/436/ Slovakia’s Four World Directions ft. Dominik Zelinsky

On corruption, charisma, populism & assassination in Slovakia.

Slovak sociologist Dominik Zelinksy joins us to discuss Slovakia's positioning between East and West. We discuss:

• Why was Prime Minister Robert Fico a target of an assassination attempt?

• Whether Fico – not a zany outsider but a competent insider – is a "populist"

• Why Slovaks are not so anti-Russian, and why they are sceptical of NATO

• How has anti-corruption politics played a role

• What is "charismatic mimicry" and why have Western leaders aped Ukraine's Zelenskyy?

Links:

• Slovakia's election: "more than a fight between democracy and autocracy", Dominik Zelinsky, LeftEast

• Assassination Attempt Prompts Soul-Searching in Slovakia, Jakub Bokes, Jacobin

• Slovakia’s Election Result Is About Declining Living Standards, Not Just Ukraine, Jakub Bokes, Jacobin

• Charismatic Mimicry: Innovation and Imitation in the Case of Volodymyr Zelensky, Paul Joosse & Dominik Zelinsky, Sociological Theory. Thread on Twitter/X about the article