Paul KrugmanMIKE CLARKE
If we conducted a poll today to find the best-known economics thinker, it's a fair bet that Paul Krugman, the only Nobel laureate with both a hugely popular blog and a regular column in the New York Times, would emerge at or near the top. Well, it turns out he's also No. 1 among his academic colleagues.
Prof. Krugman emerged far ahead of the pack among economists under the age of 60 in a survey of 299 U.S. economics professors, who were asked to select their favourites.
John Maynard Keynes still rules the roost among dead purveyors of the dismal science, finishing ahead of Milton Friedman. That may have been thanks to a resurgence of interest in all things Keynesian in the wake of the Great Financial Crash. Adam Smith, who died 221 years ago, remains unchallenged among those who left their mark before the 20th century.
Prof. Krugman rated a mention from 20 per cent of the survey respondents. There was a tie for second spot. Harvard professor Greg Mankiw, another big-time blogger and neo-Keynesian, and MIT Professor Daron Acemoglu, a Turkish native who specializes in economic development issues, each scored 7.4 per cent.
Surprisingly, the survey showed that among the five leading names, Prof Mankiw, who has advised such Republican politicians as George W. Bush and Mitt Romney, has the most liberal admirers, while Prof. Krugman, who advocates much heavier government spending, the least liberal. Less surprising is that his more conservative supporters turn out mostly to be Democrats.
How, you might well ask, did Ben Bernanke, a prominent Princeton academic before joining the Fed, fare? He ranked a paltry 11th with a mere 2.3 per cent. Needless to say, Alan Greenspan is nowhere to be found.
When it comes to blogs, Prof Mankiw holds a clear edge, although the low totals led the study's authors to conclude that economists don't pay much attention to economy blogs. More than half said they don't read them.
The survey appears in the latest issue of Econ Journal Watch, published by the American Institute for Economic Research.