Two more essay plans

A possible essay plan on Populism

Is populism a threat to the liberal international order?

Introduction: Start with a reference to one or two recent developments relating to the question to show you are up to date on the issue e.g. the election of Trump, both Macron and the Yellow Vest movement, Bolsonaro, Brexit, new political groups in Germany, Austria, Spain, (Italy?) etc...

Line of argument: This essay will argue that the threat to the liberal international order is not populism itself but the unresolved causes of populism.

Introduction: Give a definition of populism – for, example your own or the one by the Dutch political scientist Cas Mudde who argues that it it is not based simply on emotional rhetoric and is not a temporary opportunistic phenomenon or a detailed ideology but instead has two essential characteristics. First, it divides the political world into the 'people' and the political élite, which is corrupt and pursues its own interests rather than those of the people. Second, populists believe that politics should be the expression of the 'general will' of the people (a rather frightening concept if one thinks of the French Revolution!)

Causes of the rise of populism – the failure of traditional parties of the Right and Left to guarantee the prosperity (employment and a moderate rise in incomes) that they had previously guaranteed for the middle and lower classes. The loss of manufacturing jobs in developed economies and stagnant salaries and growing income inequality. The lack of employment opportunities for the younger generation, unemployment or underemployment (the Yellow Vest movement). Anger with rising immigration, seen as competition, a downward pressure on incomes and a threat to identity.

Consequences – growing disillusion, scepticism and cynicism regarding the political élite, 'political correctness' anger with the traditional parties, seen as self-interested or simply unable to respond to these challenges, and an anger with international bodies, such as the EU or UN, the WTO and IMF (for example, the anti-globalization movement) also seen as too expensive, too far from the people and corrupt or not interested in the problems of ordinary people or simply irrelevant. This has often led to the rise of 'anti-system' movements, a return to nationalism, a political arena that populists believe can be controlled by the people (give examples. The new populists, however, often have little experience of government, and this has led to to instability in both domestic politics (give an example) and foreign relations e.g. Trump and NATO allies, Trump and China, recent relations between Italy and France and a weakening of the existing international institutions as the US seems to refuse to want to continue to be the guarantor of the system.

Conclusion – all this is a real threat to international cooperation and the effectiveness of international institutions, given that populist movements tend to prioritize national issues and solutions, at a time when many of our problems are of a global, or at least international nature and can only be successfully dealt with at that level. However, the problem is not populism itself but the underlying causes which seem to be our failure at the national, regional (EU) and global level to manage the economic and social effects of globalization in a way that reassures people about social stability and their prospects and their children's prospects for the future.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2019/jan/10/we-the-people-the-battle-to-define-populism

A possible essay plan on the role of the new media in international affairs.

Introduction: Start with a reference to one or two recent examples of social media and their use and effect on international affairs. Then give a fairly broad definition of the new media to include the Internet, everything on it that aims at communicating news and ideas, social media, smart phones, tablets and PCs as ways of accessing the Internet, forwarding and exchanging information and satellite TV.

Line of argument: This essay will argue that the rise of the new media was greeted as an advance towards a more democratic society that would allow people to communicate freely across the world and to play a greater role in politics and international relations. This optimism has now given way to fears about the misuse of the Web and social media by terrorists, organized crime and groups or governments seeking to spread fake news, disinformation and propaganda to mold and manipulate public opinion. However, the ICT revolution is irreversible and states, laws and individuals will have to adapt to it and the public will have to become more skilled at checking the source of information more carefully.

Explain that most people with access to the new media now get their information from a mix of sources, traditional media like TV, web service providers like Yahoo, social media like Facebook and Twitter and specific web sites and groups that they go to or join. This means that organizations, universities, government ministries, public figures and private companies as well as the traditional media (TV networks and newspapers) have all had to go online in order to communicate with the public (voters, customers or students), promote their activities and defend themselves. This has led to a more transparent and responsive society

This is true for the Foreign Ministry and the diplomatic corps too. Make this the focus of your essay? This offers great opportunities for rapid communication within the service and with foreign governments and embassies, in explaining Italy's position on an issue to the global public, for providing services to nationals abroad and foreigners, for cultural diplomacy and for networking in economic diplomacy. However, it has also made the work of diplomats more difficult because of the pressure on diplomats for instant reaction to breaking news, the difficulty of conducting quiet diplomacy and the danger of whistle-blowing – the Bradley Manning case, the Edward Snowden case and the Palestine papers case and role satellite TV broadcaster, Al Jazeera). Of course the last may also be seen as the mark of a free society, depending on your point of view about the particular case and information released.

Explain with clear examples from current affairs how internet and the social media can create open web communities where users can link up and become better informed about specific questions, and that this is particularly important to dissident groups in a society where access to information via the traditional media may be in the hands of the government (Egypt during the Arab spring, also role of satellite TV). Point out that in the end it can assist but can not substitute direct action.

Explain that Internet and social media can also be used by closed web communities like terrorists to recruit and indoctrinate. Give examples, e.g. ISIS. It can also be used by criminal organizations. Give examples, e.g. from hiring a hitman on Facebook in Peru to scams and cybercrime involving stealing credit details or industrial espionage. It can also be used by groups or countries seeking to spread fake news and manipulate public opinion, the alleged interference in the 2016 US elections by Russia. Point out that governments in one-party or authoritarian states can use the web for propaganda purposes and to infiltrate groups on the social media to monitor or entrap users (China, Russia and Venezuela and 1984). They can even close down sites and have become more skilled in blocking the social media and access to Internet completely if they feel threatened (China, North Korea).

Conclusion: The Internet and social media are here to stay and as their potential for good and bad becomes clearer, free societies and individuals will have to work and become more sophisticated to take advantage of the opportunities they offer without becoming the victims of those who aim to use ICTs in order to mislead, indoctrinate or spy on them. Governments, international bodies, web service providers like Yahoo and social media like Facebook and Twitter will all have to become more responsible and, above all, more effective in monitoring content and activity on the new media without imposing unjustified censorship or surveillance. If we fail to do this effectively we face a bleak future in which either many naive IT users continue to be misled or our freedom may be restricted in a 1984-style scenario.