Shows
Radio VinternationalRussia’s Propaganda has reached The White HouseRussia’s Propaganda has reached The White House How Putin weaponizes history and narratives to justify warThis week, I sat down with two experts who understand exactly how narratives shape war, attention, and global instability. Olena Snygir from Ukraine and Salvador Lima from Argentina joined me to discuss how Russia manipulates narratives to justify its expansionist and totalitarian policies. After this conversation, I am more convinced than ever: the battle for Ukraine is the battle for liberal values and the international rule of law. Meet the guests ...
2025-03-0259 minRadio VinternationalThe history of Veneto-Ottoman borderlandsThe history of Veneto-Ottoman borderlands What borders say about political power and nation statesThis episode is one for the lovers of history: I had the pleasure of speaking with historian Vuk Uskokovic about the hidden dynamics of early modern borderlands. His research focuses on the rural communes along the frontier between the Venetian Republic and the Ottoman Empire—places often seen as peripheral but, in reality, central to the workings of the two empires. Meet the guest Vuk Uskoković is a historian from Montenegro and his work focuses on rural c...
2025-02-0158 minRadio VinternationalSmall states, Big influenceHow small island states can punch above their weight in climate diplomacy In this episode, I speak with Sarah Tegas, a PhD candidate at Sciences Po Paris, about the outsized role of small states in global climate diplomacy. These nations, often seen as vulnerable to external shocks and climate crises, have leveraged innovative strategies to transform their perceived weakness into diplomatic strength.Sarah shares insights into the ongoing climate negotiations at COP29 in Baku, explains why climate change is a "super wicked problem," and reveals the tactics small island states like Tuvalu an...
2024-12-2155 minRadio VinternationalContested Statues and Monuments with Jadé BothaContested Statues and MonumentsHow to settle disputes over representation in public places Can a statue be offensive, objectionable or even violent? And who decides what to do with such a monument? In this episode, I speak with Jadé Botha, a Ph.D. researcher at the European University Institute who previously worked for the Contested Histories Initiative.We discuss case studies from around the world, including the Edward Colston statue in Bristol and Mussolini’s bas-relief in Bolzano, and explore how community involvement and contextualization can offer alternatives to rem...
2024-12-0656 minRadio VinternationalRethinking African GovernanceRethinking African Governance Governance indicators, Ubuntu and Effective Governance Let’s be honest: nobody in the world is against good governance. Strong and robust governance leads to civil liberties, economic growth, and other critical aspects of simply having a good life. But how can we measure it, improve it and reimagine it? In this episode of Radio Vinternational, I sit down with Gilbert A. Ang’Ana, Policy Leader Fellow at the School of Transnational Governance and CEO of Accent Leadership Group, to explore these crucial questions.We discuss Africa’s governance gaps and their i...
2024-11-241h 05Radio VinternationalReimagining European Democracy with Professor Kalypso NicolaïdisReimagining European Democracy With Professor Kalypso Nicolaïdis on the power of mythology, translators and demoicracy In this episode of Radio Vinternational, Professor Kalypso Nicolaïdis shares her unique insights on the resilience and challenges facing democracy in Europe today. Report after report declares that “we are currently witnessing a concerning trend of worldwide backsliding of democratic values” (United Nations Development Program), that Democracies are in Decline (Freedom House) and that After decades of triumph, democracy is losing ground (The Economist). But, the real question remains: are we witnessing the fall of democracy? I asked Pr...
2024-11-1059 minRadio VinternationalFuture of Anti-Money LaunderingThis week, Vincent is joined by Huda Ismael, a financial investigator with 12+ years at the Central Bank of Egypt, now a Policy Leader Fellow at EUI. They explore the world of anti-money laundering, from traditional scams to the rise of digital payments and cryptocurrencies. Huda shares personal experiences and highlights the international cooperation needed to stay ahead of modern financial crime.Meet the guest Huda Ismael has over 12 years of experience at the Central Bank of Egypt, specialising in money laundering and terrorist financing investigations. Right now, she is at the European University Institute as...
2024-10-2655 minRadio VinternationalEurope needs Futureproof-Superstar-UnicornsIn this episode, Vincent dives into Mario Draghi’s long-awaited report: “The Future of European Competitiveness’. Draghi argues that Europe’s productivity and competitiveness are seriously in danger, and he urges Europe to heavily invest in its high-tech sectors. Since I am no economist, I wanted to explore the basics: How do we measure productivity or competitiveness on a continental or global scale? What can policymakers do to increase it? To help me with these questions, I invited Sotiris Georgousis, an economist from the European University Institute in Florence. Sotiris quickly shifted the focus from Europe as a singl...
