Contributor(s): Professor Mark Pennington | What are the implications of Michel Foucault’s critical social theories for how we think about freedom, power, and justice?
Political economist Mark Pennington will address this question exploring themes from his forthcoming book Foucault and Liberal Political Economy: Power, Knowledge and Freedom. Pennington provi ... Show More
Oct 2
Can human solidarity survive social media and what if it can’t?
Contributor(s): Professor Nick Couldry, Baroness Beeban Kidron | Drawing on his recent book, The Space of the World, Nick Couldry will reflect on the global space of social communications and interaction that has been constructed over the past three decades through a commercializ ... Show More
1h 27m
Oct 1
Racism and racial justice: 40 years on from the Broadwater Farm riots
Contributor(s): Sharon Grant, Dr Clive Chijioke Nwonka, Dr Roxana Willis | Join us to explore the legal, political and community-based racial justice work that emerged 40 years ago from the Broadwater Farm riots, examining methods of resistance that continue to address present-da ... Show More
1h 35m
Sep 30
How AI is helping - and harming - animals
Contributor(s): Professor Kristin Andrews, Dr Leonie Bossert, Jane Lawton, Dr Jeff Sebo | Learn more about the Jeremy Coller Centre for Animal Sentience, a new LSE initiative committed to making sure technological change works for - rather than against - the interests of other sp ... Show More
1h 23m
May 2024
Joseph E. Stiglitz, "The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society" (Norton, 2024)
In his latest book, The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society (W. W. Norton, 2024), Nobel laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz rethinks the nature of freedom and its relationship to capitalism. While many agree that freedom is good and we want more of it, we don’t agree about wh ... Show More
42m 15s
Nov 2023
John Gray on Pessimism, Liberalism, and Theism
John Gray is a philosopher and writer renowned for his critical examination of liberalism, atheism, and the human condition. His unique perspective is shaped over a decades-long career, during which he has authored influential books on topics ranging from political theory to what ... Show More
1h 1m
Apr 2025
Whatever this is, it isn’t liberalism
What exactly is the basis for democracy? Arguably Iiberalism, the belief that the government serves the people, is the stone on which modern democracy was founded. That notion is so ingrained in the US that we often forget that America could be governed any other way. But politic ... Show More
57m 40s
Oct 2024
Michael J. Thompson, "Descent of the Dialectic: Phronetic Criticism in an Age of Nihilism" (Routledge, 2024)
In Descent of the Dialectic: Phronetic Criticism in an Age of Nihilism (Routledge, 2024), Michael J. Thompson reconstructs the concept and practice of dialectics as a means of grounding a critical theory of society. At the center of this project is the thesis of phronetic critici ... Show More
1 h
Aug 2024
Oliver Traldi, "Political Beliefs: A Philosophical Introduction" (Routledge, 2024)
The idiom of contemporary politics is a kind of philosophical hodge-podge. While there’s plenty of talk about the traditional themes of freedom, justice, equality, and autonomy, there is also an increasing reliance on ideas like misinformation, bias, expertise, and propaganda. Th ... Show More
1h 10m
Oct 2024
Exploring Political Theory: Liberal Socialism
Professor and author Matt McManus returns to the show to discuss his newest book, "The Political Theory of Liberal Socialism". Together they explore the major themes of the book, hash out the disagreements they have between revolutionary Marxism and democratic socialism, explore ... Show More
2h 11m
Aug 8
Philosophy Series: Hegel, Marx, & Modern Life (Part 1)
Breht listens to, comments on, and expounds upon a public lecture by the late professor of philosophy Rick Roderick from 1989 on Hegel, Marx, and modern American capitalism. Along the way he explicates the Hegelian notion of Freedom, Right and Left Hegelianism, the End of History ... Show More
1h 15m