Category: Science and the Media

Dr. Vinay Prasad: “Public Health’s (Mis)Truth Problem”
Dr. Vinay Prasad continues to spread fear, uncertainty, and doubt about the government response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“Debate me, bro!”: Debate challenges by science deniers in the age of COVID-19
Quacks, science deniers, and conspiracy theorists love to challenge doctors, scientists, and science communicators to "live public debates" over the science they deny. I just say no, and you should say no too if you are in a position to receive such a challenge.

Everything old is new again
Since the pandemic hit, I've frequently said things like, "Everything old is new again", referring to the antivaccine movement in the age of COVID-19. As 2022 dawned, I thought I'd expand a bit on what I mean. Is there a term for déjà vu, but what I'm seeing now is amplified a thousand-fold? Proponents of science-based medicine have been warning us for...

Poor Science Reporting and Premature Enthusiasm
Press releases often outpace the data. Here are some examples of over-enthusiastic reporting on extremely preliminary research.

John Ioannidis and the Carl Sagan effect in science communication about COVID-19
We have been critical about John Ioannidis over a number of his statements about the COVID-19 pandemic. Now he's done it again, producing a poor-quality paper whose unwritten assumptions suggest that the Carl Sagan effect, in which scientists are penalized professionally by their peers for becoming popular science communicators, still holds considerable sway in science and medicine.

The Dawning of Friends of Science in Medicine (FSM)
For over 10 years, Friends of Science in Medicine has been fighting quackery, fraud, and pseudoscience in Australia.

Those Joe Namath Medicare Commercials
Joe Namath is promoting Medicare Advantage Plans on TV. Some of what he says is misleading. Here's the rest of the story.
The Misinformation Dilemma
Is there a workable solution to the social media dilemma?