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Tom Medvetz

University of California, San Diego, Sociology, Faculty Member

University of California, Berkeley, Sociology, Alumnus

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Address: Department of Sociology
University of California, San Diego
401 Social Sciences Building
9500 Gilman Drive
La Jolla, CA 92093-0533

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Books by Tom Medvetz

Think Tanks in America

Over the past half-century, think tanks have become fixtures of American politics, supplying advi... more Over the past half-century, think tanks have become fixtures of American politics, supplying advice to presidents and policymakers, expert testimony on Capitol Hill, and convenient facts and figures to journalists and media specialists. But what are think tanks? Who funds them? And just how influential have they become?

In Think Tanks in America, Thomas Medvetz argues that the unsettling ambiguity of the think tank is less an accidental feature of its existence than the very key to its impact. By combining elements of more established sources of public knowledge—universities, government agencies, businesses, and the media—think tanks exert a tremendous amount of influence on the way citizens and lawmakers perceive the world, unbound by the more clearly defined roles of those other institutions. In the process, they transform the government of this country, the press, and the political role of intellectuals. Timely, succinct, and instructive, this provocative book will force us to rethink our understanding of the drivers of political debate in the United States."

Papers by Tom Medvetz

The On Think Tanks Interview: Tom Medvetz

Review of Tiffany Bergin, The Evidence Enigma

‘Scholar as Sitting Duck’: The Cronon Affair and the Buffer Zone in American Public Debate

‘Scholar as Sitting Duck’: The Cronon Affair and the Buffer Zone in American Public Debate, 2012

Murky Power: ‘Think Tanks’ as Boundary Organizations

Les think tanks aux États-Unis: L’émergence d’un sous-espace de production des savoirs

The Contemporary American Conservative Movement

The Contemporary American Conservative Movement, 2011

The American conservative movement that began to gain steam in the post–World War II era had, by ... more The American conservative movement that began to gain steam in the post–World War II era had, by the 1980s, emerged as a transformative political force in the United States and the world. Yet sociology has been slower than other disciplines to come to grips with conservatism. In the hope of spurring more research, we review the substantial literature on the conservative movement produced by historians, political scientists, and serious journalists since the mid-1990s, along with the more limited number of sociological contributions. After identifying what we see as a promising approach for conceptualizing conservatism, we illustrate the beneﬁts of sociological engagement by showing how three areas of sociology that might at ﬁrst glance seem disconnected from the movement—the sociology of intellectuals, theories of social change, and scholarship on stratiﬁcation—could proﬁt from consideration of the conservative case.

“Public Policy is Like Having a Vaudeville Act”: Languages of Duty and Difference among Think Tank-Affiliated Policy Experts

"Book Discussion: Think Tanks in America."

"Book Discussion: Think Tanks in America." , 2013

Les think tanks dans le champ du pouvoir étatsunien

Actes de la Recherche en Sciences Sociales , Dec 2013

“Think Tanks and the Rise of Savvy Policy Entrepreneurs”

“Think Tanks and the Rise of Savvy Policy Entrepreneurs”, Dec 2012

The Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative think tank based in Washington DC, has lately ... more The Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative think tank based in Washington DC, has lately been in the news. Just after he was re-elected in 2012, U.S. Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina voluntarily stepped down to pursue his strong conservative agenda as Heritage’s new president. Why would DeMint do that? What is it about think tanks and their experts that can make them seem more influential in shaping politics than even the U.S. Senate?

