China’s Ministry of Public Security is frequently portrayed as a domestic law enforcement agency. But it’s also a global security actor – and it allows China to advance its vision of security abroad. More from @sheenagreitens.bsky.social, @cameronwaltz.bsky.social, & Sophie Zhuang:

Fußball ist Sport – und Politik. ⚽ Mehr dazu morgen beim Online-Roundtable des @giga-hamburg.de: „Fußball, Macht und Protest: Die globale Politik der Weltmeisterschaft 2026“ Anmeldung 👇: www.giga-hamburg.de/en/events/gi...

The FIFA World Cup kicks off in less than three weeks ⚽🏆 Had the pleasure of discussing my research on sportswashing and its effects on German television @zdfde.bsky.social 👇 (Interview is in German)

Thrilled to see Making a Career in Dictatorship featured in The New York Times @nytimes.com My favorite line: “[The book] reads like what you might get if you crossed Hannah Arendt’s ideas about the ‘banality of evil’ with a business school guide on how to get the most out of low performers.”

„Wählen wir die Demokratie ab?“ Liberale Demokratien sind weltweit unter Druck — und autokratische Kräfte gewinnen an Einfluss Wie ernst ist die Lage? Was können wir tun? Darüber diskutiere ich nächste Woche am @ipz.bsky.social 📍Mo, 18.05., 18:15, Aula Uni Zürich Anmeldung 👇 ema.uzh.ch/RTKL3

Really enjoyed presenting my new book Making a Career in Dictatorship at the @uni-konstanz.de today. Great discussion and thoughtful questions. Big thanks to @geraldschneider.bsky.social @nilsweidmann.bsky.social @leuffen.bsky.social for organizing the event!

I am looking for a postdoc to join my team at the University of Bremen. 5-year-contract, top-up to 100% possible for most of the contract period. Apply by 04 May 2026. If you have questions about the position, send me an email! www.uni-bremen.de/en/universit...

Got Theory? @ascharpf.bsky.social uses Henry #Kissinger’s International Seminar to test a #theory of #SoftPower targeting in educational #exchange programs. Read his full article here: doi.org/10.1353/wp.2...

📚 Book Talk am Bodensee 🗓 Do, 23.04.2026 🕖 19:15–20:45 📍 Zeppelin Universität Für alle, die sich für Politik, Geschichte & Autokratien interessieren. Ich freue mich auf den Austausch! Vielen Dank an @debremaria.bsky.social & @steffenhurka.bsky.social für die Einladung. Mehr Infos & Anmeldung: 👇

📣We are hiring! The LOBBYMETRY project invites applications for a 2-3 year PostDoc / Assistant Professor. Focus: understanding informational lobbying and evidence selection in policymaking through participant observation. Deadline: 26 May candidate.hr-manager.net/ApplicationI...

@au.dk is hiring 3 postdocs (2 yrs) on personality cults & strategic communication in autocracies, led by Jakob Tolstrup & Alexander Baturo. They're looking for profiles with text-as-data, survey experiments and/or Chinese politics experience. Start fall 2026. Looks like a great opportunity!

Putins Regime rekrutiert jetzt sogar an Eliteuniversitäten! Was dahinter steckt – und warum Karrieredruck eine wichtige Rolle spielt – erklären wir in unserem neuen Op-Ed im Tagesspiegel. 👇

🎧 Audiobook Giveaway Lottery! Dive into the secret logic behind repression & coups with our new audiobook: "MAKING A CAREER IN DICTATORSHIP" I’m giving away 3 FREE copies! 1️⃣ Repost this 2️⃣ Do it by Monday 12 PM (noon) After that, I’ll randomly select 3 winners and send the audiobook links!

Today is the 50 year anniversary of the onset of the 1976-1983 military dictatorship in Argentina. elpais.com/argentina/20...

📢 We're hiring! | PostDoc Position (3 years) in CALi-project (Citizens' Administrative Literacy) I'm looking for a PostDoc researcher to join my DFF-funded project on Administrative Literacy at the @pa-sdu.bsky.social fa-eosd-saasfaprod1.fa.ocs.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/Candid...

Our new book, MAKING A CAREER IN DICTATORSHIP (Oxford University Press), is available in hardcover. Oxford offers 30% off with the code at checkout for the hardcover 👇 Code: AUFLY30 (or simply get the much cheaper softcover) Unlock the secrets of navigating authoritarian regimes!

How does an authoritarian leader build — and maintain — a fiercely loyal security force? And how much of that playbook shows up in developments around the U.S. Department of Homeland Security? We followed @donmoyn.bsky.social’s invitation and wrote a guest post - based on our new book 👇

Foreign influencers help authoritarian regimes: while they may not sway domestic audiences already saturated with propaganda, they can reshape the perceptions of more credulous foreign publics journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

Just arrived: MAKING A CAREER IN DICTATORSHIP. Featuring original visualizations throughout, the book reconstructs an entire military organization using career data from 15k officers. A deep dive into how the security apparatus in autocracies really works. Excited to finally hold it in my hands.

