    In this conversation at the Review of Democracy,

    Zsuzsanna Szelényi discusses key
    questions in contemporary politics with a focus on European affairs. She explores the main priorities of Ursula von der Leyen’s second Commission and what might change as compared to her previous term. She also discusses the main
    challenges the EU faces when it comes to transatlantic relations and how Trump’s second term could impact the unfolding and outcome of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine – and whether the position and role of Hungary’s Orbán regime might change in international politics.

    Zsuzsanna Szelényi is the Director of the CEU Democracy Institute Leadership Academy, a former Member of Parliament in her native Hungary, and the author of Tainted Democracy. Viktor Orbán and the Subversion of

    Hungary.

    24 min
  • When Should the Majority Rule? - Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt on Countermajoritarian Institutions and the Question of Democratic Resilience

    We are thrilled to bring you the newest episode of our monthly special in cooperation with the Journal of Democracy. In the framework of this new partnership,

    authors discuss outstanding articles from the latest print issue of the Journal of Democracy.

    In this conversation, Harvard professors Steven

    Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt examine the various types of countermajoritarian institutions and reflect on which are democracy-enhancing and which can potentially subvert democracy. Levitsky and Ziblatt show the connections between the strong countermajoritarian features of the U.S. political system and its ongoing democratic backsliding. They also consider how the trade-offs between
    countermajoritarianism and democratic stability have played out across the globe.

    The conversation is based on Steven Levitsky and

    Daniel Ziblatt’s article “When Should the Majority Rule?” which has been published in the January 2025 (36/1)
    issue of the Journal of Democracy.

    29 min
  • Overcoming Membership Fatalism - A Conversation with Tom Theuns on Democratic Theory and His Immanent Critique of the EU

    In this conversation at the Review of Democracy,

    Tom Theuns – author of Protecting Democracy in
    Europe: Pluralism, Autocracy and the Future of the EU – reflects on EU institutions’ rather narrow conception of democracy and their complicity in democratic backsliding
    in EU member states; considers how a more coherent and effective response to the latter processes could be designed; critiques the EU’s ‘membership fatalism’ and explains why he has proposed an expulsion mechanism; and positions his approach within political theory and discusses the reception of his ideas also beyond that field.

    Tom Theuns is a Senior Assistant Professor of Political Theory and European Politics at the Institute of Political Science, Leiden University.

    Protecting Democracy in Europe: Pluralism, Autocracy

    and the Future of the EU has been published by
    Hurst Publishers and Oxford University Press (US).

    27 min
  • How Did Right-Wing Populists Win the Immigration Debate and What Can Mainstream Parties Do About It?

    In this conversation with Sheri Berman, Professor of Political Science at Barnard College, we engage with her key

    argument that growing support for right-wing populism is primarily a consequence of mainstream parties’ failure to address popular concerns about immigration. We dissect the ‘representation gap’ argument, discuss alternative explanations (namely, the issue of racism and xenophobia), explore salient differences between center-left and center-right parties, and highlight strategies that mainstream parties have used and could use to respond to citizens’ concerns and demands on immigration.

    The conversation is based on Sheri Berman’s article, “Democracy and Diversity in Western Europe,” published in the October 2024 (35/4) issue of the Journal of Democracy

    48 min
  • End of the Year Podcast 2024

    What were the defining events of 2024? Which new

    publications impressed us the most? What do we expect from the upcoming year in global politics and in terms of new intellectual trends?  Today, we, editors of the Review of
    Democracy bring you our traditional end of the year podcast.

    2024 has been another exciting year for our journal.

    We have managed to expand in new directions, doubling our core team of editors and opening global horizons, while continuing to focus on our main thematic
    priorities – Democracy and Culture, the History of Ideas, Political Economy, and the Rule of Law.

    This episode features no fewer than nine speakers:

    co-managing editors Robert Nemeth – who acted as our host – and Ferenc Laczó, global editors Anubha Anushree, Ece Ozbey, and Gabriel Pereira as well as section heads Oliver Garner, Adrian Matus, Alexandra Medzibrodszky, and Kristóf
    Szombati.

    Enjoy the holidays – and don’t forget to return in

    early 2025 when we shall bring you more fresh analyses and reflections!

    52 min
  • Landing the Paris Climate Agreement - Todd Stern on a Groundbreaking Document and What It Took to Make It Happen

    In this conversation at the Review of Democracy,

    Todd Stern – former United States Special Envoy for Climate Change – explains what made the Paris Climate Agreement such a groundbreaking document and what kind of bargaining and compromises it took to make it happen; discusses the place and role of the US within its broad coalition as well as his extensive engagement with his crucial Chinese partners; and considers major new possibilities to tackle climate change effectively and current obstacles to do so.

    37 min
  • Authoritarian International Law? - In Conversation with Tom Ginsburg

    International law is a live instrument in the current

    global geopolitical crisis. This latest RevDem Rule of Law podcast, conducted by Konstantin Kipp with Professor Tom Ginsburg, reflects upon the potentially authoritarian nature of international law in its function of enabling relations between states.

    Authoritarian regimes have traditionally been

    reluctant to engage in robust forms of international cooperation. Reasons for this may include strong nationalist views, and concerns that cross-border engagement could invite interference in domestic affairs or constrain the
    government’s autonomy. Consequently, international law has largely been shaped by liberal democracies.

