Alistair Cole
Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been found guilty of corruption and misuse of influence. Alistair Cole traces Sarkozy’s misfortunes in part to his personal political style, but also, more profoundly, to a broader move towards transparency that has pitted judges against politicians Read more
Ruairidh Brown
In Trump’s second impeachment trial, ‘truth’ never really mattered, writes Ruairidh Brown. Regardless of the facts or evidence presented, the endurance of a post-truth climate guaranteed he would be acquitted regardless Read more
Simon Otjes
On 15 January, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte was forced to resign after thousands of parents in the Netherlands were wrongly accused of benefit fraud. But the outcry has not diminished faith in Rutte as a leader, writes Simon Otjes Read more
Francesco Saverio Montesano
An increasing number of scholars want to campaign for positive change outside the academic echo chamber, but overlook their own evidence when they refuse to engage with any view not exclusively based on science. Francesco S. Montesano argues that this will only deepen the gap between ‘experts’ and the rest of society Read more
Ruairidh Brown
The pandemic has revealed the importance of civic solidarity and public trust, writes Ruairidh Brown. But they function best in a context of ‘friendship', a concept which needs to be recognised as central to political thinking in a post-Covid world Read more
Jay Krehbiel
Changing German attitudes to the coronavirus, as measured in original survey data, are the key to understanding how long the country’s success in tackling the pandemic may last, writes Jay N. Krehbiel, Amanda Driscoll, Michael J. Nelson and Taylor Kinsley Chewning Read more
Goran Dominioni
What factors determine public trust in government restrictions to mitigate the spread of Covid-19? Goran Dominioni, Alberto Quintavalla, Alessandro Romano and Cecilia Sottilotta argue that an overlooked factor is the role played by other governments and institutions, and that mastering this dynamic is critical to risk management Read more
