Are we facing the end of democracy?
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| entry free |
| Please book your tickets online or at the cash desk at the Foyer. |
| Duration: 60 min |
| English, German |
| Humboldt Lab, 1st floor |
As part of the Humboldt Lab’s new series „Meet the Scientist“, Michael Zürn presents his research on populism and is open to questions by visitors.
Usually, a clear difference is being made between a potentially democratising populism on the left, and an undemocratic populism on the right side of the political spectrum. But in this perspective, the real challenges for democracy are being underestimated: The fact, that it is primarily authoritarian populists that try to get into power and undermine democracy. Their all-embracing ideology exploits the weaknesses of existing democracies. They are particularly dangerous when they question the liberal regime of truth.
Michael Zürn is the Director of the Department of Global Governance at Berlin Social Science Center (WZB) and Professor of International Relations at Freie Universität Berlin. Since 2019, he is spokesman of the DFG-funded Cluster of Excellence „Contestations of the Liberal Script“ (SCRIPTS). He is the founding rector of the Hertie School of Governance and an ordinary member of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities. In 2021, he was a fellow at Thomas Mann House, Los Angeles, and was awarded the Berlin Science Award of the Governing Mayor.