Junk Science Impacts Unnecessary, Harmful Regulations & Consumer Decisions

A health study published earlier this year linking the benefits of chocolate to weight loss was deliberately falsified to show the decline of scientific integrity in the media. Journalist John Bohannon, who holds a Ph.D. in molecular biology, noted, “Our point was not that journalists could be tricked by fakers, but rather that scientists themselves in this field and other fields are making the kinds of mistakes that we made on purpose. This whole area of science has become kind of corrupted by really poor standards between scientists and journalists.”

T. Becket Adams, a reporter with the Washington Examiner, takes a deeper look into the prevalence and impact of junk science, and the reporters and media outlets that publish claims (as outlandish as they can be) with no regard for fact checking or research on their part. Read more here.