Name: Can democracy exist without trust?
Uploaded: 2012-08-13T15:20:07Z
Duration: 13 min 47 s
Description: It seems the more we know about how democracy works -- through government transparency, better media coverage, even new insights about our brains -- the less we trust democracy itself. Yet it's still, arguably, the best system of government available. As Ivan Krastev says, "What went right is also what went wrong." Can democracy survive?

It seems the more we know about how democracy works -- through government transparency, better media coverage, even new insights about our brains -- the less we trust democracy itself. Yet it's still, arguably, the best system of government available. As Ivan Krastev says, "What went right is also what went wrong." Can democracy survive?

Can democracy exist without trust?

Trust in democratic institutions is collapsing, even as societies grow more open and informed. In some countries, more than 80 percent of voters have cast blank ballots, signaling deep disillusionment. Major cultural, economic, and technological revolutions have brought greater freedom and choice, but also rising inequality and polarization. The very forces that expanded democracy are now eroding its foundations, challenging the idea that more openness leads to greater legitimacy.