The Strength of Weekly Ties

Think Tanks as an Emergent Field

New York: Social Science Research Council, Jan 1, 2008

Terra obscura: Vers une théorie des think tanks américains

Celles et ceux qui cherchent à comprendre la place et le rôle des « think tanks » dans la vie pol... more Celles et ceux qui cherchent à comprendre la place et le rôle des « think tanks » dans la vie politique se heurtent d'emblée au caractère instable, controversé voire confus de ce concept. Comme l'a remarqué Simon James il y a dix ans, « la discussion à propos des think tanks […] tend à s'enliser dans la question épineuse qui consiste à définir ce que l'on entend par "think tank" -exercice qui dégénère souvent en sémantique futile ». L'objectif de ce chapitre est de proposer une conceptualisation des think tanks qui permette de surmonter les affres de ce travail de définition. Pour le formuler simplement, j'avance que l'on rend mieux compte de ce que recouvre le terme de think tank si l'on considère ce type d'organisation non comme distincte ou singulière mais comme un dispositif organisationnel qui combine différentes formes d'autorités issues des institutions universitaires, politiques, médiatiques et des affaires. Dès lors les think tanks sont à considérer comme des entités hybrides occupant une place intermédiaire dans la structure sociale. L'idée principale est de montrer que depuis une quarantaine d'années les think tanks se sont de plus en plus définis les uns par rapport aux autres et que cette dynamique a contribué à la formation d'une « niche institutionnelle » spécifique qui répond à une structure d'intelligibilité distincte, avec des agents qui lui sont propres et des règles de fonctionnement caractéristiques. Ainsi, les identités dont se dotent et sont dotées les think tanks découlent en grande partie des relations de compétition et de collaboration qu'ils entretiennent entre eux.

“Interview of Think Tanks in America author Tom Medvetz"

“Interview of Think Tanks in America author Tom Medvetz", Oct 2012

Thanks for agreeing to talk to SKAT about your brand new book, Think Tanks in America. The main a... more Thanks for agreeing to talk to SKAT about your brand new book, Think Tanks in America. The main argument of Think Tanks is that over the past forty years, think tanks have become the main institutions linking intellectual life and politics in the United States. The book also claims that, by creating a new space of action at the intersection of politics, academia, the media, and business, think tanks derive much of their power from their ability to mediate between the forms of "capital" used in different fields, not from having a distinct form of "capital" (to use Bourdieu's language, which the book draws upon). Yet in doing this-in juggling the competing demands of research, PR skill, business connections, and political savvy-think tanks have made themselves indispensable for anyone who wants to use ideas to shape policy. Furthermore, other kinds of intellectuals are required to engage with the "space of think tanks" in order to participate in political life.

Think Tanks in America

Over the past half-century, think tanks have become fixtures of American politics, supplying advi... more Over the past half-century, think tanks have become fixtures of American politics, supplying advice to presidents and policymakers, expert testimony on Capitol Hill, and convenient facts and figures to journalists and media specialists. But what are think tanks? Who funds them? And just how influential have they become?

In Think Tanks in America, Thomas Medvetz argues that the unsettling ambiguity of the think tank is less an accidental feature of its existence than the very key to its impact. By combining elements of more established sources of public knowledge—universities, government agencies, businesses, and the media—think tanks exert a tremendous amount of influence on the way citizens and lawmakers perceive the world, unbound by the more clearly defined roles of those other institutions. In the process, they transform the government of this country, the press, and the political role of intellectuals. Timely, succinct, and instructive, this provocative book will force us to rethink our understanding of the drivers of political debate in the United States."

The On Think Tanks Interview: Tom Medvetz

Review of Tiffany Bergin, The Evidence Enigma

‘Scholar as Sitting Duck’: The Cronon Affair and the Buffer Zone in American Public Debate

‘Scholar as Sitting Duck’: The Cronon Affair and the Buffer Zone in American Public Debate, 2012

Murky Power: ‘Think Tanks’ as Boundary Organizations

Les think tanks aux États-Unis: L’émergence d’un sous-espace de production des savoirs

The Contemporary American Conservative Movement

The Contemporary American Conservative Movement, 2011

The American conservative movement that began to gain steam in the post–World War II era had, by ... more The American conservative movement that began to gain steam in the post–World War II era had, by the 1980s, emerged as a transformative political force in the United States and the world. Yet sociology has been slower than other disciplines to come to grips with conservatism. In the hope of spurring more research, we review the substantial literature on the conservative movement produced by historians, political scientists, and serious journalists since the mid-1990s, along with the more limited number of sociological contributions. After identifying what we see as a promising approach for conceptualizing conservatism, we illustrate the beneﬁts of sociological engagement by showing how three areas of sociology that might at ﬁrst glance seem disconnected from the movement—the sociology of intellectuals, theories of social change, and scholarship on stratiﬁcation—could proﬁt from consideration of the conservative case.

