Is this really news?

[Drake Tungsten]

College Faculties A Most Liberal Lot, Study Finds

By Howard Kurtz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, March 29, 2005; Page C01

College faculties, long assumed to be a liberal bastion, lean further to the left than even the most conspiratorial conservatives might have imagined, a new study says.

By their own description, 72 percent of those teaching at American universities and colleges are liberal and 15 percent are conservative, says the study being published this week. The imbalance is almost as striking in partisan terms, with 50 percent of the faculty members surveyed identifying themselves as Democrats and 11 percent as Republicans.

The disparity is even more pronounced at the most elite schools, where, according to the study, 87 percent of faculty are liberal and 13 percent are conservative.

"What's most striking is how few conservatives there are in any field," said Robert Lichter, a professor at George Mason University and a co-author of the study. "There was no field we studied in which there were more conservatives than liberals or more Republicans than Democrats. It's a very homogenous environment, not just in the places you'd expect to be dominated by liberals."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A8427-2005Mar28.html?nav=rss_politics

I'm shocked, shocked I tell you. I never would've imagined this to be true...

[chequita guevara]

Conservatives don't like to teach, being that they tend towards anti-social activiites. Liberals love to teach.

[Drake Tungsten]

Nice try, but most college professors don't like to teach either...

[JohnT]

1. No, it isn't news as it merely reinforces a tired old stereotype about both sides of the aisle.
2. No, it isn't news because it isn't important, doesn't matter, and there are far more newsworthy things to report about and discuss.

however...

3. Yes, it is news because here we are, talking about it.

[chequita guevara]

[Drake Tungsten]

A different study that comes to a similar conclusion...

http://www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/morgue/2005/2005_02_23.guest23blues.shtml

[Bill3000]

Well, think about it.


- Liberal arts - duh. I don't even think I need an explanation.

- Sciences - the personal goal of a scientist is a thirst and gain of knowledge. Most scientists are not willing to let an absurd amount of morality get in the way of the progress for knowledge, thus they tend to be more liberal.

- Engineering - similar philosophical principles to science I'd think.

- Medicine - Only one I don't have an obvious explanation for, though probably has to do something with a goal of taking care of all people and such. Or something. Probably promoting research akin to the sciences but to help people.

Considering the fact that colleges are meant to be a way to promote diversity and the exchange of ideas, it's no wonder that colleges tend to be more liberal. Liberalism tends to support the freedom of information of all types.

[St Leo]

Wow, most Management and Economics professors call themselves liberal. Well, they'll still be Evil to me.

[DanS]

It obviously reflects a failure on the part of universities to encourage a healthy discussion among a broad range of ideological stripes. Universities lack diversity.

Perhaps this signals the decline of the university in our society as a focal point for the incubation of ideas.

[Bill3000]

Universities have a ton of diversity. Just not political diversity.

[chequita guevara]

Conservatives would rather go into business than academia. How is that the univeristies' fault?

[Drake Tungsten]

Universities have a ton of diversity. Just not political diversity.

And we all know that diversity of thought isn't important at an institute of higher learning.

[Spiffor]

What about the military? How do the servicepeople categorize themselves?

[Bill3000]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten

Universities have a ton of diversity. Just not political diversity.

And we all know that diversity of thought isn't important at an institute of higher learning.

Diversity of thought by including stupidity is good diversity? *ducks*

Actually, I know what you mean. In particular, I'm in a class that's called "The history of race and gender in medicine". Obviously, this class and the teacher has a heavy liberal bias. Everything is treated as fact despite any attempt to be neutral (In particular I remember I was outraged when she said that non-whites can't be racist, or that there is no such thing as a self-made man)

Meh. I wish there was an emphasis on education and research of debates over passion. A huge part of the problems in America today has to do with the fact that truth doesn't matter, and opinions are portrayed to have the same validity as fact. Liberal, conservative, or otherwise.

[Drake Tungsten]

What about the military? How do the servicepeople categorize themselves?

I don't know.