The Reith Lectures were inaugurated in 1948 by the BBC to mark the historic contribution made to public service broadcasting by Sir John (later Lord) Reith, the corporation's first Director-General.
This year's BBC Radio 4 Reith lecturer is Ben Ansell, Professor of Comparative Democratic Institutions at Nuffield College, University of Oxford. His four lectures, titled Our Democratic Future, will consider how to build political systems that work for all and are robust enough to face the wide-ranging challenges of the 21st century.
Ben Ansell said, "I am deeply honoured to have been chosen as this year’s Reith lecturer. We live in a time of great political turmoil and stand at the cusp of profound technological and ecological changes. Now is a crucial moment to think about whether our political institutions are fit to face these challenges and what we can do as a community to ensure our democratic future. My lectures will draw on big political ideas and cutting-edge research in the social sciences to suggest how we can collectively address these existential questions."
Mark Hallerberg will deliver introductory remarks, while presenter, journalist and author Anita Anand will chair the lectures and question-and-answer sessions.
The 2023 lecture will be recorded and broadcast on BBC Radio 4 later this year and will be available to listen to on BBC Sounds.
More information can be found under this link.
