Global Populisms

This ground-breaking textbook describes and explains the global manifestations of populism. It reviews controversies about its relationships with democracy in the distinct and interrelated histories of the Americas, Asia, and Europe. The volume surveys the similarities and differences between populism, nationalism, fascism, and populist uses of religion and the media. Global Populisms invites students and the general public to move beyond simplistic conceptualizations of populism as an external virus and as an irrational threat to democracy, or, alternatively, as the path to return power to the people. The book differentiates populists’ correct critiques to inequalities, the loss of national sovereignty, and unresponsive politicians from its solutions. In the name of giving power to the people, populists in power from Hugo Chávez to Donald Trump, Narendra Modi, and Viktor Orbán entered in war with the media, made rivals into existential enemies, and attempted to concentrate power in the hands of the president. Written in a clear and accessible style, this interdisciplinary volume will appeal to undergraduate students as well as to non-academic audiences with an interest in political science, sociology, history, and communication studies.

1. Who is Afraid of Populism? 2. What Do We Mean by Populism? 3. Latin America 4. The United States 5. Europe 6. Southeast Asia 7. Fascism and Populism 8. Populism and Democratization 9. National and Transnational Populisms 10. Populism and Religion 11. Populism and the Media 12. Conclusions

Carlos de la Torre is Professor and Director of the Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Florida. He has a Ph.D. from the New School for Social Research. He has been a fellow at the Simon Guggenheim Foundation, and the Woodrow Wilson Centre for Scholars. He is the author of Populisms: A Quick Immersion, and Populist Seduction in Latin America. He is the editor ofRoutledge Handbook of Global Populism, The Promise and Perils of Populism, Latin American Populism of the Twenty First Century (co-edited with Cynthia Arnson). He has taught courses on populism at graduate and undergraduate levels. Treethep Srisa-nga holds a Master’s in Latin American Studies from the Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Florida. He earned his BA in Spanish (First Class Honors) from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, and was a journalist at Spanish news agency Agencia EFE’s Asia-Pacific regional office. His research interests include comparative populism, democratization, and authoritarianism, with a regional focus on Southeast Asia and Latin America.