In an election already marred by political violence, what are the prospects of another January 6-style incident in the event of a Harris victory? And what will the outcome mean for Australia and the rest of the world?

Join Nick Bryant, acclaimed former BBC journalist and author of The Forever War: America’s Unending Conflict with Itself, and Dr Emma Shortis, Senior Researcher in International & Security Affairs at the Australia Institute, to discuss the US presidential election and what the outcome means for the rest of the world.

Speakers

Nick Bryant | journalist and author

During a career spanning almost 30 years, Nick Bryant came to be regarded as one of the BBC’s finest foreign correspondents and was described as ‘the new Alistair Cooke’. He has been posted in Washington, South Asia, Australia and, most recently, New York, where he covered the Trump years.

His writing has appeared in The Economist, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, The Monthly and The New Statesman. He broadcasts regularly on the BBC and ABC. Nick studied history at Cambridge and has a doctorate in American politics from Oxford.

His latest book, The Forever War: America’s Unending Conflict with Itself, was published in 2024. His previous book, When America Stopped Being Great: A History of the Present, currently resides on Joe Biden’s bookshelf in the Oval Office.

Emma Shortis | Senior Researcher, International & Security Affairs, the Australia Institute

Dr Emma Shortis is Senior Researcher in the International & Security Affairs Program. Emma is historian and writer, focused on the history and politics of the United States and its role in the world. She uses her expertise in history to interpret and explain what is happening in the world today, and what it means for Australia, in a compassionate and accessible way. In a conversation often dominated by the same voices, Emma offers a fresh perspective on international relations grounded in moral questions about how we might imagine a post-American future.

Emma’s first book, Our Exceptional Friend: Australia’s Fatal Alliance with the United States, was published by Hardie Grant in 2021. She writes regularly for Australian and international outlets, and appears regularly on Australian radio and television.