Out-Law.com: Is ‘fair dealing’ protection too pricey for bloggers?
Saturday, 14 February 2009, 13:12
"We talk to [Ben Goldacre,] the journalist at the heart of a copyright law fight and wonder if individuals can ever afford protection under copyright law"
Jeni Barnett: MMR and Me (updated)
Saturday, 7 February 2009, 11:25
Jeni Barnett's defense of the MMR programme that is the focus of a legal dispute between LBC and Dr Ben Goldacre. To her credit, she allows those who disagree with her to comment.
Update 9/2: It seems my pleasant surprise at Barnett’s willingness to engage with her critics was premature. As Holford Watch points out, out the critical comments have now been removed from her site.
Barnett also added second, more snarky post condemning Ben Goldacre as a “Bad Scientist”. The (quite reasonable) comments on that post have also been removed.
If you publish non-fiction in any public medium — be it a blog or something with a considerably larger audience like a radio programme — you must expect people to question the factual veracity of your reporting and the logical consistency of your analysis. If this happens, you should be willing to take it on the chin, defend your position, or even honourably withdraw claims that don’t stand up to the critique.
This is the standard that scientists hold themselves to, and it would be nice if those with the power to disseminate ideas to mass audiences would hold themselves to the same standard.
Guardian: Comment is Free: The media’s addiction to controversy can seriously damage your health
Wednesday, 13 August 2008, 07:17
Peter Wilby: "A coincidence of events does not prove a causal connection. Nevertheless, an excellent book by Tammy Boyce of Cardiff University – Health, Risk and News – shows British press stories about MMR and its dangers climbed steeply from 1998 and peaked in 2002."
Tuesday, 10 July 2007, 19:23
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"So where does the renewed scare about the MMR vaccine come from? This is where the reporting becomes more difficult to assess."
