New Books in Political Science

Dr. Matthieu Grandpierron discusses how world leaders react to status decline by going to war guided by a nostalgic, virile understanding of power. He tests this theory against realism and diversionary theory, examining case studies like the Indochina War and US invasion of Grenada. The podcast delves into the challenges of accessing Reagan administration documents and explores nostalgic virility's impact on international relations, highlighting its relevance in today's global order.

Author Rina Verma Williams discusses women's changing participation in Hindu nationalist politics in India over time, highlighting the evolution from marginalization to mobilization and incorporation by parties like BJP. The podcast explores the impact of women's inclusion on electoral success and the complexities of empowerment within religious nationalism.

Diane Winston, author of 'Righting the American Dream', discusses Reagan's shift to a spiritual agenda, how the media embraced his message, and the impact of evangelical ideas on policy. Winston reveals how Reagan's religious rhetoric was mainstreamed by journalists, leading to a social revolution that continues today.

Yuliya Zabyelina delves into the intricacies of impunity among political elites involved in transnational crimes. The discussion covers the challenges of investigating and trying these officials, legal mechanisms for accountability, and notable case studies. It also explores the complexities of international immunities, drug trafficking cases, and future prospects for holding elite figures responsible.

W. B. Allen, an expert on Montesquieu's 'The Spirit of the Laws,' discusses the systematization of 'separation of powers' and 'balances and checks.' Montesquieu's work provides a response to limiting power in the nation-state, emphasizing domestication of power with resistance to absolutism. The podcast explores Montesquieu's perspectives on women, religion, and slavery, his influences on the United States Constitution, and the relevance of his ideas on society, politics, and governance.

Since the mid-2000s, the Chinese state has increasingly shifted away from labor-intensive, export-oriented manufacturing to a process of socioeconomic development centered on science and technology. In The Gilded Cage: Technology, Development, and State Capitalism in China (Princeton University Press, 2023) Ya-Wen Lei traces the contours of this techno-developmental regime and its resulting form of techno-state capitalism, telling the stories of those whose lives have been transformed—for better and worse—by China’s rapid rise to economic and technological dominance. Drawing on groundbreaking fieldwork and a wealth of in-depth interviews with managers, business owners, workers, software engineers, and local government officials, Lei describes the vastly unequal values assigned to economic sectors deemed “high-end” versus “low-end,” and the massive expansion of technical and legal instruments used to measure and control workers and capital. She shows how China’s rise has been uniquely shaped by its time-compressed development, the complex relationship between the nation’s authoritarian state and its increasingly powerful but unruly tech companies, and an ideology that fuses nationalism with high modernism, technological fetishism, and meritocracy. Some have compared China’s extraordinary transformation to America’s Gilded Age. This provocative book reveals how it is more like a gilded cage, one in which the Chinese state and tech capital are producing rising inequality and new forms of social exclusion.Ya-Wen Lei is professor of sociology at Harvard University, where she is affiliated with the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies and the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs.Caleb Zakarin is Editor at the New Books Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/political-science

Biographer Paul Carter discusses Richard Nixon's early life in California, addressing his academic success, military service, political career, and legacy. The podcast explores Nixon's Quaker roots, debate skills, college years, political ascent, failed gubernatorial campaign, and reflections on his legacy and historical context.

Professor David Jacobson from the University of South Florida discusses the origins of citizenship, medieval guilds as a model for citizenship today, and the decline of violence in societies in a fascinating conversation with John Torpey on International Horizons.

"What happened in Hong Kong is not an anomaly but a warning" - Hong Kong Human Rights defender Chow Hang Tung, speech written from prison upon receiving a human rights award.In our interview today, I spoke with Professor Michael C. Davis, author of Freedom Undone: The Assault on Liberal Values and Institutions in Hong Kong (AAS and Columbia UP, 2024). In his latest book, he writes about how one of the world's most free-wheeling cities has transitioned from a vibrant global center of culture and finance into an illiberal regime. We spoke about the progressive shifts towards authoritarian governance in Hong Kong's post-colonial period, leading up to the introduction of the National Security Law of 2020, and the rapid erosion of human rights and liberal freedoms since. Professor Davis explained the significance of Hong Kong's new domestic National Security Law, introduced last week, and its implications for the erosion of global democratic institutions globally. Professor Michael C. Davis is a former long-time professor at the University of Hong Kong and prior to that at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where he taught course on human rights and constitutional development. He is currently a Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars, a Senior Research Associate at the Weatherhead East Asia Institute at Columbia University, and a Professor of Law and International Affairs at O.P. Jindal Global University in India. He also enjoys research affiliations at New York University and the University of Notre Dame. You can listen to our earlier interview, about Professor Davis' book, Making Hong Kong China: The Rollback of Human Rights and the Rule of Law (Columbia UP, 2020) here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/political-science

Contemporary politics is characterized by the rise (and fall) of many new parties. But what tools do political scientists have to map and measure electoral volatility? How can we best capture this change? And what insights can political scientists draw from other disciplines? Join host Tim Haughton for a discussion with Allan Sikk and Philipp Köker, the authors of a new book, Party People: Candidates and Party Evolution (Oxford University Press, 2023). Their book draws on a database of 200 000 electoral candidates from over 60 elections across nine democracies. Allan Sikk is Associate Professor at University College London’s School of Slavonic and East European Studies. Philipp Köker is Lecturer and Research Fellow at Leibniz University in Hannover. Tim Haughton is Professor of Comparative and European Politics and a founding co-director of CEDAR at the University of Birmingham. The People, Power, Politics podcast brings you the latest insights into the factors that are shaping and re-shaping our political world. It is brought to you by the Centre for Elections, Democracy, Accountability and Representation (CEDAR) based at the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom. Join us to better understand the factors that promote and undermine democratic government around the world and follow us on Twitter at @CEDAR_Bham! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/political-science