"What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book because there would be no one who wanted to read one."

— Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

This week, Nick Cohen talks to essayist and Times journalist James Marriott about Marriott's essay on "The dawn of the post-literate society" and his upcoming book "The New Dark Ages." James argued that mass literacy, which emerged in the 18th century, was fundamental to democracy, science, and philosophy, but that modern screen-based technologies like smartphones are replacing reading and leading to mass cognitive decline.

James and Nick discuss how television and now social media platforms like TikTok are changing political discourse, making it more emotional and less rational, with examples like Donald Trump's anti-vaxx stance and the rise of populist leaders who thrive on screen.

James concludes that democracy may not be sustainable in our current information environment, as it relies on abstract thinking that doesn't translate well to visual media formats

James Marriott is a columnist and film critic on The Times, and has own Substack column, Cultural Capital. James's Substack essay on how the smart phone is helping to usher in a new dark age - The dawn of the post-literate society - And the end of civilisation - went viral and has led to his first book, to be published by Bodley Head - an imprint of Penguin - either next month or in the Autumn, The new Dark Ages: the end of reading and the dawn of a post-literate society.

Nick Cohen's @NickCohen4 latest Substack column Writing from London on politics and culture from the UK and beyond.

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Nick Cohen interviews Andrew Gawthorpe about the current geopolitical situation, particularly focusing on America's disastrous war with Iran and its broader implications.

Andy Gawthorpe is the author of the highly-regarded newsletter "America Explained" and teaches at Leiden University in The Netherlands. He describes the current mess caused by Trump and his fellow incompetents, such as defence minister Pete Hegseth, as "America's Suez moment", suggesting it could mark the beginning of American empire decline. Nick and Andy discuss how Trump's foreign policy lacks strategic rationale, the rise of militarism on the American right, and the potential dangers of Trump's ability to command military power - as "Commander-in-Chief" - even as his domestic political position weakens. They also discuss the impact on the U.S.-Israel relationship, with both agreeing that Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu's approach has undermined the alliance and international support for Israel, especially liberals who have been deeply antagonised by its catastrophic war on the Palestinian people, that increasing numbers of critics are characterising as genocide. Nick and Andy also discuss concerns about America's military becoming a tool for Trump's personal agenda.

The UK and the rest of Europe face the most toxic version of the United States. On one hand, the U.S. is now deeply isolationist and not only seeks to abandon Europe to the wiles of the fascist regime of Vladamir Putin while it also actively helps the Kremlin in its illegal war of aggression against Ukraine. Meanwhile, the MAGA White House is seeking to overturn liberal and democratic governments in Europe and to replace them with MAGA-friendly acolytes in Europe's far-right parties. Only this week, U.S. vice-president J.D. Vance visited Hungary to help bolster the election chances of beleaguered authoritarian autocrat Viktor Orbán, who has impoverished Hungary democratically, morally and economically, while turning it from one of the richest countries in the EU to one of the poorest.

Andrew Gawthorpe @andygawt explains an increasingly unstable and reckless U.S. to his baffled readers in his Substack column America Explained.

Nick Cohen's @NickCohen4 latest Substack column Writing from London on politics and culture from the UK and beyond.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nick Cohen and Adrian Wooldridge discuss Adrian's book "Centrists of the World Unite: The Lost Genius of Liberalism." They discuss how liberal institutions and ideologies have become corrupted across multiple domains - from "Woke" identitarianism on the left to neoliberal capitalism and global managerialism. Adrian identifies three main liberal overreaches: left liberals pushing extreme social policies, neoliberals promoting unfettered markets, and globalists supporting unmanaged immigration and multinational institutions.

They discuss how these failures created conditions for authoritarian populism, with examples like Trump and Brexit, though Adrian argues these represent bad solutions to real problems rather than legitimate alternatives. They also talk about how tech companies pose a civilisational threat to liberal values by manipulating preferences and fracturing attention, and concluded with optimism about liberalism's historical pattern of revival after apparent deaths, suggesting current incremental adjustments by politicians like Sir Keir Starmer could lead to a new liberal renaissance.

Adrian Wooldridge @adwooldridge is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion and an author. His book Centrists of the world, unite! The lost genius of liberalism" has just been published. Adrian's book lays out a centrist agenda for today’s problems. It reminds us of the dynamism and fixed principles that have shaped the successes of liberalism and warns us against splitting into sub-groups that fail to grapple with the common good.

Nick Cohen's @NickCohen4 latest Substack column Writing from London on politics and culture from the UK and beyond.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.