Comparing Authoritarian Publics: The Benefits and Risks of Three Types of Publics for Autocrats

We cordially invite you to the next session of our workshop series on Authoritarian Politics and International Relations at WZB! Florian Toepfl will present his paper “Comparing Authoritarian Publics: The Benefits and Risks of Three Types of Publics for Autocrats” in which he argues that three types of partial publics operate in contemporary authoritarian regimes: (1) uncritical, (2) policy-critical, and (3) leadership-critical publics. The benefits and risks associated with critical partial publics for autocrats are comparable to those of other pseudo-democratic institutions. The project involves a large-scale data collection effort (in cooperation with Anna Litvinenko) aiming to assign all authoritarian media landscapes after 1945 to one of three proposed types of “authoritarian public-at-large”.

The seminar series aims at bringing together scholars from Comparative Politics and International Relations. We invite papers combining comparative authoritarianism and IR, as well as contributions that help clarify important theoretical concepts and empirical patterns in either discipline. Colleagues interested in presenting in the workshop series should email Alex Tokhi (alexandros.tokhi [at] wzb.eu ()) or Alex Schmotz (alexander.schmotz [at] wzb.eu ()).

When: Once a month on a Tuesday afternoon (see dates below)

Where: WZB Berlin Social Science Center, Reichpietschufer 50, 10785 Berlin, Room A305

What: A classic format: 90 minute research seminar with one paper presentation (15 min), one discussant (10), and plenty of time for Q&A

Who: All scholars from WZB and the Berlin area and anyone interested in authoritarian politics and/or international relations

The next sessions you can find here.

Organized by Alexandros Tokhi (Department Global Governance) and Alexander Schmotz (Department of Democracy & Democratisation)