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“Get the f*** out of your house and join an organisation. Groups are how we make movements. They're how we make political and social change. They're how we transform. Nobody does anything of value alone.” — Yotam Marom If you're feeling politically powerless, you're not alone. Yotam Marom — full-time organiser, facilitator and veteran of Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter — has spent his adult life on the front lines of progressive movements. His new book, For Louder Days: Reaching Beyond the Politics of Powerlessness, explains why progressive movements keep losing — and what to do about it. Marom's diagnosis is that the left has developed a “politics of powerlessness” — an attachment to purity, insularity, and performing resistance rather than building power. In contrast, the right understands that people's pain is real, and channelling it into something organised is the only route to political change. The liberal model of showing up every few years, voting, and then going home is insufficient. And the left too often sabotages itself by dodging conflict and choosing righteousness over action. His prescription is to “get the f*** out of your house” and join an organisation. Groups are how societies change and where people find meaning, purpose, and connection. So go on the streets. Turn up the volume. Your days will be louder and more meaningful. Five Takeaways • The Politics of Powerlessness: Why the Left Keeps Losing: Progressive and left movements have repeatedly put enormous numbers of people into the streets — and repeatedly failed to convert that energy into durable political power. Marom's explanation: a politics of powerlessness has taken hold. It prizes purity over winning, insularity over coalition, righteousness over effectiveness. It avoids conflict because conflict feels dangerous. It avoids leadership because leadership feels hierarchical. The result is movements that are morally serious and politically weak. The right, by contrast, is very good at taking pain and converting it into organised power. • The Right Channels Pain. The Left Needs to Do the Same: Trump's most effective political move, in Marom's analysis: he tells people that they're being screwed — and he's right about that. Then he continues to screw them. But the left cannot simply counter this with policy arguments. The people who voted for Trump are not wrong that the system has failed them. Income inequality is growing. Politicians don't listen. There is no leverage. Marom's argument: the left needs its own version of this — speaking directly to people's pain and offering a genuine path to power. Bernie, AOC, and Mamdani know how to do this. They're not the only ones. • Liberal Democracy Is Necessary but Insufficient: Voting, electoral participation, civic engagement — these are important and necessary parts of a healthy democratic society. But they are not sufficient to make big political change. The right understands this and has been exploiting it for a decade: the failure of the liberal establishment to deliver for ordinary people is the fuel for right-wing populism. Marom's answer is not to abandon liberal democracy but to supplement it with the kind of mass social movement that has historically produced the big political changes: the labour movement, the civil rights movement, the suffragette movement. • Conflict and Leadership Are Good, Actually: Two of the left's most self-destructive habits, in Marom's experience as a facilitator: avoiding conflict and avoiding leadership. Groups that learn to face conflict with dignity and care come out with better strategies. Leaders who accept the responsibility of leadership — who are willing to be visible, to take risks, to be wrong in public — give movements something to coalesce around. The fetishisation of horizontalism and the terror of hierarchy have kept many progressive organisations small, fractured, and ineffective. Leadership is not domination. It is responsibility. • Get the F*** Out of Your House: Marom's prescription for individuals who feel powerless: join an organisation. Not a party, not a mailing list — an actual organisation where people gather, disagree, decide things together, and act collectively. It doesn't have to be a national political organisation. It can be a union, a community organisation, a neighbourhood group, a mutual aid network. The point is the group. Groups are where political change happens. They are also where people find meaning, purpose, and connection. Nobody does anything of value alone. Not political change, and not a good life. About the Guest Yotam Marom is a full-time organiser and facilitator based in Brooklyn, New York. He has been active in movements since the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, played leadership roles at Occupy Wall Street, and co-founded IfNotNow and the Wildfire Project. He is the author of For Louder Days: Reaching Beyond the Politics of Powerlessness (The New Press, June 2, 2026). He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and children. References: • For Louder Days: Reaching Beyond the Politics of Powerlessness by Yotam Marom (The New Press, June 2, 2026). • Episode 2919: David Masciotra on A Country of Strangers — referenced at the opening. • Episode 2903: Ece Temelkuran on Nation of Strangers — referenced at the opening. • Christopher Clark, Revolutionary Spring: Europe Aflame and the Fight for a New World, 1848–1849 — referenced in the closing exchange. About Keen On America Nobody asks more awkward questions than the Anglo-American writer and filmmaker Andrew Keen. In Keen On America, Andrew brings his pointed Transatlantic wit to making sense of the United States — hosting daily interviews about the history and future of this now venerable Republic. With nearly 2,900 episodes since the show launched on TechCrunch in 2010, Keen On America is the most prolific intellectual interview show in the history of podcasting. WebsiteSubstackYouTubeApple PodcastsSpotify Chapters:
Ruth Ben-Ghiat (historian of fascism +NYT bestselling author of Strongmen) is an internationally recognised expert in how psychologically unstable men come to power and use corruption, sexual predation, staged victimhood and violence to rule. She's recently, however, turned her focus to how societies subjected to such tyranny have survived and fought back…using moral authority.Ruth is an American history professor at New York University and a political commentator with an expertise in fascism and authoritarian leaders. Her 2020 book Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present was a global bestseller. She publishes the hugely popular Substack Lucid, a newsletter on threats to democracy and will publish her next book, Resisting Autocracy: What History Teaches About Fighting Back, next year.SHOW NOTESBe sure to check out her Substack LucidPurchase Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present hereYou can catch up on the Ece Temelkuran episode hereThis episode with Lindsey Stonebridge on Hannah Arendt's ideas on resistance might also interest you-----Watch on YouTube or SubstackIf you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" pageFor more such conversations, subscribe to my Substack newsletter, it's where I interact the most!Let's connect on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
