Graphic Images
Disrupting Democracy Vol. III
Graphic Images is the third volume in the Disrupting Democracy series.
Disrupting Democracy focuses on technology’s impact on political, economic, and social ecosystems worldwide. In the first volume, we examined how technological innovations transformed countries at various stages of political and technological development. Our case studies – India, Germany, Israel, Cuba, and the United States – demonstrated distinct experiences at the intersection of technology and democracy, but there were common themes that cut across all the countries. Bridging the urban-rural access divide, combatting disinformation, and displacing traditional media presented policy challenges that each government had to face.
In Disrupting Democracy Volume II, we probed more deeply in our research by conducting our work within the crucible of active election campaigns. Those pages tell the tales of the Democratic Party’s “blue wave” in the US midterm elections, history-making victories for populism in Mexico and Italy, and Russia’s ongoing attempts to influence electoral outcomes in neighboring Latvia. These cases revealed an unbalanced ledger of benefits and consequences of technology on campaigning, elections systems, and governance.
For this third edition of the series, we decided to turn everything you’ve come to expect from Disrupting Democracy on its head. Rather than looking at the impact of technology on democracy, this volume will use technology to help us better explain democracy in the 21st century. Through the use of carefully constructed algorithms by our partners at the Institute for Competitiveness, we have collected data points that are the driving forces behind the volatility in democracy today. We’ve taken more than 10,000 data points and converted them into a compendium of visualizations that provides a degree of depth that will take you well beyond any written analysis.
Anthony T. Silberfeld
Director, Transatlantic Relations
Tony Silberfeld joined the Bertelsmann Foundation as the Director of Transatlantic Relations in April 2014, overseeing a project portfolio aimed at strengthening the Euro-Atlantic alliance through traditional and innovative means. His research focuses on democratic innovations in cities, and geopolitical competition in space. He currently oversees two online platforms, RANGE and the Transatlantic Periscope, that provide geopolitical forecasting capacity and in-depth analyses of America’s bilateral relationships with its European partners, respectively. Tony has produced long-form publications, policy briefs, graphic books, education guides, digital animations and feature-length documentary films, constantly exploring cutting-edge avenues to connect the Foundation’s work to policymakers and the public.
Tony arrived at the Foundation after seven years with the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office, where he was head of political and public affairs at the British Embassy’s Northern Ireland Bureau in Washington, DC. He also served as the Northern Ireland government spokesman in the Americas, and advised government ministers on political developments in the United States, Canada and Brazil. Prior to his tenure with the British government, Tony held posts as a foreign policy advisor in the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives.
Tony has a master’s degree from the University of Denver’s Josef Korbel School of International Studies and a bachelor’s degree from Tulane University.