IN THE NEWS
Woe betide the historian who falls under the scrutiny of our friends at Lawyers, Guns, and Money. Victor Davis Hanson is a pet peeve for them, as their latest post illustrates. Here's how it starts:
A few scattered thoughts on the calliope music emanating from Victor Davis Hanson's head:
Ouch. Of course, the press regularly encourages public intellectual like Hanson and Doris Kearns Goodwin to comment on areas outside their expertise. Being a reliable talking head is, for the mainstream media, usually more important than knowing what you're talking about. Whatever the notoriety or money you get from being a talking head, nothing excuses the academic who falls into these obvious traps, however.
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