“We've learned how to tolerate acts of violence, acts of widespread death, disease — that other developed nations simply don't tolerate. And that tolerance manifesting in myriad political failures — all of which go back to our refusal to maturely deal with mortality and issues of grief.” — David Masciotra Earlier this week, we talked to Ece Temelkuran about her book Nation of Strangers, a manifesto about strangers finding one another. But for the cultural critic David Masciotra, strangerdom is the problem rather than the solution. Contemporary America, he argues in his new essay A Country of Strangers, has become a place of death, despair and indifference. Masciotra takes his cue from Albert Camus' 1942 novella The Stranger. Camus' Meursault — the narrator of The Stranger — is a man completely detached from meaning. He attends his own mother's funeral without feeling anything. He murders an Arab man on a beach without motive. He faces his execution with a shrug. Masciotra's argument is that the United States has become Meursault writ large. America's failure is existential rather than political. It is a failure to mourn — a sustained refusal to engage with death, grief, and the weight of history that produces a society of strangers who cannot connect with one another across race, class, or geography. So is Masciotra right? Are we all Meursault now? What can Albert Camus teach us about America? Five Takeaways • Meursault and America: The Same Detachment: Camus' The Stranger is narrated by Meursault — a man who attends his mother's memorial without feeling, murders an Arab man on a beach without motive, and faces execution with indifference. The novel, Camus said, was his attempt to detail “man's confrontation with absurdity in its nakedness.” Masciotra's argument: this is America now. A country that has adopted Meursault's emotional posture toward mass death. Columbine stopped the nation in 1999. Mass shootings now barely register. That is not political failure. It is existential failure. • A Failure to Mourn: Masciotra's central thesis: America's deepest problem is its refusal to mourn. Not guilt — he is careful to distinguish mourning from guilt. You can have a national memory that reckons with both what you celebrate and what you grieve. If the Founding Fathers are worth preserving in active memory, so are the people they enslaved. Never properly dealing with the Civil War allowed the resurgence of white supremacist movements. Never properly mourning mass shootings allows them to accelerate. The failure to grieve is not sentimental. It is political. • Is Meursault Autistic? The Spectrum Reading: Some contemporary critics read Meursault as someone on the autism spectrum — a man whose emotional detachment reflects neurodivergence rather than moral failure. Masciotra is skeptical. His reading: Camus' portrait is one of moral refusal, not neurological condition. The distinction matters for the American parallel: if America's indifference is a structural feature rather than a disease, the remedy is not therapy but political and cultural change. You can't medicate a country into empathy. • The Colonial Murder and the Racial Hierarchy: Meursault murders an Arab man in French Algeria and feels nothing. Some critics fault Camus for not making colonialism more explicit. Masciotra defends Camus: Meursault doesn't care about anything, including his own mother's death. His indifference to his Arab victim's humanity is the point, not an evasion. The parallel to America: the hierarchy of victims, where Black Americans have historically ranked lower in the eyes of law and institution. David Shipler's 1997 book A Country of Strangers documented the same failure of Black and white Americans to actually talk to one another. • You Are the First Close White Friends I've Had: Masciotra's friend Alana — a highly educated, cultured Black woman who lived in Chicago — once told him and his wife: “You are the first close white friends I've had.” They said the same back. This, Masciotra argues, is the country of strangers in daily life. Not the horror stories of overt racism. The quieter failure of self-imposed segregation that persists in a society that preaches diversity but, judging from its own behaviour, doesn't really want it. About the Guest David Masciotra is a cultural critic and the author of six books, including Exurbia Now: The Battleground of American Democracy, I Am Somebody: Why Jesse Jackson Matters, and Mellencamp: American Troubadour. He has written for the Progressive, the New Republic, Liberties, and many other publications about politics, literature, and music. His Substack is Absurdia Now. References: • A Country of Strangers: Death, Despair and Indifference in the US by David Masciotra, CounterPunch, May 1, 2026. • Albert Camus, The Stranger (1942). Camus' novella, the primary text of the conversation. • Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus and The Rebel — referenced in the conversation. • François Ozon, The Stranger (2024 film) — the adaptation that prompted the essay. • David Shipler, A Country of Strangers: Blacks and Whites in America (1997) — referenced in the conversation. • Episode 2903: Ece Temelkuran on Nation of Strangers — the companion episode referenced at the opening. About Keen On America Nobody asks more awkward questions than the Anglo-American writer and filmmaker Andrew Keen. In Keen On America, Andrew brings his pointed Transatlantic wit to making sense of the United States — hosting daily interviews about the history and future of this now venerable Republic. With nearly 2,900 episodes since the show launched on TechCrunch in 2010, Keen On America is the most prolific intellectual interview show in the history of podcasting. WebsiteSubstackYouTubeApple PodcastsSpotify Chapters: (00:31) - Introduction: Temelkuran's nation of strangers and Masciotra's country of strangers (01...
“We're losing home on so many different levels. Physically. Politically. Morally. And after AI, spiritually — because language, our spiritual home, is taken away from us. We now have to share it with an unhuman entity.” — Ece Temelkuran Do you feel homeless — physically, politically, morally or spiritually? That's the question posed by Ece Temelkuran's new book Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the Twenty-First Century. Shortlisted for the 2026 Women's Prize for Nonfiction, the narrative is structured as a series of letters from one homeless stranger to another. Temelkuran left Turkey in 2016, after threats to her life made staying untenable. After seven years of exile — in Beirut, Tunis, Oxford, Paris, Zagreb, and now Berlin — she has written both her own and our story in today's globalized, populist age. She's been called everything from a 21st century Hannah Arendt to a “ruthless Cassandra.” And yet she retains faith in the future — as a defiant stance, a can-do-no-other attitude against rootlessness and loneliness. The wisdom of survival, Ece Temelkuran argues, lies with refugees, exiles and migrants like herself. This nation of strangers are rebuilding home in our homeless world. Five Takeaways • Four Kinds of Homelessness: Temelkuran identifies four simultaneous crises of home. Physical homelessness: refugees, migrants, the displaced. Political homelessness: people who no longer recognize their countries, who feel unrepresented by any party, who cannot feel that they belong where they are. Moral homelessness: people who see the cruelty of our times and find no institution — state, court, international organization — capable of stopping it. And spiritual homelessness: the loss of language as our innermost home, now shared with AI. Four levels of being unhoused at once. That is the human condition of 2026. • Minneapolis as a Nation of Strangers: The week the book was published in the US, Minneapolis happened — ordinary people forming human chains to resist ICE agents. Temelkuran's reading: that was a Nation of Strangers in action. People who had never met, people from different communities who owed each other nothing in the old sense, holding on to each other because they recognized a shared