I should have mentioned Sandy Szwarc’s blog, Junkfood Science, long ago. I am impressed by the depth and thoroughness of her analysis.
This week she jumped all over news coverage of a study linking alcohol intake to breast cancer.
You should read the entire post, but it begins:
Does a single drink a day really raise a womanâs risk for breast cancers? Thatâs what 403 media stories (and counting) have been reporting, based on a new study said to be âthe largest of its kind.â? But not all studies reported in the news are worth taking seriously or let worry us. Hereâs why this one shouldnât have even registered on our radar.
Since thereâs actually no study to review (!), weâll walk through the news. When would you have changed the television station or tossed the newspaper aside?
According to the news, the researchers reviewed data on 184,418 post menopausal women and found that women who drank even just one to two drinks a day were 32% more likely to develop breast cancers of a certain type (estrogen-receptor and progesterone-receptor positive, or ER+/PR+). This study was said to provide evidence that alcohol is positively associated with breast cancer.
When hundreds of news outlets around the world report on a single study, out of the hundreds released each day, on exactly the same day and all saying exactly the same thing, you can be sure someone issued a press release. Sure enough, this paper came with a press release.
Please go to the link above to read the rest of her comments on this study and news coverage about it.
Blogs like hers give citizen journalism a good name.
Opinions on other issues in news, journals, PR, advertising, marketing
I miss @HealthNewsRevu popping up in my feed. Loved seeing this one today.
https://www.healthnewsreview.org/2021/06/zombie-health-care-news/
#healthcare #journalism #ethics #conflictofinterest
Puleeeeease... this 'game changer' weight loss drug causes more nausea and vomiting than a placebo. Some game, some change. My friend Gary would spank you for using the eighth word medical reporters should never, ever use. @garyschwitzer @thackerpd
https://www.healthnewsreview.org/toolkit/just-journalists-writing-tips-case-studies/7-words-and-more-you-shouldnt-use-in-medical-news/ https://twitter.com/OttawaCitizen/status/1361426796126830597
A scary @statnews Op-Ed warns that govt attempts to rein in Pharma may cut off access to "life-changing" drugs.
It takes @garyschwitzer to let us know: the author spent 10 years as Pfizer's public-policy chief. https://twitter.com/garyschwitzer/status/1360325022578053123
Comments
Please note, comments are no longer published through this website. All previously made comments are still archived and available for viewing through select posts.
Comments are closed.
Our Comments Policy
But before leaving a comment, please review these notes about our policy.
You are responsible for any comments you leave on this site.
This site is primarily a forum for discussion about the quality (or lack thereof) in journalism or other media messages (advertising, marketing, public relations, medical journals, etc.) It is not intended to be a forum for definitive discussions about medicine or science.
We will delete comments that include personal attacks, unfounded allegations, unverified claims, product pitches, profanity or any from anyone who does not list a full name and a functioning email address. We will also end any thread of repetitive comments. We don”t give medical advice so we won”t respond to questions asking for it.
We don”t have sufficient staffing to contact each commenter who left such a message. If you have a question about why your comment was edited or removed, you can email us at feedback@healthnewsreview.org.
There has been a recent burst of attention to troubles with many comments left on science and science news/communication websites. Read “Online science comments: trolls, trash and treasure.”
The authors of the Retraction Watch comments policy urge commenters:
We”re also concerned about anonymous comments. We ask that all commenters leave their full name and provide an actual email address in case we feel we need to contact them. We may delete any comment left by someone who does not leave their name and a legitimate email address.
And, as noted, product pitches of any sort – pushing treatments, tests, products, procedures, physicians, medical centers, books, websites – are likely to be deleted. We don”t accept advertising on this site and are not going to give it away free.
The ability to leave comments expires after a certain period of time. So you may find that you’re unable to leave a comment on an article that is more than a few months old.
You might also like