Show Notes
U.S. democracy is facing unprecedented challenges. Political polarization is at its highest level in decades. An uncharted new media environment is spreading questionable information and undermining public trust. And profound economic and societal changes are prompting deep dissatisfaction with democratic institutions and procedures. What’s going on with democracy—and how can we save it?
For forty years, IGCC’s network of scholars from across the University of California has leveraged world-class academic expertise toward addressing the most serious matters of global security. As the world experiences reversals in democratic governance and a resurgence of authoritarianism, understanding the causes of U.S. democratic discontent could not be more salient to IGCC’s mission of utilizing rigorous research to help build a more peaceful and prosperous world.
This has been the year of the election, bringing half the world’s population to the polls in contests of varying degrees of legitimacy. As 2024 closes with a general election in the United States, we are releasing a five-episode Talking Policy podcast miniseries featuring in-depth conversations about the most pressing problems faced by U.S. democracy and how they can be addressed.
Democracy and Its Discontents will explore the spread of misinformation in political discourse, the influence of money on the U.S. electoral system, how political actors promote division and enmity, and how the rise of populist demagogues is testing democracies across the world. The series will place these challenges in historic context to ask if the risks to U.S. democracy are really so unprecedented and how we can reinvigorate the democratic ideals that the nation was founded upon.
More from Talking Policy
Why do people believe the things they do, and how do those beliefs affect how they vote? In this second episode of our Talking Policy miniseries on U.S. elections, guest host Georgia Kernell is joined by professors Ben Bishin and Jennifer Merolla at the University of California, Riverside for a closer look at how group identities shape voters' attitudes and behaviors at the ballot box. They argue that political messaging that emphasizes a common plight—such as economic policy issues—may be the key to uniting a currently divided American public. This episode was recorded on September 15, 2026, with additional recording on October 14, 2026. The conversation was edited for length and clarity.
Political campaigns in the United States devote millions of dollars to advertising and media strategies in an attempt to influence voters. But can the media truly change the way voters see the world and what they do at the ballot box? In this first episode of a new Talking Policy miniseries on U.S. elections, guest host Georgia Kernell, a political scientist at UCLA, is joined by Stuart Soroka and Lynn Vavreck to examine the information environment surrounding U.S. elections, and how even the smallest persuasive effects or changes to the media ecosystem can lead to major impacts on the political landscape. This episode was recorded on April 2, 2026, with additional recording on October 8, 2026. The conversation was edited for length and clarity.
In September 2026, UC Press published the second IGCC-led issue of Current History, a century-old magazine of global affairs. The issue features a collection examining rising strains in civil-military relations in the United States and other democracies, where militaries are being pulled into undemocratic politics. On this episode of Talking Policy, host Lindsay Shingler speaks with two scholars of civil-military relations and contributing authors to the September issue, Rebecca Best and Lindsay Cohn, about the changing relationship between the U.S. military, political leadership, and the American public. They examine the forces driving the politicization of the armed forces; what the structure and traditions of the U.S. military reveal about its role in a democratic society; and how recent controversies—including the removal of senior military officers and the deployment of troops in American cities—are testing longstanding norms surrounding civilian control, military professionalism, and public trust in the armed forces. This episode was recorded on September 2, 2026. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
In July, IGCC hosted the 36th Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue (NEACD) in Seoul, South Korea. Founded in 1993 to reduce the risk of conflict in Northeast Asia and beyond, the convening brought together scholars and current and former officials from China, Japan, South Korea, Russia, and the United States. What are the forces reshaping Northeast Asia’s security landscape—and how do they look from Beijing, Tokyo, Seoul, Moscow, and Washington? In this special episode of Talking Policy, host Lindsay Shingler sits down with an expert from each of the five countries represented at NEACD to explore the questions that animated this year’s discussions and what they reveal about the region’s changing geopolitical order. These interviews were recorded over the course of July 23-24, 2026, with additional recording on August 6, 2026. The episode has been edited for length and clarity.
In a moment when discussions about the shifting global order are crowded by the conflicts in Ukraine and the Persian Gulf; the rise of China; and the repositioning of the United States and Europe—the role of Africa in the international system is often overlooked. On this episode of Talking Policy, Stephan Haggard, IGCC research director and senior editor of Current History, speaks with Folashadé Soulé, a contributing author to the July 2026 issue of the UC Press journal that is now under the editorial management of IGCC. Soulé shows how African states have used diplomacy, regional organizations, and international law to advance sovereignty, challenge global power imbalances, and expand Africa’s influence on the global stage. This episode was recorded on July 7, 2026. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.