condition. Not an ideology, not a party, not a leader — just strangers building a home together in real time. That, she says, is what the book is about. • Digital Refugees: When Elon Musk bought Twitter, millions of people fled to Mastodon, Bluesky, and other platforms — behaving, Temelkuran observes, exactly like refugees. Looking back at the old home while building a new one. Checking both simultaneously. She asks: why did no one think to occupy Twitter? To say: this is ours, not yours? Her conclusion: our political imagination has become extraordinarily limited. We accept displacement, digital or physical, as inevitable. We do not think to resist it by occupying the space rather than fleeing. • Gaza and the Move-On Ideology: Gaza was the ultimate test of how much humanity can swallow. Temelkuran draws an arc from Colin Powell's tube in the UN Security Council in 2003 — when a global anti-war movement was brushed aside — to today. Each time people mobilize and are ignored, they lose a little more faith in themselves, in politics, in institutions. What devastated Temelkuran most was not the bombing but Jared Kushner at Davos presenting his PowerPoint for a seaside resort in Gaza. That, she says, is what neoliberal morality looks like. Move on. That is the lowest of the low. • The Pioneers of History: Refugees as the Advance Guard: Temelkuran resisted writing her own story for years — she came from a leftist family where talking about yourself was suspect, and she feared being seen as a victim. What changed: she realized her story intersected with the story of the masses. The wisdom of survival — how to remake home from scratch, how to survive with dignity, how to rebuild identity after losing everything — belongs to refugees, exiles, and migrants. These are the pioneers of history. Soon everyone will need what they know. That is why their stories matter now. About the Guest Ece Temelkuran is a Turkish writer, political thinker, and public speaker. She is the author of Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the Twenty-First Century (Simon & Schuster, May 2026), shortlisted for the 2026 Women's Prize for Nonfiction; How to Lose a Country: The Seven Steps from Democracy to Fascism; and Together: A Manifesto Against a Heartless World. She was born in Turkey and is based in Berlin. References: • Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the Twenty-First Century by Ece Temelkuran (Simon & Schuster, May 2026). • How to Lose a Country: The Seven Steps from Democracy to Fascism by Ece Temelkuran — the book that made her reputation in the West. • Together: A Manifesto Against a Heartless World by Ece Temelkuran — the second book, between How to Lose a Country and Nation of Strangers. • Episode 2894: Marc Loustau on why Orbán lost and how to defeat Trump — the companion episode on defeating fascism from within the system. About Keen On America Nobody asks more awkward questions than the Anglo-American writer and filmmaker Andrew Keen. In Keen On America, Andrew brings his pointed Transatlantic wit to making sense of the United States — hosting daily interviews about the history and future of this now venerable Republic. With nearly 2,900 episodes since the show launched on TechCrunch in 2010, Keen On America is the most prolific intellectual interview show in the history of podcasting. WebsiteSubstackYouTubeApple PodcastsSpotify Chapters: (00:31) - Is Ece still retaining faith in the future? (01:47) - Faith as a stance: like Martin Luther, here I stand (02:30) - How to Lose a Country and what comes next (02:57) - Minneapolis as a Nation of Strangers (04:00) - Four kinds of homelessness: physical, political, moral, spiritual (04:35) - AI and the loss of language as spiritual home (05:10) - Why this book now — and why it's the most personal
Ece Temelkuran (fascism expert, political exile, journalist) first began reporting on the global slide into fascism as a journalist witnessing it happen in her home country, Turkey. In 2016, she was forced into exile and went on to write the bestselling book How to Lose a Country: The 7 Steps From Democracy to Authoritarianism that warned the rest of the world just how close it was to the same perilous descent. In her new book, Nation of Strangers, Rebuilding Home in the 21st Century, Ece argues we are entering “an age of survival” and that we are all about to become exiles of sorts, “unhomed” from our sense of belonging to the world as authoritarianism rips us from our sense of collective meaning as humans. Pivoting her focus to how we can best move through this moment, she says we need to turn to those who've already been exiled (the immigrants, the refugees, the victims of fascism) to learn how to rebuild our “what comes next”.This is a fascinating thesis and Ece, who lives nomadically between Berlin and Greece, gives us a very raw and vulnerable take on it.About EceEce Temelkuran is an award-winning Turkish novelist, political thinker, and public speaker. Her work has appeared in publications including The Guardian, The New York Times, Le Monde, El País, New Statesman, and Der Spiegel.Show Notes Get your copy of How to Lose a Country: The 7 Steps From Democracy to Authoritarianism and Nation of Strangers, Rebuilding Home in the 21st CenturyYou can connect with Ece on Instagram here and on X here.--Watch on YouTube or SubstackIf you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" pageFor more such conversations, subscribe to my Substack newsletter, it's where I interact the most!Let's connect on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Georgina Godwin is joined by journalist and novelist Ece Temelkuran. Forced exile led to her writing in English and producing her latest work, Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the 21st Century, which explores the concept of home and belonging. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Across the world, the number of refugees, exiles, and displaced people continues to rise. More and more individuals find themselves politically homeless, economically excluded, or estranged within their own countries. Over the past decade, Ece Temelkuran has warned that the erosion of democracy does not happen overnight. To those who believed “it can't happen here,” she has insisted: it will.In her new book, Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the 21st Century, journalist Ece Temelkuran – who herself left her home country Turkey because of the authoritarian turn it took after the failed coup of 2016 – turns to the urgent question of belonging. Through a series of intimate letters from one stranger to another, she explores what it means to lose a home — and how we might begin to rebuild one in a fragile and uncertain century.Ece Temelkuran (1973) is an award-winning writer. In 2012, she was dismissed from her position at a Turkish newspaper after writing critically about the Erdoğan government. Her earlier book, How to Lose a Country: The Seven Steps from Democracy to Dictatorship, examined the gradual steps through which democracies can slide into authoritarianism. The Dutch edition of Nation of Strangers will be published in March. She has recently been longlisted for the women's prize for non-fiction.Programme editor: Rosalie DielesenIn collaboration with: Studio Julian Hetzel, Uitgeverij Pluim and 360 MagazineZie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Exiles, migrants, refugees: there are as many ways to label "strangers" as there are to misunderstand them and reduce their identity to their outsider status. Ece Temelkuran explores this existential and very physical reality in her new book "Nation of Strangers", as the Turkish author and journalist reflects upon what it means to lose one's home morally, spiritually and politically.
