France's Got Talent: The Woeful Consequences of French Elitism

Description

If France were a TV show, it would be "France�s Got Talent," a fiercely competitive contest to show off how clever you are. For the tiny number selected, the rewards are huge. These are the self-confident, sometimes arrogant, people at the pinnacle of French society, the government ministers and especially the civil servants in their cabinets, the CEOs of companies, the top financiers. But unlike reality TV, this is not a contest that values a multitude of different talents: the winners tend to be the same sort of people from the same schools who take part in competitive exams for which they have prepared since childhood. Unfortunately for France, the contest is bad for the nation as a whole. Those chosen aren�t always the best suited for the role, while the losers are marked for life. The entire contest is flawed. At a time when France is struggling to maintain its place in the world, its pervasive culture of elitism is a handicap, not an advantage. Is it possible to change it? Peter Gumbel, a veteran journalist who has worked for TIME Magazine and The Wall Street Journal, draws on international comparisons, academic research and extensive reporting from his 11 years spent in Paris as a foreign correspondent, to put France's elitist system under the microscope. But he also provides a compelling inside look at one of the pillars of the elitist system, the ultra-selective university Sciences Po, where he spent two years working in senior positions, including as Director of Communications, just as the institution plunged into the worst crisis in its 140-year history.