Conference on “Business, Fascism, and the Erosion of Democracy”

In recent years, scholars and public commentators have revisited fascism in light of broader transformations affecting democratic societies, including the rise of authoritarianism, populism, nationalism, and polarization. Rather than confirming the anticipated triumph of liberal democracy, some observers highlight the emergence of conditions described as “illiberal democracy,” “post-democracy,” or even “post-fascism,” in which institutions continue to exist formally but progressively lose their deliberative, pluralistic, and rule-of-law-based substance. Today, liberal democracies are under increasing pressure: fundamental institutions such as free elections, judicial independence, and freedom of the press are increasingly strained, while trust declines and support for authoritarian leadership grows.

Economic actors are not merely passive observers of these changes. In particular, large technology firms and entrepreneurs have benefited from platform economies, the privatization of digital infrastructures, and limited regulation. Their growing economic power and control over data and information flows enable them to influence public debate and political decision-making, while some promote far-reaching visions of the future that have sparked critical interpretations linking these developments to new forms of domination.

These developments call for deeper analysis and constitute the central focus of the conference. Does the concept of fascism still retain analytical value for understanding contemporary transformations, or has it become too broad to capture the diverse forms of illiberalism? How does it relate to established concepts such as authoritarianism, populism, and polarization, and in what ways might it extend existing interpretive frameworks? How are these phenomena connected to broader political-economic categories such as capitalism, liberalism, or libertarianism? And what are the implications for analyzing the role of firms in society?

Research in business ethics and management studies has only begun to address these issues. In particular, the ambivalent role of firms—especially in the digital economy—in either eroding or reinforcing democratic institutions remains underexplored.