durée : 02:30:19 - Les Matins - par : Guillaume Erner, Yoann Duval - Ce matin, sur France Culture, à 7h40, Guillaume Erner reçoit Geneviève Fraisse et Anne-Cécile Mailfert pour discuter de la place de Simone de Beauvoir dans le féminisme d'aujourd'hui, 40 ans après sa mort. A 7h17, la journaliste turque Ece Temelkuran parle de l'état de la démocratie dans son pays. - réalisation : Félicie Faugère
durée : 00:12:11 - Les Enjeux internationaux - par : Guillaume Erner - En Turquie, l'opposition est visée par des arrestations pour corruption. Ece Temelkuran alerte sur une dérive plus large : le déracinement et la perte du "chez-soi" ne sont plus exceptionnels, mais pourraient définir notre époque. - réalisation : Félicie Faugère - invités : Ece Temelkuran
» Lees dit nummer online Met onder andere: » Alle Zwitsers kunnen ondergronds overleven » De aanstelling van Irans derde opperste leider » De omgekeerde wereld: AI huurt mensen in Xenia Gastvrijheid staat in veel culturen hoog aangeschreven. Het oude Griekenland kende xenia: de band tussen gast en gastheer, die Zeus persoonlijk beschermde. Volgens Arabische tradities moet een vreemdeling minstens drie dagen worden verzorgd, zonder vragen. In India leeft het idee Atithi Devo Bhava: de gast is goddelijk. En in Japan houdt omotenashi in dat je anticipeert op de behoeften van de gast, zonder dat deze ze hoeft uit te spreken. Filippo Grandi, voormalig Hoge Commissaris van de VN voor de Vluchtelingen, noemt ‘asiel (…) een van de mooiste gebaren die de mensheid te bieden heeft'. In een reportage vanFinancial Times maakt hij de balans op van een decennialange carrière in het humanitaire veld. Migratie, zegt Grandi, is de prijs die je voor rijkdom betaalt. Of, zoals Naomi Klein het eens krachtig verwoordde: ‘Onze manier van leven is afhankelijk van andermans ellende.' Asiel is dan ook geen gunst, zoals de gast die vraagt, maar een recht, vastgelegd in het Vluchtelingenverdrag uit 1951, dat vanwege de aard van de wereldwijde problemen steeds weer moet worden bijgesteld. Migratie is de prijs die je voor rijkdom betaalt Niet iedereen denkt er zoals Grandi over, en het aantal ontheemden is in tien jaar tijd bijna verdubbeld. Ece Temelkuran, van wie we een fragment uit haar prachtige en intieme nieuwe boek Nation of Strangers publiceren, verliet Turkije in 2016 omdat ze gearresteerd kon worden wegens kritiek op Erdoğans regime, en woont momenteel in Hamburg. Ze spreekt niet van alt-right of extreemrechts, maar steevast van fascisme – een term die velen volgens haar vermijden omdat die hen eraan herinnert dat ze iets moeten doen. Als ontheemde gedraagt ze zich wenselijk. Bestond tussen haar en andere vluchtelingen de stilzwijgende overeenkomst om ‘zonder sentimenteel gedoe door te gaan met ons leven, wat mijn bevroren hart goed uitkwam', op de steeds terugkerende vragen van de Duitsers om haar heen heeft ze geleerd vrolijk te glimlachen, haar onverschilligheid te verbergen. En haar heimwee. Een van de schrijnendste gegevens uit de reportage met Grandi is dat, ondanks de grote ellende in het land, mensen uit omliggende landen toch naar Soedan vluchten. Ook keren veel gevluchte Soedanezen ondanks de gevaren terug. ‘De Soedanees is sentimenteel', aldus een van hen. Ondertussen worden in Omaha (het Amerikaanse Midwest) nieuwkomers verwelkomd om vergeten buurten nieuw leven in te blazen en trekt het Japanse dorp Shichikashuku migranten aan om de bevolkingsdaling af te remmen. Dat mag eigenbelang zijn, gastvrij is het wel.
» Lees dit nummer online Met onder andere: » Alle Zwitsers kunnen ondergronds overleven » De aanstelling van Irans derde opperste leider » De omgekeerde wereld: AI huurt mensen in Xenia Gastvrijheid staat in veel culturen hoog aangeschreven. Het oude Griekenland kende xenia: de band tussen gast en gastheer, die Zeus persoonlijk beschermde. Volgens Arabische tradities moet een vreemdeling minstens drie dagen worden verzorgd, zonder vragen. In India leeft het idee Atithi Devo Bhava: de gast is goddelijk. En in Japan houdt omotenashi in dat je anticipeert op de behoeften van de gast, zonder dat deze ze hoeft uit te spreken. Filippo Grandi, voormalig Hoge Commissaris van de VN voor de Vluchtelingen, noemt ‘asiel (…) een van de mooiste gebaren die de mensheid te bieden heeft'. In een reportage vanFinancial Times maakt hij de balans op van een decennialange carrière in het humanitaire veld. Migratie, zegt Grandi, is de prijs die je voor rijkdom betaalt. Of, zoals Naomi Klein het eens krachtig verwoordde: ‘Onze manier van leven is afhankelijk van andermans ellende.' Asiel is dan ook geen gunst, zoals de gast die vraagt, maar een recht, vastgelegd in het Vluchtelingenverdrag uit 1951, dat vanwege de aard van de wereldwijde problemen steeds weer moet worden bijgesteld. Migratie is de prijs die je voor rijkdom betaalt Niet iedereen denkt er zoals Grandi over, en het aantal ontheemden is in tien jaar tijd bijna verdubbeld. Ece Temelkuran, van wie we een fragment uit haar prachtige en intieme nieuwe boek Nation of Strangers publiceren, verliet Turkije in 2016 omdat ze gearresteerd kon worden wegens kritiek op Erdoğans regime, en woont momenteel in Hamburg. Ze spreekt niet van alt-right of extreemrechts, maar steevast van fascisme – een term die velen volgens haar vermijden omdat die hen eraan herinnert dat ze iets moeten doen. Als ontheemde gedraagt ze zich wenselijk. Bestond tussen haar en andere vluchtelingen de stilzwijgende overeenkomst om ‘zonder sentimenteel gedoe door te gaan met ons leven, wat mijn bevroren hart goed uitkwam', op de steeds terugkerende vragen van de Duitsers om haar heen heeft ze geleerd vrolijk te glimlachen, haar onverschilligheid te verbergen. En haar heimwee. Een van de schrijnendste gegevens uit de reportage met Grandi is dat, ondanks de grote ellende in het land, mensen uit omliggende landen toch naar Soedan vluchten. Ook keren veel gevluchte Soedanezen ondanks de gevaren terug. ‘De Soedanees is sentimenteel', aldus een van hen. Ondertussen worden in Omaha (het Amerikaanse Midwest) nieuwkomers verwelkomd om vergeten buurten nieuw leven in te blazen en trekt het Japanse dorp Shichikashuku migranten aan om de bevolkingsdaling af te remmen. Dat mag eigenbelang zijn, gastvrij is het wel.
