The Encarta World English Dictionary defines a public intellectual as an expert within a particular field whose opinions and published works are well known, and who frequently appears in the media to comment on newsworthy issues.
This particular definition appears to be somewhat narrow and limiting to me. While I agree that a public intellectual would comment on newsworthy issues in some type of public forum, it is not my opinion that a public intellectual needs to be well known or an expert in a particular field. This definition seems to exclude the active citizen as described by Dunlop.
If you wish to view this definition, here is the link to the Encarta definiton.
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