The Rhodes Center Podcast with Mark Blyth

For decades, left-leaning political parties were defined by their advocacy for the working class. But in the 1990s that started to change, as left voters were asked to adapt to a more technocratic, market-driven world and parties themselves changed, becoming more technocratic. Parties changed internally with finance-friendly economists and political strategists taking over from trade union economists and party activists. We’re living with the consequences of that transformation today, from the rise of inequality to the surge of anti-immigrant nationalist political parties. To better understand this strange new political world, Mark talks with Stephanie L. Mudge, Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Davis and author of 'Leftism Reinvented: Western Parties' from Socialism to Neoliberalism (Recorded on 3/5/2020). You can watch Stephanie Mudge's March 5th talk at Watson here: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cP86Fk5AMQI&feature=youtu.be] You can learn more about and purchase 'Leftism Reinvented' here: [https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674971813]

Between 2016 and 2018, relations between the United States and China went from focusing on engagement to competition to something bordering on threat management. If you think that's because of President Trump...you're wrong. On this episode Mark talks China, foreign policy, and the role of experts with David McCourt, Associate Professor of Sociology at University of California, Davis. McCourt has studied the formation, evolution, and influence of the relatively small group of China 'experts' who guide China policy in the US and Europe. He and Mark talk about how this group operates, why their views change when they do, and what their inner workings can teach us about the future of US-China relations. You can watch David McCourt's recent talk at the Watson Institute here: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdAK0rJUuvQ&feature=youtu.be]

First, there was Bretton Woods. Then, globalized neoliberalism. On this episode of the Rhodes Center Podcast, Mark and his guests ask: what’s next? Is the ‘American order’ over? And if not, how will we know when it is? Mark talks with Ilene Grabel, Professor at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver, and Jonathan Kirshner, political scientist at Boston College. Optimist, pessimist, or realist, this conversation will give you something to chew on.

On this episode Mark talks with Mario Rizzo, co-author of “Escaping Paternalism: Rationality, Behavioral Economics, and Public Policy.” In the book, Rizzo makes the case that economists, policy makers, and psychologists have developed an overly restrictive view of ‘rational behavior,’ and that this causes problems for institutions and governments seeking to promote certain types of behavior over others. Rizzo challenges the idea that experts and policymakers can always design beneficial interventions, and instead argues for a more inclusive theory of rationality in policy making.

On this episode guest host and Watson Professor Nick Ziegler talks with Katharina Pistor, Professor at Columbia University Law School and author of “The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and Inequality”. They discuss how the law defines our economy, and generates vast amounts of capital for those who know how to wield it. Yet despite its centrality to our system, it remains a mystery to many outside the legal profession. Ziegler and Pistor unpack this dilemma, and look at how the law can push back against the very problems ‘legal coding’ creates. You can see Professor Pistor's lecture at the Watson Institute here: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m81pkJs5fcY] You can learn more about and purchase Professor Pistor's book here: [https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691178974/the-code-of-capital]

On this episode Mark talks with Benjamin Braun, Cornelia Woll, and Jennifer Heerwig about corporate governance in the digital age. As their discussion illustrates, behind the neutral phrase ‘corporate governance’ lie so many pressing economic, financial, and political issues: the growth of money in politics, the effects of some bankers being ‘too big to jail,’ and what it means for the world that BlackRock owns, well, everything.

There are uncertainties in our economy that go beyond measurable risk. Simply put: there are some things we can not know. So how do economic actors form expectations and decide how to act despite this existential uncertainty? On this episode Mark explores this question with Jens Beckert and Richard Bronk, editors of the new book ‘Uncertain Future: Imaginaries, Narratives, and Calculation in the Economy.' They look at the challenges that arise from this uncertainty, and explore how, in many ways, the future really belongs to those with the market, political, or rhetorical power to make their models or stories count. You can see the talk Jens and Richard gave at the Rhodes Center here: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FseT_EU-EbI&feature=youtu.be] You can purchase 'Uncertain Futures' here: [https://global.oup.com/academic/product/uncertain-futures-9780198820802?cc=us&lang=en&] You can read a transcript of this episode here: [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ehWghIxpKEEZ8LKGd6d_4HUcNLVxP2DC/view?usp=sharing]

We live in a time of crises — economic turmoil, workplace disempowerment, unresponsive government, environmental degradation, social disintegration, and international rivalry. Paul Adler's book, 'The 99 Percent Economy: How Democratic Socialism Can Overcome the Crises of Capitalism,’ argues that these crises are destined to deepen unless we radically transform our economy. On this episode, Mark and Paul talk about how a democratic-socialist alternative to our current economy could help us weather these crises, and the challenges to building such a system. You can purchase Paul Adler’s book here: [https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-99-percent-economy-9780190931889?cc=us&lang=en&] You can read a transcript of this episode here: [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fEsrMmPYDWhrOKo0xi2GKinZ-ZgNjN0h/view?usp=sharing]

On this episode, Mark Blyth talks with Kimberly Clausing, author of ‘Open: A Progressive Case for Free Trade, Immigration, and Global Capital’ [https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674919334]. At a time when free trade is getting a bad rap from every direction, Clausing makes a case for why open borders and free trade are crucial to building a 21st-century economy that works for everyone. You can read a transcript of this episode here: [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dcaBdZtGmSdaPPVnVzXVZrfrUYDyfOZ3/view?usp=sharing]

On this episode, something a little different. Aidan Regan is an assistant professor at the School of Politics/International Relations at University College Dublin UCD, and has a podcast we think you’ll like. We think you’ll especially like this episode, since he recorded it while at a conference hosted by the Rhodes Center. His guest? Mark Blyth. He and Mark talk about how Mark first got interested in political economy, the perception versus reality of Europe’s economic challenges, and why some bad economic ideas are just too good to give up. You can read a transcript of this episode here: [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fislkd-yjs4W4z2M_uHqlQVdQXhTF8Ug/view?usp=sharing]