(Originally aired on May 15, 2019)
In this archive edition of Midday, Tom's guest for the hour is William Davies, a political economist and author who argues in his new book, Nervous States: Democracy and the Decline of Reason, that a decline of trust in scientific expertise has led individuals and governments to rely less on facts and increasingly on feelings -- especially feelings of fear and anxiety. The result, the author says, is that we've entered an age of “nervous states,” both in our individual bodies and our body politic.
Davies is a Reader in Political Economy at Goldsmiths, University of London, where he also co-directs the Political Economy Research Centre, which explores significant cultural and political perspectives on economic life. He is the author of many books, and is a contributor to numerous publications, including The Atlantic and The New York Times.