L'esperienza dell'esilio raccontata da una scrittrice che vi è costretta da anni mostra cosa significa decidere di non tornare a casa, in patria, alla propria lingua. Ma descrive una condizione piu universale che rende tutti o quasi espatriati, forestieri, ospiti. Una invisibile maggioranza. Stranieri come te di Ece Temelkuran, Bollati Boringhieri Questo e gli altri podcast gratuiti del Post sono possibili grazie a chi si abbona al Post e ne sostiene il lavoro. Se vuoi fare la tua parte, abbonati al Post. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In this week's segment from Mehdi Unfiltered, Mehdi is joined by Turkish journalist and author Ece Temelkuran to discuss her new book, Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the 21st Century, what it means to be physically and politically 'unhomed,' and the rapid steps the US has taken towards fascism. SUBSCRIBE TO ZETEO TO SUPPORT INDEPENDENT AND UNFILTERED JOURNALISM: https://zeteo.com/subscribe WATCH 'MEHDI UNFILTERED' ON SUBSTACK: https://zeteo.com/s/mehdi-unfiltered FIND ZETEO: Twitter: https://twitter.com/zeteo_news Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zeteonews TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@zeteonews FIND MEHDI: Substack: https://substack.com/@mehdirhasan Twitter: https://twitter.com/@mehdirhasan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/@mehdirhasan TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mehdirhasan To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/Zeteo
Warning: moderate strong languageEce Temelkaran is an award-winning journalist and novelist who has spent years warning that the collapse of democracy rarely announces itself with a bang. Instead, it happens gradually - institution is weaken, truth is eroded and what once felt unthinkable becomes normal. Ece knows this first hand. After being fired from her newspaper in Turkey amid mounting political pressure, she watched her country slide towards what she says is authoritarianism, a story she believes is no longer uniquely Turkish but part of a wider global pattern. In her writing, she argues that the real danger isn't just strong men or populist leaders, but how easily societies adapt to them. Her latest book, Nation of Strangers, explores belonging and exile. But beneath it lies the same urgent question that has defined much of her work. How do democracies fail? And can they still be saved? On this episode of Ways to Change the World, Krishnan Guru-Murthy speaks to Ece about democratic backsliding, the moral crisis she believes sits at the heart of modern politics, the experience of exile, and why rebuilding democracy may require not just political change, but a deeper transformation in how we see ourselves and each other.This interview was recorded on 13 February 2026.
Send a textThis month Canongate publish Nation of Strangers, the third ‘instalment' in a series by Turkish novelist, essayist and journalist Ece Temelkuran. Following on from How To Lose A Country and Together it is, once more, rooted in Ece's forced displacement from her homeland.Recorded last December at Canongate's offices Sam met Ece to discuss this deeply personal and unflinching account of being ‘unhomed'. Nation of Strangers is centred on a loss that will resonate deeply with anyone who struggles - in the face of rising global authoritarianism - to recognise the country they call home. Written as a set of letters to a stranger it embraces humility and love as a rejection of the politics of cynicism and asks us once we recognise what is happening, (fascism) what choice do we have but to act?'Her most ambitious an dazzling book yet.'BRIAN ENO'Ece Temelkuran is a brilliant thinker, and her work here is as conceptually illuminating as it is beautifully written .... both a call and a comfort, a book that made me feel so much less alone.'OMAR EL AKKADMeanwhile, Lara meets up with James Meek to hear about his latest novel ‘Your Life Without Me'; a tale of loss, provocation and the radical discomfort of the new. Centred around a single act of destruction (the attempted demolition of St Paul's Cathedral) it is a book which asks how much of the past we can hold on to if we are to build a future worth living in. And whether change is inherently and unavoidably destructive.Praise for the novels of James Meek 'A story so original and so fully imagined.'HILARY MANTEL 'The language is so fresh and crisp and sparkling.'PHILIP PULLMANMusic used in this episode:Norfik - RealizationIda Urd & Ingrid Høyland- DuvetIan Hawgood - I Don't Think We Belong HereNorfik - Denial@fieldzine www.fieldzine.comwww.patreon.com/fieldzine
According to the latest annual report by Human Rights Watch, President Donald Trump is pushing America towards authoritarian rule. It says nearly three-quarters of the global population now live under autocratic rulers - putting democracy at its lowest point in forty years. It's a bleak reality that our first guest saw coming. Writer and activist Ece Temelkuran left Turkey ten years ago after learning she might be arrested for criticizing President Erdogan. Temelkuran joins the show to discuss her new book, "Nation of Strangers." Also on today's show: Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chairperson, Qatar Museums and Doha Film Institute; Tig Notaro, co-producer of “Come See Me in the Good Light," joined by the subject of the documentary, poet Megan Falley Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
What does it mean to belong when the very idea of home is under threat? In this episode we're joined by award-winning author and political thinker Ece Temelkuran. Forced into exile for her critical views of President Erdoğan, Temelkuran has long signalled the alarm that fascism threatens not only her home country Türkiye, but the whole democratic world. Her first book in English, How to Lose a Country, received international praise. Her second, Together, offers ‘a way out from the political and moral insanity' that is ushered by the global rise of fascism. Now Temelkuran joins host Mythili Rao to discuss her new book, Nation of Strangers, a powerful and personal reappraisal of the concept of exile, migration and rebuilding home in the 21st century. Increasingly, oppression seems to be spreading, institutions crumbling, and certainties dissolving. Across the world, the number of refugees and exiles, the dispossessed and displaced, the politically homeless and economically excluded is growing. In response, Nation of Strangers takes the form of intimate, urgent letters written from one stranger to another, exploring alienation, resistance, solidarity and hope. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Rabhansl, Christian www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Lesart
Nach dem Putschversuch 2016 hat Autorin Ece Temelkuran ihre Heimat Türkei verlassen. Ihre Warnungen, wie schnell eine Demokratie zur Diktatur werden kann, wurden ignoriert. Ihr neues Buch handelt von dem Gefühl, ein neues Zuhause aufzubauen. Rabhansl, Christian www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Lesart
