This is a sad epitaph, parting words to an old friend that is now
gone, leaving in a puff of bitter betrayal.
When I was a kid it was common for my mom to buy me a magazine if
I was sick and home from school. I didn't want MAD Magazine or comic
books. I preferred Scientific American.
The once stalwart publication held a unique spot at the
science-public interface, bringing us interesting and diverse stories of
scientific interest, long before the internet made such content instantly
accessible. It was our trusted pipeline to the new edges of scientific
discovery, from the mantle of the earth to the reaches of space, and every
critter in between.
But like so much of our trusted traditional science media, Scientific
American has traded its credibility for the glitz of post-truth
non-scientific beliefs and the profits of clickbait.The problem is that when a trusted
source publishes false information (or worse, when it hijacked by activists) it
destroys trust in science, trust in s…
It sounds like crazy conspiracy, but it actually is true. Upon analysis of messaging in social media and news outlets a team of researchers from Iowa State has identified that a massive amount of information critical of biotechnology comes from sources in the Russian Federation.