The Illiberalism in Our Institutions

This narrative has a certain amount of truth to it, but it is also somewhat misleading. It suggests that everything could have remained the same if only institutions had resisted the illiberal activists and carried on serving their old purpose. The truth is that the internet placed extraordinary economic pressures on publishing and higher education... See more

There are no better examples than Harvard University and the New York Times , whose choices so often set the tone for other elite universities and publications. Both institutions may have declined in their overall control over American life, but they have remained culturally influential and economically viable by pandering to the tastes of a small ... See more

After seeing their revenues steadily decline from 2006 through 2014, the Times transformed its editorial approach to survive in this new economic world: they pivoted focus to a subscription model. They like to frame this one way: “We believe that the more sound business strategy for The Times is to provide journalism so strong that several million ... See more

There's no social reward for standing up to the woke minority, so the woke minority are the only students that the college administration is forced to appease.

The evolutions of Harvard and the Times point towards a transformed economic reality for institutions in the media and education. Catering to fashionable ideological tastes has become the only way to survive in a market far less oriented around geography. The protests, the firings, the crazy student demands—these are the habits that rise to the sur... See more