A website that's purportedly focused on rigorous science journalism has published a conspiratorial anti-glyphosate rant, written by an environmental activist with no relevant academic credentials.
science journalism
That a person with such a hostile view toward industry-funded science serves on the editorial board of a major scientific journal is disturbing. That she possesses no academic qualifications to justify her position as "senior editor" is a scandal.
In a nod to science, Newsweek reported that there might be genetic underpinnings to obesity. So kudos, for at least that. But why not share the actual science instead of dumbing it down to, “Regardless of how much you eat, your weight may be out of your hands?” For the scientifically-literate explanation, here it is.
Like an Obama birther, the Times' Eric Lipton will continue spouting conspiracy theories about the biotech and chemical industries despite the evidence. This will ensure that his boss's wife, who serves on the board of Whole Foods, remains wealthy.
Surely, somebody can stop the most egregious offenders from spreading health misinformation that hurts or kills people, right? Actually, no, not in a free society. The only solution to fake news is better news.
Should the U.S. learn from China about air pollution? A history professor says yes, and he bases his argument on an epidemiological paper that utilizes deceptive maps and dubious methods.
Only about 17% of Americans are "active science news consumers." At least most Americans seem to understand that the mainstream media is a terrible place to get science news.
Kurt Eichenwald, a journalist with enormous influence, claims to have predicted features of Hurricane Irma using a climate change equation. A contributing editor to Vanity Fair and a New York Times bestselling author, he took to Twitter to boast about his accomplishment. It didn't take long for him to be rightfully mocked.
Facebook, a site from which a substantial number of people acquire their daily news, has decided that pages that post fake stories will be banned from advertising. That's a perfectly fine decision, but it raises a bigger and more profound question: Who decides which news is fake? Mark Zuckerberg?
To make our society better informed, we have to fight back against the Fear Industry. We can do so by publicly identifying those people who spread misinformation. And then we encourage people to never listen to them again.
The New York Times smeared a company at the request of an organic food lobby. Instead of behaving like responsible, skeptical journalists they chose to act like a PR firm. Such is the state of affairs at America's self-appointed "Paper of Record."
To stay in business, media outlets need viewers. So they give readers what they want, which apparently consists largely of pointless political bickering, epic acts of stupidity and naked people.