Columbia University Rescinds Bancroft Prize
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The Trustees of Columbia University voted to rescind the Bancroft Prize awarded to Michael Bellesiles's Arming America: The Origins of a National Gun Culture. In their 7 December 2002 announcement, The Trustees "concluded that he had violated basic norms of scholarship and the high standards expected of Bancroft Prize winners." For Columbia's official announcement, visit <http://www.columbia.edu/cu/news/02/12/bancroft_prize.html> To see the April 2001 decision to award the prize to Bellesiles, visit <http://www.columbia.edu/cu/news/01/04/bancroft.html> Investigative Committee Issues Report on BellesilesOn 10 July 2002, the committee formed by Emory University to investigate the scholarly integrity of Michael Bellesiles's Arming America: The Origins of A National Gun Culture (Alfred A. Knopf, 2000) released its report. The committee--consisting of historians Stanley Katz (Princeton University); Hanna H. Gray (University of Chicago); and Laurel Thatcher Ulrich (Harvard University)--responded to five questions posed by Emory regarding Bellesiles's research into probate and militia records. The questions centered on Bellesiles alleged misrepresentation of evidence and sources from archives in California, Rhode Island, and Vermont, his neglect in carefully documenting his findings, and his failure to make his sources, evidence, and data available to others. The committee conducted its investigation by surveying the criticisms of Arming America as posed by other experts in the field, attempting to replicate Bellesiles's research by sending a research assistant to the archives that Bellesiles visited, and by obtaining from Bellesiles a description of his methods when working with probate records. Bellesiles's information was ultimately cross referenced with that of the research assistant and the data tables in Arming America. The Investigative Committee's report concluded that serious failures did exist in Bellesiles's research methods and presentation of archival records, but it could not confirm or reject allegations of intentional fabrication. The committee did claim to find evidence, however, of falsification in Table 1 of Arming America and raised questions about the integrity and interpretation of probate records from San Francisco County. Specifically, the committee noted that Bellesiles's failure to identify his sources for Table 1 amounted to "falsification"and a violation of the professional norms of documentation, source availability, and evidence representation. For the full report, tap into <http://www.emory.edu/central/NEWS/Releases/Final_Report.pdf>. For Bellesiles reply, visit <http://www.emory.edu/central/NEWS/Releases/B_statement.pdf>. Alfred A. Knopf Disowns Arming America
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