Horkheimer prioritized institutional respectability over critical research purity

Evidence

But for Horkheimer this distinction obviously became less and less relevant, at least from the time of the Mannesmann study onwards. His goal was, rather, to build up a respected Institute, with the vague image of a glorious past, which attracted socially useful sociologists with humanist convictions who had good prospects of getting jobs in the fields of industry and administration. — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School, 2110

Categorization

• DEEPTHINKING: Horkheimer’s shift from critical theory evangelist to respectability-obsessed administrator is a case study in how institutions domesticate their founders’ radicalism.
• XREF: connects to: Horkheimer censored explicit political language in Institute publications — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School: Its History,…, 865; Horkheimer repeatedly traded scholarly nonconformity for social recognition — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School: Its History,…, 1973; Academic institutionalization threatens the political stakes of critical theory — Hall, Stuart, Essential Essays, Volume 1, 257 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Horkheimer publicly advertised social research as a tool for industrial productivity #exemplifies (0.95) — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School, 1855
• Academic institutionalization threatens the political stakes of critical theory #exemplifies (0.85) — Hall, Stuart, Essential Essays, Volume 1, 257