Political Economy Forum

In this episode, Professor Mark Alan Smith of the University of Washington speaks to Forum Fellows Morgan Wack and Nicolas Wittstock about reforming democratic political institutions. Specifically, they discuss the concept of deliberative democracy - which seeks to create institutionalized opportunities for citizens to discuss and debate issues.

In this episode, Dr. Mark Blyth of Brown University discusses his most recent book, Angrynomics, with Forum Affiliate Morgan Wack. In just under an hour, Mark details everything from the history of capitalism and the causes of economic collapse to the rise of contemporary populism and the European Super League. By differentiating between public and private forms of anger, Mark provides a new framework for understanding the impact of discrepancies between lived experiences and economic talking points.

Victor Menaldo speaks to Nicolas Wittstock about a political economy approach to explaining the phenomenon of cancel culture.

Glen Weyl speaks to Forum Fellow Nicolas Wittstock about his work with RadicalXchange and the reform agenda they propose. In his 2018 book with Eric Posner, Glen Weyl suggests radical reforms to private property, the voting system, immigration, antitrust policy, and the way that technology companies handle data. In this podcast, Glen reflects on the motivations behind the reform agenda laid out, the effects that the policy ideas have had thus far, and how his thinking has evolved.

Jake Grumbach, Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Washington joins Forum Fellows Morgan Wack and Nicolas Wittstock to discuss the indicators and causes of American democratic backsliding. Jake is the author of the forthcoming paper “Laboratories of Democratic Backsliding.” Coverage of the article, which details his development of the State Democracy Index utilized to assess subnational institutions and policies, has extended to pieces in The Economist, New York Times, New York Magazine, Vox, and The Washington Post.

In this episode, Jonathan Weigel discusses his work with DRC officials to improve tax collection efforts and the political participation of local communities with Forum Affiliate Morgan Wack. Throughout the episode they touch on the importance of taxation for development, the role local elites can play in harnessing communal knowledge to improve compliance, and the integration of digital technologies in low capacity states.

In this episode, Natasha Tusikov discusses the co-edited volume "Power and Authority in Internet Governance: Return of the State?" with Forum fellow Nicolas Wittstock. In this book, the authors discuss challenges arising in different areas of internet regulation.

In this episode, Anton Howes - head of innovation research at The Entrepreneurs Network, discusses the history of invention in Britain with host Nicolas Wittstock. Anton argues that Britons were infected with an "improving mentality" some time in the 15-hundreds. As a result, inventors created networks, shared research, and assisted each other in their efforts to improve anything they could. The results of this mindset shift are still with us today, as we reap the benefits of steady technological improvements, medical breakthroughs, and the resulting prosperity.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr. Leah Rosenzweig and Assistant Professor Dr. Yang-Yang Zhou discuss their recent paper "Team and Nation: Sports, Nationalism, and Attitudes Toward Refugees." In addition to a discussion about the paper, which examines the impact of an Africa Cup of Nations football match between Kenya and Tanzania on nationalist attitudes and perceptions of refugees, Leah and Yang-Yang detail policy implications, the politics of refugees and sport, and their ongoing work in the region. For the show notes accompanying this episode please visit the UW Political Economy Forum website.

Prof. Johnathan Haskel and Forum Fellow Nicolas Wittstock discuss Johnathans' book "Capitalism without Capital - the rise of the intangible economy" (with Stian Westlake). In it, the authors argue that that business investment in intangible capital - like software, knowledge, networks, patents, and processes - are growing in economic importance. This has crucial consequences, as these economic assets have special properties that make them categorically different from more conventional ones.