Introducing: What's Wrong with Democracy?

By the end of this year, countries making up half the world’s population will have held elections. But not all of them will have been free and fair. In ‘What’s Wrong with Democracy?’ Professor Ben Ansell of Oxford University will, with the help of academics, journalists, activists and writers, figure out whether democracy is working and how best to preserve democratic freedoms, equality and rights. What’s Wrong with Democracy? is produced by Tortoise Media and supported by Open Society Foundations.

The autocrat next door

In Ukraine, democracy is under attack. Ben Ansell investigates what that means for the country’s future. Is the war a death knell or a rallying cry for democracy? What is at stake and how worried should we be about the rise of autocrats?

The autocrat behind the keyboard

Another front on the war against democracy is information warfare. Ben Ansell digs into how modern day autocrats are using this. For almost a decade China has been running a media influencing campaign in Africa. Now Russia has taken it mainstream, and digital. But how effective are these disinformation campaigns? What’s the endgame? And how can we build up our defence arsenal?

The trust deficit

Over the past 20 years the British public’s trust in politicians has been tested. Ben Ansell explores how trust is playing out in the UK’s upcoming general election. How can you restore trust in democracy? And is the UK an outlier or part of a wider global movement? Guests: Sacha Hilhorst, Senior Research Fellow with Commonwealth Polly Curtis, Chief Executive of Demos Richard Wike, Director of Global attitudes Research at the Pew Research Centre

The rise of populism

With populists rising to power around the world, Ben wants to know why, and how they flourish. Could establishment politicians learn a thing or two from populists about how to communicate? Do populists offer real solutions to voters’ problems do they ever actually deliver on their promises?

Big money, big problems?

This week, Ben’s asking what happens when money meets democracy. As lobbying scandals continue to rock our institutions, Ben wants to know how we can protect our democracies from corruption. Also what role should or could the wealthy, and super-wealthy play in keeping our democracies financially healthy? Does philanthropy have a place in modern functioning democracies? Guests: Valentina Pop, Europe news editor, the Financial Times Mark Malloch-Brown, former President of the Open Society Foundations What’s Wrong with Democracy? is produced by Tortoise Media and supported by the Open Society Foundations.

Truth matters

The freedom to speak truth to power is under threat. Not just in authoritarian states, but increasingly within democracies too. This week Ben asks why access to reliable information is so important for democracy. And how important is the emergence of open source investigation in getting to the truth?

The case for an independent judiciary

Democracy needs independent courts, juries and judges to function properly. But what happens when that independence is compromised? This week, as more political institutions are rocked by corruption from partisan forces, Ben wants to know how we can protect the independence of our judiciaries, and what happens when they go wrong. When democratic institutions fail, what does this do to our faith in democracy? And can a compromised judiciary ever be restored?