Title:
Are universities regaining public trust?
Author:
Prof Francis Peterson, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Free State
Published:
University of The Free State, 12 May 2020
https://www.ufs.ac.za/templates/news-archive-item-more/campus-news/2020/may/are-universities-regaining-public-trust
From the article:
"Over the past few years, the purpose of universities has been challenged in relation to their role in society, their advocacy for speaking truth to power, their continuous strive to be great universities without being elitist, and their ability to function in an age of populism. The Trump administration and, more recently, Brexit have demonstrated that there is a decline in the respect for evidence and advice from subject-specific experts. It seems (as in the case of the Trump administration) as if empirical reality does not matter, nor does empirical reasoning form the basis of public policy – a political place that is becoming increasingly anti-intellectual. Emotion and personal belief have been shown to carry more weight than objective facts and evidence in terms of influencing public opinion. Fake news and ‘the alternative truth’ have also challenged the fundamental principles of a university – academic freedom and the generation of new knowledge in the pursuit of truth."