This is a really good thread. As someone who has received a few unsolicited CVs from academics looking to switch careers, I've noticed they emphasise their research rather than their comms skills, but its the latter that the sector need.
David Luck
I went from a college professor directly to being a museum educator who works with K-12 students and I point this out every time one of my coworkers refers to “the way academics talk”
Erin Grievances
What I find so weird about the whole discourse is that I, a college professor, spend most of my time explaining complex ideas to 18-year-old novices. There’s a lot to mock academics for, but most of us couldn’t do our jobs at all if we didn’t know how to communicate with non-experts
Anjali Dayal
Yeah - Democratic consultants flatly have no idea (a) what college professors talk like and (b) what Democratic politicians talk like, or (c) what happened when pols talk to voters.
They just have this conventional wisdom passed into the ether.
Buttadeus
I would like for someone, anyone, to cite a concrete, specific example of an elected Democratic politician talking to the public *as though in a college seminar*, per Obama's scolding.
We hear about Dems talkin' fancy all the time. Someone cite an actual f'ing example! Please!