Nach dem Putschversuch 2016 hat Autorin Ece Temelkuran ihre Heimat Türkei verlassen. Ihre Warnungen, wie schnell eine Demokratie zur Diktatur werden kann, wurden ignoriert. Ihr neues Buch handelt von dem Gefühl, ein neues Zuhause aufzubauen. Rabhansl, Christian www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Lesart
Rabhansl, Christian www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Lesart
Lesart - das Literaturmagazin (ganze Sendung) - Deutschlandfunk Kultur
Nach dem Putschversuch 2016 hat Autorin Ece Temelkuran ihre Heimat Türkei verlassen. Ihre Warnungen, wie schnell eine Demokratie zur Diktatur werden kann, wurden ignoriert. Ihr neues Buch handelt von dem Gefühl, ein neues Zuhause aufzubauen. Rabhansl, Christian www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Lesart
Lesart - das Literaturmagazin (ganze Sendung) - Deutschlandfunk Kultur
Rabhansl, Christian www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Lesart
Immer mehr Menschen werden in Zukunft ihre Heimat verlieren. Durch den Klimawandel, Kriege oder Diktaturen. Oder einfach, weil die politischen Verhältnisse sich so ändern, dass man sich plötzlich im eigenen Land fremd und heimatlos fühlt. Die Journalistin Ece Temelkuran fordert in ihrem neuen, sehr persönlichen Buch "Nation of Strangers" Heimat neu zu denken. Bevor sie die Türkei 2016 aus politischen Gründen verlassen musste, war sie eine der wichtigsten Stimmen der türkischen Zivilgesellschaft. radio3-Kritikerin Nadine Kreuzahler hat "Nation of Strangers" gelesen.
Schniederjann, Nils www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Studio 9
Schniederjann, Nils www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Studio 9
Lesart - das Literaturmagazin (ganze Sendung) - Deutschlandfunk Kultur
Schniederjann, Nils www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Studio 9
While Democracy Works is on winter break, we're bringing you an episode from our colleagues at The Context, a podcast from the Charles F. Kettering Foundation and a fellow member of The Democracy Group podcast network. Host Alex Lovit looks back at the advice from the show's guests this year about how everyday people can get involved in fighting authoritarianism and encouraging citizen engagement. You'll hear from:Ece Temelkuran, Turkish writer and author of How To Lose a Country, the Seven Steps From Democracy to FascismDaniel Hunter, educator with Freedom Trainers and director of Choose Democracy,Deva Woodly, professor of political science at Brown University and nonresident fellow at KetteringMaria Stephan, co-lead and chief organizer at Horizons ProjectSharon L. Davies, president and CEO of the Charles F. Kettering FoundationSteven Levitsky, professor of government at Harvard and co-author of How Democracies DieJohn C. Yang, president and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing JusticeWe hope this episode leaves you feeling inspired about what you can do to strengthen democracy in 2026 and beyond. Thank you to the team at The Context for sharing it with us! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
We've gotten a ton of excellent advice from our guests this year about how everyday people can get involved in fighting authoritarianism and encouraging citizen engagement. So, in this year-end lookback episode, we decided to put the top seven suggestions together in one place. Featuring clips from Ece Temelkuran, Jeffrey Winters, Deva Woodly, Maria Stephan, Sharon Davies, Steven Levitsky, and John C. Yang. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Temelkuran is a brilliant writer, finding humour, hope and humanity in the darkest corners of our current malaise.' – BRIAN ENO Ece Temelkuran is the award winning Turkish writer and author who was forced into exile for her critical views of President Erdoğan. She has long signalled the alarm that not only her home country of Türkiye but the whole democratic world is steadily sleepwalking into authoritarianism. Her 2019 book How To Lose A Country was an impassioned warning to the world that populism and nationalism don't march fully-formed into government; they creep. In October 2025, she came to Intelligences Squared to discuss how we can spot the early-warning signs of authoritarianism, defend democracy and learn the lessons of resistance from Eastern Europe to South America. Temelkuran also offered an alternative path and described how democracy can survive the digital age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Temelkuran is a brilliant writer, finding humour, hope and humanity in the darkest corners of our current malaise.' – BRIAN ENO Ece Temelkuran is the award winning Turkish writer and author who was forced into exile for her critical views of President Erdoğan. She has long signalled the alarm that not only her home country of Türkiye but the whole democratic world is steadily sleepwalking into authoritarianism. Her 2019 book How To Lose A Country was an impassioned warning to the world that populism and nationalism don't march fully-formed into government; they creep. In October 2025, she came to Intelligences Squared to discuss how we can spot the early-warning signs of authoritarianism, defend democracy and learn the lessons of resistance from Eastern Europe to South America. Temelkuran also offered an alternative path and described how democracy can survive the digital age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Send us a textNext February, Canongate will publish Nation of Strangers, the third instalment in a series by Turkish novelist, essayist and journalist Ece Temelkuran. Ahead of its publication we met to discuss the two books that precede it, ‘How To Lose A Country' and ‘Together - A Manifesto Against A Heartless World.' Both deal with what Ece has termed ‘cloud fascism' - the gradual then sudden everywhereness and nowhereness of global autocracy.Rooted in her own experience of the Erdogan regime's corruption and unrelenting assault on human rights, both books detail the dark drift toward fascism and the determination and dignity needed in resistance. In this wide ranging conversation, the first of two interviews, we discuss the normalisation of shamelessness, the dangers of pseudo-understanding, the fight for institutions and the essential value of stories, something Ece describes as ‘natural penicillin for diseases of the soul. ‘Ece Temelkuran is an award-winning Turkish novelist, political thinker and public speaker whose work has appeared in the Guardian, New York Times, Le Monde, La Stampa, El Pais, New Statesman and Der Spiegel. Her novels have been published in several languages and adapted for the stage.‘One of the most acute and perceptive analysts of the furtive growth of fascism. Everyone should know about this.'PHILIP PULLMAN‘This is essential.'MARGARET ATWOOD‘Temelkuran is a brilliant writer, finding humour, hope and humanity in the darkest corners of our current malaise. Together lifted my heart and my spirits.'BRIAN ENO‘A potent mix of fierce urgency but unyielding calmness.'THE IRISH TIMESMusic used on this episode is Room 2 by 36 @fieldzine www.fieldzine.comwww.patreon.com/fieldzine
