Publisher Pulls Controversial Thomas Jefferson Book, Citing Loss Of Confidence

[Adsos Letter]

NPR
The two-way
NPR's News Blog
by ELISE HU
August 9, 2012

Citing a loss of confidence in the book's details, Christian publisher Thomas Nelson is ending the publication and distribution of the bestseller, The Jefferson Lies: Exposing the Myths You've Always Believed About Thomas Jefferson.

The controversial book was written by Texas evangelical David Barton, who NPR's Barbara Bradley Hagerty profiled on All Things Considered Wednesday. The publishing company says it's ceasing publication because it found that "basic truths just were not there."
Link: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/08/09/158510648/publisher-pulls-controversial-thomas-jefferson-book-citing-loss-of-confidence

Well, that's a good thing. How will Texas go about defending its use of Barton's interpretations in its history curriculum? How will the GOP defend its inclusion of Barton as a purveyor of real history? Nelson is a respected publisher among Evangelicals.

EDIT TO ADD: It is especially discouraging to realize that this book became a best-seller in the first place.

[tk2kewl]

1. k&r

[AnotherMcIntosh]

2. K&R

[skepticscott]

3. "Basic truths just were not there"?

How about just telling it like it is: "Basic lies were there"

[Adsos Letter]

4. Gotta wonder what the vetting process was like pre-publication.

Is fact checking an issue for publishers?

[dimbear]

6. The scale the manuscript was weighed on was marked in ounces instead of grams. n/t

[Jim__]

5. That's great news!

I wonder if this will raise any doubts among Barton's followers.

[Adsos Letter]

7. One can hope.

People often make the mistake of believing what they want to believe and then going off in search of something to back them up, even when it's shown to be a mischaracterization.

It's the exact opposite of how good historical research problems are to be approached, but Barton's BA in Christian Education apparently didn't prepare him for that.

I don't know what is in the curriculum for secondary History studies these days, but highschooler's could benefit by a basic introduction to Historical Method.

[cbayer]

8. Good for them.

I am also interested in how Texas schools are going to deal with this.

[Fortinbras Armstrong]

9. I should mention Stephen Colbert's word "Truthiness"

Colbert said

It used to be, everyone was entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts. But that's not the case anymore. Facts matter not at all. Perception is everything. It's certainty. People love the President because he's certain of his choices as a leader, even if the facts that back him up don't seem to exist. It's the fact that he's certain that is very appealing to a certain section of the country. I really feel a dichotomy in the American populace. What is important? What you want to be true, or what is true?…

Truthiness is 'What I say is right, and [nothing] anyone else says could possibly be true.' It's not only that I feel it to be true, but that I feel it to be true. There's not only an emotional quality, but there's a selfish quality.

[Adsos Letter]

10. "What you want to be true, or what is true?"

That's it in a nutshell.