The Colloque Walter Lippmann ( English: Walter Lippmann Colloquium), was a conference of intellectuals organized in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in August 1938 by French philosopher Louis Rougier. After interest in

classical liberalism Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics and civil liberties under the rule of law, with special emphasis on individual autonomy, limited governmen ...

had declined in the 1920s and 1930s, the aim was to construct a new

liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, the right to private property, and equality before the law. ...

as a rejection of

collectivism In sociology, a social organization is a pattern of relationships between and among individuals and groups. Characteristics of social organization can include qualities such as sexual composition, spatiotemporal cohesion, leadership, struct ...

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

and ''

laissez-faire ''Laissez-faire'' ( , from , ) is a type of economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies or regulations). As a system of thought, ''laissez-faire'' ...

'' liberalism. At the meeting, the term

neoliberalism Neoliberalism is a political and economic ideology that advocates for free-market capitalism, which became dominant in policy-making from the late 20th century onward. The term has multiple, competing definitions, and is most often used pe ...

was coined by

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

sociologist and

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

Alexander Rüstow, referring to the rejection of the old ''laissez-faire'' liberalism.

Namesake

The colloquium was named after American journalist

Walter Lippmann Walter Lippmann (September 23, 1889 – December 14, 1974) was an American writer, reporter, and political commentator. With a career spanning 60 years, he is famous for being among the first to introduce the concept of the Cold War, coining t ...

. Lippman's 1937 book ''An Enquiry into the Principles of the Good Society'' had been translated into French as ''La Cité libre'' () and was studied in detail at the meeting.

Importance

Twenty-six intellectuals, including some of the most prominent liberal thinkers, took part. The participants chose to set up an organization to promote liberalism which was called the ''Comité international d'étude pour le renouveau du libéralisme'' (CIERL). Though CIERL had few consequences because of the war, it inspired Austrian-British

and

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

Friedrich Hayek Friedrich August von Hayek (8 May 1899 – 23 March 1992) was an Austrian-born British academic and philosopher. He is known for his contributions to political economy, political philosophy and intellectual history. Hayek shared the 1974 Nobe ...

in the postwar creation of the

Mont Pelerin Society The Mont Pelerin Society (MPS), founded in 1947, is an international academic society of Economist, economists, Political philosophy, political philosophers, and other Intelligentsia, intellectuals who share a classical liberal outlook. It is hea ...

in Switzerland.

Michel Foucault Paul-Michel Foucault ( , ; ; 15 October 192625 June 1984) was a French History of ideas, historian of ideas and Philosophy, philosopher who was also an author, Literary criticism, literary critic, Activism, political activist, and teacher. Fo ...

's 1978–1979

Collège de France The (), formerly known as the or as the ''Collège impérial'' founded in 1530 by François I, is a higher education and research establishment () in France. It is located in Paris near La Sorbonne. The has been considered to be France's most ...

lectures, published a quarter of a century later as '' The Birth of Biopolitics'', drew attention to the importance of the Walter Lippmann Colloquium.

Ideological cleavages

The participants were divided into two primary camps; one, represented by

Ludwig von Mises Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises (; ; September 29, 1881 – October 10, 1973) was an Austrian-American political economist and philosopher of the Austrian school. Mises wrote and lectured extensively on the social contributions of classical l ...

Jacques Rueff Jacques Léon Rueff (23 August 1896 – 23 April 1978) was a French economist and adviser to the French government. Life An influential French conservative and free market thinker, Rueff was born the son of a well known Parisian physician and ...

, and Étienne Mantoux, which advocated a strict adherence to

Manchester liberalism Manchester Liberalism (also called the Manchester School, Manchester Capitalism and Manchesterism) comprises the political, economic and social movements of the 19th century that originated in Manchester. Led by Richard Cobden and John Bright ...

and ''laissez-faire''; the other camp, represented by Alexander Rüstow,

Raymond Aron Raymond Claude Ferdinand Aron (; ; 14 March 1905 – 17 October 1983) was a French philosopher, sociologist, political scientist, historian and journalist, one of France's most prominent thinkers of the 20th century. Aron is best known for his ...

, Wilhelm Röpke, Auguste Detoeuf,

Robert Marjolin Robert Marjolin (27 July 1911 – 15 April 1986) was a French economist and politician involved in the formation of the European Community, European Economic Community. Early life and education Robert Majolin was born in Paris, the son of an ...

, Louis Marlio, and

, opted for a kind of

social liberalism Social liberalism is a political philosophy and variety of liberalism that endorses social justice, social services, a mixed economy, and the expansion of civil and political rights, as opposed to classical liberalism which favors limited g ...

which was more favorable to state intervention and regulation.

Participants

Participants of the Colloquium included: *

, French philosopher, sociologist, journalist and political scientist * Roger Auboin, French economist and public servant *

, Austrian and British economist and philosopher *

, American writer, reporter and political commentator * Auguste Detœuf, French economist * Étienne Mantoux, French economist *

, French economist and politician * Louis Marlio, French economist * Ernest Mercier, French industrialist *

, Austro-Hungarian born economist *

Michael Polanyi Michael Polanyi ( ; ; 11 March 1891 – 22 February 1976) was a Hungarian-British polymath, who made important theoretical contributions to physical chemistry, economics, and philosophy. He argued that positivism is a false account of knowle ...

, Hungarian-British

polymath A polymath or polyhistor is an individual whose knowledge spans many different subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems. Polymaths often prefer a specific context in which to explain their knowledge, ...

* Stefan Thomas Possony, Austro-Hungarian born economist and military strategist * Wilhelm Röpke, German economist * Louis Rougier, French philosopher *

, French economist * Alexander Rüstow, German sociologist and economist Walter Eucken was invited to the colloquium, but he was not given permission to leave Germany by the

Nazi regime Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

References

External links

Beacon of Liberty Amid Depression
{{neoliberalism History of liberalism Neoliberalism Conservatism in France 1938 in France 1938 conferences