The Democracy Paradox podcast brings scholars from political science, sociology, economics, and other disciplines to discuss social and political ideas. The aim is not to debate policy or politics, but to introduce new concepts to listeners so they can understand politics and society better. The host, Justin Kempf, works to create conversations that test our assumptions about democratic governance, while offering hope for the success of democratic ideals.
A Podcast About Democracy
Episodes have explored concepts as broad as civil resistance, Russian conservatism, populism, and direct democracy. Guests have ranged from Ivy League professors to former elected officials. Many episodes have featured scholars from around the world including Israel, Greece, and Germany. Episodes regularly integrate big picture concepts with current events and history to make difficult ideas come alive.
The Democracy Paradox podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, and just about anywhere podcasts are found. It is a proud member of the Democracy Group network of podcasts. Please subscribe and leave a review wherever possible. Your support keeps this website and the podcast alive. Below is a list of past episodes.
Most Recent
Kathryn Stoner on How Putin’s War has Ruined Russia
Scott Radnitz on Why Conspiracy Theories Thrive in Both Democracies and Autocracies
Marta Dyczok and Andriy Kulokov on the Media, Information Warriors, and the Future of Ukraine
Yascha Mounk on the Great Experiment of Diverse Democracies
Mark Beissinger on Urban Civic Revolutions
Craig Whitlock on the Lessons Learned in Afghanistan
Miles Rapoport on How We Can Achieve Universal Voting
Between Russia and China: Anja Mihr on Central Asia
Moisés Naím on the New Dynamics of Political Power
Sarah Repucci from Freedom House with an Update on Freedom in the World
Elisabeth Ivarsflaten and Paul Sniderman on Inclusion and Respect of Muslim Minorities
Debasish Roy Chowdhury and John Keane on the Decline of Indian Democracy
Elizabeth Perry and Grzegorz Ekiert on State-Mobilized Movements
Guillermo Trejo and Sandra Ley on the Political Logic of Criminal Wars in Mexico
What is Democracy?
Lisa Disch on Representation, Constituencies, and Political Leadership
Zeynep Pamuk on the Role of Science and Expertise in a Democracy
Tom Ginsburg Shares his Thoughts on Democracy and International Law
Chris Bickerton Defines Technopopulism
Kajri Jain Believes Democracy Unfolds through the Aesthetic
Bryn Rosenfeld on Middle Class Support for Dictators in Autocratic Regimes
Zizi Papacharissi Dreams of What Comes After Democracy
James Loxton Explains Why Authoritarian Successor Parties Succeed in Democracies
Hélène Landemore on Democracy without Elections
Carolyn Hendriks, Selen Ercan and John Boswell on Mending Democracy
Democratization
Joseph Wright and Abel Escribà-Folch on Migration’s Potential to Topple Dictatorships
Donald Horowitz on the Formation of Democratic Constitutions
Michael Miller on the Unexpected Paths to Democratization
Elizabeth Nugent on Polarization, Democratization and the Arab Spring
Jonathan Pinckney on Civil Resistance Transitions
Democracy Under Threat
Sara Wallace Goodman on Citizen Responses to Democratic Threats
Stephan Haggard and Robert Kaufman on Democratic Backsliding
Caitlin Andrews-Lee on Charismatic Movements and Personalistic Leaders
Karen Greenberg on the War on Terror, Donald Trump, and American Democracy
Jan-Werner Müller on Democracy Rules
Freedom House: Sarah Repucci Assesses Freedom in the World
Can Democracy Survive the Internet? Nate Persily and Josh Tucker on Social Media and Democracy
Can America Preserve Democracy without Retreating from it? Robert C. Lieberman on the Four Threats
Thomas Carothers and Andrew O’Donohue are Worried About Severe Polarization
World Affairs
Joshua Yaffa on Truth, Ambition, and Compromise in Putin’s Russia
Timothy Frye Says Putin is a Weak Strongman
Kathryn Stoner on Russia’s Economy, Politics, and Foreign Policy
Christophe Jaffrelot on Narendra Modi and Hindu Nationalism
Sebastian Strangio Explains the Relationship Between China and Southeast Asia
Nic Cheeseman and Gabrielle Lynch on the Moral Economy of Elections in Africa
Mareike Ohlberg on the Global Influence of the Chinese Communist Party
Xiaoyu Pu on China’s Global Identities
Amy Erica Smith on Politics and Religion in Brazil
United States
Derek W. Black Says Public Education Represents the Idea of America… Not its Reality
Sheryl WuDunn Paints a Picture of Poverty in America and Offers Hope for Solutions
Ross Benes on Nebraska and Rural Conservatism
Chad Alan Goldberg on the Wisconsin Idea and the Role of the Public University in a Democracy
Lee Drutman Makes the Case for Multiparty Democracy in America
William G. Howell and Terry M. Moe on the Presidency
Ryan Salzman is an Evangelist for Placemaking
Mallory SoRelle on the Politics of Consumer Credit
Institutions
Daniel Brinks on the Politics of Institutional Weakness
Susan Rose-Ackerman on the Role of the Executive in Four Different Democracies
Rana Siu Inboden on China and the International Human Rights Regime
Inequality
Joseph Fishkin on the Constitution, American History, and Economic Inequality
Angus Deaton on Deaths of Despair and the Future of Capitalism
Amory Gethin on Political Cleavages, Inequality, and Party Systems in 50 Democracies
Robert Meister Believes Justice is an Option
Aldo Madariaga on Neoliberalism, Democratic Deficits, and Chile
Jacob Hacker and Paul Pierson on the Plutocratic Populism of the Republican Party
Big Ideas
Bilal Baloch on Indira Gandhi, India’s Emergency, and the Importance of Ideas in Politics
Zoltan Barany on the Ineffectiveness of the Gulf Militaries
Shari Davis Elevates Participatory Budgeting
Mike Hoffman on How Religious Identities Influence Support for or Opposition to Democracy
Glenn Tiffert on the Manipulation of Academia by Foreign Governments
John Matsusaka on National Referendums
Erica Chenoweth on Civil Resistance
History
Charles Kupchan on America’s Tradition of Isolationism
Dorothy Sue Cobble on the Full Rights Feminists
Kurt Weyland Distinguishes Between Fascism and Authoritarianism
David Stasavage on Early Democracy and its Decline
Michael Hughes on the History of Democracy in Germany
Daniel Carpenter Revisits the Petition in 19th Century America
John Ikenberry on Liberal Internationalism
Paul Robinson on Russian Conservatism
Agnes Cornell and Svend-Erik Skaaning on the Interwar Period
Early Episodes
Barbara Freese on Corporate Denial
Jill Long Thompson on Character in a Democracy
Juliet B. Schor on the Sharing Economy
John Gastil and Katherine Knobloch on Citizen Initiative Review
Joshua J. Dyck and Edward L. Lascher, Jr. on Initiative Referendums
William S. Smith on Irving Babbitt
Takis Pappas on Populism and Liberal Democracy
Alexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon on the End of American Hegemony
Luis Cabrera on International Human Rights
Marlene Mauk on Citizen Support for Democracies… and Autocracies
