Bernard-Henri Lévy in Conversation with Simon Schama

Is America in the process of retreating from its traditional world leadership role?

Bernard-Henri Lévy, one of the West’s leading intellectuals, takes an informed and provocative look at the state of world politics today, in conversation with historian and author Simon Schama. How are Russia, China, Turkey, Iran, and Sunni radical Islamism taking steps to assert power and influence? And what are the ramifications of the steps they are taking to undermine the liberal values that have been a hallmark of Western civilization? Join him for a clear-eyed look at the world stage, as he talks about his important new book, The Empire and the Five Kings: America’s Abdication and the Fate of the World. Drawing upon lessons from history and the eternal touchstones of human culture, Lévy reveals the stakes facing the West as America retreats from its leadership role, a process that did not begin with Donald Trump’s presidency and is not likely to end with him. The crisis is one whose roots can be found as far back as antiquity and whose resolution will require the West to find a new way forward if it—and its values—are to survive.