Is democracy eating itself alive? On this week’s WhoWhatWhy podcast, UC Irvine professor of political science Shawn Rosenberg argues that it is. In this conversation, Rosenberg — whose research focuses on political psychology, populism, deliberative democracy, and ideology — reveals why he believes democracy has a fatal flaw: Most citizens lack the cognitive resources to navigate its complexities.  As the flow of information in the internet age becomes increasingly “egalitarian” — e.g., the rise of social media — this weakness is exposed, making simplistic populist alternatives more appealing and potentially destructive to democracy itself. Rosenberg explains how the erosion of elite influence, once a buffer against democracy’s inherent fragilities, may be accelerating its decline. From the complexity of modern governance to the rise of right-wing populism, Rosenberg’s analysis challenges our fundamental assumptions about democracy, human nature, and the role of elites in society. 

Listen in: https://whowhatwhy.org/podcast/why-democracy-might-be-its-own-worst-enemy-the-fatal-flaw-in-our-system/