This essay discusses the idea of a Public Sociology proposed by Michael Burawoy in the 2000s confronting it with the Sociology Intervention approached by Alain Touraine in the 1970s. Points of contact are detected regarding the relationship between the researcher and the researched, as social actors. Problems and shortcomings from either Public Sociology and Sociology Intervention are otherwise pointed out, which is emphasized by taking to the forefront pieces from own fieldwork. The paper appeals also to Antonio Gramsci's notion of the common sense and the role of intellectuals. Instead of a definite statement, a dialogue among the authors is proposed, as all of them are concerned about the public outcome from the knowledge coming from the social world.
public sociology; sociology intervention; common sense; organic intellectual