Democracy was dealt a major blow in 2020. Almost 70% of countries covered by The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index recorded a decline in their overall score, as country after country locked down to protect lives from a novel coronavirus. Find out more in our recent report.
What kind of message are we sending about the viability these democratic ideals—about openness, transparency, public participation, public collaboration? How hollow must American exhortations to democracy sound to foreign ears? Mr Snowden may be responsible for having exposed this hypocrisy, for having betrayed the thug omertà at the heart of America’s domestic democracy-suppression programme, but the hypocrisy is America’s.
Largely thanks to the entertainment industry’s lawyers and lobbyists, copyright’s scope and duration have vastly increased. They are now calling for even greater protection. Such arguments should be resisted: it is time to tip the balance back.
Vom 5. bis 15. Mai 2009 lässt der britische Economist seine Leserinnen und Leser über die Frage diskutieren, ob die aktuellen Copyright-Gesetze eher schaden als nützen, konkret: ob die Verschärfung des Copyrights Kreativität und Fortschritt eher behindert als fördert.