2025-01-02
8 分钟The Economist. Hello, Mike Bird here, co-host of Money Talks,
our weekly podcast on markets, the economy and business.
Welcome to Editor's Picks.
We've chosen an article from the latest edition of The Economist,
which we very much hope you'll enjoy.
To understand how America's Ivy League universities see themselves,
read their admissions brochures.
Leafing through the just-so photos of giggling students on tidy lawns,
a vision emerges of sanctuaries for personal growth and intellectual exploration,
as much cocoon as Ivory Tower.
The world has come to a different impression.
Portrayals of the Ivies dwell on out-of-control woke politics and tented encampments protesting the war in Gaza.
The presidents of four Ivy League schools have stepped down since late 2023.
after being accused by politicians and alumni of excess sympathy for the latter vision.
But neither image captures the full reality in the Ivy League now.
A better place to look is the Whitney, a museum in New York.
In September, 800 students were hosted there by D.E.
Shaw, a hedge fund to mingle between canapes and sculptures.
The event's goal, attendees say,
was to nudge this young and impressionable cohort towards a particular view of success.