Government and Politics

Some ideas for studying politics/political science/international relations or any politics based discipline during the lockdown or for transitioning to undergraduate study (inspired by Dan Townsend @ww1teacher on Twitter)

Idea 1: Why not Take a free politics course on something like FutureLearn (https://www.futurelearn.com/subjects/politics-and-society-courses)? Learn more about something you are interested in, surprise yourself by exploring an area you know nothing about (when I looked there was a course called ‘Design a Feminist Chatbot: Learn how to design and prototype a chatbot that doesn't reinforce harmful gender stereotypes’ that is completely outside my comfort zone) or get ahead by choosing something related to your university course. Here is a link for a course that I liked the look of, 'From State Control to Remote Control: Warfare in the 21st Century': https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/remote-control-warfare. There are also some very useful on-line learning modules from the University of Cambridge here: https://www.myheplus.com/post-16/subjects/politics.

Idea 2: Why not listen to some podcasts? If a course is a little too much for you and you want to focus on broadening your political knowledge, then there are lots of excellent politics based or linked podcasts out there. Try these for starters:

  • The Red Box Politics Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-red-box-politics-podcast/id660638948: If you read The Times then you’ll probably enjoy this podcast. Join Red Box editor Matt Chorley as he sits down with Times columnists to give their insight on the big stories of the day. It may be dealing with complex political issues but funny anecdotes and Westminster gossip breaks up the needed analysis. If you prefer to read your news, we suggest also signing up to their newsletter. Also called Red Box, it’s one of the best out there and will give you exclusive comment and analysis daily.
  • The Political Party https://soundcloud.com/thepoliticalparty: If you care more about the people who make the decisions, and would enjoy personal anecdotes from life at Westminster, The Political Party is for you. Each month, political comedian Matt Forde meets a current member of parliament for an informal but informative chat in front of a live audience in London.
  • Ways To Change The World https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/ways-to-change-the-world-with-krishnan-guru-murthy/id1359195562: Channel 4’s Krishnan Guru-Murthy hosts “Ways to Change the World”. It’s an exploration of interview subjects’ beliefs on the issues of the day. Crucially for this list, those interview subjects include a lot of prominent politicians. Past guests have included Jacob Rees-Mogg, Ken Clarke, Michael Heseltine, David Lammie and Jess Phillips. The hour-long format offers a lot more than the usual five minutes the interviewees would normally be granted on TV or radio, and it leads to some revealing sentiments.
  • The Bugle https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bugle/id265799883: The Bugle is a longstanding satirical podcast covering the week’s news. Formerly starring John Oliver, who left when his HBO commitments became too much, co-host Andy Zaltsman now has a rotating guest co-host with whom to riff on whatever is going on in the world of politics each week. Don’t expect anything too serious, but do expect plenty of laughs.
  • Bombshell https://podcasts.apple.com/sk/podcast/bombshell/id1195698408: This fortnightly podcast explores the big international political news stories of the moment and looks at them through the lens of national security. There are lots of security experts that take part in the pod, as well as academics.
  • Slow Burn https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/slow-burn/id1315040130: Slow Burn looks at the past, rather than the present.  Slow Burn has so far explored two huge scandals of American political history, explaining how they slowly unravelled and resolved with years of hindsight. The first season deals with Nixon and Watergate, the second focuses on Clinton and Monica Lewinsky and the third looks at something entirely different: the murders of Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G.
  • Reasons To Be Cheerful https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/reasons-to-be-cheerful-with-ed-miliband-and-geoff-lloyd/id1287081706: It’s not directly related to politics as such, but its remit of exploring “big ideas” and Miliband’s main job as an MP means it can’t help but frequently stray into that space. The very first episodes discusses the benefits of a universal basic income and tech’s monopolies, which are the big political ideas that are only just getting a belated airing in Westminster.
  • Intercepted https://podcasts.apple.com/uy/podcast/intercepted-with-jeremy-scahill/id1195206601: This weekly podcast is from The Intercept, an investigative news site. It's US-based and has a US focus, but deals with a lot of geopolitical issues, takes a look at some international news stories that haven't been heavily reported on and takes an insightful and critical look at the role of the US in all of what's going on.
  • The Daily https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-daily/id1200361736: If high-octane political debate and timely world affairs sound like your kind of thing, look no further than The Daily's subscribe button. A podcast brought to you from The New York Times, this audio offering - with its daily content - is the ultimate companion for anyone who enjoys staying on top of world affairs. It's better than music to our ears.
  • The New Statesman Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-new-statesman-podcast/id630596898: Fair, insightful analysis in a breezy conversational style is the order of the day, and despite the brand being firmly on the left of centre, it manages to avoid the traps of partisanship pretty effectively. It even manages to raise a couple of laughs, which is no mean feat in the current climate.
  • The Spectator Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-spectator-podcast/id1436994451: If you prefer your politics with a centre-right twist, The Spectator Podcast makes a solid accompaniment. As with The New Statesman’s effort, you usually get a similar analysis of the week’s parliamentary developments in a slightly more formal style, but there’s usually some wider cultural content to give you a break from the relentless Westminster chat.
  • Not strictly a political podcast but Malcolm Gladwell’s Revisionist History http://revisionisthistory.com/ is always a fascinating listen. Anyone familiar with Gladwell’s work will know that he re-examines stories – mostly from the past – and asks whether we have really got them right. It is a journey through the overlooked and misunderstood. It will hopefully inspire you to challenge the orthodoxy and look at things in new ways. Recent episodes include ‘The Obscure Virus Club’ (sounds topical) and ‘The Queen of Cuba’.
  • And if you’re itching for more American political History I can heartily recommend The Washington Post’s Presidential https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/presidential/id1072170823. Each episode looks at a different president starting with Washington and ending with Trump. If you’ve wanted to find out more (or just something!) about a really obscure president then this is the place for you. In fact the episode about Millard Fillmore is called ‘Teaching the obscure presidents’ and is a discussion about what we lose if we don’t teach about them.

