Poor Literacy, Poor Politics

The Economist published a short article in September 2025 warning of a decline in literacy. Citing a recent UK study, it reported that 40% of Britons did not read a single book in 2024.

How clearly do you communicate?

The article goes further, linking this trend to a decline in political sophistication. Using a readability test to analyze nearly 250 years of inaugural presidential addresses, it found that George Washington’s speech scored 28.7 (postgraduate level), while Donald Trump’s came in at 9.4, the level of a high school student.

This raises a question: what can we do to improve the quality of political discourse in an age when complexity is often reduced to dizzying simplicity? Not everyone has to reach for Das Kapital or The Rights of Man. But most great writers do offer perspective on humanity’s struggles and encourage deeper reflection on possible solutions.

Thank you to all who have already entered the writing competition with such thoughtful and inspiring pieces. We look forward to many more.

https://www.economist.com/culture/2025/09/04/is-the-decline-of-reading-making-politics-dumber?utm_campaign=shared_article