So a friend of mine started IMing me about how crazy the John McWhorter & Michael Behe diavlog was on bloggingheads.tv. I was a bit surprised since there is no such diavlog, either on the bloggingheads.tv website, nor in their podcasts (which is where I usually am made to be aware of them). Well, here's the story:
John McWhorter feels, with regret, that this interview represents neither himself, Professor Behe, nor Bloggingheads usefully, takes full responsibility for same, and has asked that it be taken down from the site. He apologizes to all who found its airing objectionable.
Beliefnet's resident Creationist, David Klinghoffer is accusing bloggingheads.tv of "Stalinism". As it is, I think the explanation about McWhorter's second thoughts are probably accurate, this wasn't on "Science Saturday" so the objections made against Paul Nelson appearing are not applicable. But the video is downloadable at various websites, and so I'm watching it right now. It's a little shocking to observe John McWhorter being irrationally exuberant at being able to talk to Michael Behe, the author of The Edge of Evolution. Glenn Loury & John McWhorter often joke about being "the black guys" on bloggingheads.tv, with a slight sense of irritation about the role they've been boxed into. McWhorter does not show evidence here of being able to break out of that box in the near future after this performance. Some Creationists are complaining that McWhorter had the video withdrawn because he feared career reprecussions. I doubt that, his bread is buttered by The Manhattan Institute, which is a conservative think thank. Though most elite conservatives are not Creationist, there is no shame in Creationism in the modern American conservative movement. Rather, I suspect the pressure was the more informal one of peer group horror which likely came in via email.