Idea 3: Why not read some award-winning politics books? Trawl through the Baillie Gifford prize shortlists for non-fiction book of the year searching for any politics books that have been nominated https://thebailliegiffordprize.co.uk/.   The Guardian's Politics Book review and comment page is also a great starting point too: https://www.theguardian.com/books/politics.

Idea 4: Why not watch some excellent documentaries? Here are some links to a wealth of documentaries covering all sorts of fascinating areas: 

FRONTLINE PBS: A range of high quality short and long documentaries on a huge variety of global topics and areas.  Here is one from last year on trade tensions between the USA and China but do go to their YouTube channel main page to see many more.

A collation of UK focused documentaries.  Here is the first video with links to over 100 others on this channel: 

41 of the best documentaries in general available now in the UK: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/best-documentaries

America’s Diplomats goes inside the Foreign Service and behind the scenes of American foreign policy, uncovering the origins of the Foreign Service and the dangers diplomats face far from home:

Inside Putin's Russia: Correspondent Nick Schifrin and producer Zach Fannin take us inside Vladimir Putin's Russia, with an in-depth look at the resurgent national identity, the government's propaganda machine, the risk of being a Kremlin critic and much more.

Idea 5: Why not watch a lecture? Or attend a webinar? Gresham College (https://www.youtube.com/user/GreshamCollege/videos) has filmed a veritable treasure trove of excellent public lectures that are all freely available.

Idea 6: Why not watch a politically based film or TV series critically? Definitely one that will bring out your inner pedant! Watch a film or a series like Designated Survivor on Netflix and then watch a lecture or read an article or book that relates directly to it. Consider how accurate they were, what liberties they took (and why), and what you would have done differently.  Here are a few film and TV series to consider:

TV: The West Wing; House of Cards; VEEP; The Thick of It; Yes Minister; The Wire; Homeland

Films: All the President's Men; JFK; Lincoln; Frost/Nixon; Primary Colors; Argo; The Ides of March

Idea 7: Why not get ready for your university course? This might be about making some of the other ideas more meaningful (e.g. by taking some notes on your reading or lectures you watch) or getting ahead with some of your reading for your politics (or similar) course. Here are some tips:

  • Try to find some reading lists for the course you are doing and make a head start with some of these books. If you can’t find it then get in touch with the university (or lecturers) who will be able to point you in the right direction. In fact, with the lockdown, I am sure that university staff would love to hear from you and to help you out.
  • Ask one of us for some book recommendations or some questions to research. We would love to read what you find – and we can then get you in as an ‘expert’ speaker for Historia in the future!
  • Dan Townsend (@ww1teacher) recommends building a structure and routine to your day as you embark on your odyssey. You will find what works for you but his (very ambitious) suggestion is:
    • MONDAY – AM: Aim to read 60 pages of a book or at least one article; PM: Watch a lecture/listen to a podcast and take notes. Order books for next week.
    • TUESDAY – AM: Aim to read 60 pages of a book or at least one article; PM: Watch a documentary and make notes.
    • WEDNESDAY – AM: Watch a political film or some episodes from a series; PM: Watch at least one lecture/documentary in relation to the film and research online what it got right or wrong. Make notes.
    • THURSDAY – AM: Aim to read 60 pages of a book or at least one article; PM: Listen to a podcast and make some notes.
    • FRIDAY – AM: Aim to read 60 pages of a book or at least one article; PM: Complete next section of an online course, making notes as you go. File the work from the week.

Overall, immerse yourself in the subject and enjoy it - that's what it is all about!