A skirmish in the great culture war has broken out in Australia over the publication of Keith Windschuttle's provocative book The Fabrication of Aboriginal History. I know virtually nothing about the subject and can't comment on the specifics (more background information is available here and here). But I do think as a matter of enlightened self-interest that if you're being accused of a conspiracy it's probably not a good idea to start one up. There is much silly stuff bandied around about "PC academia", but I don't think that a pas devant les domestiques code of ethics is going to help the profession's reputation much. And while it's true that anyone can make honest mistakes, I think anyone dabbling in a controversial topic is a fool if he doesn't make damn sure that his research is watertight beforehand (a bit of media savvy wouldn't hurt either).
Posted by Alan Allport at August 22, 2004 11:35 AM