# College Professors - are you on the watch list? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 12, 2017, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059 "2017-07-12T01:52:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/1 "2017-07-12T01:52:40Z")
Found this great site called “[Professor Watchlist](http://www.professorwatchlist.org/)”. It exposes the professors who the authors feel go over the line in showing their far left ideologies or discriminate against conservative students. The authors further feel they students, alumni, and ordinary citizens have the right to know the political stripes and values of these paid college staff. Now some have called this site “New McCarthyism”. [This site](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/28/us/professor-watchlist-is-seen-as-threat-to-academic-freedom.html)says its a threat to academic freedom. Now I dont get it? Why wouldnt a professor and the school that employs them want to hide anything? Their are no lies. Everything is documented. If a professor does a tweet, it comes out. What is the problem? Plus people rate other people and businesses all the time - what not college professors? Plus its really not that different from the site [Rate My Professor](https://www.ratemyprofessors.com/). So what do you all think? ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/2 "2017-07-12T01:56:26Z")
Not on the list, but I did get called an FDA shill on anonymous end-of-the-semester evals, for discussing the fraud Andrew Wakefield perpertrated and the science behind vaccinations. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/3 "2017-07-12T02:12:11Z")
First alarm bell. Where’s their list of conservative professors who oppress liberal students? (Yes, Virginia, contrary to the stereotype, conservative professors do exist.) ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/4 "2017-07-12T02:20:06Z")
Second alarm bell: “No, the statements you’re making aren’t political opinions, they’re about verifiable facts with actual true and false answers, and yours are wrong” is called “teaching,” not “oppressing.” ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/5 "2017-07-12T02:29:50Z")
Any concern at all that this isn’t an impartial organization but is in fact [a bunch of far-right wingnuts](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turning_Point_USA) that is funded by conservative sources like [anonymous dark money from DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund and the Kochs](https://www.mediamatters.org/research/2017/03/29/conservative-dark-money-groups-infiltrating-campus-politics/215822)? Nah … them perfessors are all commies, and you know it’s true 'cause it’s on teh interwebs. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/6 "2017-07-12T02:31:12Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > First alarm bell. Where’s their list of conservative professors who oppress liberal students? (Yes, Virginia, contrary to the stereotype, conservative professors do exist.) Plenty do. More than many realize. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/7 "2017-07-12T02:34:02Z")
These aren’t facts that the professors should embrace, they’re political opinions. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/8 "2017-07-12T02:50:59Z")
> [@TimeWinder](#): > > Second alarm bell: “No, the statements you’re making aren’t political opinions, they’re about verifiable facts with actual true and false answers, and yours are wrong” is called “teaching,” not “oppressing.” Not that I’m seeking to defend that website, but I don’t think you’ll find too many academics on that list who have much truck with “verifiable facts with actual true and false answers”. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/9 "2017-07-12T02:53:25Z")
> [@TimeWinder](#): > > Second alarm bell: “No, the statements you’re making aren’t political opinions, they’re about verifiable facts with actual true and false answers, and yours are wrong” is called “teaching,” not “oppressing.” That’s all well and good in the sciences and certain other fields of study, but in the ‘bull’ majors there’s much more range for interpretation than simply true/false. And, regardless of political orientation, there’s often a strong pressure to agree with the instructor’s opinions on the subject being taught, in order to get good grades. I wonder how many of the complainants would be confusing the two factors? Or at what point the two intermix? ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/10 "2017-07-12T03:09:23Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > That’s all well and good in the sciences and certain other fields of study, but in the ‘bull’ majors there’s much more range for interpretation than simply true/false. > > And, regardless of political orientation, there’s often a strong pressure to agree with the instructor’s opinions on the subject being taught, in order to get good grades. I wonder how many of the complainants would be confusing the two factors? Or at what point the two intermix? On an exam in an intro bio course, a student refused to answer questions about the basics of evolutionary theory, and wrote a note to that effect. I marked him wrong, and explained that I didn’t care if he agreed with me, but that he needed to demonstrate an understanding of what the _discipline_ understood to be true. I’m sure he walked away believing I marked him wrong for disagreeing with me. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/11 "2017-07-12T04:00:08Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > On an exam in an intro bio course, a student refused to answer questions about the basics of evolutionary theory, and wrote a note to that effect. I marked him wrong, and explained that I didn’t care if he agreed with me, but that he needed to demonstrate an understanding of what the _discipline_ understood to be true. > > I’m sure he walked away believing I marked him wrong for disagreeing with me. Yours is a fully defensible and reasonable position, and that’s really on the student. Let me give you a counterexample. (Disclaimer: I’m not a professor, but I have been a student for many years and have seen numerous instructors across multiple disciplines ‘do their thing.’) I once had a freshman-level World History class wherein the instructor had a pet theory linked to the theory of cognitive mapping (it was probably his doctoral thesis, too). Everything in history had to do with whether people’s environments matched their cognitive map. He applied it to literally every topic at one point or another. It was a running joke among the students that mere mention of the words ‘cognitive map’ in essays would improve your grade by one letter, and while exaggerated, it certainly appeared to be true. Now, that’s a mild example, obviously, and I wouldn’t say there was a lot of pressure on students to conform other than what they applied to themselves. But I’ve also seen students and professors clash over political views (in poli sci and history mostly), and naturally the students believed they were being punished for holding differing opinions. Knowing some of those instructors, I can’t say they were always wrong, either. I haven’t personally been in the same situation, but that’s had a lot to do with my being all about the learning and recognizing that I don’t have to agree with the instructor to take what I want from what’s made available. I’m not much of a conformist, either, but I have other talents that help compensate for that when it comes to grading time. ---
