The Crime Paradox (2022) | Wenlei Ma, Kate McClymont, Ann Mossop & Don Weatherburn

The Crime Paradox (2022) | Wenlei Ma, Kate McClymont, Ann Mossop & Don Weatherburn

Author: Festival of Dangerous Ideas February 7, 2023 Duration: 56:22

Our obsession with true crime is everywhere – from news stories and podcasts to the big screen. However in recent decades, rates of almost all crime around the world have declined dramatically, with the notable exception of sexual assault. Meanwhile the number of people in prison has increased alarmingly. 

TV and film critic Wenlei Ma, journalist Kate McClymont, and former Executive Director of the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics Don Weatherburn investigate why the data on crime, the inmate numbers and our obsession with these stories doesn't add up.


For more than a decade, the Festival of Dangerous Ideas has curated a space where provocative thinking isn't just welcomed, it's the entire point. This podcast is a direct line to that stage, offering an archive of talks that deliberately unsettle comfortable opinions and interrogate the stubborn problems we often agree to ignore. Each episode captures a live conversation from Australia's original disruptive ideas festival, presenting arguments that can be exhilarating, uncomfortable, and vitally important. You’ll hear from a compelling roster of festival alumni-including leading experts, intellectual troublemakers, and visionary authors-who share perspectives that conventional discourse frequently sidelines. The discussions here aren't theoretical exercises; they grapple with the pressing and difficult issues shaping our society and culture right now. Tuning in means granting yourself access to a decade-long tradition of intellectual courage, where the core assumption is that some truths are only reached by first entertaining a dangerous idea. It’s a chance to listen as boundaries are pushed, not for shock value, but for clarity. The result is a consistently challenging and refreshing audio experience that complicates simple narratives and expands what feels possible to talk about.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Festival of Dangerous Ideas
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