The audience and host in the auditorium will be joined by Jon Ronson on a live stream from New York.

This ain’t no conspiracy – Jon Ronson, award-winning writer and broadcaster, is (virtually) in town! The Culture Wars have torn up the ‘normal’ dividing lines in society and ripped up old-style political playbooks. Jon Ronson is the international go-to for all info on the culture wars and the warriors on the battlefield. Jon’s Radio 4 Podcast Things Fell Apart, now in its second series, reveals some truly astonishing stories as he draws out the threads of the origins of the culture wars and interviews some of its main players. Don’t miss this unique chance to hear from Jon himself, appearing live, virtually from New York, revealing further insights from his work - from COVID conspiracies and Antifa hysteria, to racial and gender identity politics, free speech and protests against lockdown that spiralled out of control, and answering your most pressing questions.   

Hosting the event will be award-winning journalist, producer and director Ben Zand.

Things Fell Apart is an unmissable event for anyone who wants to hear Jon’s insights and incredible stories and gain some understanding of the battle lines the culture wars are drawing between us.  

Jon Ronson is a nonfiction author, documentary maker and screenwriter. His books, Them: Adventures With Extremists, The Men Who Stare at Goats, The Psychopath Test, Lost At Sea, and So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed, have all been international bestsellers. The Psychopath Test remained on the UK bestseller list for all of 2012 and spent ten full weeks on The New York Times bestseller list.  

His books have been translated into more than 30 languages, and his two TED talks have been watched 20 million times. The film adaptation of The Men Who Stare at Goats, starring George Clooney, Kevin Spacey, Ewan McGregor and Jeff Bridges, opened in the UK in November 2009 and sent the tie-in edition of the book to number one on the non-fiction bestseller list. 

In the UK, Jon has contributed regularly to The Guardian and BBC Radio 4. His BBC Radio 4 series Jon Ronson On… was shortlisted for the Sony Radio Academy Awards four times. His documentaries for Channel 4 include – among many others – Stanley Kubrick’s Boxes (2008) and The Secret Rulers of the World (2011). In the US, Jon has regularly contributed to GQ, The New York Times Book Review and the PRI show This American Life. He has appeared many times as a guest on shows like The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The New Yorker Radio Hour, Conan, Craig Ferguson, and Inside Amy Schumer.

Ben Zand is an award-winning British-Iranian filmmaker, journalist, producer and director from Liverpool. He makes thought-provoking documentaries that focus on access and investigations into some of the most controversial characters of our time, such as The Secret World of Incels and documentaries that take us to places we may not care to go ourselves, such as KINGPINS. Ben is the founder and CEO of ZANDLAND, an award-winning multi-channel production company based in Liverpool and London. Before that he worked as a documentary executive for BBC Studios and was the Editor and Head of the BBC’s documentary bureau, BBC Pop Up. His work has taken him around the world – meeting some of our most influential, dangerous and fascinating people.

This event is part of WoWFEST, Liverpool's writing festival celebrating diversity and storytelling through controversy, inquiry and debate.