Intelligence Squared

Language is expressive, a way of opening doors or a tool for creating new dialogue. But a tool so powerful can also take us to unforeseen or unintended places. It can create narratives that become fixed, unhelpful, or exclusionary. Kübra Gümüsay is a writer and activist focusing on social justice and public discourse. Her new book is Speaking and Being, which looks at the power of words, asking whether language creates freeing new spaces or plays a part in walling them off. Our host for the discussion is Danielle Sands, Senior Lecturer in Comparative Literature and Culture at Royal Holloway University in London, where she works across disciplines bridging philosophy, literary studies and critical theory.

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In this archive conversation from 2020, journalist, novelist, non-fiction writer and war reporter Scott Anderson joins us to talk about his book, The Quiet Americans, which focuses on CIA spycraft, the Cold War and the West’s relationship with Russia. It's a discussion that resonates strongly today, hosted by Hugo Lindgren, writer, producer and former Editor of New York Times Magazine.

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In 2015, Intelligence Squared staged the ultimate clash of civilisations: Greece vs Rome. Boris Johnson, at that time Mayor of London and ardent classicist, made the case for Greece; while Mary Beard, today Lecturer in Classical Archaeology at the University of Sheffield and known for her extensive career as a broadcaster and writer, championed Rome. As we revisit this archive debate held in the pre-Brexit, pre-pandemic era, it's fascinating to observe how history would soon be shaped by some of the figures on stage and whose actions are the subject of much divisive debate today. Our host for the event was the journalist and broadcaster, Andrew Marr.

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How does more time spent online result in more havoc and social unrest in the world? In just two decades, social media and its addictive components have changed society in unfathomable ways; how we communicate with one another, how we receive our news, how our societies function and how our societies break down. In this episode Max Fisher, New York Times columnist and author of The Chaos Machine, explores how we have been rewired by algorithms which claim to know us better than we know ourselves. Host for this discussion is technology journalist Chris Stokel-Walker.

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• A 25% discount on IQ2+, our exciting streaming service, where you can watch and take part in events live at home and enjoy watching past events on demand and without ads
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In this two-part debate, George Monbiot, Guardian columnist, environmental campaigner and author of Regenesis: Feeding the World without Devouring the Planet, argues for the motion We Should All Go Vegan. Patrick Holden, Founder and chief executive of the Sustainable Food Trust, argues against it. Our chair is Alice Thomson, Columnist and interviewer at The Times.

Livestock farming contributes 14.5% of human-produced greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. Farm animals belch out massive amounts of methane, one of the most harmful greenhouse gases. They are also extremely wasteful of resources, using up 83% of farmland worldwide while providing only 18% of our calories, guzzling soya and grain that could feed humans more efficiently, and requiring vast amounts of water. As for our health, vegan sports stars such as Venus and Serena Williams and Lewis Hamilton prove that you can be superfit on a plant-based diet, and research has linked vegan diets to lower rates of some diseases. That’s the argument made by the vegan lobby. But there are many experts who disagree on all counts. Take the environment. Few people realise the high carbon cost of growing crops – some 15-20% of the world’s CO2 output comes from ploughing – and that plants grown for food require vast amounts of fertiliser and pesticides that are derived from fossil fuels. Who’s right and who’s wrong?

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