New Releases by Moises Naim

From snake-oil salesmen to crypto grifters, the gripping story of charlatans—and why we fall for them For centuries charlatans have been bamboozling victims. But today, charlatanry is more lucrative and global than ever. Using the power of digital technology, our age’s charlatans have spun a worldwide web of exploitation on an unprecedented scale. In Charlatans, global affairs experts Moisés Naím and Quico Toro investigate how charlatans fool us and why they’ve become so influential today. They argue that modern charlatans exploit the same weak points in human cognition as the snake-oil salesmen of the old West. They earn our trust, trick us into believing they have some special skill or knowledge, then exploit us. In some ways, nothing has changed. But, today, charlatans are digital, viral, and global. Whether they’re health gurus pushing pseudoscience or crypto bros orchestrating Ponzi schemes, modern charlatans rapidly amass worldwide audiences on the internet and social media using a common set of strategies. These hucksters swiftly swindle unsuspecting victims, as our slow-moving institutions struggle to respond. Packed with insights on how to avoid being duped by charlatans, this is an eye-opening journey through the brazen deception and brutal victimization at the heart of this new global scourge.

Un libro para entender cómo se obtiene, se usa, se abusa y se pierde el poder en el siglo XXI. En todo el mundo, las democracias se enfrentan a un enemigo nuevo e implacable que no tiene ejército ni armada; no procede de ningún país que podamos señalar en un mapa, porque no viene de ahí fuera, sino de aquí dentro. En lugar de desafiar a las sociedades libres con la destrucción desde el exterior, amenaza con corroerlas desde el interior. Un peligro como este es esquivo, difícil de identificar, de distinguir, de describir. Todos lo notamos, pero nos cuesta darle nombre. Se derraman ríos de tinta para definir sus elementos y características, pero se nos sigue escapando. Nuestro deber, por tanto, es nombrarlo para así comprenderlo, combatirlo y derrotarlo. ¿Qué es este nuevo enemigo que atenta contra nuestra libertad, nuestra prosperidad y hasta nuestra supervivencia como sociedades democráticas? La respuesta es el poder, en una forma nueva y maligna. En todas las épocas ha habido una o más formas de maldad política; la que estamos viviendo hoy es una variante vengativa que imita la democracia al tiempo que la socava y desprecia cualquier limitación. Parece que el poder haya estudiado todos los controles concebidos por las sociedades libres durante siglos para eludirlos y, después, contraatacar. Por eso puedo afirmar que estamos ante la revancha de los poderosos. ENGLISH DESCRIPTION Moisés Naím’s The Revenge of Power is an urgent, thrilling, and original look at the future of democracy. It illuminates one of the most important battles of our time: the future of freedom and how to contain and defeat the autocrats mushrooming around the world. In his New York Times best-selling book The End of Power, Moisés Naím examined power-diluting forces. In The Revenge of Power, Naím turns to the trends, conditions, and behaviors that are contributing to the concentration of power, and to the clash between those forces that weaken power and those that strengthen it. He concentrates on the three “P”s - populism, polarization, and post-truths. All of which are as old as time, but are combined by today’s autocrats to undermine democratic life in new and frightening ways. Power has not changed. But the way people go about gaining it and using it has been transformed. The Revenge of Power connects the dots between global events and political tactics that, when taken together, show a profound and often stealthy transformation in power and politics worldwide. Using the best available data and insights taken from recent research in the social sciences, Naím reveals how, on close examination, the same set of strategies to consolidate power pop up again and again in places with vastly different political, economic, and social circumstances, and offers insights about what can be done to ensure that freedom and democracy prevail. The outcomes of these battles for power will determine if our future will be more autocratic or more democratic. These outcomes will, in turn, depend on the capacity of our democracies to survive the attacks and dirty tricks of autocratic leaders bent on weakening the checks and balances that limit their power. Naím addresses the questions at the heart of the matter: What are, in practice, those attacks and tricks? Why is power concentrating in some places while in others it is fragmenting and degrading? And the big question: What is the future of freedom?