2024-10-1259 minRadio VinternationalRefugee Roulette: how identity leads to unfairness in refugee status determinationScholars across various traditions have emphasised that asylum seekers with similar persecution stories, requesting asylum in the same country, and under the same legal framework, may still end up with different outcomes. This phenomenon is called ‘refugee roulette’. In this episode, Vincent speaks with Esteban Octavio Scuzarello, a researcher from the SPS department of the European University Institute. They talk about his research, his passion, and the unique characteristics of the Refugee Status Determination process in Latin- and South-American countries. Meet the Guest My guest this week is Esteban Octavio Scuzarello. He is fr...
2024-09-281h 00Radio VinternationalForeign Journalism: Rules & Dilemma'sIn this episode, Vincent talks with Max Smedes, an editor and researcher at the Dutch radio program Bureau Buitenland - the Dutch radio program known as The Foreign Desk. The radio show covers international news, reports, backgrounds and geopolitics, and also produces podcasts and audio-documentaries. Max shares his insights on the evolving landscape of foreign news in Dutch media and discusses the role and responsibilities of foreign reporters. The conversation is on the issue of maintaining objective journalism amidst potential budget costs or political pressure, pressures, and how these issues impact global reporting. Meet the gu...
2024-09-0754 minRadio VinternationalLet the Games Begin: Paris 2024 and Human RightsIn this episode, Vincent and Pedro José Mercado Jaén dive into the Human Rights Violations of the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics. We talk about athlete’s rights, civil rights, and the way how nature and indigenous people are either neglected by the nature of the Olympic Games. What stands out from this episode, that it’s not only authoritarian regimes that oppress minorities and disregard human rights…Meet the guest Pedro is a PhD-researcher at the European University Institute in Florence, at the Law Department. There, he mainly looks at athletes rights and access to remedy. On...
2024-06-081h 09Radio VinternationalA Voting Advice Application for all EuropeansFrom the 6th till the 9th of June, citizens across Europe cast their vote to elect the Parliament of the European Union. Millions of those voters will use a so-called Voting Advice Application (VAA) to help them in their voting decision - to see which party matches their political preferences, or to see what parties actually promise. But, what distinguishes a good VAA? And how can you best use it? In this episode, Vincent talks to two guests that have developed the EU&I Voting Application, which is a Pan-European VAA developed by the European University Institute.
2024-05-2558 minRadio VinternationalIndia's 2024 Elections & Western media coverage with Harpreet DhodyIn this episode, Vincent speaks to Harpreet Dhody, a communication expert with a background in politics, entrepreneurship and education. Dhody is currently at the European University Institute as a Policy Leader Fellow, where he aims to create a blueprint and advocacy paper to build a digital media observatory in India.They speak about the Indian elections of 2024, the nation’s media dynamics and about how Western media struggle to keep up with the New India and prime minister Narendra Modi.Meet the guest My guest this week is Harpreet Dhody. He is a communication expe...
2024-05-251h 00Radio VinternationalLegality and Morality with Jacob Kohnstamm - A glance at Dutch art restitionIn this episode, Vincent interviews Jacob Kohnstamm - a former parliamentarian, senator and State Secretary of the Netherlands, about his role in the Dutch art restitution policy, relating to Nazi looted art. Early in his career, he switched from being a lawyer to being a civil servant because the limitation of the former was that he could only help one person at a time - whereas politics allowed him to change the system. A central theme in his career is the constant assessment of the relationship between the state and the individual citizen, and about the trust that p...
2024-05-2556 minRadio VinternationalTunisia's Exceptionalism with Ben BraccianoThis episode of Radio Vinternational is about one country in particular: Tunisia! Specifically, Vincent talks to Ben Bracciano about Tunisia's so-called 'exceptionalism' - a term used by academics to describe Tunisia's remarkable political, social and economic status in the Arab world. We discuss how these factors influenced the democratisation process following the Arab Spring, and how Tunisian civil society played a crucial role in this process - culminating in the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize being awarded to the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet. And Ben looks at whether this positive image is still relevant and accurate - given the country's current economic...
2024-05-251h 06Radio VinternationalHistory, Sex, Gender and Activism with Mónica Morado Vázquezn sixteenth-century Spain, Elena/o de Céspedes exerted so much heat during childbirth that she grew a penis and became a man. Two hundred years later, a decorated French war hero who previously had been the official ambassador to the Russian court, turned into a woman when (s)he lived in London. These remarkable stories, which were long hidden in the archives, show the longevity of gender-discussions.In this episode of Radio Vinternational, historian Mónica Morado Vázquez elaborates on the historical and societal dimensions of sex, gender, and identity. She elaborates on how the scientific dev...
