Robert Putnam and Others Speak About Diversity

I blogged about Robert Putnam's research on the challenges of diversity on July 3. This morning I caught the end of On Point, an NPR call-in show on the topic with Putnam, Lani Guinier, and Pat Buchanan. I have yet to go back and listen to the whole thing, but the last 20 minutes or so that I heard were really interesting. Granted, I started listening just as they were saying good-bye to Pat Buchanan. I should probably be prepared for raised blood pressure when I listen to the portion he was on! You can listen on Real Player or Windows Media Player by clicking here.

Here's the teaser for the program:
Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam is a self-described full-on liberal who worries a lot about community in America.

He made his name in the 1990s with his finding that hordes of Americans were, in his famous phrase, "bowling alone" -- living without the traditional community ties of bowling leagues and Moose clubs that bound people together.

Then he set out on a huge project to find out why. The answer looks like a liberal's nightmare: diversity. Diverse communities, Putnam found, show dysfunction. At least for a while.

This hour On Point: Robert Putnam, Pat Buchanan and Lani Guinier on diversity and community in America.