    However, this stance appears to be shifting in the 21st

    century. Just as authoritarian regimes once recognized the strategic value of adopting new constitutions and utilizing seemingly democratic institutions in order to gain legitimacy, they are now beginning to see international law as a
    potential tool to legitimize their policies and strengthen the pursuit of their preferences.

    This development was identified by Professor Tom

    Ginsburg in his 2020 article “Authoritarian
    International Law?” published in the American Journal of International Law. Half a decade on from this publication, Professor Ginsburg discusses his findings on this still-emerging phenomenon and considers its potential
    future developments.

    Past, Present, and Future Authoritarian International

    Law

    Ginsburg provides an introduction to the history of

    Authoritarian International Law (AIL), highlighting the pivotal turning point as marked by the year 2006. He claims that this was the peak for global democracies and that subsequently the story is one of decline.  The conversation explores current developments in international law, raising a concern that the United States’ potential shift towards isolationism could cede the international playing field to authoritarian forces like China or Russia, thereby fueling the development of AIL.

    Ginsburg describes AIL as “designed to extend the

    survival and reach of authoritarian rule across space and/or time.” AIL is seen as having the potential not only to secure the persistence of existing authoritarian regimes, but also to be a possible trigger for further authoritarianism. The podcast addresses the extent to which this feature is inherently embedded within AIL, given that liberal democracies tend to pose a challenge to authoritarian regimes. Ginsburg reflects upon whether there is a danger
    that authoritarians might create entirely new international legal systems and institutions, or else seek to capture and transform existing bodies.

    While an American return to isolationism might fuel

    the development of AIL, there is also significant
    concern that the U.S. could veer toward dictatorship during Donald Trump’s second presidency. Statements by President-elect Trump, such as suggestions that people “won’t have to vote anymore,” imply at the very
    least authoritarian aspirations. Ginsburg reflects upon whether U.S. isolationism is truly the main danger to international law, or instead whether a government under Donald Trump may actively engage in promoting AIL. Ginsburg offers his view on why, despite his authoritarian nature, Donald Trump will not be able to become the dictator of the United States of America.

    Authoritarian European Union Law?

    While the European Union continues to embody

    relatively strong democratic values among most Member States compared to other regions, right-wing
    populism with authoritarian aspirations has also been on the rise. The EU's most notable authoritarian leader, Viktor Orbán, has recently advocated that right-wing populists should “occupy” Brussels. Ginsburg considers whether the emergence of authoritarian EU law may be possible.

    One of the EU’s current strategies for addressing “backsliding” on its values, including democracy and the Rule of Law, is financial conditionality. It remains to be seen whether this tool may effectively halt the trend towards authoritarianism in the long term, or whether it may indeed

    exacerbate it. Ginsburg concludes his reflections on the supranational dimension of AIL by musing upon whether the Eurasian Economic Committee, discussed in his 2020
    article, could evolve into a serious competitor that promotes authoritarian rather than democratic values in the Europe-Asia region.

    Preventing the Emergence of Authoritarian

    International Law

    Tom Ginsburg suggests that there is a strong possibility that the 21st century will be known more as an authoritarian century rather than a democratic one. The notion that

    international law guarantees a right to democratic governance has faced substantial criticism; Ginsburg challenges this idea as well. The podcast concludes with reflection upon the options for democratic countries to prevent international law becoming authoritarian. Could civil society – whether or not such societies aspire to be ‘open’ or not – prevent the authoritarian transformation of international law? Ginsburg concludes his contributions by
    emphasizing how recent developments in South Korea illustrate the vital role of civil society in the struggle for democracy. Such struggle, for democracy and against authoritarianism, is set to continue in the second half of the 2020s.

    28 min
  • The Mystic Candidate - Călin Georgescu’s Blend of Orthodox Faith, Mysticism, and Power

    In this conversation at the Review of Democracy, Ionuț Biliuță discusses the connections between Orthodoxy and nationalism in Romania and to what extent they have influenced this year’s presidential elections; the revival of narratives concerning ‘fascist martyrs’ by Călin Georgescu and other radicals; the impact the 2018 Constitutional referendum on same-sex marriage had on radicalization;  the ideas in transnational circulation that have inspired Georgescu's statements, including Alexander Dugin’s and

    those of Donald Trump’s Evangelical supporters; and the steps that the Romanian Orthodox Church could take to dissociate itself from far-right discourses.

    29 min
  • The Rise of Successful Political Outsiders in Latin America: Lessons Learned from Argentine President Javier Milei

    Join Review of Democracy Latin American Editor Gabriel Pereira as he hosts Andrés Malamud,

    a leading scholar of Latin American politics, to discuss a crucial development in current political affairs: the rise
    of successful political outsiders in Latin America.

    The podcast focuses on and draws lessons from the experience of current Argentine president Javier Milei. It delves into pivotal questions: How do outsiders get elected in a political system designed to secure electoral competition among established political leaders? How do they navigate

    constraints posed by legislatures dominated by opposition? Does the rise of political outsiders from the global north influence the progress of these Latin American leaders? Does the radical right-wing ideology of outsiders make them
    more effective? What are the lessons for understanding current Latin American politics?


    26 min

About RevDem Podcast

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RevDem Podcast is brought to you by the Review of Democracy, the online journal of the CEU Democracy Institute. The Review of Democracy is dedicated to the reinvigoration, survival, and prosperity of…

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