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Russia, Venezuela, Iran, China, the Sahel region, the United States ... Want to know why state agents carry out brutal repression — or participate in illegal coups? Our new book "Making a Career in Dictatorship" provides answers — it just got published by @academic.oup.com: tinyurl.com/ystwm3tf

Reißerischer Titel, aber lesenswerter Artikel: Interview mit meinem Ko-Autor Christian Gläßel über unser neues Buch „Making a Career in Dictatorship“ auf @krautreporter.bsky.social. 👇

Donald Trump just officially launched his "Board of Peace" (BoP) at the World Economic Forum. Some fear that the goal is to undermine the United Nations. But which countries participate, which don't, and which haven't yet decided? Let's quickly look at this! [Caution: Data-based hot take]

Largely unnoticed outside of Argentina, President Milei is planning a massive expansion of the intelligence service's powers – SIDE. Among other things, agents would be allowed to arrest citizens. I spoke with the Buenos Aires Herald about possible consequences and parallels to the country's past.

Our book, "Making a Career in Dictatorship: The Secret Logic Behind Repression and Coups," will be shipping in less than a month. For all those curious, here is the updated information kit with summaries, pointers, and more: tinyurl.com/4n5da6p6

Thanks a lot, @andrew.heiss.phd, for the shout-out.

We are happy to release the Paths to Power Dashboard. It is the perfect tool for politics nerds! You can find it here: ptp.isv.sv.uio.no/ptp/ It allows you to explore governments from 1966-2021 using the PtP and WhoGov datasets. See examples below. The app has been programmed by Stuart Bramwell.

Thanks for referring to our research, @donmoyn.bsky.social! For those who want to understand the actions of authoritarian security organizations, here is the info kit of our forthcoming book “Making a Career in Dictatorship”. It includes short chapter summaries and more: tinyurl.com/599d6uc5

I spoke with the authors of the study, Christian Gläßel and @ascharpf.bsky.social, who drew direct parallels between the creation of secret police in authoritarian regimes and what is happening under the Trump administration. Right now, the signals of impunity for loyalists stands out.

The @bostonglobe.com features our new book "Making a Career in Dictatorship," which comes out next month. Thank you, @svobodster.bsky.social, for the article!

🚨Job alert! 🚨 I'm advertising a PhD position (66%) in Comparative Politics at HU Berlin. Ideal candidates combine a research interest in autocratic politics, conflict, and/or political violence with strong quantitative methods skills. ⏳ 4 (+2) years | 🗓 DL 16.01; Start March/April 26 More info:

Thank you, @liviagershon.bsky.social, for featuring my work on how personal beliefs shape the loyalty of military personnel - even to illegal orders.

Thanks for the shout-out!

Dictating the Agenda: The Authoritarian Resurgence in World Politics by me & @cooleyoneurasia.bsky.social is now published by OUP in the USA (rest of world soon) If you are interested in why you see so many dictatorships & illiberal leaders influencing world politics then this is the book for you.

📣 Final Call for visiting fellowships for postdocs at the @mzesunimannheim.bsky.social! Great opportunity to spend 2-4 weeks in a fantastic academic environment! See 👇 for details!

📣 We're hiring a postdoc in political science for our ReJust project @uni-konstanz.de! Project with Dirk Leuffen @leuffen.bsky.social and Urs Fischbacher 3-year position | Deadline: Dec. 15, 2025 | Start: April 2026 Please share widely 🙏

What's happening in ICE also seems to go in the FBI. The current US administration seeks to staff key security agencies with unprofessional careerists rather than skilled professionals. See 👇 🙏 for a great post and featuring our work/new book "Making a Career in Dictatorship", @donmoyn.bsky.social!

Wie lässt sich das brutale Vorgehen von Trump's ICE Agenten erklären? Und warum erinnert es so sehr an Diktaturen und ihre Geheimpolizei? Unser neues Buch liefert Antworten - wie wir heute in der @zeit.de erklären. Buch: global.oup.com/academic/pro...

Many dictatorships use foreign helpers to influence democracies. In our new study, we examine why, when, which authoritarian regimes employ Western PR firms - a particularly important type of foreign helper. Study + summary are open-access 👇 www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Thanks @hcrichardson.bsky.social for featuring our work on the staffing of secret police organizations and how it is related to ICE. Our forthcoming book delves deeper into the authoritarian security apparatus and examines who serves where and why: global.oup.com/academic/pro...

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🚨 New article out! “Right-Wing Terror, Media Backlash, and Voting Preferences for the Far Right” in @bjpols.bsky.social 👉 doi.org/10.1017/S000... We (Alex De Juan, @juvoss.bsky.social & I) examine how right-wing attacks shape support for the far-right in Germany. Short summary thread below 👇

We are hiring PhDs and postdocs to work on the ERC project GETGOV, where I am the PI. We will investigate governing elites since 1789. I am sure that it will be a lot of fun and result in great research! Postdocs: www.jobbnorge.no/en/available... PhDs: www.jobbnorge.no/en/available...

Are you interested in research on corruption/illicit finance/kleptocracy? We are hiring a Research Fellow at @acdatacollective.bsky.social: acdatacollective.org/wp-content/u... Please share in your networks, this could be a great gig.

So many echoes from this article for US politics....

We know that Putin and other dictators try to build a new world order. Soft power plays a crucial role in this. Today, Russia hosts the Intervision 2025 – a competitor event to the Eurovision Song Contest. Which regimes participate in this contest? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intervi...

We're hiring in wonderful Copenhagen 🇩🇰 Two or more open rank sociology professorships (tt assistant, associate with tenure, or full prof with tenure). You'll join a leading sociology department in Europe with many core fields represented! #sociology More 👇 jobportal.ku.dk/videnskabeli...

Fantastic special issue - Thanks so much for putting it together @laiabalcells.bsky.social @apvjustino.bsky.social @andrearuggeri.bsky.social 💪 [full disclosure: our article is part of it as well]