Populism, do we all mean the same thing?

The word populism is on everybody's tongue these days, but do we all mean the same thing? What is the difference between left-wing and right-wing populism? Is populism good or bad for democracy? How are the populist parties in the Netherlands doing in the polls in the middle of this pandemic? These questions and more were put to our populism expert Matthijs Rooduijn. The word 'populism' is often bandied about, yet do we all mean the same thing? . 'Outside academic discourse, the term populism is used very differently than within it. Its intended meaning is often unclear in public debate and used to mean all sorts of different things. Sometimes it refers to demagoguery, and sometimes to opportunism, simplification or radical ideology.' In the eyes of populists, the elite is bad, corrupt and fails to listen, and must be replaced Matthijs Rooduijn 'Within academic discourse, there is more agreement about what populism is. It always comprises opposition to the established elite, while at the same time emphasising the will of the people. That elite can be the political elite, but also the cultural, economic or media elite. In the eyes of populists, this elite is bad, corrupt and fails to listen, and therefore must be replaced. According to populists, all political decisions should initially be based on the will of the people.' Is populism strictly a right-wing affair, or does it also happen on the left?