Talk Recording – ‘Oracles and Power: new connections’, Prof. Linsey McGoey (Essex)

We are delighted to share a recording of Professor Linsey McGoey’s (Essex) talk on Oracles and Power, chaired by Dr Elspeth Van Veeren. Read more and stream below:

Oracles have been neglected in social science and social theory. They are marginalized and dismissed, treated as a diminished force in decision-making in secularized societies. This talk reverses that dismissal, calling for a broader treatment of oracles as ‘judgement machines’. I show how defining oracular judgement and oracular authority in a broad way helps to generate new theories of expertise, secrecy, and the power to monopolize the future.