Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire.—Gustav Mahler

Tuesday, May 01, 2007

Hiring Bias?

The NY Sun has this article about Mark Moyar, an historian who has had a very hard time getting a job, in part, it seems, because his major book attempts to argue that Vietnam was not a mistake. Now, on the face of it, it sure seems pretty odd. Moyar has two books, has very good credentials, and should be able to find a job, regardless of his conservative credentials. And I think the presumption has to be that his views, as opposed to his scholarship, made it more difficult for him. But it's not quite a slam-dunk case. History departments have been weeding out military history positions for years (they'd rather teach the history of fashion or peasants or sex or something) and job searches are notoriously fickle things. You just don't know what goes on when a bunch of prickly, over-sensitive, egoistic types get together in a committee room and try to agree on a candidate.

But fair warning: if you're interested in being a professor, be careful with what you write.

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