Heleen Mees on Disinformation, US and China Elections

Paul Buitink speaks* with economist and columnist Heleen Mees about disinformation, Elon Musk, the US elections and China. Heleen believes that social media platforms such as X should be held liable for damages caused by disinformation and inflammatory messages.

If it is up to Heleen, Kamala Harris will become the new president of the United States, but she acknowledges that it would have been more democratic if more candidates had been given a chance to nominate. They also discuss Joe Biden's policies and Bill Clinton's reputation. According to Heleen, there is a chance that, if the Democrats win, the Republicans will still try to stop the transfer of power.

Afterwards, they will discuss the economic and political situation of China. Heleen notes that it may be a good thing for the West that Chinese economic growth is stagnating somewhat. Without this slowdown in growth, China could overtake the US as the world's largest economy in the coming years. In addition, she thinks it is wise to become less dependent on China and to protect our own industry. She also mentions that China's growth has come at the expense of the middle class in the West.

Finally, they discuss the centralization of power in Europe.

*This conversation was recorded last week.

Photo in thumbnail by Carin Verbruggen.