Ideas Matter: Scientism and the Manufacture of Consent - then and now

Eighth and final lecture in series Psychology and Democracy from The Academy 2020 organised by Battle of Ideas (boi) charity.

In this episode, the lecture ‘Scientism and the Manufacture of Consent: then and now’ draws together themes explored earlier in the series. It looks at how, in an age without a clear set of authoritative political ideas, an ideology - as yet without a name - has taken root. This ‘invisible’ ideology represents the coalescence of two separate strands of thinking over the past century - on the one hand an orientation towards social engineering and expert led technocracy, and on the other the emergence and eventual thriving of identity politics.

Lecturer: Professor Frank Furedi, sociologist and social commentator; author of more than 20 books, including most recently, ‘Why Borders Matter: why humanity must relearn the art of drawing boundaries’

THE ACADEMY 2020: PSYCHOLOGY AND DEMOCRACY
The Academy Online was a mixture of lectures and seminars offering an opportunity to place contemporary events in a historical and philosophical context. The full programme and some background reading can be found at theboi.co.uk/the-academy-online…logy-and-democracy

THE ACADEMY
In the context of today’s instrumental approaches to knowledge, The Academy summer school is a modest attempt to demonstrate the value of scholarship, and of the worth of the university as a place of free enquiry dedicated to the pursuit of truth.

DONATING TO THE BOI CHARITY
The BOI charity is committed to continuing to host discussion and debates throughout this period when society is restricted by measures to tackle coronavirus. In order to realise events such as the Academy Online, none of our staff are furloughed and instead remain working. If you can, then please consider a donation, small or large.
Visit: theboi.co.uk/donate

IDEAS MATTER PODCAST
Ideas Matter is a podcast that takes the most important issues of our times and explores the ideas and intellectual trends that have shaped where we are today.

You can subscribe and listen to Ideas Matter on Apple Podcasts, Podbean, Spotify or SoundCloud. For full details of all episodes, visit the podcast page on our website

Keep up-to-date with Ideas Matter and all the initiatives organised by the Battle of Ideas charity by following us on Twitter (@theboi_uk) and on Facebook (battleofideas).