Talk:Think tank

Good Topic, But

This article is a good start on an interesting topic, but the examples seem to confuse Washington-based think tanks (like Brookings and the American Enterprise Institute) and other Washington-based interest groups (like the ACLU and the ARA). Both of these organizations may have think tank units, but the organizations themselves are membership associations, and not particularly noted for their intellectual efforts. Roger Lohmann 17:39, 4 November 2009 (UTC)

I would argue, and did present analysis, that the spectrum is blurred. Brookings, for example, is indeed objective, but AEI, while not a membership organization, is highly political and responsive to corporate sponsors -- note the recent purge of neoconservatives. ACLU is again a mixed case; I consider some of its legal research of intellectual quality, although I agree they don't put out major analytical papers. They do, however, contribute to a good deal of the national security analysis by FOIA and declassification actions.

How can we explain this better? You'll also see the membership distinction in Related Articles. Howard C. Berkowitz 18:19, 4 November 2009 (UTC)