In this fast-paced and insightful talk, Christopher Kabakis presents a powerful approach for dealing with right-wing populists effectively based on his analysis of how the narrative aspect of populism works. Using examples from the Trump campaign in the U.S., Le Pen's Front National in France and Germany’s AfD, he illustrates the three storylines underlying all right-wing populism and how friends of the open society can protect and defend liberal democracy from a communications point of view. A talk to share.

Christopher is a communications consultant, speaker coach and founder of the Infinity Institute, a network of coaches and trainers who assist leading figures in becoming powerful public speakers and high-performing organizations in executing their change initiatives and adapting to cultural change. 

In the aftermath of Brexit and the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States in 2016, Christopher asked himself whether, while he was busy advising organizations, coaching executives and pursuing his business, the world was falling apart. He was also frequently confronted in his workshops with the question: "Is Trump a good speaker? Though very different from Obama, Trump is somehow also very effective. Can you explain this?" As someone who knows a thing or two about communications, he decided to contribute his expertise to the task of defending the Open Society against its enemies – in the spirit of Karl Popper. 

In his talk, Christopher shares the results of his research of populism and presents insights that can help proponents of the open society defeat the populist authoritarian nationalists. After all, to protect humanity’s progress and the open-ended creation of knowledge, we need liberal democracies that foster a culture of tolerance while being open to criticism and valuing dissent. And we need to believe in the desirability of innovation and positive change – everything that TED also stands for.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Christopher Kabakis: Talk like Trump: How to understand populist speech and overcome it | Christopher Kabakis | TEDxWHU

Talk like Trump: How to understand populist speech and overcome it | Christopher Kabakis | TEDxWHU

WHU Alumnus, Founder Infinitiy Institute, Communications & Change Consultant, Business & Speaker Coach

Populism leverages real governance issues and skilled communication to sway public opinion and challenge liberal democracies.

The narrative of populism romanticizes the past, distrusts universal principles, and divides society into 'us' vs. 'them'.

Counteract populism by crafting inclusive, logically sound narratives that inspire and outline a positive role for technology.