Video | Experts, Publics and Trust During the Pandemic: Sociological Perspectives

The pandemic has brought into focus the fraying of relations between experts, policy-makers and relevant publics in liberal democracies. How should social researchers analyze the factors and processes that contribute to this fraying? What insights can be gleaned from comparative analysis, either of liberal democracies, or across the liberal-authoritarian divide? What have we learned about the determinants and nature of trust that can shed light and perhaps guide interventions in the current moment? What are the specific vulnerabilities of different forms of organizing the relations between experts, policy-makers and the public, and how can they be addressed?

We explored these questions and more with an esteemed panel of sociologists specializing in science, knowledge, medicine, public health and expertise including Rogers Brubaker, Stephen Hilgartner, Zeynep Tufekci and Andrew Lakoff. Moderated by Gil Eyal.

More information on the panelists and moderator is available here: http://sawyerseminar.americanassembly...

To help better acquaint people with the core issues at stake, we’ve prepared a short primer, with concise and compelling readings drawn from mainstream media outlets, available here: http://sawyerseminar.americanassembly...