Constitutions provide the basic laws and principles of government for modern states. They determine the powers and duties of those who govern, and guarantee rights and freedoms to those who are governed. Yet few countries politics can be understood through these documents alone. Constitutions have, in Walter Bagehot’s famous formulation, “secrets” which don’t always align to “the traditional theory, as it exists in all the books”. This podcast looks at the different efficient secrets of democratic constitutions, as well as the challenges to them, to gain deeper insights into the unstable and fractious politics of the twenty first century – a time when democratic politics finds itself under increasing attack. The podcast is part of a broader project, the Oxford Constitutional Studies Forum, which brings together scholars of law and politics to understand the challenges faced by liberal democracies across the world today.
Efficient Secrets
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Podcast Overview
Constitutions provide the basic laws and principles of government for modern states. They determine the powers and duties of those who govern, and guarantee rights and freedoms to those who are governed. Yet few countries politics can be understood through these documents alone. Constitutions have, in Walter Bagehot’s famous formulation, “secrets” which don’t always align to “the traditional theory, as it exists in all the books”. This podcast looks at the different efficient secrets of democratic constitutions, as well as the challenges to them, to gain deeper insights into the unstable and fractious politics of the twenty first century – a time when democratic politics finds itself under increasing attack. The podcast is part of a broader project, the Oxford Constitutional Studies Forum, which brings together scholars of law and politics to understand the challenges faced by liberal democracies across the world today.
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Publishing Since
1/30/2022
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Recent Episodes
March 31, 2022
Democratic Backsliding: Constitutions and the Secret State
In this, the last episode of our first season, we’ll look at one final issue which bears on the question of backsliding – how democratic constitutions deal with the secret state. Even in democratic states some aspects of state activity are difficult or impossible to make fully transparent and accountable to the public. This is because some actions must necessarily be covert in order to be effective – from the operation of intelligence services to military operations and sensitive weapo...
March 24, 2022
Backsliding Special: Brian Klaas on “Corruptible: Who Gets Power and How It Changes Us”
An important aspect of backsliding is understanding how individuals with corrupt motives gain and then abuse their power to undermine democracy. So, in this special episode, recorded at a seminar earlier this year, I spoke to Brian Klaas – author of the new book Corruptible: Who Gets Power and How It Changes Us. Brian’s book draws on over 500 interviews with people from presidents and philanthropists to rebels, cultists, and dictators to answer the question of whether power corrupts, or are c...
March 17, 2022
Is the UK Experiencing Democratic Backsliding?: Parties, Politics and Public Opinion
The United Kingdom is one of the worlds longest standing democracies, with an even longer tradition of constitutional government and the rule of law. However, in recent years increasing questions have been raised about whether British democracy is in decline. In the second of two episodes on this topic, we explore decreasing public trust in politics, the weakening of the party system, and increasing threats to the territorial integrity of the state. To what extent is UK backsliding rela...
9 total episodes available
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