Democracy Dies without Disagreement: The Numbers

June 1, 2026

Staffan I. Lindberg from the V-Dem Institute presents the newest findings from the world’s largest democracy dataset, revealing how freedom of expression, media independence and civil liberties have evolved in the last year and over time. He demonstrates where democratic backsliding is accelerating, where resistance is emerging, and why free expression and disagreement is so tightly linked to democracy.

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