**Author:** ![davida03801](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5e925/32.png) [@davida03801](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davida03801)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/12 "2017-07-12T04:20:07Z")
Personally glad to see the long overdo pushback. I do see the danger here and innocents may be hurt by the crossfire. However the left side of the spectrum is just as guilty on that count. ---
**Author:** ![Stringbean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Stringbean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stringbean)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/13 "2017-07-12T04:31:58Z")
Lists such as this are evil. Just ask Rajib Haider. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/14 "2017-07-12T04:32:07Z")
> [@davida03801](#): > > Personally glad to see the long overdo pushback. I do see the danger here and innocents may be hurt by the crossfire. However the left side of the spectrum is just as guilty on that count. True, but I doubt that the people publishing that list are from the left of the spectrum. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/15 "2017-07-12T16:57:26Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Not that I’m seeking to defend that website, but I don’t think you’ll find too many academics on that list who have much truck with “verifiable facts with actual true and false answers”. If you go on the site for many professors you have to admit really went over the lines. For example [THIS GUY](http://www.professorwatchlist.org/index.php/watch-list-directory/search-by-name/307-eric-clanton-3)has been found guilty of assaulting a Trump supporter with a bike lock. However they point out he was only a part timer and has probably lost his job. [THIS GUY](http://www.professorwatchlist.org/index.php/watch-list-directory/search-by-name/300-johnny-eric-williams) said "white people should f\*\*\*ing die. Some arent so bad. For example [THIS GUY](http://www.professorwatchlist.org/index.php/watch-list-directory/search-by-name/82-santiago-pinon) wanted to set up a study group for only “persons of color” which is becoming pretty common. I think they stretch some things too far though. For example [THIS WOMAN](http://www.professorwatchlist.org/index.php/watch-list-directory/search-by-name/273-megan-skeehan)wasnt even a professor but only a lab assistant. Again, I think the alumni donating money to the college, the legislators approving funding for those colleges, students taking the courses, and the parents paying for them, should be made aware of what those professors represent. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/16 "2017-07-12T17:01:55Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > That’s all well and good in the sciences and certain other fields of study, but in the ‘bull’ majors there’s much more range for interpretation than simply true/false. > > And, regardless of political orientation, there’s often a strong pressure to agree with the instructor’s opinions on the subject being taught, in order to get good grades. I wonder how many of the complainants would be confusing the two factors? Or at what point the two intermix? Oh yeah, you damn well better go along with the proff. Or at least not your head, keep your mouth shut, and pretend to. Who knows. Maybe professor leftist will let down their guard, thinking your one of his brainwashed clones and send out a bad tweet or something then you can REALLY let him have it. Not that it will do anything since proffs almost never get fired but at least you can make them squirm and knock them off their high horse. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/17 "2017-07-12T17:41:44Z")
You mean to tell me that there are institution in American life…business, military, academic, religious…where one is best advised to defer to the opinions of the alpha male? Well, sumbitch! Learn somethin’ ever day! ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/18 "2017-07-12T17:45:50Z")
The Atlantic had an [interesting article](https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/04/conservatives-discrimination-universities/480372/) on the political bias of professors last year. > [@](#): > > The assumption that most college campuses lean left is so widespread in American culture that it has almost become a caricature: intellectuals in thick-rimmed glasses preaching Marxism on idyllic grassy quads; students protesting minor infractions against political correctness; raging professors trying to prove that God is, in fact, dead. Studies about professors’ political beliefs and voting behavior suggest this assumption is at least somewhat correct. But Shields and Dunn set out to investigate a more nuanced question: For the minority of professors who are cultural and political conservatives, what’s life actually like? > > Finding out wasn’t easy, in part because so many conservative professors are—as they put it—closeted. Some of the people they interviewed explicitly said they identify with the experience of gays and lesbians in having to hide who they are. One tenure-track sociology professor even asked to meet Shields and Dunn in a park a mile away from his university. “When the sound of footsteps intruded on our sanctuary, he stopped talking altogether, his eyes darting about,” they write. “Given the drama of this encounter, one might think that he is concealing something scandalous. In truth, this professor is hiding the fact that he is a Republican.” ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/19 "2017-07-12T17:57:13Z")
Can’t take the list seriously because it lists professors alphabetically by first name. WTF? Also saw Peter Singer on the list so I clicked through and read their little blurb on why he’s on the list. You could paint a more accurate portrait of his views by throwing a bucket of paint at the wall. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059/20 "2017-07-12T17:58:36Z")
The term “watchhlist” is repulsive and evokes the McCarthy era. Still, it would be better to cite examples of profs misprofiled on the site\* instead of just pointing fingers at where their financing comes from. > [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Not on the list, but I did get called an FDA shill on anonymous end-of-the-semester evals, for discussing the fraud Andrew Wakefield perpertrated and the science behind vaccinations. You get extra bonus points for that. If I had a dime for every time I’ve been labeled as a CDC/Pharma/Medical-Industrial Complex/Illuminati Shill by online accusers, I could buy everyone in this thread a Happy Meal. With extra dessert. \*[The Professor Watchlist Gets an F for Accuracy - The American Prospect](http://prospect.org/article/professor-watchlist-gets-f-accuracy) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-professors-are-you-on-the-watch-list/791059.md?page=2)