Robert Arthur Pinker (27 May 1931 – 2 February 2021) was a British sociologist and press regulator.

Early life and family

Robert Arthur Pinker was born on 27 May 1931, the son of Dora Elizabeth Pinker and Joseph Pinker. In 1955, he married Jennifer Farrington Boulton, who died in 1994; they had two daughters."Pinker, Prof. Robert Arthur "
''Who's Who'' (online edition, Oxford University Press, December 2017). Retrieved 1 February 2018.

Career

Academia

After attending Holloway County School, Pinker went to the

London School of Economics and Political Science The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public university, public research university in London, England, and a member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the University ...

(LSE), initially receiving a Certificate in Social Science and Administration in 1959, and then completing a Bachelor of Science degree (BSc) in Sociology in 1962 and a Master of Science degree (MSc) in Economics three years later. Pinker began his academic career as a research officer at the LSE in 1959; he was then a lecturer at the North-Western Polytechnic, London, from 1962 to 1964, when he was appointed Head of the Sociology Department at

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a Member institutions of the University of London, constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The G ...

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

. In 1972, he gave up the post and was appointed Lewisham Professor of Social Administration at Goldsmiths. Two years later, he moved to Chelsea College to be Professor of Social Studies and then, from 1978 to 1993, he was Professor of Social Work Studies at the LSE, before finishing his academic career as Professor of Social Administration at the LSE from 1993 to 1996; he was also a Pro-Director at the LSE (1985–88) and the Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Social Sciences at the University of London (1989–90). He was also a Member of Goldsmiths Council from 2001 to 2007, was elected a Fellow of the

Society of Editors The Society of Editors is an industry body for around 400 UK national and regional media editors, representatives and organisations. History and organization The Society has an elected president, chair and board of directors. It was formed b ...

in 2004 and received an honorary

doctor of laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

(LLD) degree from the

University of Ulster Ulster University (; Ulster Scots: or ), legally the University of Ulster, is a multi-campus public research university located in Northern Ireland. It is often referred to informally and unofficially as Ulster, or by the abbreviation UU. It i ...

in 2016. In 2015, the Social Policy Society awarded him their Special Recognition Award, recognising him as someone who has made a "consistent, sustained and long standing contribution to the field of social policy, through research, or teaching and learning." Pinker's published works include ''English Hospital Statistics 1861–1938'' (1964), ''Social Theory and Social Policy'' (1971), ''The Idea of Welfare'' (1979), ''Social Work in an Enterprise Society'' (1990), and, with R. Deacon and N. Lipton, ''Privacy and Personality Rights'' (2010). He chaired the editorial board of the '' Journal of Social Policy'' from 1981 to 1986.

Public service

Outside of academia, Pinker sat on the

Press Complaints Commission The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) was a voluntary regulatory body for British printed newspapers and magazines, consisting of representatives of the major publishers. The PCC closed on Monday 8 September 2014, and was replaced by the Ind ...

(PCC) from 1991 to 2004 and as a Privacy Commissioner for a decade from 1994; he was acting chair of the PCC for the last year of his tenure. In 2005, he was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) in recognition of his public service. He had been elected a Fellow of the

the previous year,"Professor Robert Pinker", ''The Daily Telegraph'', 5 February 2021, p. 27. and in January 2021 was awarded the Astor Award for Press Freedom by the Commonwealth Press Union Media Trust."Professor Pinker Receives 2020 Astor Award for Press Freedom"
''Society of Editors'', 27 January 2021. Retrieved 8 February 2021.

Death

Pinker died on 2 February 2021.

References

Likenesses

* The LSE Library holds two photographic portraits of Pinker (ref. nos. IMAGELIBRARY/1000 and IMAGELIBRARY/1001). {{DEFAULTSORT:Pinker, Robert 1931 births 2021 deaths British sociologists Alumni of the London School of Economics Academics of Goldsmiths, University of London