2024-05-251h 02Radio VinternationalHistory of Tourism Politics with Anna BreidenbachWhile the trenches of the First World War were still filled with soldiers, French government officials were already dreaming of a different kind of guest: wealthy American tourists. It was a first sign that tourism would become a dominant political and economic issue in the 20th century. But when did tourism become a major priority of nation states? And who were the driving forces in its emergence?The guest of this episode is historian Anna Breidenbach, who studies the politics of tourism from 1909 till 1938. This era is marked by war, pandemics, rising passport controls, refugees, forced migration and...
2024-05-2553 minRadio VinternationalThe art of Sportswashing: From Berlin 1936 to Qatar 2022 with Miguel Blanco CochoTo many, the 1936 Nazi Olympics are the 'mother of sports washing events'. When Hitler came to power in 1933, the Nazi regime was initially uninterested in the costly organisation of the Olympics. However, the 1936 Games would forever be remembered as the biggest and most successful Nazi propaganda operation. What was the key to Germany's success? And why did the world let it happen?In this episode, Vincent talks to Michel Blanco Cocho about the historic 1936 Olympics and the politics of sport today. Miguel draws parallels between various World Cups and the Olympics, and suggests possible solutions and policies to...
2024-05-2559 minRadio VinternationalFairness in AI with Jose AlvarezWhy and how did Amazon's hiring algorithm turn out to be discriminatory? And can you sue an algorithm if your sexiness score on Tinder is too low? But, more importantly: if society is unhappy with the results of Automated Decision Making (ADM)-decisions, should we change the algorithm or ourselves?In this episode, Vincent speaks with data scientist researcher Jose Alvarez about fairness in AI, and more specifically in Automated Decision Making (ADM) models. They talk about the philosophical meaning of fairness and the commercial push behind the boom of large language models.Jose did not bring one...
2024-05-251h 08Radio VinternationalNew vs Old with Marek MajHistorian Marek Maj and Vincent analyse three recent European films, that all tell a story of migration in Europe. From his passion for cinematography, Marek enlightens the audience on sound design, music, dialogue, scenery and character building - and also draws the question whether films are the best medium to tell stories of newcomers, resentment and relocation.The films discussed are 'As Bestas', 'The Other Side of Hope' and 'Western'.Marek’s Recommendation of this episode is the movie ‘Lazzaro Felice’ (Happy as Lazaro) from director Alice Rohrwacher. If this one is as good as the films we watche...
2024-05-2558 minRadio VinternationalArt Restitution with Aurora HammIn this first episode, art historian Aurora Hamm from the EUI joins Vincent to unravel the historic, legal and moral dimensions of the restitution of looted art. She elaborates on why restitution matters, why Kim Kardashian bought Diana's necklace and how you can contribute to museums' policies on this subject. ---- In each episode of Radio Vinternational, host Vincent Hoffmans dives into one fascinatin and hopefully informative international topic with a passionate expert. The mission is to showcase original and interesting perspectives on actual and historic international affairs, and to have fun!
2024-05-2551 min
Appèl'De canon van het sociaal-liberalisme'Vandaag de dag is het sociaal-liberalisme een brede politieke stroming met veel maatschappelijke invloed. Niet alleen D66 noemt zich sociaal-liberaal, maar ook Femke Halsema en Mark Rutte hebben opzichtig geflirt met het etiket.De Van Mierlo Stichting publiceert vandaag een nieuw boek: De canon van het sociaal-liberalisme. Hierin wordt voor het eerst de rijke geschiedenis van deze stroming beschreven. Vandaag zitten wij aan tafel met een aantal auteurs die een bijdrage hebben geleverd aan De canon van het sociaal-liberalisme. Met Joost Sneller, Tonko van Leeuwen, Marthe van Hesselmans, Susanne Dallinga, Vincent Hoffmans en Coen Brummer.
2019-10-1738 minAppèlVertrouwen in de toekomst?Ondanks stijgende welvaart, dalende criminaliteit en een hogere levensverwachting voelt een deel van de mensen in Nederland zich niet rijker, veiliger of beter over hun eigen toekomst. Hoe is dit verschil te verklaren? Wat is de oorzaak van dit paradoxale wantrouwen? We gaan in gesprek over vooruitgangsdenken en doemdenken.
Aan tafel:
Maarten Boudry, wetenschapsfilosoof en auteur van het boek 'Waarom de wereld niet naar de knoppen gaat'.
Hidde Boersma, gepromoveerd microbioloog, wetenschapsjournalist en schrijver.
Interviewer: Coen Brummer, directeur Van Mierlo Stichting
Redactie: Vincent Hoffmans en Teun van den Maagdenberg
2019-05-1041 min