Think tank leaders in the OTT Talks series Running a think tank in a changing Europe, describe their countries and regions as experiencing significant political changes, including a move away from democracy in some cases. Throughout their accounts they emphasise the rise of illiberal democracy, nationalism, populism, and state capture as key features of this shifting context.
The podcast series aims to document the experiences, successes, challenges, and strategic decisions of these think tanks. It also seeks to offer advice and lessons learned to colleagues engaged with think tanks across the world.
In the first season, we interviewed:
- Sonja Stojanovic-Gajic, former director of the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy
- Péter Krekó, Director of the Political Capital Institute in Hungary
- Vessela Tcherneva, Deputy Director of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR)
- Karolina Wigura, co-founder and board member of Kultura Liberalna
Specific descriptions of these changes include:
- Return to fragility: Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Eastern Europe and the Balkans seem to be back where they started, with democracy no longer a given.
- Resurgence of nationalist instincts: A process that started more than a decade ago, the return of Donald Trump to power in 2025 validate regional leaders’ nationalist instincts.
- Erosion of democratic institutions:. Hungary, once a champion of democratic transformation, has seen a rapid dismantling of democratic institutions and a shift in people’s mindsets due to a strong grip on the media. Other countries are following suit.
- “Informational autocracy”: “Captured states”, “Informational autocracy”, “spin dictatorship”, “hybrid states”, and more terms are now used to make sense of societies where the manipulation of information and control of the narrative are primary tools of dominance. Serbia and other countries live in captured states, where public institutions and legislation are repurposed for the interests of a few, not for the public good.
- Erosion of debate culture: There is a gradual erosion of fact-based analysis in favor of pushing particular agendas.
- More Tribal: Think tanks are increasingly tribal, dominated by party political interests.
Strikingly, Karolina Wigura explained that when Poland set off on a journey to “join” Europe it had a very clear sense of what that meant. As time passed and the country navigated through the accession process it realised that Europe had changed; it was no longer the liberal democracy Poles had been aiming for.
Films to explain the context
Making sense of this change and the types of societies that Europe more broadly and each country in particular are is a complex task.
We therefore asked the think tank leaders to use films to describe the political contexts of their countries and regions. For example, one leader uses the film “America America” to represent Poland’s experience of seeking an idealized West only to find that the West has changed. Another leader suggests the Serbian movie “Premeditated Murder” to depict Serbia’s internal conflicts over identity, inequality, and political rights. Additionally, the documentary “Whose is this song” is mentioned to describe the fragile moment in Eastern Europe and the Balkans, where primitive instincts may resurface.
- “America America”: Karolina Wigura recommends Elia Kazan’s film “America America” to describe Poland’s experience of seeking an idealised West after 1989, only to find that the West has changed and the values it once represented are scattered. The film illustrates a sense of ambiguity and the realisation that the imagined West does not exist.
- “Indiana Jones”: Karolina Wigura refers to “Indiana Jones” as a pop amica American cultural reference, implying that creating an NGO and a think tank in Poland involves solving problems with skill and courage.
- “Whose is this song?”: Vessela Tcherneva uses the documentary “Whose is this song?” to describe the fragile political context in Eastern Europe and the Balkans, where various versions of a song coexist and people are ready to fight over its ownership. The film depicts how primitive instincts resurface in the region.
- “Premeditated Murder”: Sonia Stojanovic-Gajic suggests the Serbian movie “Premeditated Murder” to depict Serbia’s internal conflicts over identity, inequality, and political rights, as well as the struggle to define the kind of state and rights to fight for.
- “How Rock and Roll Failed”: Sonia Stojanovic-Gajic also suggests “How Rock and Roll Failed” to describe the change of generations and the challenge of young people to the political system and cultural rights across the Western Balkans.
- “No Man’s Land”: Sonia Stojanovic-Gajic recommends “No Man’s Land” as a Bosnian movie to describe the war.
- “Flames are burning”: Sonia Stojanovic-Gajic also refers to “Flames are burning” to show how close community relationships break easily and how people get engaged in nasty stuff.
- “Black Mirror”: Péter Krekó, mentions feeling like being in a “Black Mirror” episode due to disinformation campaigns and distorted realities.
- “House of Cards”: Péter Krekó, draws a parallel to “House of Cards” to depict Hungary’s cynical political landscape dominated by material interests and nepotistic connections.
- “Underground”: Sonia Stojanovic-Gajic suggests “Underground,” noting that arts were important for those sanctioned and restricted from traveling.
Songs and animals for think tanks
In this context making sense of what a think tank is can be a challenge (it is a challenge under normal circumstances). We asked our guests to consider the songs and animals that best described their organisations. Here is a short list:
- When asked which song would represent Cultura Liberala, Karolina Wigura initially suggested “Children of the Revolution” by T-Rex to reflect their early revolutionary energy. More recently, she feels “New Town” by Brian Ferry from the album Bittersweet is more fitting. This song captures the experience of coming to a new place full of hope, only to encounter familiar dramatic experiences.
- Peter Kreko chose the centipede to describe the Political Capital Institute. This symbolises Political Capital’s strategy of having many funding sources (“100 legs”) to maintain independence and survive even if some funding is lost.
- Sonia Stojanović Gajić consulted her colleagues about the best song to represent the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy. The most common theme was “breaking fear”. Therefore, any song that helps overcome fear in the face of threats to their space would be their song: “These Boots Are Made for Walkin'” or songs by Rage Against the Machine. As for an animal, Sonia mentioned that the emblem of Belgrade features the “Victor” sculpture holding either a pigeon or falcon. However, she personally identified more with a sparrow: a small, present, social bird that is adaptable, nimble, and found everywhere, reflecting the role of her think tank.
We will continue interviewing think tank leaders in Europe for the series on running a think tank in a changing Europe.
Read, watch and listen to more interviews with think tank leaders.