Turmoil and Tyranny

Wars, coups and economic and climate crises: each new headline can make it feel like the world is suddenly falling apart. But behind many dramatic world events are long-term historical patterns and the rise (and sometimes the fall) of tyrannical and authoritarian rulers. From the Arab Spring to the fall of dictators like Syria's Assad, find out more about telling these stories from the inside with award-winning foreign correspondent Peter Greste ( The Correspondent ) and political scientist and author Marcel Dirsus ( How Tyrants Fall: And How Nations Survive ). In conversation with Avani Dias. This episode was recorded live in May at the 2025 Sydney Writers' Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers' Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers' Festival on social media: Instagram: @sydwritersfest Facebook: @SydWritersFest TikTok: @sydwritersfest

You can listen to Turmoil and Tyranny online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Turmoil and Tyranny is an episode from Sydney Writers' Festival by Sydney Writers' Festival.

This episode is 52:04 long.

This episode was published on Sep 16, 2025.

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