Tiffany Jenkins On Privacy And Liberalism

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Tiffany is a cultural historian, writer, and broadcaster. She has been a critic and presenter on BBC Radio 4 and now serves as a trustee of the British Museum. Her latest book is Strangers and Intimates: The Rise and Fall of Private Life. It’s a fascinating book of history and political insight: how privacy is deeply connected to liberal values, and why its abeyance matters.

For two clips of the episode — on the first sexual revolution in England, and when privacy strengthened patriarchy — head to our YouTube page.

Other topics: growing up in an Anglo-American household; losing and keeping accents; privacy a rare thing in history; the Greeks and Romans; the human tendency to gossip; the Reformation and private faith; Thomas More against Martin Luther; Cromwell banning Christmas; Hobbes and the right of conscience; Locke and natural rights; Marie Antoinette; Rousseau and self-creation; spying; the emergence of the back stairs; the Romantics and subjectivity; Wollstonecraft and women’s equality; the Sodomites’ Walk; the rise of coffee shops; John Stuart Mill; child abuse; marital rape; Betty Friedan; defending homosexuality based on privacy; outings; Lewinsky and the Starr Report; consent and policing sex; hook-up culture on campus; Obama’s private life; Hunter’s laptop; reality TV and Trump; Harry and Meghan’s worldwide privacy tour; OnlyFans; and a defense of hypocrisy.

Browse the Dishcast archive for an episode you might enjoy. Coming up: Bob Wright on the evolutionary force of AI, John Gray on Trump’s new world, Stephen Grosz on the struggles of love, David Thomson on cinema history, John O’Sullivan on conservatism, Robby George on all our disagreements, and Megan McArdle on everything. Please send any guest recs, dissents, and other comments to [email protected].