Why BRAVE NEW EUROPE
“When money talks, everybody else is condemned to listen”, wrote the American historian Christopher Lasch twenty years ago. He was referring to the increasing concentration of wealth, including control of the media, in the hands of a tiny minority. This concentration puts at risk one of the most fundamental elements of a democratic society: the plurality and free flow of info
rmation and opinions. European public discourse has been hijacked by a neo-liberal ideology, promulgated by a powerful wealthy few, which has successfully dominated the continent for decades. This ideology in the meantime permeates all aspects of life, including media, politics and universities. Today there is still no sign of a coherent pan-European alternative programme that benefits the majority of Europe’s populace, resulting in largely isolated and ephemeral protests against the neo-liberal agenda. To facilitate the formation of a coherent alternative discourse to disseminate innovative political and economic ideas, BRAVE NEW EUROPE will be offering in-depth information and analyses, enabling European citizens to better comprehend their political and economic realities. It will provide ideas for achieving greater equality and social inclusion, challenging the neo-liberal monologue that increasingly dominates corporate and state media. Involving mainly authors from the continent or the diaspora, BRAVE NEW EUROPE will for the first time connect Europeans with a common forum, exploring, yet not over-simplifying, the complex reality in which we live and focussing on pivotal current issues. The exchange of ideas will not be limited to the contributors, but will include comments by readers, aiming to build a community of participants and a forum in which public issues can be debated and solutions sought.
