Is Meritocracy a Myth? With Adrian Wooldridge and Mark Mardell

Intelligence Squared

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4.2 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 15 June 2021

⏱️ 41 minutes

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Summary

Join the debate and discuss this episode with fellow listeners on our Multytude conversation here: https://multytudelink.page.link/2u9nK2SP7SH7DCyU7 -- Meritocracy: the idea that people should be advanced according to their talents rather than their status at birth. For much of history this was a revolutionary thought, but by the end of the twentieth century it had become the world's ruling ideology. How did this happen, and why is meritocracy now under attack from both right and left? In this week's episode Adrian Wooldridge speaks to Mark Mardell about his new book 'The Aristocracy of Talent' and why we should reform but not abandon the meritocratic idea. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/intelligencesquared. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Rory Stewart, and I'd like to tell you about an intelligent squared event
0:04.8	I'm doing with the classicist author and broadcaster Mary Beard. Together we'll be discussing
0:10.1	politics and power from the Caesars to Sunack, who gets to Winpar, who is excluded,
0:16.0	does power always corrupt, or other examples of leaders who've maintained their integrity while
0:21.1	an authority. And how does the nature of power vary across different times and cultures?
0:26.0	These are just some of the questions that Mary and I will be trying to answer.
0:29.6	In person tickets are now sold out, but you can still watch online on the 13th of November
0:34.6	at 7pm BST. Put your questions first live as we discuss power and politics down the edges.
0:40.9	Hello podcast listeners, I'm Connor and welcome to this week's episode of Intelligence Squared.
0:45.4	Today we're joined by Adrian Waldridge, author of the new book The Aristocracy of Talent.
0:50.4	And in conversation with Mark Mardel, they discussed how the idea that people should be
0:54.8	advanced in society based on their talents, rather than their status or birth, came to be one
1:00.4	of the leading ideologies across the world. It's a really fascinating conversation which deals with
1:05.5	questions about why meritocracy is under attack today. And if you do enjoy it and want to continue
1:10.8	the conversation with fellow listeners after the episode, we'll be running a chat forum about
1:15.5	meritocracy on the new apt multitude. Just click the link in our podcast description. We'll be
1:20.5	taking some of the best arguments and comments from our listeners on the issue of meritocracy
1:24.8	and giving them two free tickets to one of our upcoming in-person debates in London or free access
1:30.4	to the live stream if they're joining us from outside the UK. You can find a link for the chat
1:34.4	forum and Adrian's book in the podcast description, but now let's go to the episode.
1:38.9	Hello and welcome to this Intelligence Squared podcast with me, Mark Mardel. I'm delighted to
1:43.7	introduce our guest today, Adrian Waldridge, the economist political editor who writes the magazine's
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