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The History of Ideas Podcast
with David Runciman

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The Politics of Trust: Lessons from Wikipedia

Wed 03 Jun

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Cheltenham Science Festival

The Politics of Trust: Lessons from Wikipedia
The Politics of Trust: Lessons from Wikipedia

Time & Location

03 Jun 2026, 19:00 – 20:00

Cheltenham Science Festival, Cheltenham Ladies' College, Bayshill Rd, Cheltenham GL50 3EP, UK

About the event

What can we learn from Wikipedia's example about democracy, trust and knowledge? David Runciman talks to Wikipedia's founder Jimmy Wales in a special Science Festival episode of Past Present Future, the history of ideas podcast.


Once dismissed as a failed experiment, Wikipedia is now a global utility, viewed billions of times each month. How did strangers on the internet learn to trust one another and build the largest collection of knowledge in history? At a time when public trust is at an all-time low, Jimmy and David explore what Wikipedia reveals about what's missing and what's possible in contemporary society and how it might offer a blueprint for building things that last.


There will be a book signing after this event.

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