Abstract

Knowledge production is never simply about increasing the reservoir of information. It is also and equally about answering what Kant called the quid jure: By what right? Who is allowed to speak authoritatively on a subject? There are any number of people who have made a self-study of law, history, or medicine, or who for one reason or another quit their studies just before being awarded their final certification. These individuals may be quite able to competently address issues within a particular domain of knowledge. But only those who have passed the bar, been awarded the Ph.D., or have passed their medical boards have standing, are considered proper experts who are authorized to pronounce on a subject. These experts form closed groups that perpetuate their power by establishing chokeholds over access to and the dissemination of information in their fields—via peer review, journals, and professional associations.