Richard Thaler
Monday 7 July 2008 21:45-22:30 (Radio 3)
Matthew Sweet presents the arts and ideas programme.
Playlist
Nudge
Anne McElvoy talks to Richard Thaler about "libertarian paternalism" - the subject of his new book - Nudge. In it, Thaler argues that we need to be "nudged" to behave in our (and others) best interests. Examples range from drawing close knit lines on the road to make us slow down to a "civility check" email programme that would make us pause before sending angry emails in the heat of the moment.
Thaler discusses whether people can be subtly controlled in this way and really said to be free at; he also reveals what David Cameron and Barack Obama's people make of his ideas.
Berlin Waxworks
Also on the programme, as a new waxwork of Adolf Hitler goes on show in a new Madame Tussauds in Berlin and is decapitated within minutes, a history of the waxwork and our enduring fascination with these silent famous figures.
The House of Saddam
And the story of another dictator, not in wax, but on screen. A new TV drama - House of Saddam - traces the rise and fall of Saddam Hussein's regime - Anne and guests review.
That's all on Night Waves with Anne McElvoy, at a quarter to ten on Radio 3.
