Matt Klink returns as a guest in this special episode in light of the assassination attempt on Trump and Biden's withdrawal as a candidate. The conversation also covers Kamala Harris, who appears to be Trump's opponent, and the role of the media in the election and what motivates Americans to vote.

Matt Klink and Torbjörn Sjöström have met in several international contexts as Torbjörn sits on the board of the sister organization EAPC (European Association of Political Consultants), and Matt was recently chairman of IAPC (International Association of Political Consultants), where they were seen on stage and Matt Klink explained American politics from a republican perspective and Torbjörn Sjöström has explained European and Swedish politics.

The book refered to is: Tyranny of the Minority av Steven Levitsky och Daniel Ziblatt.

Sanity Check - Matt Klink and Torbjörn Sjöström - Follow-up on the US Election

The guest on Sanity Check is Gallup International's newly elected chairman, Michael Nitsche, who is also the owner of Gallup Austria. Both Michael Nitsche and Torbjörn Sjöström serve on Gallup International's board, and in this episode, we hear about Gallup International's role and history.

Sanity Check - Michael  Nitsche and Torbjörn Sjöström - Surveys and Gallup international

Guest Dr. Colin Irwin in a discussion on peace surveys and global research.
Colin Irwin received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Association of Public Opinion Research (WAPOR), in part for his work on peace surveys, which played a central role in the peace process in Northern Ireland. He has advised the UN’s Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) on their procedures and best practices. Irwin is also involved in OpenAI's process of democratizing AI and has published this paper: https://arxiv.org/abs/2311.02242.

Irwin has lectured in the USA, the UK, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and has authored over 100 publications, including articles, essays, and books on these topics. He is currently a researcher at the Department of Politics at the University of Liverpool. He is developing a perception-based ‘People’s Peace Index’ to globalize and integrate his 'peace polls' methods into all peace processes, with research published on his website: http://www.peacepolls.org.

Sanity Check - Colin Irwin - Peace polls

A discussion with Bruce Stokes, of the Pew Research Center on the U.S. election, focusing on how the country has reached its current state of polarized voters and divided media outlets. How did the U.S. arrive at this point, and what are the implications for the upcoming election?

Bruce Stokes is director of global economic attitudes at the Pew Research Center, a non-resident fellow at the German Marshall Fund and associate fellow at Chatham House.

Bruce Stokes - Polarized voters and media: How does it affect the US election?

Faye Diamond, with a long background in American politics, joins this week’s episode in a discussion about the U.S. election from a democratic perspective. Throughout her career, Faye Diamond has worked in both strategic communication and political consulting, including at the European Association of Political Consultants (EAPC). Her experience ranges from managing national campaigns to providing consultancy on election transparency and democracy-strengthening initiatives.

The episode covers topics such as transparency in political campaigns related to financial activities, the challenge of low voter turnout, and restrictive voting measures that make it harder for marginalized groups to vote in the election. 

Participants: Faye Diamond and Torbjörn Sjöström

Faye Diamond - The American election from a democratic perspective

This week’s episode of Novus Sanity Check features Jan Eliasson, former Sweden’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations. The discussion covers the upcoming U.S. election and the importance of impartial news reporting and highlight the significance of creating space for dialogue between people with different political views in order to find solutions to various societal challenges.

Jan Eliasson also shares his thoughts on global prospects and structural optimism, focusing on: the complete liberation of women worldwide, the role of young people in shaping the future and the importance of listening to them, the crucial role of research and knowledge dissemination, and international cooperation as a path forward.

An inspiring episode on politics, society, and hope for the future!

Jan Eliasson - Global prospects

Christian Syse has had a long political career and has previously served as Norway’s ambassador in Sweden. He is now the representative of Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in its relations with Ukraine. Is his role, he focuses on providing assistance and resources primarily to civilians.

This week’s episode discusses topics such as the war in Ukraine, national security, the global situation, the influence of the U.S and China, as well as Sweden’s NATO membership and its implications for the Nordic region. How do global tensions affect our region, and how can Sweden and Norway, as neighboring countries, collaborate to navigate through these challenges?

Avsnitt 84 Christian Syse

This episode of Sanity Check highlights the election results in Austria, where the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) received the most votes, drawing significant attention. Christoph Hofinger, pollster and forecaster, best known from Austrian TV election night coverage, where he presents election forecasts. head of the Austrian FORESIGHT institute and former president of the European Association of Political Consultants (EAPC), shares his insights into voter behavior and current political trends, including the role of inflation, dissatisfaction with mandatory vaccinations during the pandemic, and the anger driving increased support for populist parties like FPÖ.

The episode also explores the idea of “being a hedgehog or a fox” in political forecasting. The hedgehog focuses on a single core idea, which often leads to less flexible forecasts, while the fox adapts its approach by drawing on multiple ideas and theories for greater accuracy.

Christoph Hofinger - Being a hedgehog or a fox

Dr. Tim Johnson, PhD in Sociology, professor, lecturer, and former president of both AAPOR and WAPOR, joins the latest episode of Novus Sanity Check. This week’s episode features a discussion on research, the importance of protecting factual neutrality, and methodological development within the survey research industry.

Torbjörn Sjöström and Tim Johnson also discuss the need for a "shared core of knowledge" and the importance of having clear, reliable, and accessible factual data to use both for public distribution and for other researchers to use.

Tim Johnson also talks about the work behind AAPOR’s Transparency Initiative, an educational strategy designed to help research organizations routinely disclose the methods used in their publicly released studies. The goal of the Transparency Initiative is to promote transparency and advance open science in the field of survey research.

#97 - Tim Johnson - "shared core of knowledge"

In this episode of Novus Sanity Check, Torbjörn Sjöström meets sociology professor Claire Durand from the Université de Montréal, internationally recognized for her research on election surveys and the practices of democracy. Claire Durand has, among other roles, served on AAPOR’s committee for evaluating opinion polls in U.S. elections and has presented analyses on methodological differences, such as between telephone and web surveys, at AAPOR conferences.

The main theme of the episode is democracy. Torbjörn Sjöström and Claire Durand reflect on the survey industry’s crucial role in neutrally supporting democratic processes. They delve into how voting systems can create unequal representation and discuss international examples where people are prevented from voting, along with other insights on the development of democracy from Claire’s research.

Sanity Check

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