CBS news anchor, Katie Couric, asked presidential candidates ten tough questions, including, "Which book, besides the Bible, would you consider essential to have at the White House? History materials predominate, with the exception of Huckabee who selected a book co-authored by Christian evangelical theologian Francis Schaeffer and former Surgeon General Koop. Candidates chose primary sources: Senator McCain cited Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations; Senator Clinton and Mayor Giuliani voted for the Federalist Papers. Former Senator John Edwards' choice of I.F. Stone's The Trial of Socrates wins him the vote for "most interesting person to have lunch with."
On PBS, Bill Moyers turned the question around, asking viewers to recommend books to the future president. Again, history books figure predominantly among literary classics, public policy, and government. The Moyers blog includes a podcast and video of the program.
Who, then reads history? So many people, apparently, that it is surprising to learn that only fifteen states in the country include standardized tests in history among those required for graduation. So many people profess to reading history, in fact, that red flags of the History News Network (HNN) column, Low History IQs, sound excessively alarmist.
Politicians turn to history to inspire the present just as they turn to religion to demonstrate whose side God is on in war. Certainly the rhetoric of analogies between Obama and John F. Kennedy is flawed to the unbeliever, and it's a no-brainer to point out that in answering Katie Couric's question, each candidate drew upon an author or fragment of history that helped to define his or her own message or public persona.
My question is whether the public proliferation of historical sources and public discussion and the diverse media carrying the message will, in fact, rectify low history IQs and promote skepticism in the electorate. How do we avoid reinforcing a conceptual misrepresentation of the past as egregious as the factual void of not knowing in which century the Civil War took place? To quote from one of the educational websites from the Center for History and New Media at George Mason University , historical thinking matters.
Lee Ann,
Thanks for the update. I referenced your blog and selected sites to everyone in my class. You have some great insights. My son is continuing his studies of the impact of outdoor space on people with Autism. It's neat when your children outpace you.
Posted by: John Henry | February 14, 2008 at 08:31 AM