Una historia casi ficticia de amor y espionaje en tiempos de Hugo Chávez. En una Venezuela convulsionada por la revolución de Hugo Chávez, Moisés Naím teje una novela de espionaje y amor que nace de dos décadas de minucioso trabajo de documentación. A través de las historias de Eva, espía de la CIA, y Mauricio, agente del servicio de inteligencia cubano, el lector se sumerge en una adictiva trama de thriller que es, al mismo tiempo, la crónica de una realidad que, a veces, supera a la ficción. “¿Cómo se fabrica hoy una dictadura en Hispanoamérica? Un relato picante y veraz en la línea de Tirano Banderas, El Otoño del Patriarca o Yo, el Supremo, pero con más toques de humor y la CIA o Fidel Castro como estrellas invitadas”. -Fernando Savater “Una novela que muestra la cara más cruda del populismo, y que llega más allá de donde un ensayo político podría llegar”. -Arturo Pérez-Reverte “Más que negra, esta primera novela de Moisés Naim es una novela dialéctica. La lucha de los opuestos llega aquí a una síntesis que solo podía conseguir alguien que sepa todo de Venezuela y de las relaciones de poder en el mundo actual. -Héctor Abad Faciolince ENGLISH DESCRIPTION An almost fictional story of love and conspiracy in the times of Hugo Chávez. Eva López and Mauricio Bosco are in love. That’s nothing unique, except that neither of the two is who they claim to be: Eva works for the CIA and Mauricio for the G2, the Cuban intelligence service. Neither knows that the love of their life is their most ardent rival. Two Spies in Caracas reveals the two spies’ efforts to influence the revolution that Hugo Chávez is imposing on Venezuela and trying to export to the rest of Latin America. We follow Eva and Mauricio while they discover the tactics and secrets of a government that wants to change everything, and together we peer behind the curtain that hides the private life of Chávez, the alluring Venezuelan leader. The story is full of fascinating characters who transport us to the center of power and money, as well as the front line of the battles waged daily by those who have nothing to lose. This is a work of fiction, but the story is inspired by more than two decades of research, as well as Moisés Naím’s direct access to the best-informed sources about what happened in Hugo Chávez’s Venezuela and its mechanics, its details, and its furtive acts of populism. A surprising, masterfully narrated story that will leave no one indifferent. Two Spies in Caracas is a novel of espionage intertwined with a love story subverted by the passions and betrayals of a revolution.

Una compilación de los mejores artículos de Moisés Naím, uno de los analistas más agudos del panorama internacional, sobre los últimos y más trascendentes cambios que ha experimentado el mundo. Muchos se conforman con la versión simple y estereotipada de un suceso: buenos y malos; decentes e inmorales; ricos y pobres. Quienes quieren saber más, leen a Moisés Naím. - Yoani Sánchez Desde hace años Moisés Naím ocupa la posición de Observador Global en las páginas de numerosos diarios y ha tratado todas las grandes crisis y las pequeñas transformaciones que están configurando el sorprendente mundo del siglo XXI: el auge y los tropezones de China, los límites sobrevenidos de los poderosos, la recesión económica global y su titubeante recuperación, los problemas que afronta una Europa envejecida, dividida e insegura, el retorno de las identidades... Este libro recoge sus mejores columnas de los últimos cinco años, escritas bajo cuatro principios fundamentales: sorprender, conectar, voltear e informar. El resultado es un extraordinario recorrido por noventa y nueve sorpresas que nos hacen repensar el mundo en que vivimos. ENGLISH DESCRIPTION A compilation of the best articles by Moisés Naím, one of the most astute analysts in the world, about the latest and most important changes that the world has undergone."Many people settle for the simple, stereotyped version of an event: good and bad; decent and immoral; rich and poor. Those who want to know more read Moisés Naím." –Yoani Sánchez For years, Moisés Naím holds the position of Global Observer in several daily papers, and has dealt with the big crises and the small transformations that are making up the surprising world of the 21st century: the rise and missteps of China; the sudden limits of the powerful; the global economic recession and its stuttering recovery; the problems facing an aging, divided, and insecure Europe, Repensar el mundo111 sorpresas del siglo XXI Rethink the World: 111 Surprises from the 21st Centurythe reversal of identities...This book gathers the best columns from the past five years, written under four guiding principles: surprise, connect, turn things around, and inform. The result is an extraordinary tour through 111 surprises that make us rethink the world in which we live.

