California has three state universities focused on food production (Cal Poly San Luis Obisbo; Cal Poly Pomona and UC Davis). Cal Poly SLO capitulated to an agrabusiness donor (Harris Ranch meats) in cancelling Michael Pollan's scheduled campus speech and substituting a "panel" discussion including Pollan, the Harris Ranch executive and an organic grower.
The LA Times is correct in blasting this decision in its editorial today.
"Sacred cows at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.The university should be ashamed of its attempt to squelch an anti-agribusiness message to placate a donor."
Author Michael Pollan, whose 2006 bestseller, "The Omnivore’s Dilemma," holds a high place amid a growing body of popular literature and scientific research critical of industrial agriculture, told an interviewer last year that the sight of Harris Ranch was one of the things that caused him to change the way he ate. This week, Harris Ranch Beef Co. Chairman David E. Wood got his revenge.
The complete article can be viewed at:
http://www.latimes.com/...
The dot that the editorial did not connect is the direct link between the State of California's diminishing financial support of higher education and the intrusion of corporate ideology into education. From K-12 which increasing relies on contracts to sell exclusively Frito-Lay, Coca-cola products etc., to corporate sponsorships of athletic fields complete with billboards on school grounds, corporations have a huge presence in student lives and school budgets.
In higher education, the connection is more insideous. Besides the long-standing possible conflicts of interest between knowlege "produced" by academics with corporate "research" funding, univesities have replaced eroded funding from states with dependence on private donors. As an example a large part of CalState University's nursing programs are funded by Kaiser Permanente--a large HMO.
As somebody who matriculated at a private university in the 1960's, I was exposed to a large number of speakers and ideas which were directly at odds with the views of the Board of Trustees. Nonetheless, it was understood that the university, like the fouth estate, was a space for an exchange of diverse ideas. It is a sad day, but I fear not a rare day, when a state university cowtows to a donor to suppress the expression of a well respected opinion. It is a true sign of the tide turning which changes our universities into workplace training programs rather than places to develop critical thinking skills.