Some of FP’s Top 100 Intellectuals list include: candidate must be alive, still active in their respective fields, holds influence over a debate beyond their country’s borders and must have some sort of distinctive accomplishment.
Of course there are intellectuals (ie. Chomsky, Huntington, Dawkins) that have a guarenteed spot on the list. But the underdogs (ie. Stephen Colbert) don’t always get their name on their list.
In fact, FP published an open letter to Colbert on Passport explaining their decision to exclude him:
Dear Dr. Colbert,
We must regretfully inform you that, after careful consideration and intense deliberation, we have not included you on the Foreign Policy/Prospect list of the world’s Top 100 Public Intellectuals in our May/June issue.
Although your high public profile and loyal following make you a strong candidate for this honor, we have concluded that the lack of empirical evidence and logical coherence in your arguments disqualifies you for consideration as an “intellectual.” While all of us here greatly enjoy your work, we simply did not feel that it contained sufficient analytical rigor to place you in the company of such luminaries as Noam Chomsky, Richard Dawkins, or the pope.
This was not an easy decision to make. It has provoked intense bitterness and division among our staff…
But the letter goes on to tell him that there is another way to get on the list. In spite of the editorial staff choosing the top 100, FP readers get to choose the top 5 public intellectuals from a list on the website. What the good news is that there is an option for a write in.
So here’s what you’ve got to do. Go on there and select your top 5 + Colbert. And hopefully, he’ll get in and we’ll all get a good laugh when the issue gets published.
If you were wondering, here’s my list:
Amartya Sen
Michael Walzer
Muhammad Yunus
Shirin Ebadi
Umberto Eco
Write In: STEPHEN COLBERT!
