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Pulitzer Prize-winning author Anne Applebaum and Brian Klaas both went against the historic decisions this year, leaving viewers furious with the lack of balance. Mr Klaas, from the London School of Economics, said: “I feel like the idea that democracy is losing some faith is very true”, while claiming the presidential election was “an advertisement against democracy.”

BBC/TWITTER Viewers were unhappy with the debate about democracy, calling it 'onesided' and 'misguided'

Twitter users attacked these sentiments, claiming that Trump’s election victory was in fact, democracy in action One user exclaimed: “Tonight’s #Newsnight surely a parody. ‘End of democracy’ because people voted Brexit and Trump. Unbelievable.” Another wrote: “Why on #Newsnight are they saying people voting for right wingers like Trump means they are going off democracy? They voted for him.”

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BBC Yale University professor Tim Snyder, who took part in the Newsnight discussion

Tonight’s #Newsnight surely a parody. ‘End of democracy’ because people voted Brexit and Trump. Unbelievable Twitter user

The programme used a graph to suggest younger generations consider democracy a less essential component of society when compared with their ancestors. According to the Journal of Democracy, around three quarters of Americans born in the 1930s consider it “essential” to live in a democracy, compared to just one in four born in the 1980s - a trend matched by Britain, Australia and Sweden.

TWITTER

TWITTER

Tim Snyder, a Professor of History at Yale University who joined the discussion via webcam from the US, said: “Americans were drawn to Donald Trump, in part by the argument that he, who claimed to be a billionaire, could protect them from the other billionaires. He added: “People who were born later really don’t have a sense of what it would mean to lack democracy. “I think it’s a bit like with Brexit - if you can’t imagine what it’s going to be like to lose what you have, you’re more likely to put it at risk”.

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