How are the tech oligarchs shaping our democracies? In conversation with former EU-parliament member Marietje Schaake and journalist Ece Temelkuran.In his farewell speech, President Biden warned of a ‘tech-industrial complex' and an ‘oligarchy of extreme wealth' threatening democracy. His successor highlighted this very point by placing tech oligarchs like Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Tim Cook in the front row during his inauguration speech.Once celebrated as visionary enterprises driving progress and innovation, tech companies have become questionable forces in our democracies. From data privacy scandals to monopolistic practices and spreading misinformation on a wide scale, Big Tech has undermined public trust while molding the very fabric of our democracies.Together with former EU-parliament member Marietje Schaake, author of The Tech Coup, and journalist Ece Temelkuran, author of How to Lose a Country, we investigate the position of tech companies in our democracies. How are the tech oligarchs shaping our democracies?About the speakers:Marietje Schaake (1978) is the director of international policy at the Cyber Policy Center at Stanford University. From 2009 to 2019, she was a member of the European Parliament for D66. In 2024, her book The Tech Coup: How to Save Democracy from Silicon Valley was published.Ece Temelkuran (1973) is a journalist and writer. In 2012, she was fired from the Turkish newspaper she was working for at the time, for writing critically about the Erdogan government. In 2019, she published How to Lose a Country: The Seven Steps from Democracy to Dictatorship.Moderator: Rosalie DielesenThe Techdenkers series is supported by Adyen. This edition is part of the Forum on European Culture 2025 in Amsterdam.Zie het privacybeleid op https://art19.com/privacy en de privacyverklaring van Californië op https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Life under an authoritarian regime can erode one's faith in humanity. Today's guest says that's why it's more important than ever for Americans to lean into building human connection. Ece Temelkuran is a Turkish political thinker, writer, and award-winning journalist. Her two most recent books are How to Lose a Country: Seven Steps from Democracy to Fascism and Together: Ten Choices for a Better Now. https://ecetemelkuran.net/
Markets continue to tumble across the world after President Trump said he won't back down from his aggressive trade policies. Unlike previous economic crises, the pain is entirely self-inflicted. Betsey Stevenson is a former economic adviser to President Obama and a Professor of Economics at the University of Michigan. Justin Wolfers is also a Professor of Economics at the University of Michigan and they both join the show. Also on today's show: Utah State Senator Nate Blouin; Turkish journalist Ece Temelkuran; NYT reporter Steven Kurutz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
One person I didn't expect to see at DLD is the feted Turkish writer Ece Temelkuran. Not exactly a regular on the tech circuit, Temelkuran is best known as a critic of the Erdogan regime and author of the influential 2019 book How to Lose a Country: The 7 Steps from Democracy to Dictatorship. In our conversation at DLD, Temelkuran argued that the world is experiencing a profound transformation comparable to the Industrial Revolution, where neoliberalism is eroding both democracy and basic human morals. She sees modern fascism operating through entertainment and spectacle rather than traditional military aesthetics, and emphasizes the importance of friendship as both a personal anchor and political concept in resisting authoritarian forces. Currently living in Berlin, she expressed concern about rising far-right movements across Europe. She critiques Silicon Valley and social media, arguing that questions of ownership and profit motives are often obscured by technological utopianism. Despite the challenges, she finds hope in humanity's persistent moral compass and resistance to cynicism, though she prefers the term "faith" over "hope" as it implies a more active engagement with political change.Ece Temelkuran is a prominent Turkish journalist, author, and political commentator born in 1973 in Izmir, Turkey. She began her journalism career in the 1990s and became one of Turkey's most well-known political columnists, writing for major newspapers including Milliyet and Habertürk. Her writings often focus on Turkish politics, women's rights, and global political movements. She has been particularly critical of authoritarianism and populism, drawing from her experiences in Turkey. After facing political pressure, she left Turkey and has lived in various countries including Croatia and the UK. Some of her notable books include: "Turkey: The Insane and the Melancholy" (2016), "How to Lose a Country: The 7 Steps from Democracy to Dictatorship" (2019) and "Together: 10 Choices for a Better Now" (2021) She writes in both Turkish and English, and her work has been translated into multiple languages. Her books often combine personal narrative with political analysis, examining themes of democracy, resistance, and social justice.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.Keen On is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe
•Roadtrip• Drei mutige Frauen in einem alten Mercedes, auf dem Weg von Tunis nach Beirut: Eine Geschichte nach dem Roman von Ece Temelkuran über weibliches Empowerment, Freundschaft und eine Reise ins Ungewisse. Von Ece Temelkuran WDR 2014 www.wdr.de/k/hoerspiel-newsletter Von Ece Temelkuran.
Former England and Manchester City captain Steph Houghton was one of the first big names in women's football. In her new book, Leading From The Back, she details her experience of fighting to take the women's game from niche to mainstream. She also talks to Kylie Pentelow about her husband, former footballer Stephen Darby, who was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease in 2018.In one of his first moves since his victory in the US election, President-elect Donald Trump has named his 2024 campaign manager, Susie Wiles, as his chief of staff in the White House. She will make history as the first woman to hold the title. But what do we know about the woman Trump referred to as the "ice maiden"? Kylie is joined by Anne McElvoy, Executive Editor at POLITICO and host of the Power Play podcast to discuss.Award-winning Turkish writer and political thinker Ece Temelkuran speaks to Anita Rani about a new play based on her novel, Women Who Blow on Knots. It's set against the backdrop of the Arab Spring in 2012, and four women embark on a road trip starting from Tunisia through Libya and Egypt to Lebanon, and is currently at the Arcola Theatre in East London.This Sunday, Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light starts on BBC One. The much anticipated second series of the TV adaption of Hilary Mantel's novels starts when Anne Boleyn is executed, and Henry VIII marries his third queen, Jane Seymour. Jane is played by Peaky Blinders actress Kate Phillips – she joins Kylie to talk more about the iconic role.
