Michael Vaughan

Let’s be clear – an Extreme Wealth Line is not a cap on wealth An extreme wealth line (EWL) defines a level where the harms associated with extreme wealth become socially unacceptable. It is not the same as a cap on wealth

In this blog, we explain why we need to have an Extreme Wealth Line, just like the Extreme Poverty Line. Also, having a line as a social indicator does not necessarily commit one to a limit on wealth possession via taxation only; it's a regulative ideal.
blogs.lse.ac.uk/inequalities...

Differential social media affordances: an actor type-centric, intermediate-level approach using the case of social movements Abstract. Social media have profoundly changed social communication practices across a vast range of contexts. To theorize these changes, numerous authors

📜Fresh off the press: Annett Heft, @michaelvaughan.bsky.social, Barbara Pfetsch & I attempted to find a level for defining social media affordances that permits conceptualizing differences between platforms and uses, and is thus useful for theory building.
doi.org/10.1093/ct/q...

From the figure of the obscene rich to the fantasy of its destruction: on Succession, schadenfreude and the godlike power of the super-rich on screen A significant part of contemporary popular culture portrays the rich as obscene, self-destructive, addicted and deranged. This article analyses the affective intensities circulating around this tro...

My article on the tv hit Succession and its media reception finally out. Keywords Schadenfreude, fantasy, dynasties. My argument being that it is a fantasy-driven construct appealing to a middle class desire to see the rich as miserable people destined to fall. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Win-Win-Win Taxing wealth for fairness, revenue and growth

In November's Budget, the Chancellor can reform taxes on wealth to achieve three wins - raising revenue, tackling inequality and boosting growth. Find out more at fairnessfoundation.com/win-win-win

Amazon workers' weekly wage = 1 pebble

Jeff Bezos net worth = THE ENTIRE BEACH

Now out in @cpsjournal.bsky.social. In our new article, @denis-cohen.bsky.social @thmskrr.bsky.social and I show that where local rent prices increase more, residents with lower incomes become more likely to support the radical right AfD.

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

In London, hate will never win.

How is the far right shaping our future? Podcast Episode · LSE IQ podcast · 02/09/2025 · 33m

Just got round to listening (not something I can normally bear to do when I’m involved but wanted to hear what the other contributors had to say). Anyway…I really enjoyed it, so you never know: you might too!

👉 Stories about economic change are never neutral. They make politics. In my new article in Sociological Theory @sociologicaltheory.bsky.social, I show how narratives about economic disruption become a source of legitimacy:
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Affording Fragmented Audiences: Multi-Platform Deliberation within the Five Star Movement We examine how multi-platform digital environments influence intra-party dynamics within political organizations, focusing on the Italian Five Star Movement (M5S) as a paradigmatic case of extreme ...

We have a 🚨 new open access paper 🚨 with @polcommjournal.bsky.social We show how platforms can simultaneously concentrate and fragment political power. We analysed Italy's Five Star Movement across 5 platforms to understand multi-platform dynamics in political organisations. doi.org/10.1080/1058...

Some thoughts on our recent report for @jrf-uk.bsky.social - and why we shouldn't shy away from the problem of unfair influence in talking about wealth inequality @wealtherty.bsky.social

The Politics of Feeling Populism, Progressivism, Liberalism

This book is brilliant - insightful, timely, and also written quite beautifully. If you are confused about or interested in how politics "feels" in the present conjuncture of UK/US politics, read it! @benandersongeog.bsky.social @ajsecor.bsky.social www.gold.ac.uk/goldsmiths-p...

Absolutely dystopian juxtaposition from the Guardian front page. Difficult to understand how anyone of decency and conscience can defend this government at this point. Just sheer moral degeneracy to arm a state that does this and arrest people for objecting. Wtf are we doing as a country?

Thomas Piketty and Michael Sandel on the struggle for equality - LSE Review of Books Equality: What It Means and Why It Matters is a wide-ranging discussion between economist Thomas Piketty and philosopher Michael J. Sandel on ways to think about and achieve real equality.

NEW✨ ‪ @michaelvaughan.bsky.social @lseinequalities.bsky.social reviews Equality: What It Means and Why It Matters by Thomas Piketty @thomaspiketty.bsky.social and Michael J. Sandel @politybooks.bsky.social 👇

“Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.”

Starmer’s policy: a transfer of resources from the poorest, straight to the arms industry.

Storytelling for advocacy in the digital age - LSE Review of Books Story Tech: Power, Storytelling and Social Change Advocacy by Filippo Trevisan, Michael Vaughan & Ariadne Vromen examines digital storytelling for advocacy.

