In November, 2022, Stanford GSB sponsored the Academic Freedom Conference (https://cli.stanford.edu/events/conference-symposium/academic-freedom-conference). I have fought for freedom of speech (see https://showmethemath.org/2022/01/heckman-judd-war-ii/, https://showmethemath.org/2023/06/why-does-stanford-have-speech-police/ ) against people at the University of Chicago and Stanford University who want to silence me. This conference was timely but two days is not enough time to fully explore the attacks on the freedom of speech.
I was very disappointed when I learned that the Hoover Institution refused to help sponsor the conference. I wish Hoover had sponsored the conference. First, I might have been invited. Second, and far more important, the motto of the Hoover Institution is “Ideas defining a free society.” My view is that there is no free society without free speech. Some say that lack of Hoover support did not matter because GSB made sure it happened. This comment ignores the key question: What would have happened if GSB did not agree to sponsor the project? An organization devoted to “Ideas defining a free society” should be the leader in the fight for free speech.
I joined Hoover in 1988. John Raisian was the Hoover Director for the next 27 years, a time when many unpopular and non-conservative views were expressed at Hoover. For example, Joe McNamara hosted many Hoover conferences against the Drug War. He would invite people from DEA and other government agencies but they did not come because of the tough questions from police officers who opposed the Drug War.
A Stanford professor once told me “The Hoover Institution you joined is gone.” I can’t argue with that.
I watched a small portion of the conference videos but quickly realized that videos are an inefficient way to transmit ideas and facts. I am happy that Stanford GSB sponsored the conference and posted the videos, but policymakers and commentators do not have time to sit through sixteen hours of video. Therefore, I hired a company to create a transcript of the proceedings. In order to avoid conflict with Stanford bureaucrats, I used my own money to do this. I gave the transcripts to Stanford GSB which then posted them on its website.
Free speech is under attack on many fronts. Much more needs to done to fight back.
- Opening Remarks by John H. Cochrane
- Why Has It Gotten Harder to Find the Truth with Jonathan Haidt
- Academic Freedom in STEM with Jerry Coyne, Luana Maroja, Anna Krylov, Mimi St Johns
- The End of the Future with Peter Thiel
- Academic Freedom Solutions with Dorian Abbot, Peter Arcidiacono, Richard Lowery, John Hasnas
- The Radicalization of the Academy with Lee Jussim
- The State of Higher Education with Gad Saad, John Ellis, and Eric Kauffman
- Climate Science and Biomedical Sciences with Lomborg, Bhattacharya, Ioannidis, and Diffenbaugh
- The War on the West with Jordan Peterson and Douglas Murray in conversation
- Academic Freedom: What Is It and What Is It For? with Lukianoff, Strossen, Shweder, and Robbins
- Academia, Science, and Public Health: Will Trust Return with Scott Atlas
- Academic Freedom in Law and Legal Education with Ilya Shapiro, Eugene Volokh, and Michael McConell
- Rationality and Academic Freedom with Steven Pinker
- The Cost of Academic Dissent with Amy Wax, Joshua Katz, Elizabeth Weiss, and Frances Widdowson
- Are the Humanities Liberal? with John Rose, Solveig Gold, and Joseph Manson
- The Economics of Academic Freedom with Niall Ferguson, Tyler Cowen, and John H. Cochrane
- Academica, Science, and Public Health: Will Trust Return with Scott Atlas version 2