In "How to Lose a Country", Turkish political thinker Ece Temelkuran examines the rise of populism and nationalism around the world. And given the international climate of late, we thought we'd invite her on The Agenda with Steve Paikin, to discuss her book and the themes that are so resonant today.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Eye Of The Storm Podcast (with Yanis Varoufakis and Raoul Martinez)
This podcast is released alongside the acclaimed new docuseries 'In The Eye Of The Storm — The Political Odyssey Of Yanis Varoufakis'. Watch it here: http://www.eyeofthestorm.infoEce Temelkuran is one of Turkey's best known novelists and political commentators. To find out more, go to: https://ecetemelkuran.net/Yanis Varoufakis is an economist, politician, author and the former finance minister of Greece. To find out more, go to: https://www.yanisvaroufakis.eu/Raoul Martinez is a philosopher, author and filmmaker. To find out more, go to: http://www.creatingfreedom.info'Eye Of The Storm Podcast' will release new episodes each week with renowned guests from the world of politics and the arts. Our first episode, however, kicks off with an in-depth interview with Yanis Varoufakis. Please like and subscribe.PRODUCED BY DAVIDE CASTRO AND FRANCESCA MARTINEZ. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
EPISODE 1671: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to the award winning Turkish writer and political commentator Ece Temelkuran about social media's failure to change the worldEce Temelkuran is a Turkish journalist and political commentator, and author of How to Lose a Country: The 7 Steps from Democracy to Dictatorship
EPISODE 1671: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to the award winning Turkish writer and political commentator Ece Temelkuran about social media's failure to change the world Ece Temelkuran is a Turkish journalist and political commentator, and author of How to Lose a Country: The 7 Steps from Democracy to Dictatorship Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Tommy and Ben talk about an anti-LGBTQ law in Uganda, violent protests in Kosovo and more reports on Trump's handling of classified documents. They also discuss US-China relations, Elon Musk's visit to China, heavy attacks in Kyiv, drone strikes in Moscow, Russia's arrest warrant for Lindsey Graham, a new law in Poland cracking down on Russian political interference and Brazilian President Lula Da Silva's relationship with Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. Then Tommy talks to Turkish journalist and author Ece Temelkuran about the election in Turkey and the erosion of democracy. For all the Succession fans out there, spoiler alert! Ben and Tommy talk about the series finale at the end of the episode. You've been warned! For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.
From dockworkers in Poland to meetings with European prime ministers and presidents and witnessing the fall of the Berlin Wall - the latest book by Timothy Garton Ash is a memoir called Homelands: A Personal History of Europe. He is joined by the Turkish writer now in exile from her home country Ece Temelkuran, by journalist Ben Judah who has been interviewing citizens across different European countries and by Misha Glenny, who has written on the former Yugoslavia and Eastern Europe and presents for BBC Radio 4 a history series about different countries called The Invention of …. Rana Mitter chairs the discussion which is recorded in front of an audience as part of BBC Radio 3's programming from the Hay Festival. Producer: Luke Mulhall You can find a series of concerts from Hay, an episode of the Verb and other BBC discussions all available on BBC Sounds. Ece Temelkuran was born into a political family and after her work as an investigative journalist and author of a series of books exploring Turkey's history and politics, including How to Lose a Country and Ten Choices for a Better Now. She now lives outside the country. Ben Judah has written This is Europe: The Way We Live Now which draws on a series of interviews with a range of European citizens detailing their experiences of life. Misha Glenny's books include The Balkans 1804-2012 and McMafia.
This week Ece Temelkuran on Turkey's upcoming elections (0:54); Lara Prendergast looks at Millenial Millie – a new voter demographic (05:47) and Aidan Hartley on surviving this year's drought (12:12).
This week: In her cover piece for The Spectator, Harriet Sergeant asks what's happened to the 140,000 pupils who have been 'severely absent' from school since the pandemic. She is joined by The Spectator's data editor Michael Simmons to account for the staggering number of children who were failed by the government's Covid response (01:08). Also this week: Owen Matthews, The Spectator's Russia correspondent, looks at the opposition candidate who could usurp President Erdogan in Turkey. He joins the podcast alongside Turkish journalist Ece Temelkuran to discuss whether it really could be the end of Erdogan's two decade long hold over Turkish politics (14:48). And finally: Kara Kennedy, staff writer at Spectator World, writes this week about her upbringing in the Welsh 'murder capital' Pontypridd, and her own near miss with a recently convicted killer. She is joined by Welsh crime writer and psychologist Emma Kavanagh, to examine Wales's murderous reputation (24:36). Hosted by Lara Prendergast and William Moore. Produced by Oscar Edmondson.
Stephen Sackur speaks to Ece Temelkuran, a prominent exiled Turkish writer and critic of President Erdogan. Erdogan has dominated Turkey for two decades but after the terrible earthquakes, with economic and political problems mounting and an election imminent, could his opponents finally bring him down?
Turkish journalist Ece Temelkuran understands the problems of rightwing populism better than most: she lives as an exile, after her criticism of the Erdogan regime threatened her liberty. But despite the very personal toll that our current politics has taken, Ece remains optimistic. The seeds of a new society, she says, lie in communities, and the ways they find to come together.In this episode, Katherine and Ece discuss courage, truth and learning to befriend our fear. We also touch on the power of Twitter in the days before Elon Musk took over - so maybe a little of our optimism was misplaced! But Ece has a unique ability to put our current political conflicts into a global context, and her faith in grassroots action is redemptive. Join the conversation! We're also inviting your thoughts on each episode from now on - follow this link to join the conversation. Answers, challenges, ideas and further questions are all welcome - there will be a further episode in a couple of months focusing on your voices.Katherine's new book, Enchantment, is released in March 2023. Pre-order now: US/CAN and UKLinks from the episode:Ece's websiteEce's booksFollow Ece on Instagram and TwitterJoin Katherine's Patreon to receive episodes early and ad-freeSign up to receive Katherine's newsletterFind show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website.Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.