15 June 2023 - DESIRE-ECHO research seminar
THE FAR RIGHT, THE MEDIA AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF A REACTIONARY PEOPLE
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Building on the work he has done since the publication of the book Reactionary Democracy: How Racism and the Populist Far Right Became Mainstream, co-authored with Aaron Winter in 2020, Aurelien Mondon discussed in his talk at this joint DESIRE-ECHO research seminar at VUB the role of the media in legitimising far right politics. Indeed, by inflating and misreading far right electoral success, Mondon says, the media often falsely construct the 'will of the people' as inherently reactionary. Moreover, due to the euphemistic labelling of far right parties as 'populist', media reports downplay and ignore the racist and extremist core of far right ideology. Before the research seminar, Mondon also joined the discussion taking place during Episode 27 of the DESIRE seminar series at VUB.
About the researcher
Aurelien Mondon (he/him) is a Senior Lecturer in politics at the University of Bath. His research focuses predominantly on the impact of racism and populism on liberal democracies and the mainstreaming of far-right politics through elite discourse. His latest book Reactionary democracy: How Racism and the Populist Far Right became Mainstream, co-written with Aaron Winter, is out with Verso.