“Public Policy is Like Having a Vaudeville Act”: Languages of Duty and Difference among Think Tank-Affiliated Policy Experts

"Book Discussion: Think Tanks in America."

"Book Discussion: Think Tanks in America." , 2013

Les think tanks dans le champ du pouvoir étatsunien

Actes de la Recherche en Sciences Sociales , Dec 2013

“Think Tanks and the Rise of Savvy Policy Entrepreneurs”

“Think Tanks and the Rise of Savvy Policy Entrepreneurs”, Dec 2012

The Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative think tank based in Washington DC, has lately ... more The Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative think tank based in Washington DC, has lately been in the news. Just after he was re-elected in 2012, U.S. Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina voluntarily stepped down to pursue his strong conservative agenda as Heritage’s new president. Why would DeMint do that? What is it about think tanks and their experts that can make them seem more influential in shaping politics than even the U.S. Senate?

The Strength of Weekly Ties

Think Tanks as an Emergent Field

New York: Social Science Research Council, Jan 1, 2008

Terra obscura: Vers une théorie des think tanks américains

Celles et ceux qui cherchent à comprendre la place et le rôle des « think tanks » dans la vie pol... more Celles et ceux qui cherchent à comprendre la place et le rôle des « think tanks » dans la vie politique se heurtent d'emblée au caractère instable, controversé voire confus de ce concept. Comme l'a remarqué Simon James il y a dix ans, « la discussion à propos des think tanks […] tend à s'enliser dans la question épineuse qui consiste à définir ce que l'on entend par "think tank" -exercice qui dégénère souvent en sémantique futile ». L'objectif de ce chapitre est de proposer une conceptualisation des think tanks qui permette de surmonter les affres de ce travail de définition. Pour le formuler simplement, j'avance que l'on rend mieux compte de ce que recouvre le terme de think tank si l'on considère ce type d'organisation non comme distincte ou singulière mais comme un dispositif organisationnel qui combine différentes formes d'autorités issues des institutions universitaires, politiques, médiatiques et des affaires. Dès lors les think tanks sont à considérer comme des entités hybrides occupant une place intermédiaire dans la structure sociale. L'idée principale est de montrer que depuis une quarantaine d'années les think tanks se sont de plus en plus définis les uns par rapport aux autres et que cette dynamique a contribué à la formation d'une « niche institutionnelle » spécifique qui répond à une structure d'intelligibilité distincte, avec des agents qui lui sont propres et des règles de fonctionnement caractéristiques. Ainsi, les identités dont se dotent et sont dotées les think tanks découlent en grande partie des relations de compétition et de collaboration qu'ils entretiennent entre eux.

“Interview of Think Tanks in America author Tom Medvetz"

“Interview of Think Tanks in America author Tom Medvetz", Oct 2012

Thanks for agreeing to talk to SKAT about your brand new book, Think Tanks in America. The main a... more Thanks for agreeing to talk to SKAT about your brand new book, Think Tanks in America. The main argument of Think Tanks is that over the past forty years, think tanks have become the main institutions linking intellectual life and politics in the United States. The book also claims that, by creating a new space of action at the intersection of politics, academia, the media, and business, think tanks derive much of their power from their ability to mediate between the forms of "capital" used in different fields, not from having a distinct form of "capital" (to use Bourdieu's language, which the book draws upon). Yet in doing this-in juggling the competing demands of research, PR skill, business connections, and political savvy-think tanks have made themselves indispensable for anyone who wants to use ideas to shape policy. Furthermore, other kinds of intellectuals are required to engage with the "space of think tanks" in order to participate in political life.