Here's a completely unfair generalization:

[Don Claybrook]

Jazz musicians are much more progressive than photographers.

My evidence is purely anecdotal, subject to being dead-wrong, but interesting, I think.

I've been into photography for a good while now, and jazz for a shorter period of time. In pursuit of these passions, I have found internet forums like DU, but for jazz and photography (allaboutjazz.com forums & dpreview.com forums, respectively).

Politics will occasionally creep into discussion on both of these forums. On the photography forum, which has a fairly international flavor since it's based in the UK, someone will bring up a political point. Most "foreigners" will take the progressive side of an argument, while most of the Americans tend toward the "love it or leave it" and "we saved France's ass" arguments. There are generally a few Americans on the board who are apologetic about their inbred Freeper countrymen. When I first discovered this trend a couple of years ago, I was both surprised and dismayed. I like to think of good photography as art, and I always assumed artists were by-and-large progressives. Shame on me for making assumptions.

Meantime, in the non-music forum at allaboutjazz.com, you see an occasional dittohead nimrod, but they appear to be viciously raked over the coals as soon as they pop up. And there are entire threads where no Bush supporters can be found. It's a breath of fresh air.

Has anyone else noticed similar (or countervailing) forums out there? Is it your experience that musicians are more progressive than conservative? Is anyone else surprised to find an apparently plentiful supply of angry jingoists in the photography community?

Just pondering.

[Ron Green]

1. Maybe that's why there are such terms as

"Progressive jazz" and "Black-and-white photography."

:evilgrin:

[leftofthedial]

3. that's funny dude!

:rofl:

[leftofthedial]

2. I do a fair amount of work in the Nashville music community

so my sample is WAY fucked up

but even there, I think most of the people in the business are progressives or at least somewhat liberal. Unfortunately, those with the most power in the business are almost uniformly rabidly (and ignorantly) conservative.