El poder está cambiando de manos: de grandes ejércitos disciplinados a caóticas bandas de insurgentes; de gigantescas corporaciones a ágiles emprendedores; de los palacios presidenciales a las plazas públicas. Pero también está cambiando en sí mismo: cada vez es más difícil de ejercer y más fácil de perder. El resultado, como afirma el prestigioso analista internacional Moisés Naím, es que los líderes actuales tienen menos poder que sus antecesores, y que el potencial para que ocurran cambios repentinos y radicales sea mayor que nunca. En El fin del poder, Naím describe la lucha entre los grandes actores antes dominantes y los nuevos micropoderes que ahora les desafían en todos los ámbitos de la actividad humana. La energía iconoclasta de los micropoderes puede derrocar dictadores, acabar con los monopolios y abrir nuevas e increíbles oportunidades, pero también puede conducir al caos y la parálisis. A partir de estudios nuevos y provocadores y de su experiencia en asuntos internacionales, Naím explica cómo el fin del poder está remodelando el mundo en que vivimos. «El fin del poder cambiará tu manera de leer las noticias, tu manera de pensar en política y tu manera de mirar al mundo.» William Jefferson Clinton «Este libro fascinante debe provocar un debate sobre cómo gobernar un mundo en el que cada vez participan más personas.» Foreign Affairs «Un libro oportuno y perdurable.» Booklist «Un libro inteligente, heterodoxo, ilustrativo e innovador.» Zbigniew Brzezinski ENGLISH DESCRIPTION Mark Zuckerberg''s inaugural pick for his "Year of Books" challenge, The End of Power updates the very notion of power for the 21st century. Power, we know, is shifting: From West to East and North to South, from presidential palaces to public squares, from once formidable corporate behemoths to nimble startups and, slowly but surely, from men to women. But power is not merely dispersing; it is also decaying. Those in power today are more constrained in what they can do with it and more at risk of losing it than ever before. In The End of Power, award-winning columnist and former Foreign Policy editor Moisés Naím illuminates the struggle between once-dominant megaplayers and the new micropowers challenging them in every field of human endeavor. Drawing on provocative, original research, Naím shows how the antiestablishment drive of micropowers can topple tyrants, dislodge monopolies, and open remarkable new opportunities, but it can also lead to chaos and paralysis. Naím deftly covers the seismic changes underway in business, religion, education, within families, and in all matters of war and peace. Examples abound in all walks of life: In 1977, eighty-nine countries were ruled by autocrats while today more than half the world''s population lives in democracies. CEO''s are more constrained and have shorter tenures than their predecessors. Modern tools of war, cheaper and more accessible, make it possible for groups like Hezbollah to afford their own drones. In the second half of 2010, the top ten hedge funds earned more than the world''s largest six banks combined. Those in power retain it by erecting powerful barriers to keep challengers at bay. Today, insurgent forces dismantle those barriers more quickly and easily than ever, only to find that they themselves become vulnerable in the process. In this accessible and captivating book, Naím offers a revolutionary look at the inevitable end of power—and shows how it will change your world.

Sappiamo che il potere si sta spostando: da Ovest a Est e da Nord a Sud, dai palazzi presidenziali alle piazze e al cyberspazio, dai formidabili colossi industriali alle agili start-up e, in modo lento ma inesorabile, dagli uomini alle donne. Chi oggi si trova in posizioni di potere è più vincolato, ha meno margini operativi e rischia di perdere il posto come mai prima d''ora. Il potere sta diventando più debole ed effimero: è divenuto più facile da conquistare, ma più difficile da esercitare e più semplice da perdere. Ne La fine del potere, Moisés Naím, giornalista pluripremiato ed ex direttore di «Foreign Policy», illustra la lotta tra i grandi protagonisti un tempo dominanti e i nuovi micropoteri che li sfidano in ogni ambito dell''azione umana. Una contrapposizione, quella tra micropoteri ed establishment, che può sfociare nel rovesciamento dei tiranni o nell''eliminazione dei monopoli, ma anche condurre al caos e alla paralisi. Gli esempi sono sotto gli occhi di tutti, nell''ambito degli affari come in quello della religione, dell''istruzione o della famiglia, in pace come in guerra: nel 1977, ottantanove paesi erano governati da autocrati, mentre oggi oltre la metà della popolazione mondiale vive in regimi democratici; nella seconda metà del 2010, i primi dieci fondi speculativi del mondo hanno registrato profitti superiori a quelli complessivi delle sei banche più importanti; gli amministratori delegati sono sottoposti a maggiori vincoli e rimangono in carica per un periodo più breve rispetto ai loro predecessori; i moderni strumenti di guerra sono più economici e accessibili, tanto che gruppi come Hezbollah possono permettersi di acquistare droni. Chi detiene il potere lo conserva erigendo imponenti barriere, ma oggi le forze rivali smantellano quelle barriere più rapidamente e facilmente che mai. Per poi scoprire, una volta conquistato il comando, la loro stessa vulnerabilità. Appassionante e provocatorio, il libro di Naím offre una prospettiva rivoluzionaria sull''inevitabile fine del potere e sul modo in cui essa cambierà il nostro mondo.

Political and economic reform is at the top of national agendas around the world. This book based on Moises Naim''s participation in the Venezuelan reform experience and as executive director at the World Bank raises questions and explores problems crucial to achieving national reform strategies. Naim''s lucid analysis grapples with the problems of dealing with entrenched interests bent on derailing reform; allaying the corrosive effects of corruption and public outcry over inequitable burdens; coping with the political instability brought on by decimated public institutions; managing the impact of reforms on the military establishment; and mobilizing public support for measures as essential as they are painful. The heady days of revolution are gone and these and other dilemmas now confront besieged reform governments everywhere. The problem of managing these in the real world is the subject this book tackles.

A groundbreaking investigation of how illicit commerce is changing the world by transforming economies, reshaping politics, and capturing governments.In this fascinating and comprehensive examination of the underside of globalization, Moises Naím illuminates the struggle between traffickers and the hamstrung bureaucracies trying to control them. From illegal migrants to drugs to weapons to laundered money to counterfeit goods, the black market produces enormous profits that are reinvested to create new businesses, enable terrorists, and even to take over governments. Naím reveals the inner workings of these amazingly efficient international organizations and shows why it is so hard — and so necessary to contain them. Riveting and deeply informed, Illicit will change how you see the world around you.