The Age of The Strongman: How the Cult of the Leader Threatens Democracy around the World

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Gideon Rachman

The Age of The Strongman

How the Cult of the Leader Threatens Democracy around the World

Gideon Rachman

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English

Bodley Head
12 April 2022

Globalization; Politics & government; Conservatism & right-of-centre democratic ideologies; Nationalism; Elections & referenda; Political leaders & leadership

A sweeping, penetrating and first truly global explanation of the dangerous state of our world, by one of the best-connected, most respected reporters on international politics

In The Age of the Strongman, Gideon Rachman finds global coherence in the chaos of the new nationalism, leadership cults and hostility to liberal democracy.

We are in a new era- authoritarian leaders have become a central feature of global politics. Since 2000, self-styled strongmen have risen to power in capitals as diverse as Moscow, Beijing, Delhi, Brasilia, Budapest, Ankara, Riyadh and Washington.

These leaders are nationalists and social conservatives, with little tolerance for minorities, dissent or the interests of foreigners. At home, they claim to be standing up for ordinary people against globalist elites; abroad, they posture as the embodiments of their nations. And everywhere they go, they encourage a cult of personality. What's more, these leaders are not just operating in authoritarian political systems but have begun to emerge in the heartlands of liberal democracy.

While in the West the EU referendum and the election of Donald Trump in 2016 mark a watershed, the new era started at the beginning of the new millennium, when Vladimir Putin took power in Russia. How and why did this new style of strongman leadership arrive? How likely is it to lead the world into war or economic collapse? And what liberal forces are in place not only to keep these strongmen in check but to reverse the trend? With the world in the grip of a global pandemic and on the verge of environmental catastrophe, their actions have consequences not just for their nations but for the whole planet.

From Trump, Putin and Bolsonaro to Erdogan, Xi and Modi, Gideon Rachman pays full attention to the strongman phenomenon around the world and uncovers the complex and often surprising interaction between these leaders. In the process, he finds the common themes in our local nightmares and offers a bold new paradigm for understanding our world. Whilst others have tried to understand the emergence of these new leaders individually, The Age of the Strongman provides the first truly global treatment of the new nationalism, underpinned by an exceptional level of access to key actors in this drama- Gideon Rachman has been in the same room with most of these strongmen and reported from their countries over a long journalistic career.

The Age of The Strongman: How the Cult of the Leader Threatens Democracy around the World

By: Gideon Rachman
Imprint: Bodley Head
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 153mm, Spine: 21mm
Weight: 353g
ISBN: 9781847926425
ISBN 10: 1847926428
Pages: 288
Publication Date: 12 April 2022
Audience: General/trade , Professional and scholarly , College/higher education , ELT Advanced , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Gideon Rachman is the chief foreign affairs columnist for the Financial Times. In 2016 he won the Orwell Prize for Journalism and was named Commentator of the Year at the European Press Prize awards. Previously he worked for The Economist for fifteen years, serving as a foreign correspondent in Washington, Bangkok and Brussels.

Reviews for The Age of The Strongman: How the Cult of the Leader Threatens Democracy around the World

A carefully written analysis of strongman leaders all over the world and the threat they pose to liberal democracy. Drawing on a wide range of sources, and providing a truly global perspective, Rachman illuminates the common instincts, tactics and behaviour that link leaders as diverse as Trump, Putin, Xi and Modi * Anne Applebaum *