Autism and vaccines: why telling every side of a scientific story is rarely fair [View all]

[HuckleB]

http://mashable.com/2016/04/02/vaccines-autism-false-balance/#4D3I3rUHV8qz

"...

De Niro’s call for open discussion echoes the kinds of exhortations most frequently made to journalists — to provide a fair and balanced (translate: unbiased) account of any topic we report on by presenting all sides of the issue. De Niro, who claims not to be anti-vaccination, himself, may have thought he was doing the right and “fair” thing by giving a platform to Wakefield’s documentary.

But herein lies the sticking point: When communicators of any sort, journalists or otherwise, give an equal voice to unsubstantiated or even discredited ideas, they’re actually introducing bias — not removing it — by presenting a contrarian viewpoint as though it has a credible weight in the discussion.

This type of mistake is particularly egregious in the world of science communication, which by nature should be driven by data and hard evidence rather than feelings. And yet this is by no means the first time it’s been made.

The climate contrarian movement,for instance — perhaps one of the most famous widespread examples of science denial in the nation — was routinely given a voice in the mainstream media until very recently.

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A good piece that covers the false equivalency issue quite well.