Story Tech: Power, Storytelling, and Social Change Advocacy by Filippo Trevisan @michaelvaughan.bsky.social‬ @lseinequalities.bsky.social @ariadnevromen.bsky.social @uofglasgow.bsky.social @livunipress.bsky.social @uofmpress.bsky.social

#Review by Juliana Reimberg @cu-cardiffbusiness.bsky.social‬

Talking about wealth inequality Looking at perceptions of, and attitudes towards, wealth and wealth inequality — and how to increase public support for a fairer distribution.

🧵New @jrf-uk.bsky.social and @lseinequalities.bsky.social report by @wealtherty.bsky.social @michaelvaughan.bsky.social and Annalena Oppel:

We showcase three different ways of talking about wealth inequality and what difference it makes to public attitudes.

1/3

www.jrf.org.uk/wealth-fundi...

Racial justice and wealth inequality: a call for action Public event at LSE | Shabna Begum, Esiri Bukata, Kojo Koram, Mina Mahmoudzadeh, Mike Savage, Faiza Shaheen | Tues 10 June, 6.30 to 8.00pm

Are you concerned by huge & escalating racial wealth inequalities in the UK? Please come to hear the launch of our @lseinequalities.bsky.social report for @runnymedetrust.bsky.social on 10th June. Features @shabna.bsky.social @kojokoram.bsky.social Faiza Shaheen & us!

www.lse.ac.uk/Internationa...

Given the local election results in the UK, a short #thread - based on much of our own research - on the vicious cycle of radical right support that we have seen in many countries.
1) When radical right parties (such as Reform) are electorally successful established parties move right on immigration

The wealth of billionaires is growing very fast (7-9%/year). Let's be clear: a 2% wealth tax is an important first step, but it won't be enough to stabilize the ⤴️ concentration at the top. 5-10% is the minimum to stop inequality from rising. These questions must be part of open, democratic debates.

Move to cut UK aid will “destroy Labour’s legacy on international development” say NGO leaders in letter to PM and Treasury | Bond 138 leaders of NGOs from across the UK, including Save the Children UK, Oxfam GB, World Vision UK, ONE, Christian Aid, Action Aid UK, Islamic Relief,

138 NGO leaders tell Keir Starmer: "It is unacceptable that taxing extreme wealth was not looked at before cutting UK aid."

www.bond.org.uk/press-releas...

We find: news media tend toward images of luxury and consumption (e.g. cars + yachts); civil society have more contrasts between rich and poor. We also look at two tropes which show how tricky this domain is: ambivalent representations of the super-rich, and birds-eye aerial photography

Screenshot of article abstract from journal website.

Out today - new article with @wealtherty.bsky.social on visual representations of wealth inequality, by UK news media and civil society orgs journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

It's difficult to engage in good faith in a discussion about 'compromise' proposals that dignify the phoney premise that we simply can't afford to scrap the two-child limit & benefit cap. £3.5bn would be incredible value for the poverty alleviation (& knock-on economic benefits) it would achieve

This will be great!

📣 New paper by @michaelvaughan.bsky.social, Ariadne Vromen and Serrin Rutledge-Prior

They explore how personal storytelling was used in the 2023 Voice referendum to argue against the constitutional recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

🔗 https://buff.ly/3EQ1f1Q

You can also find my brilliant colleagues at @ariadnevromen.bsky.social and @serrinrp.bsky.social

Storytelling in the Australian 2023 voice referendum campaign - Ariadne Vromen, Serrin Rutledge-Prior, Michael Vaughan, 2025 Personal stories are a strategic tool often used by advocacy movements to pursue claims for equality. In the 2023 Voice referendum campaign in Australia, person...

My new article written with @serrinrp.bsky.social & @michaelvaughan.bsky.social has just been published in @bjpir.bsky.social
“Storytelling in the Australian 2023 voice referendum campaign” available OA at doi.org/10.1177/1369...

Where do we draw the line? Exploring an extreme wealth line Public event at LSE | Ingrid Robeyns, Olivier De Schutter, Fernanda Balata, Gary Stevenson, Tania Burchardt | Thurs 6 March, 6.30 to 8.00pm

Please join us on Thursday 6 March for a @lseinequalities.bsky.social discussion about where & how to draw the line on extreme wealth. Fabulous line up @ingridrobeyns.bsky.social @garyseconomics.bsky.social @deschuttero.bsky.social, Fernanda Balata & Tania Burchardt

www.lse.ac.uk/Internationa...

Thanks to the LSE European Politics Blog for commissioning a summary of our study on class consciousness and voting.

We show that even class conscious workers are not immune to radical right appeals. And we discuss how the left can still win.

The study is here: www.fes.de/cgi-bin/gbv....