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John Keane

John Keane is co-founder of the Sydney Democracy Network (SDN) and Professor of Politics at the University of Sydney and the Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin (WZB). His full-scale history of democracy, The Life and Death of Democracy (2009), was short-listed for the 2010 Non-Fiction Prime Minister’s Literary Award, and recently ranked (by one of Japan's leading newspapers, Asahi Shimbun) within the top three non-fiction books published during 2013 in Japan. His new book, Democracy and Media Decadence has just been published.

US Election Series

Hillary Clinton, Julian Assange and the US election

Oct 31, 2016 10:27 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

The following field note will shortly appear in Germanys Die Zeit. It is a brief commentary on the factual errors and misjudgements of numerous journalists when reporting the role recently played by Julian Assange and...

Global Geopolitics Series

History of Russian populism provides important lessons for today

Oct 24, 2016 05:10 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

When the people are being beaten with a stick, they are not much happier if it is called the Peoples Stick. Mikhail Bakunin, Statism and Anarchy (1873) Populism is in the air: its the topic of the moment, the...

A New Democratic Enlightenment?

Sep 24, 2016 08:09 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

This is the slightly rewritten text of my address to the opening plenary session, New Enlightenment Neue Aufklrung, at the European Forum Alpbach, Alpbach, Austria, 28 August 2016. European Forum Alpbach,...

Capitalism and Democracy [part 4]

Aug 13, 2016 11:21 am UTC| Insights & Views Economy Politics

Earlier parts of this series on capitalism and democracy raised questions about the tense and often contradictory relationship between capitalist markets and the egalitarian spirit and power-humbling institutions of...

Capitalism and Democracy [part 3]

Aug 13, 2016 11:18 am UTC| Insights & Views Economy Politics

Part two of this series on capitalism and democracy introduced the unfamiliar idea of democracy failure. Instead of seeing democracy as the hapless victim of capitalist markets, as Marxists and others have typically done...

Capitalism and Democracy [part 2]

Aug 13, 2016 11:16 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics Economy

Part one of this series on capitalism and democracy probed the famous remark of the American economist and sociologist Thorstein Veblen that there are historical moments when democratic sovereignty is converted into a...

Capitalism and Democracy [part one]

Aug 13, 2016 11:15 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics Economy

Lets begin with a discomforting fact often forgotten in recent years: capitalism is not naturally the best friend of democracy. Since the early years of the nineteenth century, especially during periods of economic...

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Economy

Germany’s Economic Recovery Slows as Trade Tensions and Rising Costs Weigh on Growth

Germanys economic outlook remains cautious, with a new forecast from the German Economic Institute (IW) indicating only modest improvement in 2025 as global trade falters and domestic financial pressures intensify....

Japan’s Nikkei Drops as Markets Await Key U.S. Inflation Data

Japans Nikkei 225 slid on Friday, erasing its gains for the week and diverging from mostly positive Asian markets as investors turned cautious ahead of a crucial U.S. inflation reading that could influence the Federal...

Europe Confronts Rising Competitive Pressure as China Accelerates Export-Led Growth

Europe is facing growing competitive pressure from China as Beijing intensifies its export-driven growth strategy, a shift Goldman Sachs says is reshaping the outlook for several major European industries. The bank...

Citi Sets Bullish 2026 Target for STOXX 600 as Fiscal Support and Monetary Easing Boost Outlook

Citigroup has raised its outlook for European equities, setting a 2026 year-end target of 640 for the STOXX 600 index. The forecast suggests a potential 10.5% upside from Thursdays close, reflecting growing confidence in...

Dollar Weakens Ahead of Expected Federal Reserve Rate Cut

The U.S. dollar hovered near a five-week low on Friday as global investors positioned themselves for a widely anticipated Federal Reserve rate cut next week. The greenback remained under pressure across major currencies,...

Politics

Australia and Japan Strengthen Defence Cooperation Amid Rising Regional Tensions

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles will travel to Japan on Saturday for high-level defence talks with his counterpart, Shinjiro Koizumi, as both nations deepen security cooperation in response to growing regional...

U.S. Justice Department Orders Intensified Probe Into Antifa and Domestic Extremist Groups

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has directed federal law enforcement agencies to significantly ramp up investigations into the antifa movement and other groups deemed potential domestic extremist threats, according to an...

Honduras Election Turmoil Deepens as Nasralla Alleges Fraud in Tight Presidential Race

Honduras fiercely contested presidential election entered a new phase of tension after centrist candidate Salvador Nasralla accused authorities of fraud when rival Nasry Asfura of the National Party overtook him in the...

U.S. Expected to Expand Travel Ban to More Than 30 Countries

The United States is preparing to significantly widen its travel ban, with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirming that the list will soon include more than 30 countries. Speaking on Fox News The Ingraham...

Hong Kong Faces Low Turnout in “Patriots-Only” Election Amid Public Grief After Deadly Fire

Hong Kong is bracing for a significantly low voter turnout in Sundays patriots-only Legislative Council election, as the city continues to mourn the deadliest fire it has seen in decades. The blaze, which erupted in a...

Science

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission

Blue Origins massive New Glenn rocket marked a major milestone as it completed its first mission for paying customers, sending two NASA satellites toward Mars and successfully landing its reusable booster at sea. The...

Cogent Biosciences Soars 120% on Breakthrough Phase 3 Results for Bezuclastinib in GIST Treatment

Cogent Biosciences (NASDAQ: COGT) shares skyrocketed over 120% after the biotech company announced groundbreaking results from its Phase 3 PEAK trial evaluating bezuclastinib in combination with sunitinib for patients with...

Trump and Merck KGaA Partner to Slash IVF Drug Costs and Expand Fertility Coverage

U.S. President Donald Trump and German pharmaceutical company Merck KGaA have announced a groundbreaking deal aimed at lowering the cost of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments while boosting access to fertility care in...

Technology

EU Prepares Antitrust Probe Into Meta’s AI Integration on WhatsApp

The European Commission is reportedly preparing to launch a new antitrust investigation into Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) over the companys recent rollout of artificial intelligence features within WhatsApp....

Sam Altman Reportedly Explored Funding for Rocket Venture in Potential Challenge to SpaceX

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly explored raising significant capital to acquire or partner with a rocket company, a move that could have created direct competition with Elon Musks SpaceX. According to a report from the...

Wikipedia Pushes for AI Licensing Deals as Jimmy Wales Calls for Fair Compensation

Wikipedia is seeking additional licensing deals with major technology companies to address the growing financial burden caused by artificial intelligence firms heavily scraping its platform, according to co-founder Jimmy...

Firelight Launches as First XRP Staking Platform on Flare, Introduces DeFi Cover Feature

Firelight reaches 25M XRP deposit cap within hours of launch; ushers in a new era for decentralized XRP staking. A new XRP staking platform, Firelight, has officially launched on the Flare blockchain, marking the first...

OpenAI Moves to Acquire Neptune as It Expands AI Training Capabilities

OpenAI has confirmed plans to acquire Neptune, a startup known for its advanced tools that help companies track, monitor, and optimize AI model training workflows. Although the company did not release the financial details...