About Gramsci and the Struggle for Democratic Communism
Across nine 25-30 minute episodes this podcast gives an introduction to the arguments I set out in my book 'Gramsci and the Struggle for Democratic Communism' published by Bloomsbury in 2026.
9. Gramsci and the Contradictions of the Coming Revolution
In the final episode of the podcast I sketch an answer to the question: what form of political rule can facilitate a democratic transition out of capitalism?
17 May 2026
8: Gramsci and the Venezuelan Revolution
What might revolutionary hegemony look like in a modern setting? In this episode we travel to the Venezuelan revolution under the leadership of Hugo Chavez and explore its affinities with Gramsci's philosophy of revolution.
11 May 2026
7. Gramsci and the British Cultures of Neo-Liberalism
In this, episode 7, I explore the British cultures of neo-
liberalism between 1997 until the present day, using a Gramscian optic to understand the British crisis, political and economic.
4 May 2026
6. Gramsci, Stuart Hall and Thatcherism
In this, episode 6, I discuss Stuart Hall's Gramscian analysis of Thatcherism in the 1980s as a way of developing Grasmci's analysis of the political management of antagonisms in class democracies.
27 Apr 2026
5. Gramsci and the Philosophers of the Western Public Sphere
In this, episode 5. I discuss Gramsci's thinking in relation to three of his contemporaries from the United States - all New Yorkers. They are the philosopher John Dewey, the public relations genius Edward Bernays and the newspaper man and philosopher Walter Lippmann. None of these figures are interested in developing the kind of working class public sphere that we saw Trotsky wanted to develop. But coming from the most advanced and dense mass communications space on the planet, they have plenty to tell us about how elite hegemony works in class democracies.
20 Apr 2026
4. Gramsci & Trotsky on Culture
In this, episode 4, I am going to look at Leon Trotsky’s book Problems of Everyday Life, which explores the importance of culture in the context of revolutionary political change. Along the way we can compare his thinking with Antonio Gramsci for whom culture was also a critical political question. This episode illustrates the profound democratic ethos of communism, which has yet to find a political form of rule that can express that ethos while managing a transition away from capitalism.
13 Apr 2026
3. Gramsci, Lenin & Hegemony
In this, episode 3, I am going to be talking about Lenin’s contribution to the concept of hegemony, how he developed it as a critique of what he called ‘economism’, and as a strategic guide for revolutionary practice. But there are limits to Lenin’s thinking about hegemony and I will use Gramsci's take on it to explore these limits and their practical political consequences.
6 Apr 2026
2. Gramsci & Capitalist State Development
In this, episode 2, I am going to give a brief introduction to Gramsci’s biography and then talk about his analysis of Italian history from the mid-nineteenth century through to the 1920s and the rise of fascism. I will talk of elite hegemony, revolutionary hegemony and passive revolution: key Gramscian terms.
30 Mar 2026
1. The Democratic Deficit
In this, episode 1, I will consider how it was that communism and democracy diverged so radically in the twentieth century – to the extent that putting those two words, communism and democracy, together, is likely to raise at the very least, a sceptical eyebrow or two, if not outright guffaws of laughter.
27 Mar 2026
Trailer
How can Gramsci help us re unite the words 'democracy' and 'communism'? I explore this question in a series of 9 episodes based on my recently published book.
Contact Gramsci and the Struggle for Democratic Communism
Guest appearances
Does not typically book guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of Gramsci and the Struggle for Democratic Communism?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
