Interview #36 — The Far Right Today

The Far Right Today is Cas Mudde’s new book. It is extremely recommended for academics, but its clarity, scope, and tone make it a great read for everyone interested in knowing what form the far right takes in contemporary politics, its origins and causesleadership styles, and its links to issues such as religion and gender. Most importantly, this book is a great read for those who want to know what can be done to protect liberal democracy’s pluralism and minority rights.

The book brings you across neo-Nazi skin subcultures of Mongolia and Malaysia, the Japanese gaisensha (vans covered in propaganda slogans and fitted with loudspeakers), Eastern German football hooligans, Nemzeti rock, and femonationalism, with a particular emphasis on cases such as India, Hungary, Israel, Brazil, and the United States. The variety of cases examined, the clarity of the language, and the diversity of topics considered, contribute to offer a panoramic view of the contemporary far right with vivid colors and unsettling details, but it also offers an engaging and necessary pro-active section on how to respond to the challenges posed by the far right.

Enjoy the read.


Continue reading

Interview #21 – Rodrigo Duterte the “Trump of the East”

Nicole Curato

Nicole Curato

POP interviewed Nicole Curato. We discussed about Rodrigo Duterte, penal populism in the Philippines, the reasons behind the success of an extremely controversial politician and his use of a populist rhetoric, how he rose to power and how he is trying to maintain it despite the critiques from all over the world.

Nicole Curato (@NicoleCurato on Twitter) is an Australian Research Council Research Fellow at the Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance at the University of Canberra. She is the editor of the book The Duterte Reader – the first book about the strongman’s rise to power.

Enjoy the read.

Continue reading

Interview #13 with Benjamin Moffitt – Populism “Asian” Style

trumpklan

Street Art From Japan

There’s people in this country who are sick and tired. Tired of hearing all the rhetoric, tired of Washington failing us while they pat their own backs. Finally someone comes along who says what he feels. That’s why people like him: because say what you want, at least he doesn’t sound like another politician. [1]


In this interview, Benjamin Moffitt describes his approach to populism as a political style, and offers a crucial overview about differences and similarities between Asian and European populism. Benjamin Moffitt is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Department of Government, Uppsala University, and an Associate of the Sydney Democracy Network. He is the author of ‘The Global Rise of Populism: Performance, Political Style, and Representation’ (Stanford University Press, 2016).

Continue reading