If the faculty at our institutions of higher education aren't allowed to express themselves in what are supposed to be bastions of free and critical thinking, what does that signify to the attending students?

It isn't called the Ivory Tower for nothing.

There are clearly some academics who think that their department's "dirty laundry" is not among the five most boring subjects on the planet. A blogger choosing to write about that subject would be showing poor news judgment, not an inadequate grasp of decorum.

Past good behavior is no guarantee against future lapses of professional decorum (emphasis added)

That's a pretty good argument against giving anyone tenure, isn't it?

The question that seems to be ignored is whether blogging is a substitute for other productive output or a complement in the production function. In some instances, it is difficult to see how someone who blogs so much can at the same time be conducting publishable research; in others, it is clear that blogging is an outlet which actually induces higher quality research and publications.

Add to this question, the fact that many blogs do a superb job of promoting the university and department and many blogs serve to enhance a professor's teaching, and the case for blogging takes on more strength.

For the most part, though, I suspect there are many schools where the very fact that you spend time on a blog will count against you; the presumption will be that blogging takes away from more traditional forms of research and publication.

And old question - I'm sure far from a original one, is whether academic tenure increases freedom of speech or merely shifts it. Shifts it from untenured faculty to tenured faculty.

Professor Tribble's honesty should be appreciated even though it presents a discouraging truth - that in a seller's market anything can and will be used to disqualify you. Best to limit your communications to things which can help your career.

If you must do politics by all means let it be left-wing politics though you can get away with being a moderate democrat or a silent republican. Otherwise limit it to papers and books.

Things can be much better as Dan's experience with the U of Chicago shows. But one thing is very clear - enlightened treatment is a privilege which they may choose to extend and which can be withdrawn at any time. It is not a right and seems to be a rare thing in any case.

So keep your lip buttoned or only utter approved sentiments until the committee frees thy tongue - or not.

I honestly think that the second piece is an even greater embarassment than the first. To pretend that criticisms about him were about "free speech" is just patently dishonest. The problem was the extent to which a man sees a job committee as a medium to give free play to his petty aesthetic prejudices in what is supposed to be a relatively rational process, blogs being just one of the things that he's cranky about. What a feeble strawman-burning Tribble's apologia is. (Which is not to deny the relevance of your warnings.)