Where are the Zohran Mamdanis of Europe?

About this episode

The episode discusses the potential for charismatic political figures in Europe, featuring journalist Dave Keating, and covers topics like military service in Germany and Netflix's legal challenges in the EU.

A few weeks back, we asked you to weigh in on a question that’s been on our mind a lot lately: Who are the Zohran Mamdanis of Europe, and when, pray tell, are they going to give our beloved, ailing continent a much-needed shake-up? As it turns out, that’s a complicated question. This week’s guest, Brussels-based journalist Dave Keating, says that the decks are stacked against insurgent outsiders like the New York mayor – yet we need them more than ever. We had a long-overdue chat with Dave about what might be preventing a charismatic, insurgent figure on the left from taking off in the EU, and we also talked about a few of the leaders you wrote in to share with us. (Of course, keep us posted of any changemakers cropping up in your country at hello@europeanspodcast.com .) We’re also talking about a controversial new law in Germany introducing voluntary military service in the country for men under the age of 45. We recorded this segment a few hours before the news that young men will not have to seek permission for long stints abroad after all; you can read updated reporting here . We also unpack Netflix’s failed legal challenge to EU regulations that led to a flood of funding for…

People in this episode

Hosts: Katy Lee, Dominic Kraemer

Guest: Dave Keating

Topics covered

• political change
• European Union
• military service
• media regulations
• insurgent leaders
• cultural commentary

Keywords

• Zohran Mamdani
• Dave Keating
• Germany military service
• Netflix EU regulations
• European leaders
• cultural change
• insurgent politics

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Netflix

Places: Germany, EU, Brussels

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